Reviews tagging 'Suicidal thoughts'

The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee

93 reviews

marissasa's review

adventurous funny tense fast-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

I started and finished this book via audiobook and reading along with the physical in just a day. I was hooked from the start with Monty's strong narrative voice and how bold and crass and humorous and bisexual it was in the face of all the trouble he was constantly getting in. I loved his character even more the further he got fleshed out and I just thought him and each of the other main characters were so well-written, I loved their trio dynamic. The plot is a bit wacky but it is definitely a wild adventure that kept me entertained the whole way through and it never felt like it was dragging on. It was very well-paced for a 500 page book. I was also pretty impressed with how the author handled the range of social issues that would be realistic in the setting and time period, and it felt like one of the few times when a white author wrote about people of color with intention beyond just representation and included racial issues without overstepping or being cringey. This book was so fun to read and definitely a great one to read during pride month so I'm so glad I finally got it off my tbr and into my brain lol.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Biphobia, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Medical content, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

rileyswan's review

adventurous emotional funny mysterious 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Chronic illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, and Racism

Moderate: Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Vomit, Medical content, Kidnapping, and Alcohol

Minor: Alcoholism

thesadcowboy's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcohol

katie0528's review against another edition

adventurous funny lighthearted 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? Yes

5.0

A fun adventure following Monty, the rakeish bisexual son of a lord, his younger sister Felicity, who wishes to become a physician, and Percy, Monty's Black best friend who he is desperately in love with. The trio set out on a Grand Tour of Europe but it doesn't take Monty to make an enemy of one of the most powerful men in France who chases them across the continent. There are touches of magic in this novel which I didn't expect at first.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Biphobia, Homophobia, Racism, and Classism

Moderate: Child abuse, Chronic illness, Racial slurs, Violence, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Ableism, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Self harm, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Medical content, and Colonisation

lou_loo's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny inspiring lighthearted reflective tense fast-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? It's complicated

4.5

It was a re-read for me. I had first read it 3-4 years ago. I decided to re-read it for the nostalgia since I loved it so much when I was younger. What I didn't expect was to enjoy it just as much, if not more. The characters are great, well-written and fun, Monty has a serious character development and seeing him evolve was so cool. The plot of the story is captivating, and it's quite an adventure. Our trio makes such a nice team and seeing them together, with their differences and relationships is amazing. 
Overall super cool book, I would recommend it to anyone interested in a fun adventurous story occurring in XVIIIth century Europe, with some stakes (but not too high). It's an overall lighthearted read which can be read fast but will still touch your heart because of the characters and their personalities.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Homophobia, Physical abuse, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Racism, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Police brutality, and Alcohol

nutmegandselkie's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny lighthearted fast-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, Physical abuse, and Sexism

Moderate: Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, and Forced institutionalization

anntharai's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful mysterious reflective fast-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

5.0

So much more than a romp accross Europe with forbidden love the goal. I loved this book start ro finish. It's ridiculous and awkward and it ends perfectly. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Child abuse, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Racism, Violence, Xenophobia, Blood, Alcohol, and Classism

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Slavery and Islamophobia

andyourstruly's review

adventurous medium-paced

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

3.25

GGtVaV is a very indulgent queer adventure story.  Though the main cast all struggle with their own hardships, external and internal, the reader always knows they'll overcome to get their happy ending, and in that way, despite themes of racism, sexism, ableism, homophobia, and physical/emotional abuse, it feels very light.

The author studied history in university, so a lot of the historical details of events and cultural norms are more accurate than your average YA novel, but there are still glaring blind spots, like the author not being well-versed in clothing culture or that almost every educated person would have been fluent in French in the early 1700s, particularly if they had a French parent.

My biggest takeaway with it was that, as fantastical as so many elements were, it seems strange that the author didn't just ... write an adventure where people happened to be queer or black or women.  It felt like a strange decision to hand-wave away a lot of actual problems they may have encountered but to really spend a lot of time projecting modern-day feminism onto a character from the era and bringing up homophobia and racism that wasn't even always period-accurate.  Fun book, may read the sequels, not so invested that I'm prioritizing it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Ableism, Alcoholism, Gun violence, Homophobia, Racism, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Islamophobia, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

theultimatebooknerd's review against another edition

adventurous funny tense medium-paced

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

3.5

I just thought this book was a fun read with a flawed main character. I have a deeper analysis on the book which actually goes hand in hand with extra stuff the author put at the very end of the book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia and Physical abuse

Moderate: Ableism, Alcoholism, Misogyny, Racism, and Sexism

Minor: Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, and Outing

mikki_madison's review

adventurous emotional funny fast-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, and Vomit