Virtual Event: “Romance & Regency with Bridgerton's Julia Quinn,” February 20

Tuesday, February 20, 7 p.m.

Presented by the Rock Island and Silvis Public Libraries

With her novels having been translated into 41 languages and having appeared on the New York Times Bestseller List on 19 occasions, an award-winning author takes part in February 20's virtual Illinois Libraries Present event Romance & Regency with "Bridgerton"'s Julia Quinn, her credits including induction in the Romance Writers of America Hall of Fame and her Bridgerton series receiving a popular adaptation for Netflix.

Quinn graduated from Hotchkiss School and Harvard with a degree in art history, and during her senior year of college, she realized that she did not know what she wanted to do with her degree and decided to attend medical school. To occupy herself during the long days of studying science, Quinn began to write lighthearted Regency novels. A few weeks after she was accepted to medical school, she discovered that her first two novels, Splendid and Dancing at Midnight, had been sold at auction, an unusual occurrence for a novice romance author. By the time Quinn finally entered Yale School of Medicine, intending to become a doctor, three of her books had been published. After a few months of studying medicine, Quinn realized that she preferred writing to medical study, left medical school, and devoted herself, full-time, to her writing.

Quinn considers herself a feminist and gives her heroines feminist qualities that are not necessarily true to the most prevalent attitudes of the times her novels are set in. Her books are noted for their humor and sharp, witty dialogue, with the novels are primarily character-driven, lacking the great external conflicts that many romance novels employ. One of her novels, When He Was Wicked, was unusual for a romance novel, as the first four chapters describe the heroine in a happy marriage with someone who is not the hero, and then shows the death of the original husband and deals with the grief of both the heroine and hero, before allowing the second love story to flourish. Quinn won the Romance Writers of America RITA Award, in 2007, for On the Way to the Wedding, and again, in 2008, for The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever. When she won, in 2010, for What Happens in London, she became (at the time) the youngest member, and is now one of only 16 authors to be inducted into the RWA Hall of Fame.

Each of Quinn's last 17 novels have appeared on the New York Times Bestseller List, with Mr. Cavendish, I Presume hitting number one in October of 2008. Both of her Lady Whistledown anthologies appeared on the Times list, as well, as did both of her novel-in-three-part collaborations with Connie Brockway and Eloisa James (The Lady Most Likely and The Lady Most Willing), and the Bridgertons: Happily Ever After collection of Bridgerton’s second epilogues. Quinn's newest novel, Queen Charlotte, is co-written with television pioneer Shonda Rhimes, and is a powerful and romantic novel of Bridgerton’s Queen Charlotte and King George III’s great love story and how it sparked a societal shift. In her virtual February 20 event, Quinn will be joined in conversation with Sarah MacLean, bestselling historical romance author, romance columnist for the New York Times and the Washington Post, and co-host of the weekly romance-novel podcast Fated Mates.

This virtual event is made possible by Illinois Libraries Present, a statewide collaboration among public libraries offering premier events. ILP is funded in part by a grant awarded by the Illinois State Library, a department of the Office of Secretary of State, using funds provided by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA).

Romance & Regency with "Bridgerton"'s Julia Quinn will begin on February 20 at 7 p.m., participation in the virtual event is free, and more information is available by calling (309)732-7323 and visiting RockIslandLibrary.org, and calling (309)755-3393 and visiting SilvisLibrary.org.