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What Happens in London (Bevelstoke Book 2) by [Julia Quinn]

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Julia Quinn

What Happens in London (Bevelstoke Book 2) Kindle Edition

by Julia Quinn (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

3,831 ratings

Book 2 of 3: Bevelstoke

Goodreads Choice Award nominee

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Rumors and Gossip . . . The lifeblood of London

When Olivia Bevelstoke is told that her new neighbor may have killed his fiancée, she doesn't believe it for a second, but, still, how can she help spying on him, just to be sure? So she stakes out a spot near her bedroom window, cleverly concealed by curtains, watches, and waits . . . and discovers a most intriguing man, who is definitely up to something.

Sir Harry Valentine works for the boring branch of the War Office, translating documents vital to national security. He's not a spy, but he's had all the training, and when a gorgeous blonde begins to watch him from her window, he is instantly suspicious. But just when he decides that she's nothing more than an annoyingly nosy debutante, he discovers that she might be engaged to a foreign prince, who might be plotting against England. And when Harry is roped into spying on Olivia, he discovers that he might be falling for her himself . . .

Print length

385 pages
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English
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On Kindle Scribe
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HarperCollins e-books
Publication date

June 22, 2009
File size

602 KB
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“In order of rank, beneath royalty, of course, there are dukes and duchesses, marquesses and marchionesses, earls and countesses, viscounts and viscountesses, and finally, barons and baronesses.” She paused. “Then baronets and their wives, but they are considered part of the gentry.”
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Because people weren’t meant to be alone. And they weren’t meant to be scared. Or feel small. And they shouldn’t have to count how many times something bad happened, and they shouldn’t worry that it might happen again.
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“You exist,” he said, his voice deepening with desire. “Ergo, I need you.”
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About the Author

With tens of millions of copies in print, #1 New York Times bestselling author Julia Quinn has been called “Smart, funny,” by TIME Magazine. Her novels have been translated into 35 languages and are beloved the world over. A graduate of Harvard and Radcliffe Colleges, she lives with her family in the Pacific Northwest.

Look for Bridgerton, based on her popular series of novels about the Bridgerton family, on Netflix.

--This text refers to the mass_market edition.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B001NLKS8O
Publisher ‏ : ‎ HarperCollins e-books; Original edition (June 22, 2009)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ June 22, 2009
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 602 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 385 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #41,049 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #78 in Read & Listen for $14.99 or Less
- #116 in American Historical Romance (Kindle Store)
- #175 in Read & Listen for Less

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Julia Quinn

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#1 New York Times bestselling author Julia Quinn loves to dispel the myth that smart women don't read (or write) romance, and in 2001 she did so in grand fashion, appearing on the game show The Weakest Link and walking away with the $79,000 jackpot. She displayed a decided lack of knowledge about baseball, country music, and plush toys, but she is proud to say that she aced all things British and literary, answered all of her history and geography questions correctly, and knew that there was a Da Vinci long before there was a code. Ms. Quinn is one of only sixteen members of Romance Writers of America's Hall of Fame, her books have been translated into 29 languages, and she currently lives with her family in the Pacific Northwest.

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4.6 out of 5

3,831 global ratings

5 star		69%
4 star		22%
3 star		8%
2 star		1%
1 star		1%

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Oilwithkaylamarie

Wow so good.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on January 25, 2023

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I was quite surprised at how taken I was with this book. And the knowledge in this book of Russian was quite fantastic. Definitely a good read can't wait for the next book.

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Meerkat

I saw it in the window....

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 10, 2009

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I read this book last night. Overall, I thought it was charming and a fun, light read. While I did not *love* it, I did enjoy it in spite of myself. Why do I say in spite of myself? After I read the first few chapters, I found I did not like the heroine (Olivia) at all. I found her to be shallow, childish, and a little less than intelligent (she likes to read the paper, therefore the reader must conclude she is smarter than people give her credit for? Sorry, no. Many of her actions refute that assumption). And while I never completely warmed to her character, I began to like her a little more through her conversations with others. The banter between Olivia and her twin, Winston, was fun, and several of her conversations with the hero, Harry, had entertaining moments as well. The device used to put the hero and heroine together was a little on the thin side, but once they were thrown into each other's company, some of the situations were charming and well...cute (the conversations between windows, plotting against each other while remaining ever so polite, the growing friendship, etc). The initial conversations between Olivia and Harry were a little anemic, but they eventually developed into some truly witty exchanges.

