• Bridgerton: The Duke and I

  • Bridgerton Family, Book 1
  • By: Julia Quinn
  • Narrated by: Rosalyn Landor
  • Length: 12 hrs and 9 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (301 ratings)

Pick 1 title (2 titles for Prime members) from our collection of bestsellers and new releases.
Access a growing selection of included Audible Originals, audiobooks and podcasts.
Your Premium Plus plan will continue for $14.95 a month after 30-day trial. Cancel anytime.
Bridgerton: The Duke and I  By  cover art

Bridgerton: The Duke and I

By: Julia Quinn
Narrated by: Rosalyn Landor
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $20.87

Buy for $20.87

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's Summary

The first novel in Julia Quinn's worldwide best-selling Bridgerton novels, now a series created by Shonda Rhimes for Netflix. This is the story of Daphne Bridgerton and the Duke: welcome to the ballrooms of Regency London.....

Can there be any greater challenge to London's Ambitious Mamas than an unmarried duke? Lady Whistledown's Society Papers, April 1813.

By all accounts, Simon Basset is on the verge of proposing to his best friend's sister, the lovely - and almost-on-the-shelf - Daphne Bridgerton. But the two of them know the truth - it's all an elaborate plan to keep Simon free from marriage-minded society mothers. And as for Daphne, surely she will attract some worthy suitors now that it seems a duke has declared her desirable....

Their ruse works like a charm - at first. But as Daphne waltzes across ballroom after ballroom with Simon, it's hard to remember that their courtship is a complete sham. Maybe it's his devilish smile, certainly it's the way his eyes seem to burn every time he looks at her. It wasn't the plan, but it seems she's falling for the duke, for real. And amidst the glittering, gossipy, cut-throat world of London's elite, there is only one certainty: love ignores every rule....

©2000, 2013 Julie Cotler Pottinger (P)2016 Recorded Books Inc

Critic Reviews

"The Duke and I is rich with author Julia Quinn's trademark humour and engaging dialogue.... Quinn just keeps getting better and better, a fact that's sure to delight readers." (Lois Faye Dyer)

"Light, pacy and full of feisty heroines." (Guardian on the Bridgerton series)

"Quinn is a master of historical romance." (Entertainment Weekly)

What listeners say about Bridgerton: The Duke and I

Average Customer Ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    186
  • 4 Stars
    84
  • 3 Stars
    22
  • 2 Stars
    5
  • 1 Stars
    4
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    199
  • 4 Stars
    46
  • 3 Stars
    10
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    2
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    152
  • 4 Stars
    68
  • 3 Stars
    26
  • 2 Stars
    11
  • 1 Stars
    3

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

captivating

I really loved this awesome price of work...it's soo much realistic like you're seeing a movie!. thanks Rosalyn Landor! I really and specially had no difficulty in listen through the whole time. you're a GEM Julia Quinn

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Loved it!

Loved it. The narrator is especially great. The conflict is resolved a bit too quickly, but otherwise it's great. Full of great, engaging characters.

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

watch Netflix and skip to book 2

great narrator but I think Julia Quinn's Bridgetown series got much better in the later books .book 1 has much fewer witty lines and complex plots. you are probably better off watching the netflix version of the story. better execution of the story line .

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Good read

Heartwarming story that makes you laugh. The Narrating is superb! Makes one want to read the other books on the Bridgeton clan.

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Smiled the whole way through

I loved this book. The characters are written very well and all have there own personalities. I was smiling and feeling embarrassed through out the book. How society has changed, how the everyday was so different, women couldn’t be out and about without an escort. I loved the storyline and how the relationship between the Duke and Daphne developed. The whole Bridgerton family was a hoot. It was very much worth a read.

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

happily Surprised

not what I normally listen to but I was pleased. Great narration by rosalyn Landor.

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great hear ! Loved it

Loved how it was read with such emotion I could picture every part of it I enjoyed it very very much

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

It is enjoyable

I liked it more than the Netflix series. However, the series helped me pictured all the characters.

