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analenegrace's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Looking forward to the sequel!
Graphic: Gun violence, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, and Classism
galleytrot's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I’ll be honest, I’m more inclined to categorize this ‘historical fiction’ as a fantasy instead. Hall notes at the beginning of the book that linguistic liberties are taken, and just about everyone in the book is queer. This is not an exaggeration. Valentine leaves his comfortable world that operates precisely as one would expect a gray-and-drab-1800’s-England to operate, and he stumbles into this explosive, colorful, high-octane alternate reality that shakes the foundation of everything he thought he knew to be true.
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Alcohol, Blood, Gun violence, Homophobia, Violence, Confinement, Cursing, Infidelity, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Misogyny and Death of parent
ohheyitskaitlin's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Sexual content and Cursing
Moderate: Gun violence and Gaslighting
Minor: Abandonment, Acephobia/Arophobia, Alcohol, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Death of parent, Panic attacks/disorders, Classism, Lesbophobia, Transphobia, Blood, Violence, Confinement, and Misogyny
shelvesofivy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Sexual content and Cursing
Moderate: Classism, Gun violence, and Homophobia
Minor: Death of parent and Medical content
internalized homophobiafromjuliereads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Moderate: Sexual content, Cursing, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Classism, Gun violence, Homophobia, and Misogyny
breadbees's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Sexual content, Gun violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Bullying, Homophobia, Classism, Cursing, Sexism, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Misogyny
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic friendship, Grief, Blood, Alcohol, Kidnapping, Outing, and Abandonment
cappuccino_yuki_teddy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Sexual content and Cursing
Moderate: Gun violence
purplepenning's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
3.5
The grumpy/sunshine combo is gold. I disagree with reviewers who felt Bonny Mr. Sunshine was overly mean to His Grace Valentine Grumpy Pants, but he was certainly in an unenviable position between his best friend and sister, His Grace, and his own, you know, precarious existence. And while a zero to 100 relationship for a demisexual main character doesn't quite work for me, I also disagree that His Grace was "just fine the way he was, oh em gee, just leave him alone already." He was not quietly content — he was miserably unaware and misguided and headed for further misery. Most of the side characters are great, though the satirized gothic heroine sister is just grating. And the plot is, well, a careening mess that's somewhat too driven by the bullying sexism of the day, anachronistic overcorrections, and aro understandings clashing with gothic dramatics, but mostly it's just a vehicle for fun shenanigans in the countryside. It's all undeniably over the top, British, queer, chaotic, funny, annoying, graphic, and sometimes genuinely touching and lovely.
Graphic: Sexual content and Gun violence
Moderate: Acephobia/Arophobia, Blood, Death of parent, Cursing, Kidnapping, Bullying, Confinement, and Sexism
Minor: Body shaming, Classism, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Alcohol, and Animal death
There are also a couple of key scenes (very sweet) that feature bees, and some brief talk/imaginings of spiderscriticalgayze's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I was not a huge fan of Boyfriend Material, so I was apprehensive about this selection. But I came away really enjoying this one. While it was not much more than mindless fun, mindless fun was what I needed in a very slow and heavy reading month. I devoured this in two days and found it joyfully queer and steamy and full of adorable one liners. I can't recommend it enough.
Quotes:
"Propose to me." Tarleton plonked his hands on his hips. "Right now." (pg 12)
"Oh flower" - and here Bonny smiled up at him, dimples glimmering irrepressibly - "if you think a man only goes to his knees to beg, then -" (pg 109)
And suddenly Valentine didn't care about rain or hunger or being tied to a chair. All he wanted was for Bonny to smile. To smile forever. To smile for him. (pg 137)
"I don't care" - Mr. Whelpington-Byng, Esquire, was still using his body to shelter Miss Tarleton - "how things were managed in your day. It is now the nineteenth century, and we respect women and treat them as equals in areas not pertaining to politics, property, warfare, finances, or the law." (pg 226)
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Gun violence and Cursing
mydearwatsonbooks's review against another edition
Graphic: Cursing, Homophobia, and Sexual content
Moderate: Death of parent and Gun violence
Minor: Blood