There were a few things that stopped me from enjoying this title as much as most of Julia Quinn's other books. This is petty, but I am getting tired of the over use of the phrase "I will kill you!" No, I am not taking an anti-violence stance, but having recently re-read some of Quinn's titles, I have noticed that several times (in each novel) a character says this phrase (or a very similar variation). There has got to be another phrase that can exhibit frustration and anger. I am tempted to pull out all of Quinn's novels and turn it into a drinking game (Anthony is saying "I will kill you" to Kate - take a drink...Anthony is saying "I will kill you" to Colin - take a drink...Olivia is saying "I will kill you" to Winston - take a drink...Harry is saying "I will kill you" to Sebastian - take a drink...you get the idea).

Then there is Sebastian. His character is funny and entertaining, but he seemed to have a flashing neon sign that said "I am the hero of the next novel!" There was a great deal of attention paid to him, considering he was a secondary character. At the beginning of the story, it almost felt like we were getting more background on Sebastian than we were for Olivia. We already know he acts like a dandy, but is actually quite shrewd (doing a little work for the War Office, perhaps?) He is a would-be heir who has vast knowledge of gothic novels (does he write them under a pseudonym in order to offset his lack of income?). The character is wonderful, but every once in a while, it seemed like the title of the book should have been "What Happens in London With Sebastian". At times, his presence eclipsed the main characters.

As others have mentioned, there are a few parts of the story that just seem to get left hanging. The Prince seems to turn into a different person from one moment to the next. What about Edward? He is angry and following in the footsteps of their father, but after one angry, drunken outburst, he is suddenly at ease and the relationship between he and Harry is "fixed"? What about Anne? Does Harry get to know her and her family again now that he's happy with Olivia? I missed it. Is Harry's mother dead? Is she still sitting in the family home, devoid of any emotion (staring at a wall, presumably) And if she isn't dead, did Harry (or his siblings) reconcile with her? If there isn't going to be a wrap up of these relationships, why bother to mention them in the first place? After all, Anne, Edward, and their mother helped make Harry's character what it is at the beginning of the novel. Does Harry cut them off because he has a happy life with Olivia? Is there contact....what? Most of the "hanging" storylines could be wrapped up in a few sentences. Is it possible there was an epilogue that was accidentally left out when the book went to print?

Am I sorry I read this title? No. If fractions of stars could be given as ratings, I would have given "What Happens in London" three and half to three and three quarters stars, but it isn't possible, so I rounded up to four. Would I recommend this book to others? Sure. It isn't stellar, but there were enough fun moments to make it worth the read.

P.S. Although I was told that publishers insist on trailers for a lot of books, I still maintain that the trailer for this book posted on Amazon is lame. That poor young woman (who I'm sure is talented - no insult is intended to her) looks nothing like the character Olivia is described to be (IMO).

5 people found this helpful

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Suzy

A Gift

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on December 7, 2022

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I started reading the Bridgertons. I went through the prequels and sequels . I have enjoyed each and every one,but, this was just the best. It's a lovely gift of humor, love a little intrigue and happy endings. Thank you Julia Quinn, I want more

One person found this helpful

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Gina M. Freeman

My favorite Julia Quinn novel

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on December 7, 2022

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This trilogy is my absolute favorite books by Julia Quinn. They are funny and the characters are multidimensional. I have read all of her books several times, and I like the Bridgerton, but this one has them all beat.

