Outside of a Dog: Kate Nepveu's Book Log

I bought a Palm Z22 recently, and its software bundle had some sample e-books, including Julia Quinn's The Duke and I. This reminded me that I'd gulped down a number of Quinn's books some months ago, and then left them in a desk drawer at work and never bothered to log them. So I dug out The Duke and I and re-read it during a wait at the car dealership.

Possibly I should have re-read it some other time, because while there's nothing actively wrong with it, I spent most of my time noticing the ways in which the author contrived to get the characters together and then apart: pretending to be involved for practical purposes; a forced marriage; a big secret; an irrational fear. This is the first of Quinn's series about the eight Bridgerton siblings, and as I recall each book stands alone fairly well (in contrast to James' Four Sisters series, which I suspect of extending one sister's plot over several volumes, and what is it about Regencies and sibling series these days?). Since this one lost its charm for me on a re-read, I may not bother with the rest, and just bring them home and shelve them—except perhaps for the fourth (Romancing Mister Bridgerton, and how I wish romance novels had better titles), which I recall as being a nice story about working at friendship and at writing.