Just Like Heaven: Number 1 in series (The Smythe-Smith Quartet)

Books in this Series: About This Series Writing Just Like Heaven took a lot of research. Not of Mozart's Piano Quartet, No. 1 is indeed thought to be an extremely difficult piece and the Smythe-Smiths absolutely should not have attempted it.
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It's almost as if there was more but it got lost somewhere. In most of her books everything is seamless and funny and adorable. That being said, these are two of the best romantic hero and heroine of contemporary romance. There's something old-worldly about them and their love story and I don't mean in the historical sense, rather in the chivalrous knights of the Round Table kind of behaviour and silliness, especially from Marcus. This a lovely book. It is about how true love may sometimes be staring at you right in the face and you do not realize it until you fall into a hole and need to be rescued.

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Just Like Heaven

Get to Know Us. Enabled Average Customer Review: Would you like to report this content as inappropriate? Do you believe that this item violates a copyright? Read reviews that mention julia quinn like heaven bridgerton series hero and heroine honoria and marcus best friend historical romance marcus holroyd quinn books lady danbury brother daniel romance novels earl of chatteris laugh out loud highly recommend smythe-smith musicale really enjoyed historical romances main characters smythe-smith quartet.

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later. Kindle Edition Verified Purchase. Just Like Heaven is the first book in the Smythe-Smith quartet. Fans of Julia Quinn might recognize the Smythe-Smiths as the family who hosts annual musicales featuring infamously dreadful girls doing great injustice to classical music. The makeup of the performers has changed over the last twenty years, as members get married and resign their place on stage in favor of a younger sister or cousin. Honoria Smythe-Smith is one of the girls currently in the group.

Just Like Heaven (Smythe-Smith Quartet, #1) by Julia Quinn

She has grown up, and Daniel has asked Marcus to keep an eye on her and frighten away any unsuitable suitors. When Marcus injures himself due to something that Honoria did, she feels an obligation to help him recover. As she helps him recuperate, they both realize that there is something more than friendship between them.

I love nineteenth century England- from the Regency period to the Victorian era, I love it all. Honoria and Marcus are a delightful pair, and I really enjoyed how their feelings for each other developed over the course of the story. While Marcus was happy to scare away suitors, it never occurred to him that he was in love with Honoria. I would absolutely recommend Just Like Heaven. I would also point out that there are some romantic scenes in the book.

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I can't believe it's taken me this long to read a Julia Quinn book! It's been a while since I've immersed myself in a Regency Romance, and Just Like Heaven reminded me of all the things I love about the genre. The story centers on the developing romance between Lady Honoria Smythe-Smith Is that a great name, or what? They've known each other since childhood Marcus was best friends with Honoria's older brother, Daniel , and now as adults they're friendly, but not particularly close. That is until Honoria has her first season in London, and suddenly Marcus is lurking in ballrooms all over the city, frowning at her as she attempts to find a suitable husband.

Oddly, every suitor who pays court to her seems to suddenly lose interest. Honoria despairs of ever finding a man who will offer for her hand, and her continued single status means she has to play violin very badly in her family's annual musicale. The Smyth-Smith girls are relieved of this duty once they wed. A visit to a friend's home in the country exposes Honoria to an eligible gentleman and also leads to several run-ins with Marcus who lives nearby. How long will it take Honoria to realize that the perfect mate she's been searching for has been under her nose all along?

And when will Marcus stop thinking of Honoria as a child and embrace the beautiful, feisty woman she's become? This is an incredibly charming story, with likable leads who have chemistry right from their very first encounter. I loved Honoria and Marcus's sparring sessions and all the comedic bits early in the book. I will never be able to see the words "mole hole" again with chuckling.

I am a sucker for love stories where the two people have known each other forever and their feelings for each other sneak up on them. A scenario such as this takes up a good part of the middle section of the book and those chapters are quite compelling. I think it would be hard not to fall in love with someone under the circumstances in which Honoria and Marcus find themselves. Of course, they are parted and there are misunderstandings that lead to them questioning each other's motives and true feelings. But all is resolved in a satisfactory way and the book ended happily with the return of a character who will feature prominently in the next book of the series.

For me, this book was the perfect blend of comedy, romance, and drama. Witty dialogue enhanced the story, and I thought there was just the right amount of steam in the love scenes. I would highly recommend this book to fans of the Historical Romance genre. I am looking forward to reading the other books in this series! See all reviews. Though there could have been a few more steam scenes, the strong writing makes up for it and still keeps you turning those pages.

