Because of Miss Bridgerton started off quite unsteadily. For the first half of the book, the writing was too fragmented, and the flow wasn't as fluid as I'd expect from a Julia Quinn novel. It was almost as if Ms. Quinn was still trying to get a solid foothold on things in the first 30%-40%. There was an abundance of unnecessary details and dialogues that didn't blend well together. 
 It was hard to get into scenes like this: 
 "No," he said dryly, "you're much too sensible for that." 
 Billie decided to let this one pass. "It scratched me," she said, jerking her head toward the cat. 
 "Did it?" 
 "We fell." 
 George looked up. "That's quite a distance." 
 Billie followed his gaze. The nearest branch was five feet up, and she had not been on the nearest branch. "I hurt my ankle," she admitted. 
 "I reckoned as much." 
 She looked over at him in question. 
 "You would have just jumped to the ground, otherwise." 
 I don't know about you, but. This. Feels. Too. Fractured. And. I. Can't. Get. Myself. To. Like. It. 
 Nor. Could. I. Bring. Myself. To. Enjoy. Paragraphs. Like. This. One: 
 She looked up sharply. He looked so solid. And strong. And dependable. He'd always been dependable, she realized. She was just usually too busy being irritated by him to notice. 
 Also, in the first half, Billie was super annoying, and George was as interesting as a cardboard box. This last bit was made even more obvious whenever George had a scene with Andrew, his little brother who reminded me so much of Sebastian from The Devil in Winter. I even started rooting for Andrew at one point, because I got bored with George. 
 BUT--yes, there's a "but"--things did pick up from the 50% marker. The writing improved, the pacing became less draggy, and the characters more likeable. There were moments in the last 50% when Julia Quinn's trademark wit shone, but I just wish that things could've been more balanced in the story. I've read enough of her works to know the magic she's capable of, and that's why I say that this was an underwhelming display of her usual brilliance. 
 Now, you might be wondering, "Why the three stars, Daniella?" Well, despite the book's initial imperfections, I truly fell in love with the story. The thing about Billie and George is that they weren't great characters individually, but together, they were amazing. I loved the banter, the subtle glances, the discreet gestures. I savoured them. I lived for them. 
 And in the end, I was convinced of their love for each other. Sure, you could argue that a big reason for this is that I'm a sucker for stories wherein the hero pines after the heroine. Yes, that's a big reason why I enjoyed this as much as I did. I'm a hero-centric reader, and that's what works for me. If you're not, then you might not rate this as highly. 
 Also, the epilogue was extremely short, so this may bother some of you guys who love to bask in the post-drama bliss. 
 Overall, I ended up liking this. I didn't expect to, especially when I was still in the first few chapters, but I did. I'm super excited for the next books in the series.