The Duke and I (Bridgerton Series, Book 1)

The Duke and I - Julia Quinn This book now ranks as one of the best historical romances I've read in quite some time. Daphne Bridgerton and Simon Basset, the Duke of Hastings, are interesting and appealing characters that made a good couple. I loved their relationship and banter and appreciated Quinn not trivializing the plot by creating silly tensions. The issues they dealt with were realistic and their responses true to character.The dialogue is fast paced and pithy, which I like. Daphne's brothers provided perfect comic relief and the family matriarch, Violet Bridgerton, was a blessed surprise. While the romance wasn't steamy, it was...romantic. I'm in for this series and cannot wait to start the next book. It's great that there are eight siblings for more stories.