One person found this helpful

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Jackie Roberson

Great quality and on time

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on December 9, 2022

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As listed and in good condition

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A perfect book for light summer reading.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 1, 2009

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There are many current authors of historical romance who would not have been able to keep the tight rein needed on this book to prevent it from turning into awful melodrama. Thankfully Ms. Quinn never allowed it to nose dive off into that yawning chasm of embarassing silliness. It is a light, warm, funny book but it does have some serious moments, just not moments of the dark, brooding rogue hero type.

The prologue is unusually long (22 pages) and gives the reader a wonderful knowledge of Harry's life between the ages of 12 and 19. After I read that I just wanted to put my arms around him and pat him on the back. If you don't find yourself feeling the same, I will be shocked. Sir Harry Valentine has just completed a ten year stint in the Army with his cousin Sebastian Grey. Harry is unofficially attached to the War Office because of his fluency in the Russian language. He does translations for them. He doesn't want to be a spy, in fact he isn't a spy, but he is still assigned to watch the Russian Prince Alexei Gomarovsky since not only is Harry fluent in Russian, he also has access to all of the society events Prince Alexei is sure to attend. Now if Harry could just figure out why his neighbor's daughter, Lady Olivia Bevelstoke, has been spying on him from her window for the past five days.

Lady Olivia just does not believe the gossip which is making its way around the elite of the ton. Sir Harry could not have murdered his fiancee, could he? She has seen him do some odd things while she's been watching his study from her bedroom window, but murder? Impossible.

One of the things I enjoyed so much about this book is that both Harry and Olivia are such warm, funny, down to earth people. Ms. Quinn has made Olivia that darling of romance writers, the breath taking beauty, but she has added much more to this character. Olivia is quirky, funny, stubborn, opinionated, and doesn't always think before she makes comments. She isn't a feisty modern type heroine, just a young woman who gets into mischief because she doesn't have enough to occupy her time. Harry is loving and kind but he is also the type of hero who doesn't take center stage in most gatherings. He is the one who works in the background and gets things done. The only items in this book which I really did not enjoy were the lists Olivia made. Very often they seemed to lead absolutely nowhere and, in my opinion, did not accomplish anything. She was making these lists mentally and usually not paying attention to the conversations around her. When recalled to the present she appeared scatterbrained and not very intelligent. I'm still puzzling over the necessity of having the lists in the novel.

This is a sweet, funny, interesting book and I do recommend it to both old and new fans of Julia Quinn. It is definitely the perfect book for light summer reading. According to the notice in the back of this book we are going to have to wait until the summer of 2010 to read Sebastian Grey's story. That's a long time to wait.

5 people found this helpful

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Randal

they hate each other

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on February 11, 2018

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When Sir Harry Valentine moves in next door to the Bevelstokes, Olivia is intrigued by local gossip (that he murdered his fiancée) and sets out to spy on him--exceptionally ineptly, causing initial friction between them. (Let's be honest, they hate each other.) Harry knows a bit about spying, having joined the Hussars with his dashing cousin, Sebastian, survived the Peninsular Campaign, and moved on to working for the War Office. True, it's the boring part of the War Office since he's mostly translating Russian documents for them (thanks to his grandmother he speaks the language fluently) but he rather enjoys the quiet life. However when he gets instructions to spy on a Russian prince who has shown a marked interest in Miss Bevelstoke, things get interesting. Julia Quinn has given us an interesting hero with an intriguing family backstory which has given him the odd hangup. There's a plot (besides the romance) which works well and a terrific proposal scene. This is the followup to The Secret Diaries of Miranda Cheever. Julia Quinn is always worth reading. There's witty dialogue, a lot of humour, high excitement and the obligatory sex scene (which she writes well).

One person found this helpful

Laurajojo

Loved it, especially Harry

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on June 7, 2014

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This has got to be one of my favourite JQ books and I think that Harry is probably one my favourite of her heroes. I like that he is not a rake as so many of her men are but he is still witty. He is also kind hearted and intelligent. At first I thought that Olivia would not be the sort of girl to interest him, that he would be more suited to someone with more about her. But there is more to the Oliva we met in "The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever" and she turns out to be the perfect match. I loved that there was no inequality like in so many of her books, when it usually seems the woman falls in love first. Harry and Olivia hate each on sight, then actually grow to respect each other and fall in love almost at the same time. It was nice that they didn't come together until they were in love as well. I bugs me a little that with most JQ books the man more often than not just desires the woman rather than loves her the first time they make love.

