Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue

The writing is absolutely PHENOMENAL and so freaky funny. It's also heart reaching, but you can always kinda see it coming. It's technically a long book but something you could get through in a couple of days.

<Spoiler>It also talks about a lot of interesting topics that were seen as taboo (although some of them aren't brought to a whole lot of detail considering the whole book is told from the perspective of a traumatized white teen boy who's an Earls son... But he slowly starts to learn, grow, and mature as he keeps ALMOST DYING.

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thefightinside's review

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adventurous funny inspiring medium-paced

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

4.75

This is a beautiful book! It’s a lovely blend of English historical fiction and fantasy. With the LGBT+ inclusivity, I know that many young people will relate to these characters and develop empathy for those in different situations than their own, as the characters in the book do. This is the first book in a trilogy (and a novella), which makes it perfect for helping motivate my students to read more.

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vthecreature's review

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adventurous funny hopeful tense fast-paced

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

4.25

This was great and not at all what I was expecting! I read this at the recommendation of a friend and went in knowing nothing. I’m glad for that, as it made certain plot twists so much more surprising and engaging

such as the coach robbery and the “pirate” abduction

.
I also really liked the character development in this. With Monty being so unlikable and problematic in the beginning, I had little hope for him and was only consoled by the reactions of the people around him, which assured me that he’d learn his lesson someday.
I found the writing very gorgeous, especially whenever Monty described the scenery (very immersive) and his feelings for Percy (heartwarming!). The character voice for Monty was well done and had me laughing.
I’m also very glad that

all the “good” characters in this got a happy ending. Sure, it’s probably not very historically accurate (as the author said in the epilogue) but I appreciated that.

.
This book was very action-packed, which did feel a bit much but then again it probably wasn’t meant to be read in a single day…
Some of the dialogue and characters’ behavior were unrealistic

like Bourbon’s cartoon villain moment at the end, Percy’s uncharacteristic denial of the Robles’ suspiciousness, and the “pirates” turning out to be extremely wholesome

but that’s probably appropriate for a young adult novel. Though I wouldn’t categorize it as YA myself, since there was a fair amount of sexual and violent content. This book also addressed several important issues such as racism, ableism, sexism, classism, etc.
This book was clearly well planned, as certain tidbits from early in the story came into play later, which was great for the mystery aspect! I don’t know how to feel about the magical aspect though, since I had not been expecting it at all going into this. Also, the whole “misunderstanding between two people causes more drama than it should” trope knocked my rating down a bit.
Still, this was overall a delightful read!

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espiargrant's review against another edition

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adventurous tense fast-paced

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

2.5

This book basically had all of the ingredients I was looking for: queer male romance, historical, high-speed adventure, misfits on the run, piracy, royalty, palaces, a little bit of magic. Yet, this recipe did not leave me with a taste I enjoyed.
For the most part I liked the writing style, though with a first person narrator, the voice felt too modern at times. The historical accuracy of the homophobia also felt off to me. For such a homophobic era, I was confused as to why the MC wasn't really afraid of people knowing about his bisexuality. The plot was a bit random, yet also somehow predictable at times, but given the premise and what I knew from the blurb, that didn't bother me at all. I also quite liked several of the supporting characters, but not enough for it to have saved this book for me.
The main problem I had with this book was the MC/narrator. He exhibited extremely bad behavior for the entirety of the novel and it largely went without consequences, or at least consequences severe enough for him to at least ATTEMPT to improve his behavior. In the beginning I found Monty's lack of redeeming qualities rather charming because I assumed he would grow as a character and learn valuable lessons during his adventures. He did not. What I found most frustrating was that in his own mind, there were moments in which Monty acknowledged his mistakes, but his words and actions that followed didn't seem to reflect that.
I feel that a more appropriate title for this book would be The Scoundrel's Guide to Vice and More Vice, since Monty was never a gentleman and displayed little if any virtue.
Lastly, I would say that the minor magical element of this book fell flat, as did the romance at the end,

and I wasn't a fan of the bittersweet aspect of the HEA

By no means a terrible book, but I SO wanted to like it more than I did.

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onefineelephant's review

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adventurous funny reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.0

8/10. I wasn't exactly swooning over this book but I did really enjoy it. I like the ending message that we would all be happier if we accepted our own and others' flaws. Monty had to learn to love himself. Felicity was a firecracker. Percy was a gracious love interest. I enjoyed the realistic sibling relationship. I also enjoyed the more tender moments. I'm not a fan of ambiguous endings but I understand why this book needed to have one.

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zoe_archambault's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted reflective fast-paced

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

3.5

Wasn't super into it in the first half, but the second half really had me. My only main concern is the random and sudden vivid descriptions of suicide ideation and self-harm which were off-putting and honestly unnecessary.

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