A Night Like This

I’ve been reading a lot of romance books. Hers have a fun plot, comedy and I absolutely love how she writes her characters. I’ve read all the Bridgertons, Rokesbys, and now I’m working my way through the Smythe-Smiths.

I just adore Julia Quinn's romances. I have yet to finish one that didn't leave me with a smile on my face as I closed the last page. A Night Like This is no different. Daniel Smythe-Smith has been on a self-imposed exile to the Continent for three years after accidentally shooting his good friend, crippling him for life, and causing his friend's father to threaten his life. But after his friend, Hugh (who will be the hero in the next book of this series), finds him to let him know that Daniel is no longer in danger, Daniel returns to his home on the night the infamous Smythe-Smith musicale. He sees his cousins' governess, Anne, fumbling away at the piano and is immediately smitten. Anne is a governess with a mysterious past, one that she does not wish to share. She has had her own eight year exile, but this was an exile that was forced on her by her family and the family of her neighbor after a horrible event when she was sixteen. What follows after Daniel and Anne meet that night is a super sweet romance where friendship is formed and the demons of the past are exorcised.What I loved:Daniel and Anne. I loved these two characters. Daniel was so amazingly perceptive, understanding when Anne needed to talk and understanding when she needed to keep things inside. He was patient and willing to wait for her to be ready to share her history and her struggles with him. He could sense the moments that unnerved her in some way, and he was always careful to protect her in any way that he could, physically and emotionally. Anne had grown up as a somewhat spoiled and egotistical girl, focused on getting whatever she wanted. She was a beautiful girl used to getting attention, but after the tragedy of her sixteenth year she grew and changed into a caring woman with charm and wit. I loved her interactions with Daniel's cousins. But the best part of these two characters were their interactions with each other. There was an ease to their conversations that made their growing friendship obvious. Even though the two of them were physically beautiful, this relationship did not seem founded on purely physical attraction. It was clear that they were friends first, and I loved that.What knocked this down a star:I'm not a huge fan of melodrama in my historical romances. And this story had a huge dose of melodrama at the end. George was just so ridiculous as a villain. Sure, I understand how his scarring would have upset him. I can even see how he might hold an eternal grudge against Anne because of it. Every day that he looked in the mirror he would be reminded of what she had done ... even though it was his own fault that it happened. But (without spoiling anything) his choices at the end of this novel were absolutely over the top. He didn't need to be so melodramatically villainous. He would have been a much more interesting villain if he were not quite so maniacal. If he had been given even an ounce of layer to his personality and not simply portrayed as the 100% bad guy I would have loved to see how Daniel and Anne work to overcome the problems associated with him. As written, he was just just another cardboard cutout of a villain, set in the story simply as a means of showcasing the great love the hero and heroine have for one another.But, having said that, this is still another great Julia Quinn romance. It is a fast read that left me happy in the end. I can't wait to read Hugh's story. He fascinates me as a character. Four stars for this one!

This is a truly romantic and delightful new addition to the Smythe-Smith series that really has me looking forward to future installments, where, dare I hope, this expands beyond just the Smythe Smiths based on the fantastic supporting characters of this book. Although there are a few loose ends that I would have liked to have seen wrapped up, this is one of my favorites of Ms. Quinn's in a while, with the right amount of romance, tension, and suspense.Daniel Smythe-Smith has been running from a terrible mistake of his youth and at last has returned. After engaging in a drunken duel with his friend, Hugh, and accidentally shooting him, he had been in hiding from Hugh's angry father who vowed to kill him for over three years, but a recovered Hugh tracks him down and brings him home. His arrival could not be better timed than for the night of the infamous Smythe-Smith musicale where Daniel meets his cousin's stunningly beautiful governess, Anne Wynter. Daniel is nothing less than smitten and although he should be spending time catching up with his estate and family matters, he ends up launching a personal campaign to learn everything he can about the elusive Ms. Wynter who is clearly running from mistakes of her own.There is much fun, laughter, heartache, and touching moments throughout the story as we see these two wonderful people falling for one another amidst betrayal and a clan of young energetic and endearing children, but danger is lurking around the corner and we're not exactly sure where it's coming from. The ending was fast paced and action packed, but I would have enjoyed learning more about what happens after the H/h end up together. It was great to see family and friends pull together to keep one another safe, but I had higher hopes of seeing Anne's family interactions and especially her triumph, but that disappointingly didn't happen. Still, it is a great story by a great writer and you won't be disappointed.

