Like half of America, I binged the Netflix show “Bridgerton” like it was a drug. People talked about watching an episode a day, sometimes even two. Me? I watched the entire season in the same curled up position on my bed for hours straight. So obviously, just like with any other book or series you’re so invested in, once I’d watched the entire show, I no longer knew what to do with my life… And then, as I lay there scrolling through my Instagram feed, I saw someone post a list of books that one should read after watching Bridgerton. Now I don’t know if this was the FBI tracking my thoughts and helping me out or just the fact that there are quite a few people with similar brains as mine who were dealing with this same problem, but I now had a list of books I couldn’t wait to get my hands on. The first book on that list was – you guessed it – Beautiful Wild by Anna Godbersen. And my, do I have quite a few thoughts…
Let’s just start with the cover of this novel. It’s quite breathtaking, don’t you think? It really gives off the Bridgerton vibe with the flow-y gown. This was actually the first time I actually read a novel by author Anna Godbersen so I really had no idea what I was in for. I think I was quite pleasantly surprised.
The plot basically revolves around the young lady Vida who has had her own share of adventures. She has two sides, like every other coin. One that she shows her parents and her high-society friends. Ans the other that comes alive when she sneaks out at night and spends her time making fantastically thrilling new memories with strangers. What Vida does not account for, though, is her parents (along with all society) finding out about her adventures. Now Vida must find a suitable husband for herself before matters get to out of hand and she may have to remain a spinster for the rest of her life. As a result of this, Vida and her parents embark on a ship, hoping that Vida can catch the eye of the eldest Farrar son and score a proposal. Ill luck seems to follow Vida onto the ship as well and she soon finds herself stranded, with a handful of other passengers, on an island in the middle of the vast ocean. As Vida learns to fend for herself, she realizes that her initial dreams now seem worthless to her and she eventually grows as an individual who now sees the bigger picture. In this process though, she must also make a decision – to make rational decisions or to give in to her heart’s desires.
Okay, now tell me this doesn’t remind you of Bridgerton! This book had everything – ballrooms, suitors, proposals, frantic mothers, and a whole lot of high-society drama. As soon as Vida got on that ship, got major Titanic feels and I just knew that there was going to be a shipwreck. One thing that I think I did not appreciate so much was how open-ended the end of the novel was. Like, I get how the author wanted it to remain a mystery – what actually happens – but I really wanted her to find her happy ending. Now that I think about it though, perhaps that was Vida’s happy ending after all and that she was not tied down to any single person. Hmmm…that actually makes sense now. Anyway, I found myself really liking Godbersen’s writing style – I might just check out some of her other books as well and them to my ever-growing TBR. I’m glad that I picked out this book as my first read of the year since I am now off to a good start!
Stars I’d give to this book: 4/5
– Just Another Magical Soul
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