2-3-4 Challenge discussion

Start date 9/11

Ok. I'm ready; checked out the book today.

I'll be ready.

Good, good. I'll be starting after my current read.

Just finished Forgotten in death.
I'll read a filler till were all ready. No hurry on my part.

I finished my read so I'm starting. No pressure. Whenever you want to start, go for it.

I will start this evening after work.

RL made that I could really read today.
Anyway I'll be starting tomorrow morning.
Midnight is not the time to start a new hook 😂

10 chapters in and I like it so far. The awkward, bumbling, insecure Philip and the outgoing, confident, up for a challenge Eloise. What a pair!

Amanda and Oliver are a handful. I like their cries for attention.

I’ve started and I am happy to say I am really enjoying it.

Okay. I'm starting now
A bit late to the party but I'm here. ☺

Michelle wrote: "Okay. I'm starting now
A bit late to the party but I'm here. ☺"

You aren’t late, I was early, but there was no way I could not start a book, and it wouldn’t have made sense to be a different book and well you know….

Laura it's just me. Somehow I didn't see you and Sharon discuss when we're starting. Then I saw your discussion thread and realised I missed something somewhere.

Anyway I sti haven't started. Had the best of intentions but a dear friend came round to visit. Oh well RL.

I finished. Eloise and Philip works for me. I love when all the brothers come riding into town. What a hoot!

I even liked the 2nd epilogue. Sweet father / daughter scene.

I finished as well. It really hooked me.
The brothers were hysterical.
Since no one even knew she was there, why the rushed wedding? I get they were protecting her reputation, but there wasn't even a scandal yet.

One thing that bugged me is the kids always stuck in their rooms. Why did they never eat together? The Bridgertons ate meals together didn’t they? Eloise never questioned it so I guess maybe not.

I think at that era, kids did eat in the nursery. I remember something in the St. Cyr series, I think it was, that children only came to the main dining room after a certain age.

Philip didn't have a good childhood as a foundation of what is right and wrong in raising children. I thought that was very sad.

Who do you think taught them to swim? Lol

My guess is the nurse they loved who left to take care of her mother.

Sharon wrote: "My guess is the nurse they loved who left to take care of her mother."

I forgot about her.

I just looked up children's home life during this period. Children were kept separate from adults for most of the day. The nurse sets the schedule that includes meals, outdoor activities, and education. In most households the nurse brings the children to meet the parents around 8 at night to spend time with them before bed. Not too much hands on parenting.

Around this time, the aristocracy began to rethink this schedule because most nurses were of a lower class and influenced the children too much.

Reading your comments I'm getting a Sound of music / the Von Trapp family vibe.

Sharon wrote: "I just looked up children's home life during this period. Children were kept separate from adults for most of the day. The nurse sets the schedule that includes meals, outdoor activities, and educa..."

Interesting but strange.

Michelle wrote: "Reading your comments I'm getting a Sound of music / the Von Trapp family vibe."

Yes in some ways very similar.

I think this one will make a great season of the show, if they stick to the book that is.

Me too Laura.

I pictured Reid from Criminal Minds as Phillip. Don’t as me why.

Laura wrote: "I finished as well. It really hooked me.
The brothers were hysterical.
Since no one even knew she was there, why the rushed wedding? I get they were protecting her reputation, but there wasn't eve..."

That is strange. I was expecting them to bring her back home. Her brother lives close, she could have said she was there.

Sharon wrote: "Laura wrote: "I finished as well. It really hooked me.
The brothers were hysterical.
Since no one even knew she was there, why the rushed wedding? I get they were protecting her reputation, but th..."

Eloise wanted time to be sure, they just wanted to get home to their wives.

True, especially Colin.

Okay. Finally I managed to start.

I had to chuckle when Eloise said she couldn't have her mother and Hyacinth be her chaperone. Her sister would be the death of any romance.

This is so sad. Postpartum depression. And depression as a whole. I suppose at that time people would really not have known about any of it and so many suffered that much more.

Michelle wrote: "This is so sad. Postpartum depression. And depression as a whole. I suppose at that time people would really not have known about any of it and so many suffered that much more."

Postpartum depression is horrible, and still misunderstood today I think.
Eloise talked later about her as a child being reserved, not wanting to play, never smiling and that something was “off”. I don’t recall talk of how she was with his brother. Was she happy then? Phillip it seems blames himself so maybe she was happy for a time? Then her fiancé dies, combined with PP depression , yes very sad. I think that storyline unclear.