Great book .. Anne has been on the run and finally gets a good position as governess for the Pleinsworths girls. There she meets Daniel Smythe-Smith the Earl of Winstead. when her last comes back to haunt her she might have a savior in Daniel. Good book

'A Night Like This' is the second audiobook of The Smythe-Smith series by Julia Quinn.Daniel Smythe-Smith, newly returned from exile in Europe, arrives back in England on the night of the annual Smythe-Smith Musicale. He is amazed to find the beautiful and breathtaking, but unknown Governess of his cousins taking part in the musicale.Anne Wynter has her secrets and a past that she'd like to forget, but for the first time in many years, her heart has started to beat faster and she feels the pull and connection to Daniel, but she cannot risk her position as a Governess for anyone.A forbidden, cross-class romance. I was engaged and entertained from the very beginning of this audiobook. The author is a master of creating brilliant characters and excellent stories. This book is witty and charming, but also had some darker and nefarious characters who brought tension and jeopardy to the story. I found the two main characters to be charming, delightful, and likeable.This audiobook has lively dialogue, an enjoyable plot, and characters who have a sparkle and a frisson together. Amazing narration from Roselyn Landor really brought the different characters to life for me.

äh, in Büchern, natürlich - ich spreche nicht von den jungen Damen, denen man zum Glück nicht mit den eigenen Ohren lauschen muss, sondern nur in der Vorstellung (und glaubt mir, ich habe jahrelang immer mal wieder einem 'ach so begabten' Kind beim 'Geige spielen' zugehört; das, was für eine liebende Mutter 'so talentiert' klingt und vielleicht sogar ist, gemessen am Alter, ist für Außenstehende kopfschmerzerzeugend!) - ich leide mit. Mit Anne haben wir allerdings eine Protagonistin, die ungewollt den Klavierpart übernimmt und uns die Seite der Musikantinnen glaubhaft schildern kann.Sehr amüsant.Und in diesem Fall ist der Rest der Handlung überaus spannend, weil es einen Bösewicht gibt (und es ist nicht der, den man erwartet!)Sehr empfehlenswert!

Ein wunderbares, romantisches, heiteres, aufregendes Buch von der ersten bis zur letzten Seite....Besonders genossen habe ich dass Frau Quinn anscheinend Recherche betrieben hat und deshalb neue Orte und Begebenheiten einführt - eine sehr willkommene Abwechslung zu den eher gleichen Szenerien der letzten Bände (Gunter's, anyone?)Zeitlich ist das Buch fast deckungsgleich mit dem ersten Band der Serie. Ann Wynter ist Gouvernante bei der Familie Pleinworth, Cousins der Smythe-Smths, wohlbekannt durch ihre quälenden musikalischen Darbietungen im jährlichen Musicale. Als eine der vier Teilnehmerinnen des Quartets "erkrankt", springt sie zähneknirschend ein, flüchtet sofort nach dem Ende der Darbietung von der Bühne und versucht dem Rampenlicht zu entkommen als sie auf Daniel, Earl of Winstead trifft. Dieser ist gerade zurückgekommen von mehreren Jahren des Exils nachdem er (es war ein Unfall!!!) beinahe seinen Freund erschossen hätte und dessen Vater ewige Rache schwor. Nun hat der Freund den Vater überredet Abstand zu nehmen so dass der Rückkehr Daniels nichts mehr im Wege steht. Doch obwohl sich Ann und Daniel voneinander angezogen fühlen weiss Ann dass sie keine Zukunft haben, denn sie trägt ein dunkles Geheimnis mit sich....Trotz der eher düsteren Rahmenbedingungen ein sehr amüsantes Buch, dass ich vor allem deswegen so gerne mochte weil es nicht nur um Schönheit, Reichtum und Liebe ging (nicht NUR!) sondern die Autorin den Personen Raum ließ, Persönlichkeiten werden zu lassen. Das ist ihr bei Ann besser gelungen als bei Daniel, aber dennoch beweisen die beiden, dass sie ein tolles Paar sind, das aus zwei mutigen, extrem humorvollen, reifen und familienliebenden Personen besteht.Einziger Wermutstropfen sind ein paar ungeklärte Details am Ende des Buches, diese reichen aber längst nicht, um Punktabzug zu bringen.

It's the entertaining family that carries this otherwise standard romance between nobleman Daniel and his cousin's governess Anne. The first bit alone (a ghastly family concert) justifies the book price.Fleeing a terrifying past, Anne has finally found a position where she is safe and happy. The three Smith-Smythe girls adore her and there are no males relatives trying to grope the lovely governess in dark corners. Then nobleman Daniel returns from overseas and is captivated by Anne. It's a situation that could leave her dismissed and homeless. The book describes the (hopefully) historical practise of shaming women who have been molested. Luckily there is enough humour in the three students, their arguments and a truly bad play, to provide fun as well as compelling reading.

I liked that the whole story of why Daniel had to flee to Europe was finally revealed - I adored Daniel and Anne - but I really liked Harriet and Francesca and all the craziness that those two young ladies could get up to. I didn’t quite figure out everything with the nutcase who wanted to kill Anne - like why he was going to Australia and what will happen to his wife - but maybe that's just me trying to solve all the world problems.