A review by onthesamepage
The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen by KJ Charles

emotional 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

5.0

Tropes:
secret identities, protectiveness

Steam level: 🌶🌶🌶

“Is this—” Joss wasn’t even sure what to call it. “Are you worrying about me?”
“I’m not worrying,” Gareth said a bit defensively. “I’m just concerned.”
“Hearts alive, London,” Joss said, pulled his face round, and kissed him. 

Why is miscommunication a popular romance trope, but good communication isn't?

This is one of those stories where the characters slowly but steadily wormed their way into my heart. I have a weakness for men with damage, and Gareth really fits the bill. He has always felt unwanted by his family, and this impacts the way he deals with all his relationships, including the one with Kent, a.k.a. Joss, someone he spent a week's worth of nights with in London. When Joss has to go back home, he suggests that they meet again when he comes back to London, and Gareth shuts him down because he thinks of it as an empty promise. Of course, they do meet again, this time in Kent, and while there were plenty of opportunities for Joss to be annoyed with Gareth, they talked through the incident instead. And not just that time, but every time one of them did something that upset or angered the other, they would feel those feelings, and then talk about it instead of breaking up or running away or any of the other tropes I see used so often to facilitate a third act breakup. I loved the way they would fight, and then think about where they'd gone wrong and acknowledge their mistakes and try to do better (and then fail because that's what people do, we don't just change overnight). It brought so much depth to the relationship and to the characters.

“I feel right here. I feel right with you.”

Putting that aside, the romance itself was just really sweet. Joss feels protective of Gareth pretty early on, and wants Gareth to rely on him. Joss presents himself as strong, but with Gareth, he can finally let his guard down just a little. They both bring something to the relationship, even though it initially feels like Joss is carrying most of the weight. But they both grow in different ways. Gareth learns to step up and stand his ground, and Joss learns to share his burden and his decision making. By the end, it was easy to believe that they would do anything for each other, and I loved that.

Don't let the sweetness of the romance fool you, though—there's plenty of steam to be had here. It's not quite on the level I've come to expect from the author (no BDSM here, even though I was absolutely expecting a bit more kink based on her other books), but still plenty hot.
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