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blewballoon's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
tense
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
4.5
I wasn't even in the mood for a book like this. I had read so many similar books recently that I started this one somewhat begrudgingly when I was in a rush to choose an audiobook. Why did I love it so much? Why was I crying over the circumstances of a side character? The characters were too charming to resist, I suppose. In addition to the romance and friendships, I really loved the interactions between Charlie and Alma. Add Jess Everlee to the list of authors who write wonderful queer historical romance. The audiobook narrator was excellent as well.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Alcohol and Homophobia
Minor: Sexism, Classism, Transphobia, Death, and Grief
booksthatburn's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
THE GENTLEMAN'S BOOK OF VICES has a good start, an enjoyable middle, and an ending that is in turns stressful and anticlimactic. While ultimately not one I care for, it might appeal to those who don't mind oddly convenient resolutions to problems the characters can't quite find their way out of.
The biggest tension is that Charlie is engaged to marry a woman he likes but does not love (or at least is not interested in, sexually), since's he's gay and would rather be a confirmed bachelor if the choice had been afforded to him. He's marrying as part of a scheme between their parents to get the two of them married and Charlie's debts settled. The problem is that, around a month before the wedding, Charlie meets and is infatuated with Miles, a pornographer who runs a bookshop. Miles won't sleep with a married man, so if Charlie wants to keep seeing Miles for longer than a fling, he'll have to call the wedding off. For a long while it seemed like everything revolved around whatever Charlie was going to decide, with Miles having made his position clear but not able to control whether or not Charlie got married.
I think I like my books with a bit more stress but not this kind of stress. I dislike lying in relationships and am rarely able to handle them in fiction, and this manages to have a lot of that stress without most of the actual lies, which doesn't soothe things for me as much as it could have. I'd prefer a book where it feels like the characters worked for the ending, like something is different by the end because they have changed in a meaningful way. Miles may have, but so much of the narrative focus in terms of agency is on Charlie that I'm not even totally certain of that. The resolution seems to be just handed to them, and in a way that changes my thoughts about the beginning as well. It's likely too sexually explicit to work for those who prefer their romances closed-door or fade-to-black, while dodging explicit detail once things really get going. It's not for me, though I had a good time in parts.
The biggest tension is that Charlie is engaged to marry a woman he likes but does not love (or at least is not interested in, sexually), since's he's gay and would rather be a confirmed bachelor if the choice had been afforded to him. He's marrying as part of a scheme between their parents to get the two of them married and Charlie's debts settled. The problem is that, around a month before the wedding, Charlie meets and is infatuated with Miles, a pornographer who runs a bookshop. Miles won't sleep with a married man, so if Charlie wants to keep seeing Miles for longer than a fling, he'll have to call the wedding off. For a long while it seemed like everything revolved around whatever Charlie was going to decide, with Miles having made his position clear but not able to control whether or not Charlie got married.
I think I like my books with a bit more stress but not this kind of stress. I dislike lying in relationships and am rarely able to handle them in fiction, and this manages to have a lot of that stress without most of the actual lies, which doesn't soothe things for me as much as it could have. I'd prefer a book where it feels like the characters worked for the ending, like something is different by the end because they have changed in a meaningful way. Miles may have, but so much of the narrative focus in terms of agency is on Charlie that I'm not even totally certain of that. The resolution seems to be just handed to them, and in a way that changes my thoughts about the beginning as well. It's likely too sexually explicit to work for those who prefer their romances closed-door or fade-to-black, while dodging explicit detail once things really get going. It's not for me, though I had a good time in parts.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Sexual content
Moderate: Cursing, Infidelity, Alcohol, Death, and Homophobia
Minor: Pregnancy, Abandonment, Terminal illness, and Sexual harassment
galleytrot's review against another edition
- 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
4.5
READ: Dec 2023
FORMAT: Audio
ENTERTAINMENT VALUE: 4.5 / 5⭐
TECHNICAL / PRODUCTION: 4.75 / 5⭐
FINAL – OVERALL: 4.5 / 5 ⭐
FINAL – OVERALL: 4.5 / 5 ⭐
In this 1883 historical romance, Charlie wants the autograph of his favourite author as the last hurrah before he must get married and store his precious collection away for the foreseeable future, but the man has proven difficult to find, well-hidden behind his pen name. When he finally gets Miles’ identity, he meets the man at his bookstore, and a misunderstanding sparks the beginning of a heated affair with a quickly-approaching expiry date. Miles will simply not carry on with a married man out of principle, but Alma is just as in need of her union with Charlie as he is, and she’s too kind to willfully hurt.
