What happens in Francesca’s “Bridgerton” book? John dies, Michael

(Editor’s note: The following article contains spoilers for the end of season 3 of Bridgerton and the Francesca Bridgerton book When He Was Wicked.)

In the final moments of Bridgerton season 3, Francesca Bridgerton (Hannah Dodd) is ready to head off to Scotland with her new husband John (Victor Alli) after enjoying a quiet romance during the season ‘Polin.’ Francesca was reintroduced to the Bridgerton clan last season, and a major plot point was how different she is from her siblings – much more reserved and shy. So it makes sense that the character would enjoy a quiet estate in the countryside rather than living in the hustle and bustle of London.

Shortly before Francesca and John leave for their new home, John introduces Francesca and Eloise (Claudia Jessie) to his cousin. Michaela (Masali Baduza), with whom, as the audience sees, there is an instant spark between Francesca.

Readers of the book probably pricked up their ears because in Julia Quinn’s Bridgerton book about Francesca, “When He Was Wicked,” John has a cousin, Michael, who has been secretly in love with Francesca since they first met. In the novel, Francesca, John, and Michael often spend time together after arriving in Scotland. (Unfortunately, this is not a “Challengers” situation.) Then, after two years of marriage, John dies suddenly one night – sad, but in the book everything happens quickly.

Francesca soon learns she is pregnant but later suffers a miscarriage. Michael becomes the new Earl and flees Scotland for India because he cannot bear to be around Francesca when he cannot openly show her his love. Four years later, Francesca is sad and now desperate for a baby, which means she goes into the London season and finds husband number 2. Michael is also back and also on the marriage market.

Would you believe that these two spend half the book circling each other, both pining after each other, but both not wanting to betray John’s memory? It’s all very tragic and weepy and repressed, which honestly makes it one of the better “Bridgerton” novels. Colin Bridgerton (Luke Newton) is particularly charming in this part, as a delighted, astute observer who immediately sees where all this mutual lust is going. The other important thing to note, and I’m just spouting information here, is that the rules of decorum are somewhat relaxed because Francesca is a widow, not a virgin. Suffice it to say, there’s ultimately a lot of sex before they reach their very happy ending. It Is finally a trash novel (this time with a lot of trash in the literal sense).

Obviously, the introduction of Michaela to the show suggests that they’ll be tweaking this storyline a bit for Francesca’s next season (Benedict’s story will likely come in season 4), and it’ll be a story of second chances and also queer awakening. On June 25, writer Quinn commented on the growing buzz surrounding the possible new storyline, a change she said she fully supports.

“When I first read ‘When He Was Wicked,’ I could really relate to it as a queer woman,” current showrunner Jess Brownell told Vanity Fair. “Her story is in some ways about feeling different. In Julia Quinn’s book, it really has more to do with her being an introvert. But for a lot of us in the queer community, that feeling of feeling different from a young age is part of our stories. So I felt like her book already offered thematic richness that could be used for her story.”

The series is already selective about which storylines and character details to focus on. While this is a clearer example of a change, it’s far from the only one in the Netflix hit’s quest to become a more comprehensive love story and improve on the books.

With the existing blueprint for an erotic novel about coming out of your shell, taking risks, and experiencing the joys of oral sex (!), Netflix has an exciting opportunity to tell a story about forbidden love while putting a new twist on what fans might imagine a historical love story to be.

The wait will probably be worth it.