Some of the Bridgertons reappear which was nice to see too. A good start to a new and promising series. View all 14 comments. Feb 05, [Aengell] rated it it was amazing. This story was so enticing, charming, cute and romantic, that I felt all giddy inside. The main characters, Honoria and Marcus, were too sweet to be true, they had great chemistry but what I loved and I love this about every JQ book was the fact that they had a real relationship growing, they talked and interacted and were playful and in love, and my enjoyment was not clouded by heavy sexual scenes.

No, every time they touched felt like magic, just like it should be. Honoria as the heroine was quirky, funny, talking a little bit too much, but perfect in her own way. Marcus wormed his way straight to my heart with his aloofness, hiding his sweet and tender heart. He was the perfect beta-hero who showed off his macho-side in the end. Marcus, you can be shy all you want! I just can repeat myself: Jan 23, Jennifer rated it really liked it Recommends it for: Fans of Julia Quinn's Historicals. Marcus is the best friend of Honoria's older brother Daniel who is living in exile in Italy for reasons that are explained in the first few chapters.

Daniel and Marcus have been friends for years and Marcus has become a type of surrogate son f 4. Daniel and Marcus have been friends for years and Marcus has become a type of surrogate son for the Smythe-Smiths. Before Daniel left, he made Marcus promise to watch over Honoria and make sure she does not marry anybody unsuitable. Therefore, Marcus, despite his lack of interest in society, goes to London every year to keep an eye on Honoria.

What follows is a beautiful yet subtle tale of friends becoming lovers. Honoria and Marcus have known each other since childhood and are aware of quirks and personality traits. Honoria is an intelligent and kind young lady who values her family and their traditions. This viewpoint helps explain her willingness to go along with the family musicale despite her lack of talent. She knows she is bad, but is determined to have fun while performing for her family and friends. She also dreams of having a family of her own. As the youngest in her family, Honoria has always had a sense of loneliness especially after her brother's exile.


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Marcus's mother died when he was young and his father had little interest in his son beyond preping an heir. He had no siblings or even friends until he met Daniel Smythe-Smith at school. Because of Daniel, Marcus found the family he never had. Like Honoria, Marcus is a lonely person who desires a family of his own. Through a variety of comedic and dramatic events, Honoria and Marcus become close friends and begin to realize their feelings for each other.

I was particularly drawn to a scene where Marcus had fallen ill and Honoria strived to nurse him back to health. The intimacy of this event caused them to look at each other in a way beyond friends. In terms of secondary characters, we are introduced to the other members of the Smythe-Smith Quartet: Sarah, Iris, and Daisy. Each of these girls has a unique personality as well as unique viewpoint on the musicale.

I am definitely intrigued by Iris, the cellist who is actually talented, as well as the other girls. The whole Smythe-Smith family and their interactions with each other are fascinating and heartwarming. I cannot wait to read more about these girls and their happily ever afters. My favorite quote from this book is when Marcus is thinking about his relationship with Honoria and his dreams about that relationship: While it may sound simple and it is, I feel like Julia Quinn made it subtle yet powerful at the same time.

Another winner for Ms. Mar 01, Christine rated it really liked it Recommends it for: By sheer luck, I got an early copy of Just Like Heaven and immediately read it when I received it in the mail yesterday. And it was great! In the Bridgertons series, I always got the impression that the Smythe-Smith girls were a little boring and not But it turns out, they're just the opposite!

I had so much fun learning about Honoria Smythe-Smith and her family and the very, very large number of cousins. Geez, this family is big. Honoria and Marcus together are adorable and I love thei By sheer luck, I got an early copy of Just Like Heaven and immediately read it when I received it in the mail yesterday. Honoria and Marcus together are adorable and I love their scenes the most because of how they act around each other. You'll understand when you read the book.

My only complaint is parts of the book seemed to drag when Julia switched POVs between Honoria and Marcus and covered the same events for both. But whatever overlapped usually was summarized so it wasn't bogged down too much.

This book is classic Julia. It's fun, light, quirky and full of amusing wit and strong passions. I especially loved the Prologue. I want more from the Smythe-Smith girls. I really hope either Iris or Sarah is in the next book, or possibly Daniel. I think I've figured out who Daniel's story will contain and that will be very, very interesting, but it may need to develop more, so I can see Sarah or Iris being next. Now I must re-read the Bridgertons series in its entirety because the little hints and peeks at them in Just Like Heaven left me wanting to revisit my old friends.