I’m shocked at how intrigued I am by literally every character within this book. Every single one of them is introduced to us with enough charm and tantalizing details that I want to know more; even the less likeable characters who exist solely to force our main leads into uncomfortable decisions. I rarely give side-characters a passing glance, preferring to put all my focus on whom the story is actually about, but this world is so richly populated I can’t help but want to see more of them. Even Alma, who in most romances would likely be portrayed as terrible person we couldn’t possibly want our protagonist to end up with, has her own set of charms and quirks that make her pleasant and delightful. I needed this book to resolve in the best possible way for all parties involved, and while it didn’t fit my personal solution for making that happen, it definitely did happen.
My only gripe about this book is that, for how sexually charged it is from cover to cover, there is shockingly little spice on-page. This story takes more of a tell-don’t-show perspective that I couldn’t wrap my head around, because there are a couple of spicy scenes, but one of the more significant ones cuts off right immediately before things get going. Artistically, I think this story probably does enough to consider itself complete, but personally... I’m not ashamed to admit I’m in it for the smut. This book is also among the closest I’ve come to seeing an honest BDSM relationship played out in a historical setting, and I just feel a bit dejected that it didn’t lean more into being that. I won’t hold it against my rating, because I honestly had such a good time reading this one and it was too well-written to dismiss.
This book has representation for gays, lesbians, and non-binary gender expression. It has a generally-positive portrayal of sex workers. At least one character is described as non-white, but there is otherwise little else in the way of diversity.
The following elaborates on my content warnings. These may be interpreted as spoilers, but I do not go into deep detail.
This book contains: alcohol use; joke bout animal sacrifice; mentions of infidelity; homophobic laws leading to past deaths and incarceration; past struggles with substance abuse and addiction; drug use (opium); past blackmail; past illness resulting in death; past grief, loss; implication of dysphoria; and, women being treated as subhuman for childbirth out of wedlock.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Drug use, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Homophobia, Infidelity, Classism, Misogyny, Dysphoria, and Sexism
Minor: Death, Drug abuse, Grief, Terminal illness, Pregnancy, Addiction, and Animal death
the_vegan_bookworm's review
emotional
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Homophobia, Death, and Grief
adotzam's review
emotional
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Homophobia, Sexual content, and Outing
Moderate: Grief and Drug abuse
mabellene's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Homophobia
Moderate: Addiction and Death
Minor: Pregnancy
gondorgirl's review against another edition
adventurous
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Drug use, Alcohol, and Grief
Minor: Sexism and Suicidal thoughts
himangi's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
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
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Alcoholism, Suicide attempt, Outing, Sexual content, Grief, Addiction, Cursing, Stalking, Alcohol, Death, Homophobia, and Hate crime
Minor: Pregnancy and Abortion
peachani's review
challenging
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Alcohol
Moderate: Homophobia, Grief, and Alcoholism
Minor: Classism, Addiction, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Pregnancy, Outing, Suicide attempt, Infidelity, and Forced institutionalization
srm's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
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
4.0
Utterly delightful debut romance about a Victorian man who loves gay erotic novels and his meeting with his favorite author. The general trope set up is grumpy/sunshine, but I love that Charlie's sunny demeanor is hiding some pain and problems, and that grumpy Miles is really just in mourning. The unraveling of how these two get thrown together is such a joy, and the steamy bits are fantastic.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Grief and Alcohol
Minor: Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Self harm
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