Loved it. When I found this one I knew I had to read it simply because it is exactly what I wanted.
Alexis Hall has some really beautiful writing and ways of describing things, as well as the ability to spark inspiration or thought with the way he puts things. This had a lot of inspiring, beautiful lines and romantic, soft, yearning moments that I really enjoyed, I marked a lot of parts in this book. Hall did a great job with writing a relatable trans character, too.

I did feel that, overall in its execution it’s not a masterpiece of a book, as I still felt like some things were perhaps missing or too simple. I also wasn’t always entirely sure about the pace of the book, I would call it a slow-burn romance, which I liked, but it did change pace a bit later. I don’t think it’s extraordinary story-writing or anything -generally I felt like there were things missing for me to make it a GREAT book, but I couldn’t exactly pinpoint what it was. Depth, the feeling of a more detailedly thought-through plot / story, most likely.

Still, I loved it, and I’m so happy there’s a book with this story.
The characters were lovely and the playful, intimate and teasing interactions and the yearning and pining between Gracewood and Viola were really fun to read.
I’m also really happy we got a bit of spicy/intimate scenes, which I think is great seeing trans characters nicely represented in.

I don’t think you always need an absolutely great story with a unique plot that wasn’t ever written before. Popular tropes can still be enjoyable, and I don’t think it’s necessary to have an entirely period-accurate representation in every LGBTQIA+ novel, especially since -some people argue- it can be nice for us to have something simple, cheesy and stereotypical for once too, just like there’s tons of (non-LGBTQIA+) straight fiction like that.

Conclusion
So I’d say, if you’re not looking for a terribly original storyline but for a happy, hopelessly romantic, historical friends to lovers slow-burn, featuring good and positive trans representation, you will really like this.

About Triggers
I put all from this list I think are (briefly) in the book,
Of course it is for yourself to know but I just need to say I didn’t find this much triggering, even though I am quite sensitive to a lot of those. If drug use is really triggering for you it might be a different thing, for me it is mainly violence related as well as any sexual abuse or transphobia related ones, but I was mostly fine reading this and, despite containing all of those listed triggers, I found this was book that still felt light.

Content Warnings

questingnotcoasting's review

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emotional hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

This was such a great romance. I'd never read anything by Alexis Hall before and I was so pleased to find I loved his writing. Slow burn romances only work for me when I really care about the characters and luckily that was the case here. I thought Viola and Justin were both really well developed and I enjoyed the dual perspective narrative. There's very little plot apart from their relationship but I thought the tension between them was so good and it was enough to keep me hooked. None of Hall's other books are really leaping out at me yet but I do want to read more of his writing in the future so I'll keep my eye out.

Content Warnings

lynxpardinus's review

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adventurous emotional hopeful reflective

3.5

Content Warnings

takarakei's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Cannot recommend the audiobook for this enough! The narrator was so fantastic and I looked up their other books because I was so impressed with the voices, tonal inflections etc

I’ve heard people say this book is too long and I think if you’re reading a physical copy I could see that - I didn’t quite feel that way with the audiobook (except for a few parts where I felt things dragged a touch). Overall this was a beautiful poignant historical love story between two people growing together in unlearning what the gender binary tells them they are each supposed to be/do/feel/ etc. There are some absolutely beautiful sweeping dialogue passages. This book and mainly it’s side characters are also supremely hilarious which I enjoyed immensely.

3.5/5 🌶️

Content Warnings

kelisabeth's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Content Warnings

twistykris's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I'm so glad that this historical fiction book exists. I think it did a great job of showcasing queerness, transness, and disability in a thoughtful, emotional way. We love to see a happy trans woman live her happily ever after with a childhood friend-turned-lover! I also loved how Viola being trans wasn't a major source of conflict in the book. Viola is who she is and it was a relief to see her friends and loved ones accept and love her for it and it was so lovely to bask in her joy.

Admittedly, I don't read much historical fiction, so I did struggle with the dialogue and certain terms used (thanks, Kindle, for allowing me to pull up a dictionary so easily haha). There were also a couple pacing issues, as halfway through the book, things seemed to die down significantly, and I started to lose the joy I was feeling. I can appreciate a slow-burn, but a slow-burn plus the intricacies of relations between men and women in the 1800s was just agonizingly drawn out at times. However, I acknowledge that that's probably a Me thing, as I'm not used to historical fiction and “proper” regency era romance books.
Also the wild event that happens at 90% of the way into the book felt sort of thrown in? But the epilogue was so sweet and made me tear up.

Content Warnings

sydapel's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Read for the Trans Rights Readathon, but this has been on my TBR for some time and wow it does not disappoint. I read a LOT of historical fiction, and this one is so special, so distinct from a lot of what's currently being published in the genre. There's this deeply emotional bond between Viola and Gracewood conveyed so well by Hall that it's hard not to get misty eyed yourself. Add to that the themes of unapologetic and whole acceptance of self and truly quirky side characters, I am so so glad I was able to read this and that it exists. I did struggle somewhat with the pacing and dialogue, but the sheer joy of the epilogue made those small issues obsolete.

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