Bridgerton is a progressive fantasy about the past. Do romance readers care about its historical accuracy?

Abstract

<p>Bridgerton watchers started questioning the show’s historical authenticity (again) even before the third season landed. But does historical accuracy actually matter?</p> <p>Based on the book series by Julia Quinn, Bridgerton is set around the eight Bridgerton siblings, each with their own romance. Romance is the powerhouse of the publishing industry: 19 million romance books were sold in 2022 – over 40% more than the previous year.</p> <p>We surveyed almost 1,000 readers and writers of historical romance novels from around the world, in 2019 and again in 2023. We asked them what makes a historical romance novel authentic – and does accuracy matter?</p> <p>Overall, writers were more concerned than readers about historical accuracy. On average, writers’ total scores for requiring accuracy were 4% higher than readers, whose range was wider. Many readers scored accuracy as low as 0 out of 5 as a requirement – but no writer scored accuracy lower than 3 out of 5.</p> <p>Authors emphasised their own research. Their answers included “It has to be accurate, I research all of my historical knowledge” and “I do a lot of research to make that happen. Research is ongoing.”</p>