The synopsis of this book on Goodreads is crap. I don't know why they used that synopsis when the one on the back of the book is so much better. Although, it does give a little of the plot away, so if you want to read what the actual book will have on the back, click here: D all of the above hide spoiler ] All of which are connected to each other. I mean, the concept from the beginning — the underlying theme, is lying reminder: First series I tried was the Rokesbys series, a prequel series to the Bridgertons series.

Most because I had to DNF one of them. Bridgertons being about, unless I confused myself, the generation of marriageable adults that came after the generation in Rokesbys. As in, the events in this series takes place during the same time period as the events in the Bridgertons series. This specific book here, chronologically, slides in-between book 7 and book 8 of the Bridgertons series.

Gregory and Colin make cameos in this book. Oddly, and I only really recalled it now — but Gregory got talked about a lot — invited to a party, was a member of that party, was talked about as a potential husband material. Colin, on the other hand, was never talked about — at all — yet had an important scene in the book. The very old woman who feels free to say whatever she wants, but whose name now escapes me Lady. Honoria Smythe-Smith is the lead female character and yes there are two points of views in this book.

So she both experiences a large family and. Father, though, gazed upon his son and found him intelligent enough and stuff. And had no desire to reenter the marriage market and heaven forbid actually deal with another wife. He was content with just the one child. Not that he talked much him until the kid was about 12, whereupon the kid was mostly off at Eton anyway — so father and son rarely saw each other.

Mother and son, while mother was alive, were also in favor of the stand-offish parenting style. The book begins with Marcus meeting Honoria and her family, through brother Daniel — and being, basically, made a member of their family. The actual story starts off with Honoria caught out in the rain in Cambridge, and being helped, temporarily, by an Earl — Marcus. Marcus and Honoria reconnect. Those who have read the Bridgertons series will recall that the Smythe-Smith put on music recitals — and that plays an important role in this book as well.

Well, it would have to since Honoria is a member of the performing quartet. He spends the book near Honoria. I rather enjoyed this book from, mostly, beginning to end. My word processor just died. Now I have to actually write in the box here on Goodreads. Though I was able to get the review up to now. Book was said to be funny. I didn't see it at first. But was funny, eventually. There's a medical issue that crops up - I liked how that was described and even found humor there.

As is somewhat normal, I kind of just skimmed along when the sex turned up - I do not, in general, enjoy reading the really long sex scenes this author writes, though there might occasionally be funny moments - more often there are. I liked the side characters, for the most part, especially Iris and Sarah from the Quartet. Though I had trouble telling the parents apart - Honoria's, Iris's and Sarah's were all of them there?

I'm not even sure, though I know. Neyse historical severlere tavsiye ederim: Proteger Honoria de um casamento infeliz, sem que ela o saiba. Sep 12, Ally72 rated it it was amazing Shelves: I think that expresses how I felt about this book. This is one of my favorite Julia Quinn books I have read and there have been some "hits and misses" for me and I cannot wait until the next book is released.

Just Like Heaven : Number 1 in series (Smythe-smith Quartet) -- Paperback [Paperback]

I would recommend this new series to anyone who enjoyed the Bridgerton books there are even a couple of Bridgerton family members that make an appearance in it Just Li I loved it! Just Like Heaven had all the fun qualities that make Julia Quinn's books unique. If you do not have a copy of it yet, run do not walk to go get it View all 15 comments. A really fun, light-hearted story. There's a bit of angst, but it's not too strong. Julia Quinn doesn't really do angst. But there are a lot of laughs and the chemistry between the two leads is excellent. I liked them both quite a bit and the developments seemed very organic.

It's a trope I like -- two people who've known each other since childhood -- so that was a plus as well. This book is set in the Bridgertons world and there's some overlap with "Romancing Mr. So now, of course, I A really fun, light-hearted story. So now, of course, I desperately want to reread that one. But it was fun to see familiar fleeting moments from a new point of view. Julia Quinn's Bridgerton series is a great favourite of mine and those who have read the series will be familiar with the Smythe-Smith quartet. For those readers who are unfamiliar with the Bridgerton books, the quartet of three sisters and a cousin gives an annual musical performance which can only be described as a discordant cacophony of sounds!