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Thumbs up

I love the actions from Rosalyn, is so relaxing her voice. The story is great, easy to relax with

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Beautifull storyteller.

The story is so good, so romantic. You want to listen the whole book fast.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Stephen Sharpe
  • Stephen Sharpe
  • 08-12-20

Badly written but good story

These books are so badly written, you can tell from the first chapter that the author is writing about a period that she knows little about. The text is littered with 'Americanisms' and inaccuracies so if you are seriously into your period novels then this will wear thin. All of the lead female characters are bimbo's and airheads despite the author continually telling us they are intelligent, which is incredibly disappointing from a female author. If you are any kind of feminist then these books are not for you. HOWEVER I'm a sucker for romance and I just can't stop buying them. That probably says more about me than about the books.

104 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for MRS L
  • MRS L
  • 01-07-21

Utter Rubbish

One of the worst books I have ever read/listened to. I regret wasting a credit on it. Steer clear!

38 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Alison Jane Reid
  • Alison Jane Reid
  • 01-11-21

Not Shaken and Stirred. Rather Bored to Tears!

I'm a journalist working on a review of the Netflix adaptation of the Duke and I. The Netflix version has made a silk purse out of sow's ear. Large parts of this book are painfully tedious, dull and lacking any authenticity for the Regency period at all.

I have given up after less than an hour.

36 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Kristin
  • Kristin
  • 12-31-20

although not without fault, Netflix did it better

The style of narration is charming but that's about it. Events seem to be unrealistic and intimate scenes are tedious to suffer through. Usually the book tends to be better than any screen adaptation but in this case I have to say Netflix did it better. In the book there was a lot of attention placed on the comic or dramatic value of a moment but not as much on how that moment contributes to the plot and it's dramatisation.

34 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Eber Soler
  • Eber Soler
  • 09-29-19

Dropped out

I couldn't get past the first hour or so. The level of silliness of this story is incredible.

31 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Louize
  • Louize
  • 08-09-17

Utter load of tripe

Appallingly badly written. Dreadful delivery. Totally incorrect historically. Many errors in continuity. Example Daphnis daughters in one chapter have brown eyes and in the next have blue. In fact the book was so bad I'm returning it.

16 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Kash Jay
  • Kash Jay
  • 01-07-21

If you like Netflix version this might disappoint

I purchased this AFTER binge watching it on Netflix based on the articles I read that there are some story differences which would still keep it exciting enough.
Hands down the Netflix story is way better, characters come to life in more detail as well as the era through additional characters, the scenes, costumes, etc. I was quite disappointed how little description went into this within the book and it will keep me from reading/listening to the other Bridgerton Family books (until hopefully those will come to life through Netflix as well).
The experience is that the book is usually better than the film/series. Here it is the other way around. However, if you just want to indulge into this because you have watched it one too many times and have fallen in love with the Bridgerton family (not really any of the other characters which do get lost/don't exist within this book) I can recommend it as the differences to the Netflix storyline are great enough to keep it in interesting.

15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for G. P. Brown
  • G. P. Brown
  • 09-17-18

Good but not without flaws!

This was a romance with a lot going for it.
- The story was fun and packed with plenty of humour.
- Quinn's writing was engaging and sucked me in from the start.
-There was a few touching moments and it was easy to emotionally invest in the characters.
-The relationship between the Bridgerton family and the family dynamic made for plenty of amusing moments.

It was just hindered by a few annoying flaws.
-Loads of violence. Why is it so hard to find HR books where an inclination towards violence is not seen as an admirable trait?
-The presence of a scene with questionable levels of consent. I could have lived without this scene in the book and been more happy about it as it sort of tainted my enjoyment of the final stages of the story.

All in all I felt like this was more good than bad and I'll definitely move onto the next book in the series. Hopefully in that one Quinn works on eliminating the flaws and concentrating on the stuff that made this one good!

I feel like Rosalyn Landor is always a solid choice for historical romance novels and that she gave a great performance of this one.

