Eloise Bridgerton

Eloise Bridgerton is next in line for the marriage market and wants nothing to do with it. Sharp-tongued and restless, she'd rather read pamphlets on women's rights than practice curtseys, and she says so, loudly, to anyone who'll listen. Her closest confidante is her friend Penelope Featherington, with whom she trades gossip and grievances alike.

Claudia Jessie plays Eloise's frustration as something lived-in rather than quirky — the fidgeting, the interrupting, the barely-concealed contempt for a system built to trade her off. The writing lets her be genuinely difficult, not just spirited, which makes her rare candor and her friendship with Penelope feel like actual relief rather than plot device.