Historical romances have been my guilty pleasure since high school. Being raised in a very strict Christian home, I would sneakily borrow historical romance books from the library and hide them at the bottom of my backpack. I remember sitting at church with a book hidden between the pages of my Bible absolutely enthralled in the world of lairds, dukes and earls. Sorry not sorry.
Now, as an public and proud reader of historical romance, I am SUPER excited to share my love of these booked with everyone. Thankfully, the Netflix gods and Shonda Rhimes have also blessed us with Bridgerton Season 2 coming out on March 25, 2022. Here’s hoping there will be a Season 3 and 7 as well since those were my favourite stories!
To get you hyped to once again be part of the ton, I have compiled a list of 5 of my favourite historical romances:
1. Just Like Heaven by Julia Quinn
Following Honoria Smythe-Smith from the Smythe-Smith Quartet, this book takes place in 1825 – significantly after Bridgerton Season 1 and sometime along the same timeline as Bridgerton #7: It’s in His Kiss.
The story is about a horrible violinist who falls in love with her older brother’s best friend. He only sees her as his friend’s little sister… until goes through puberty – pretty much the love story you WISH you experienced but didn’t! This is actually one of my all-time favourite historical romances and I often find myself re-reading this book when I’m looking to feel warm and gooey on the inside.
2. Devil in Winter (Wallflowers #3) by Lisa Kleypas
The marriage of convenience trope in historical romance is similar to contract marriages in KDrama/CDramas but when written well, it is highly entertaining. The idea that you could marry a stranger and slowly fall in love with them is just soooooooo…. dreamy! Unrealistic and very much not recommended because if there is anything I’ve learned from 90 Day Fiancé its: Don’t marry a stranger. But still, dreamy on paper. Kind of like Andrew Garfield. Dreamy. What was I talking about again?
3. When Beauty Tamed the Beast (Fairy Tales #2) by Eloisa James
Is it too cheesy to call this a tale as old as time? If it is, welp, I did it and it’s my blog so I can do whatever I want!
This series is a historical romance retelling of classic fairy tales. Personally, I loved the banter and dialog between these two characters. Their love-hate relationship was super cute and had the right amount of snark.
4. The Perks of Loving a Wallflower by Erica Ridley
An LGBTQ Historical romance that checks all of the boxes for a thrilling adventure. Clever and charming Thomasina Wynchester is a master of disguise who helps people through her detective services. She is hired to unveil a top-secret military cipher covering up an enigma that goes back centuries. While working on the case, she falls for her client, the beautiful Philippa York. Together, they set out to decode a manuscript while being chased by an evil villain.
5. Not The Kind of Earl You Marry by Kate Pembrooke
When a villain announces the fake engagement of William Atherton, Earl of Norwood and Charlotte Hurst in the morning newspaper, William and Charlotte decide they must continue the charade in order to save William’s political career and Charlotte’s reputation.
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I’m just dipping my toes into historical romance but I’ve seen Just Like Heaven around a lot. I think I need to pick that one up. I bought all the Bridgerton books after season 1 and still haven’t read them. lol
Also, I grew up in a very Christian home and had to hide all my books too. I borrowed a lot and my mom once found Harry Potter and took them away. I had to search for weeks to find them and give them back to my friends. LOL!
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