9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Mrs. E. Weatherby
  • Mrs. E. Weatherby
  • 12-30-20

Trash, but could be worse

So, the writing was not good. all the reviews that say this is trash certainly have a point. The narration was cringe worthy at time but not helped by the terrible writing. Certainly not very accurate on the historic context, found it particularly funny when the author mentioned crowds at Greenwich in 1813! However, if you listen to it knowing full well it's a trashy light hearted novel and that's what you want, its not bad.

I have seen the first few episodes on Netflix and so far it seems much better than the book.

7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Rachel Reads
  • Rachel Reads
  • 05-07-19

Fabulous! first of the series

I loved this so well written and narrated.
Loved the sibling interactions, I can't wait to listen to the rest.

5 people found this helpful

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Aaymz
  • Aaymz
  • 08-31-20

Pride and Prejudice it is not

Though set in the same era as the Jane Austen classic it does not have the same charm or depth of story. Its best to not take this novel too seriously - I am British and you can tell that this was written by someone who definitely is not - so many little things really snapped me out of the story. I personally found the romance a bit forced and the characters rather cliché. It's a good book when you don't want to think too much - though I could have gone without reading it.

45 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Kitty
  • Kitty
  • 02-14-21

An overhyped slightly better-written Mills& Boon

TW sexual assault…
An overhyped slightly better-written Mills& Boon.
Read this out of curiosity, after watching the Netflix adaptation. (The adaptation did it better, despite adding a rape scene)
However, back to this carriage-wreck. Simplistically written story, trying to imitate Austen. Not too bad. The only absolutely egregious sentence must have been included to satisfy the American audience’s need’s. At one stage… (paraphrasing) “The Duke falls and lands on his *FANNY*”!!! So, unless he also has a vulva, I believe the word the author wanted to use, was, “BOTTOM”; “BACKSIDE”; BRITCHES”… or other such word to show that he’d taken a seat on his arse!

Do not think I could stomach the next 7 (+ extra) Bridgerton Novels. I’ll wait for Shonda’s Season 2!

32 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Craig
  • Craig
  • 01-13-21

possibly the worst book I've read in the last 5 yr

Awful writing, the author probably had a 50 word vocab they recycled constantly. One dimensional characters and problematic martial r*pe content. Would not recommend to anyone.

28 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for R. Caldwell
  • R. Caldwell
  • 02-10-21

I can't believe they made a tv show out of this

I love the TV show so thought I would give the book a try but i found all of the characters a bit 9ne dimensional and the story a bit boring, I also just found it really jarring that people wouldn't have spoken to each other in the way the book is written and I don't find it cleaver or funny at all, I may have laughed once. I will stick with the TV series.

19 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Libby Clout
  • Libby Clout
  • 02-19-21

Give up and go read Jane Austen

Terrible. After all the hype of the TV series I thought I'd read the book first and wow this is such a disappointment. Characters are so shallow with such a minor arc of development you can see where the story is going from a long way ahead. No subplots or side stories of other characters. Just one boring plot about having or not having children. Blah Blah Blah. It is an insult for the author to quote Jane Austen in the final chapter - this book is nowhere near worthy of having her words anywhere near it!

17 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Anonymous User
  • Anonymous User
  • 09-06-20

Unconvincing dialogue and shallow characters

The way the characters talk, their actions and the choice of vocabulary are quite unconvincing and unbelievable for an early 19th century setting.

16 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Sa
  • Sa
  • 01-11-21

Fairy floss

Not clever or thoughtful literature. Kind of like eating fairy floss- distracting enough, but character development derailed after first third, and predictable in plot.

10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for lola
  • lola
  • 02-22-21

Unadulterated drivel !!

Shonda is a genius - she made a silk purse from a sows ear . Every scene so drawn out , badly written and quite frankly tedious .

9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Stephanie
  • Stephanie
  • 01-13-21

Loved it

The book goes into a lot more depth then the series and the narrator is fantastic

8 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
Profile Image for Karaline
  • Karaline
  • 01-09-21

The book is better

The book is so much better than the Netflix version … loved the story line especially the special ending.

6 people found this helpful