Season 2 of theShonda RhimesNetflix sensationBridgertonis upon us. Many of the beloved—and not so beloved—characters from Season 1are back, but Season 2 is primarily about the budding romance and drama between the eldest Bridgerton, Anthony (Jonathan Bailey), and sisters and marriage mart newbies Kate Sharma (Simone Ashley), and Edwina Sharma (Charithra Chandran).
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While theslower-burning second seasonadds some details that aren’t in the books and pulls plot lines from other books in the series, it also alters some details and leaves out elements ofThe Viscount Who Loves Me, the second book in theBridgertonseries and the primary source material of the second season. This author hears that some differences are small while others, like lightning, are striking.
Kate’s Family—And Motives—Are Different
The Sheffields are now the Sheffield-Sharmas, and along with some welcome South Asian representation, this shift gives the family on the series a very different origin story. The Sharmascome to London from India, with Kate determined to find Edwina a husband before returning home to become a governess. Kate has alsosecretly been in cahoots with Edwina’s grandparents, who disowned Mary (Shelley Conn) after she chose to marry Kate’s father, to provide Edwina with a dowry if she lands an English nobleman.
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The Other Plot Lines Aren’t In The Book
While Season 2 centers on the Anthony-Kate-Edwina storyline, it also features other plot points, some invented for the series and some pulled from otherBridgertonbooks. The Featheringtons are broke and count on a shady cousin to save them. Eloise (Claudia Jessie) makes her debut, awakens to new political ideas, and develops a crush from the wrong side of the Ton. Benedict (Luke Thompson) goes to art school. Penelope (Nicola Coughlan) takes Lady Whistledown to the next levelat the expense of her friend. Colin (Luke Newton) briefly shows off a little beard.
As each book in theBridgertonseries is devoted to one sibling’s story, the second book is centered entirely on Anthony and his romantic pursuits. As such, his thoughts and feelings are conveyed thoroughly and we follow his journey to love very closely for most of the four-hundred-eighty pages.
Kate Has A Habit Of Hiding Under Furniture
Kate overhears Anthony’s rant against love-based marriages while loitering behind a bush on the series. In the book, she hides beneath a desk in Anthony’s study and hears it while he is mid-flirt with a previous romantic conquest. That is, until he notices Kate hiding under his desk.
Later, the viscount also finds Kate under a table in the library, but this time she’s in the throes of a panic attack. Anthony is much gentler this time, sitting with her and comforting her until her anxiety subsides. Amazing what can be accomplished with a little empathy under a library table.
Anthony Has Low Expectations For His Longevity
While Anthony on the series is concerned about the risks of falling in love with his wife and failing to live up to his father’s memory, in the book he also believes he’s living on borrowed time, and cursed to die young.
Anthony is concerned that he can’t possibly do anything his father wasn’t able to do, and this includes living past the age of thirty-eight (just nine years older than Anthony is in the book). As such, he has convinced himself that he must marry someone to help him continue the Bridgerton line and take care of his kids after he’s gone, and that it would cause too much pain were they to love each other.
There’s Way Less Of A Love Triangle
Season 2 is pretty much built around the love triangle between Kate, Anthony, and Edwina. While Kate and Anthony are clearly falling for each other andnearly act on their feelings, he continues his courtship of Edwina, even culminating in a wedding she walks out of when she realizes his affection for her sister.
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Book Edwina really isn’t that hung up on Anthony after a while; they never get engaged and there’sno botched wedding. Edwina is supportive of Kate and moves along to look for her own guy without much drama (which probably wouldn’t be as entertaining for television).
Kate’s Storm Phobia Is Much More Severe
The Netflix iteration of Kate doesn’t like thunderstorms much, but the reasons for it are never explored. Mostly, storms serve as a motif for dramatic past events, or a reason tofall off a horse, or to run into each other in the middle of the night and have something to talk about.
The Viscount Who Loved Medepicts Kate curled in the fetal position during a storm, unable to speak or move. Her intense storm phobia continues after she and Anthony get married, and they eventually learn that her electrical storm fears stem from witnessing her mother’s death as a child. The parent-related PTSD in this story runs deep.
Edwina and Kate Have A Different Relationship
In both the books and the series, Kate and Edwina are half-sisters who love each other, and Kate tends to put Edwina’s welfare first at her own expense. However, the Sharma sisters find themselves much more at odds in the series.
While book Kate is very invested in helping Edwina find a good match, and initially finds the Viscount to be unsuitable, she’s not the marriage-minded taskmaster, training her sister to be a perfect Regency-era robot lady, thatshe is in the series. She also lies to Edwina a lot less, except about her feelings.
Kate And Anthony Get Married Sooner, Because Bees
Some of the more absurd events caused by the main characters’ traumatic childhoods were toned down for the series. Katedoes get stung by a bee, and Anthony does panic, but in the book this leads to drastically different consequences.
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Kate gets stung on the chest, and a frantic Anthony insists on sucking the venom out. They’re interrupted by their respective mothers and the gossipy Lady Featherington. Caught with his mouth near Kate’s breast, Anthony resolves that they should get married. After this romantic proposal, they tie the knot.
Newton The Corgi Is TROUBLE
Thankfully, Newton (Austin the Dog) did make it from the book to the adaptation. However, he serves mostly as a cute occasional scene-stealer in the series, as opposed to the harbinger of chaos he proves himself to be throughoutThe Viscount Who Loved Me.
The book Newton is aggressively interested in Mary, instigates a chase that lands both Anthony and Edwina in a dirty pond, and partially causes a carriage accident that breaks Kate’s leg. In Newton’s defense, the carriage wreck does force Kate and Anthony to work out some of Anthony’s death anxiety, and they probably never even thanked him.
The Epilogue Features A Bigger Time Jump
Season 2 winds down with a glimpse of Anthony and Kate six months later, post-honeymoon and as competitive as ever at Pall Mall (yes, the Bridgerton familyobsession with Pall Malldoes come from the books, though it’s not featured at the end of the novel). As ever, the ending is overlaid with the narration of Lady Whistledown (voiced by DameJulie Andrews), who weknow to be Penelope.
The Viscount Who Loved Mewraps up Anthony’s love story by jumping ahead to his thirty-ninth birthday. He and Kate have children, are still hot for each other, and have built a happy life together. They even play instruments together, poorly. Fear not, dear reader: the story also ends with Lady Whistledown, who remains unidentified at this point in the books, writing her latest critique.