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So I was delighted to discover that Ms Quinn's new series features the young ladies of this quartet. Marcus Holroyd's childhood is a very unhappy one. His parents provide him with the best wet nurses, nannies and tutors but fail to give him what he really wants, their love and attention. Neither does he have any friends because the local children are either too young, too old, or lack the correct social standing.

At the age of twelve, he is sent to Eton, an event which will change his whole life. There he is befriended by Daniel Smythe-Smith and soon finds himself spending his holidays with the large and noisy Smythe-Smith family, something he relishes. Marcus is constantly plagued by Daniel's youngest sister, the six-year-old Honoria and over the years, they become close friends.

When Daniel is forced to flee to the continent, he makes Marcus now the Earl of Chatteris promise to keep an eye on Honoria to ensure she doesn't marry someone unworthy of her. Unforeseen events lead Honoria and Marcus to examine their true feelings for each other, but it will take the astute Lady Danbury, a certain Colin Bridgerton he of the famous charm and sparkling eyes , lucky red shoes and a heartfelt declaration before they finally admit their love for each.

Well this book is the ideal cure! It has no great conflict, no heartrending angst and no threatening villains but I loved escaping into the cosy world Ms Quinn has created with its enchanting friends-to-lovers story and appealing hero and heroine. I adore Marcus and Honoria because neither of them conforms to the typical hero and heroine you find in so many books. Marcus is not one of those drop dead gorgeous rakes whom every woman drools over. In fact, he's shy, not particularly handsome and hates being the centre of attention.

Honoria is very down to earth, honest, loves getting together with her cousins just to chat and longs for a husband, her own home and a big family. I found it easy to relate to them because they seemed so much like real people. Marcus's illness provides the impetus for them to recognise that their feelings for each other are something more than friendship. Some reviewers have complained that Ms Quinn devotes an inordinate amount of the book to Marcus's illness but I feel that these scenes are integral to the story because they reveal Honoria and Marcus's innermost thoughts about each other and move their relationship forward to the next level.

They also serve to highlight Honoria's single-mindedness and courage in the face of adversity. Ms Quinn also manages to blend in touches of her trademark humor as well. I love Honoria's chatter to Marcus, even though he can't hear her: Maybe something of a looser fit. It's not the style, I know, but perhaps you can set a new trend. Marcus's laudanum induced hallucination is also very funny: He might have slept for a bit.

He rather hoped he was sleeping, because he was quite certain he'd seen a six-foot rabbit hopping through his bedchamber, and if that wasn't a dream, they were in big trouble. I love how Ms Quinn emphasises the importance of family and friends, something that seems sadly missing in our 21stcentury society.

Marcus values his friendship with Daniel and the sense of family he finds with the Smythe-Smiths because he'd never experienced either before. For Honoria, family means everything, and although she knows how truly dreadful they are, upholding the tradition of the musical performance is very important to her. She regards her cousins as friends as well as family and loves the rehearsals because it gives her the opportunity to simply chat with them. Marcus and Honoria's first kiss seems a natural progression and in perfect harmony with the story. Honoria is so happy to see Marcus recovered that she's sobbing and naturally throws her arms around him and then: His eyes were warm, chocolaty brown and rich with emotion.

Something flared in their depths, something she didn't quite recognise, and slowly, ever so slowly, his lips dipped to meet hers. Ms Quinn doesn't do steamy but her scene is both tender and poignant with lovely touches of teasing between them. The Smythe-Smith Quartet themselves provide some really funny moments with their friendly bickering and it is a bonus to meet some familiar characters from the Bridgerton series including my favourite, Colin Bridgerton and the indomitable Lady Danbury.

I'm now looking forward to reading the other books in this series but will be sure to have my earplugs at the ready! The perfect piece of audio-fluff for when - as I am - you're laid up in bed with a stinking cold and can't read a book because it makes your eyes ache! It's classic JQ - light-hearted, with plenty of witty dialogue; and it contains one of my favourite tropes, the "friends-to-lovers" one. Lady Honoria has known Marcus Holroyd since she was a child. He's her big brother's best friend, the only child of an only child who has been given the best of everything in life - except familial life and affecti The perfect piece of audio-fluff for when - as I am - you're laid up in bed with a stinking cold and can't read a book because it makes your eyes ache!

He's her big brother's best friend, the only child of an only child who has been given the best of everything in life - except familial life and affection.