I agree. It sounded like she had suffered with depression or some mental illness most of her life. The PP seemed to add to her problems.

I wondered if George made her happy too. He seemed to be the favorite and had a way with people. Also, because of their father, Phillip measured his worth against George. It is possible that Phillip was a little depressed himself in the beginning. He was settled as the second son with an academic career. When George died everything changed.

I also wondered why he married her to begin with. The father died right after the brother so it couldn’t have been pressure from him. Sense of duty?

I just rewatched part of the series.

Marina in the series was the girl that the Featherintons took in. The lady that almost married Colin to be the baby's daddy. Sir Philip did ask her to marry to do the honorable thing but she declined thinking she had miscarried.

Will be interesting to see how the series now does To Sir Phillip, with love.

It might have been a sense of duty Laura. Remember nobility didn't always marry for love. It could be seen as a contract between two families. So that light explain why he went through with the marriage.

And yes it seems that she was always depressed.

Michelle wrote: "I just rewatched part of the series.

Marina in the series was the girl that the Featherintons took in. The lady that almost married Colin to be the baby's daddy. Sir Philip did ask her to marry to..."

How observant of you I never connected that part of the show to this book. Very loose connection I must say.

This book makes me dislike Penelope and she didn’t even make an appearance. It’s like she got married and has a man so she doesn’t need Eloise any longer. Being supposedly best friends, why didn’t she come with Collin to give support etc. I get Eloise feeling jealous and abandoned actually. I get Eloise’s impulsiveness in running away to meet Phillip.

Since I had the box set I've started the next one.

Laura wrote: "Michelle wrote: "I just rewatched part of the series.

Marina in the series was the girl that the Featherintons took in. The lady that almost married Colin to be the baby's daddy. Sir Philip did as..."

Something made me watch the last episode. Otherwise I would have missed it myself.

Laura wrote: "Since I had the box set I've started the next one."

Great. Think I'll do the same.

Laura wrote: "I also wondered why he married her to begin with. The father died right after the brother so it couldn’t have been pressure from him. Sense of duty?"

I think it was a sense of duty since she was betrothed to his brother Philip didn't want to leave her stranded so to speak. Spinsters were looked down upon it seems.

Michelle wrote: "Laura wrote: "Michelle wrote: "I just rewatched part of the series.

Marina in the series was the girl that the Featherintons took in. The lady that almost married Colin to be the baby's daddy. Sir..."

Do you think this is the same person? I thought she was Eloise's cousin, why would the Featheringtons take her in? I need to watch this episode again.

Laura wrote: "This book makes me dislike Penelope and she didn’t even make an appearance. It’s like she got married and has a man so she doesn’t need Eloise any longer. Being supposedly best friends, why didn’t ..."

I agree. I was turned off Penelope in the last book, this one didn't make me change my mind. Eloise did name her daughter Penelope though. I guess they are still friends.

Michelle wrote: "Laura wrote: "Since I had the box set I've started the next one."

Great. Think I'll do the same."

Good, I’ll start a post.

Sharon wrote: "Laura wrote: "This book makes me dislike Penelope and she didn’t even make an appearance. It’s like she got married and has a man so she doesn’t need Eloise any longer. Being supposedly best friend..."

I didn’t get naming her daughter that, unless her getting married gave her the push to run to Phillip so she is giving her the credit for how it all turned out?

I made a post for the next book so whenever you both are ready. I figured I may as well keep going since I had the book. The holds fir me take forever. The next box set is 2 months out again. I’ve also started another book so you can catch up if you want to.

Laura wrote: "Sharon wrote: "Laura wrote: "This book makes me dislike Penelope and she didn’t even make an appearance. It’s like she got married and has a man so she doesn’t need Eloise any longer. Being suppose..."

In the first epilogue she writes a letter to her daughter Penelope at her birth.

I don't know if she is giving Penelope credit for Philip, but before the wedding, Philip asked her why she left London so quickly. He thought she had a lover. She told him about all the proposals she had and that Penelope had none. She explained about their plans to be spinsters together, then Penelope married Colin and she felt so alone which made her feel guilty for thinking of herself instead of being happy for Penelope.

From that I felt that she was still friends with Penelope even if they wouldn't live close.