In the first companion novel series, the duo tells the story of how the young royal comes into her own as a woman, partner and queen.
In Queen Charlotte (Avon Books), out Tuesday, co-author Julia Quinn tells the origin story of Bridgerton’s Queen Charlotte and her love story with King George III.
Quinn, who wrote nine books for her Bridgerton series, says working on this novel was significantly different because she had a collaborator in Bridgerton show creator Shonda Rhimes. “The fact that it says ‘By Julia Quinn and Shonda Rhimes’ still kind of blows my mind,” the author tells The Hollywood Reporter of the novel.
And after learning that there was interest in a Queen Charlotte spinoff series, Quinn admitted she “couldn’t believe it.”
“It was amazing enough that my books were adapted for television, and then it was even more amazing that they did so well, but to have a spinoff? I was like, ‘Oh my God,’” she recalled.
While at the world premiere of the second season of Bridgerton — which marked the first time she met Rhimes in person given the series filmed and premiered amid the pandemic — Quinn first expressed an interest in writing a novel version of Queen Charlotte. She will later learn that Rhimes had already “been independently thinking the same thing.”
“Then a few months later I heard from her book agent and it was full steam ahead,” the Bridgerton creator tells THR.
Writing the book required a quick turnaround to coincide with the show’s premiere but results in a different experience for the seasoned author who now had Rhimes’ vision and finished scripts to build from.
“I had never done any type of writing where I had source material before and especially to have source material that’s in a very specific structure,” Quinn says. “So what you really have to do is break down the architecture of a television script and then figure out how to put the pieces back together like a novel. To somebody like me who loves puzzles, it is really fun.”
Queen Charlotte is portrayed by Golda Rosheuvel in the Netflix series, but the character didn’t originate in the Bridgerton books, giving Quinn the chance to deliver a story that goes beyond the series and — in true Bridgerton fashion — builds an in-depth romance . The book also dives into the earlier years of Queen Charlotte’s relationship with Lady Agatha Danbury, as well as the union between Queen Charlotte’s secretary Brimsley and King George’s right-hand man Reynolds.
Although Queen Charlotte the series alternates between showing Charlotte as both a young woman and older royal in the Bridgerton-era, the book takes place only in the past. Using Rhimes’ scripts for the six-episode Netflix series, Quinn says she was able to flesh out Charlotte’s early years as a royal, adding new dialogue and more thoroughly exploring the internal thoughts of the characters. The author cites Charlotte and George’s wedding as an example of when she was able to add more conversations, while their meet-cute remains entirely from the series. “It was just so perfect. It didn’t need anything,” she said.
Given Queen Charlotte and King George are real people, Quinn was also able to incorporate elements from her early research of the two into the book, such as Charlotte’s German background and George’s love of science. As for Charlotte and George’s relationship, Quinn hopes that the book feels “like you’re reading a romance novel” one can get lost in, while offering readers a chance to learn why Charlotte is “willing to take this leap” with George. Especially as, Quinn notes, “in the back of her mind, she’s worried about what might happen to him” amid his health struggles and the brutal, antiquated therapies he turns to in an attempt to treat it.
“You can just see the love. It’s different for me because when I write a romance novel, it’s always like, ‘They’re going to have this happily ever after and everything’s going to be great.’ from history, what happens. This is looking at a very specific period of time, just about a year or so before things started falling apart for him health-wise,” she explains.
While Charlotte and George’s relationship may face hurdles, for the author, their love is pure and everlasting. Throughout the story, Quinn aims to simultaneously capture that “period of great love and happiness” and offer an understanding for readers that what drives Queen Charlotte when she’s older is “the way that she sees her husband and loves him so much, even though he’s really not there for her anymore.”
Another relationship explored in the book is between Brimsley and Reynolds, both constants for Queen Charlotte and King George, respectively. It’s a romance Quinn describes as “new and fun” for her to delve into.
