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historical romance
Series · historical romance
Smythe-Smith Quartet
The Smythe-Smith Quartet series by Julia Quinn has 4 books and is best read in publication order, starting with Just Like Heaven (2011).
- Books
- 4 books
- First published
- 2011
- Status
- completed
- Last checked
Start here: Just Like Heaven (2011) — then read straight through in publication order.
Reading order
The order the books were released — the default way to read the series.
- Book 1:
Just Like Heaven
Alternative text for cover: Cover of Just Like Heaven - Book 2:
A Night Like This
Alternative text for cover: Cover of A Night Like This - Book 3:
The Sum of All Kisses
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Sum of All Kisses - Book 4:
The Secrets of Sir Richard Kenworthy
Alternative text for cover: Cover of The Secrets of Sir Richard Kenworthy
About the Smythe-Smith Quartet series
The Smythe-Smith Quartet is built around a running joke from Julia Quinn's Bridgerton universe: the Smythe-Smith family's infamous annual musicale, at which four cousins perform excruciatingly badly to a captive audience of relatives too polite to leave. Each book follows one of those cousins finding love despite (or because of) the social ordeal. Just Like Heaven pairs Honoria Smythe-Smith, worn down by yet another disastrous performance, with her brother's best friend Marcus, who has quietly loved her for years. A Night Like This follows governess Anne Wynter, hiding from a dangerous past, and Daniel Smythe-Smith, the family's black-sheep earl newly returned to London. The Sum of All Kisses turns to Sarah Pleinsworth, sharp-tongued and prone to giving too-honest opinions, and Hugh Prentice, a mathematician recovering from a duel-related injury. The Secrets of Sir Richard Kenworthy completes the quartet with Iris Smythe-Smith, the family's most reserved cousin, and Sir Richard, a man in urgent, secretive need of a wife.
The musicale itself — cheerfully, cringingly terrible every single year — recurs across all four books as a set-piece the extended Bridgerton-adjacent social circle can't escape, giving the quartet its comic throughline even as each couple's individual courtship plays out against real emotional stakes.
How to read this series
Read in publication order — Just Like Heaven, A Night Like This, The Sum of All Kisses, The Secrets of Sir Richard Kenworthy — each book follows a different Smythe-Smith cousin and stands alone as a romance, but the family's running joke (their catastrophic annual musicale) and recurring side characters build familiarity book to book. Because the quartet is set within the wider Bridgerton universe and several Bridgerton characters appear in supporting roles, readers who've already read Bridgerton will recognize more of the cast, though it's not required — the Smythe-Smith books work perfectly well read on their own.
Frequently asked questions
How many books are in the Smythe-Smith Quartet?
Four: Just Like Heaven, A Night Like This, The Sum of All Kisses, and The Secrets of Sir Richard Kenworthy.
What order should I read the Smythe-Smith Quartet in?
Publication order: Just Like Heaven, A Night Like This, The Sum of All Kisses, The Secrets of Sir Richard Kenworthy. Each book follows a different Smythe-Smith cousin.
Is the Smythe-Smith Quartet connected to Bridgerton?
Yes — it's set in the same social world as Bridgerton, with several Bridgerton characters making supporting appearances, though you don't need to read Bridgerton first.
What is the Smythe-Smith musicale?
A running joke across the quartet: an annual family recital at which the Smythe-Smith cousins perform notoriously badly, an event the wider social circle dreads but can never quite avoid.
Do I need to read the Smythe-Smith Quartet in order?
No — each book is a self-contained romance about a different cousin — but reading in order lets the recurring cast and running jokes build naturally.
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Reading order last verified .