I also love that this book actually had more of a plot as well, not just the romance and it was full of laugh out loud humour. I couldn't wait to find out what happens next.

Finally I loved the gothic novel "Miss Butterworth and the Mad Baron" got a mention again. I think I would actually like to read this crazy book, killer pigeons and all!

Also has my favourite JQ lines when Harry says to Sebastian:

'You scream like a leettle girl.' to which Sebastian asks

'Is there any reason you're saying that with a German accent?'

lol!

6 people found this helpful

Wendy

Slow start

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on December 18, 2022

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This didn't really get going for me until about a quarter way through, then it picked up and was another great read with lol moments. Absolutely loved Harry, he did not disappoint. The only missing thing as with the first in this series, there was no epilogue and the ending left you wanting a bit more.

Book Gannet

Secrets, Spies and a Russian Prince - Oh My!

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on July 16, 2009

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They say he killed his fiancé. Lady Olivia Bevelstoke doesn't know who 'they' are exactly, nor does she believe it for a moment, but she's always been curious. And Sir Harry Valentine does spend an inordinate amount of time in his study. Acting peculiarly.

Fluent in both French and Russian, Sir Harry works for the boring part of the War Office, because despite spending years in the Hussars fighting Napoleon he'd rather translate documents than become a spy. But fluent Russian speakers are hard to come by in London, so when a Russian prince arrives - under suspicion regarding his motives and loyalty - Harry is the obvious choice to keep an eye on him.

It just so happens that Olivia is Harry's neighbour - but that doesn't explain why she's spent the best part of a week spying on him. When the prince starts showing marked interest in Olivia, Harry soon gets every chance to find out. Whether he wants to or not.

JQ is back on form with this delightful tale of rumours, suspicion and the amusing consequences of jumping to conclusions. Olivia is a true JQ heroine, with wonderful quirks - like her mental list making - and Harry is an intelligent hero, who is refreshingly comfortable with himself and his emotions. There's no self-delusion for him.

As lovely as their burgeoning relationship is, however, what makes this special is the wit, the ludicrous situations and fabulous supporting characters. Only JQ could have two characters court convincingly out of the windows of two separate houses, with ten feet between them. Or write more than one brilliant drawing room scene - though Sebastian definitely steals the show in the second.

A glorious return to form, complete with princes, badly written gothic novels and one of the best proposal scenes I've ever come across. This follow up to The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever is an absolute winner. Can't wait for Seb's tale.

8 people found this helpful

ROMANCE JUNKIE

falling in love again

Reviewed in the United Kingdom 🇬🇧 on August 17, 2009

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This book is a revelation as it is so well written & so very light, frothy & humerously balanced. Why does it work so well is because both the main characters are thrown together & so begins this incident of errors. Harry works for the war office & part of his job is to translate documents from Russian to English & enter Olivia who has just acquired him as her neighbour & rumour has it that he had murdered his fiance.
She spies on him from her bedroom window whilst he is in his drawing room office & he pretends that he does not know that she is there.
What these 2 go through, their thoughts, their initial hatred of each other, their growing attraction & the characters (especially Sebastian that add credence to the storyline) that round off this novel is brilliantly executed.
What is so sweet about this modern day Jane Austen type novel ( there is no resemblance to the story so do not please be discouraged to buy this book) in style of writing is the feelings that slowly develope & bud into strong emotion. Julia Quinn has her own unique style but she has a lot of passion in developing the characters & the subtle story line that then leaves the reader with a spring to their step.
Loved the highs & lows to their growing feelings for each other to the climax when Olivia realises that she has not known Harry at all well & is shocked to realise that she had placed all her trust in this one person & feels that she has been misguided. This particular scene was really well written without going overboard.
Rounded off again with a nice romantic humourous touch. Loved it immensely.

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