Review by overflowingshelf - A Gentleman's Gentleman

overflowingshelf 's review for:

A Gentleman's Gentleman by TJ Alexander

4.5

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted 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: N/A

CW: death of a sibling; death (on page); grief; panic attacks; transphobia; deadnaming

Oh, the happy tears I cried while reading this book! In a time when trans rights are under attack, we need books like this that show and celebrate trans love and joy. And if anyone deserves a happily ever after, sailing off into the sunset together, it is Christopher and James.

A Gentleman’s Gentleman puts a unique spin on the classic historical romance trope of needing to marry to receive your inheritance. Christopher, the Earl of Eden, needs to marry by the time he is 25 or risk losing his title and inheritance. This poses a bigger challenge for Christopher than it would for others, as Christopher is a trans man. Love is out of the question, as he needs a wife who is fine being his wife in name only and would be content to let him continue to live his quiet life out in the country. Christopher decides it is time to hire a valet to act as a well-meaning gentleman looking for a wife this Season…even if he never intends for his valet to do valeting duties like dressing him. Enter James Harding, his very qualified (and attractive) new valet.

This story was exactly what I needed right now. It was so refreshing and managed to feel light and fun, even while exploring heavier topics such as grief, identity, and acceptance. While written in the third person, Christopher is the main focus as we only get his thoughts, feelings, and emotions. I usually prefer dual POVs in historical romance, but I think having a single POV worked perfectly for this story, as Harding’s POV would have revealed some things that were more fun to experience along with Christopher.

I loved Christopher’s voice. He’s such a great character to follow and get to know. He has suffered great tragedies in his life, losing his whole family and wrestling with the fact that he assumed his brother’s identity to live how he truly is. In many ways, he has isolated himself, as he lives in fear of his secret being exposed. There is a sadness and loneliness to him that you can feel. My heart ached for him at points, especially as he wrestles with his past and his PTSD and grieves over losing his brother. But I loved his resiliency. Despite everything he’s been through, Christopher still has such a positive outlook on life. I also love how freaking funny Christopher is! The way he reacts to his sudden and unexpected attraction to Harding had me giggling. His humor can be self-deprecating but in a fun way. And situations he ends up getting himself into (like the trellis incident) had me laughing out loud as they felt so real, and I loved how he tried to brush them off so casually.

Harding was a great foil to Christopher. There is so much we do not know about him at first as he’s a bit stoic and stiff, but there is a camaraderie between the two men. Even though Harding is baffled by the fact that Christopher hired him to be a valet but does not want him to do any valeting, Harding knows how to be there for Christopher in the ways Christopher needs. Plus, it helps that he’s strikingly handsome. I loved the level of trust that developed between the two men, as it helped set the basis for a great romance.

The romance in this book is the slowest of slow burns, but I felt like I flew through this book. That attraction is simmering just under the surface between James and Christopher (hello, that locked-in-armoire scene? A favorite microtrope of mine!). There are a lot of barriers that need to come down between the two men to be with each other. Trust is fundamental to their relationship as Christopher has a lot on the line if anyone finds out he was assigned female at birth, and Harding also has a lot to risk.. But I loved how the romance played out, as it was incredibly emotional, and the pining pays off so well in the end! It was so refreshing to see trans love celebrated. I was crying happy tears as these two characters literally sailed off into the sunset together to get their happily ever after.

I loved the secondary characters and plotlines that helped round out the story. I was very attached to Plinkton and Chef out in the country and Lady Belinda, Étienne, and Miss Montrose in London. They all played very different but important roles in Christopher and Harding’s story. Also, I did not expect a high-stakes carriage chase in the middle of this book, but it was so fun and unexpected (in many ways!).

This is my first book from T.J. Alexander, but I hope it won’t be my last! We need more LGBTQ historical romances, and this story was incredibly well done, so I hope they’ll write more historical romances in the future! In the meantime, I’ll add Alexander’s contemporary romances to my TBR to check out.

A Gentleman’s Gentleman is a sweet and joyful historical romance celebrating trans characters and love. This story captured my heart and soul, and I could not put it down. If you haven’t already, add it to your TBR today!

Thank you to Knopf/NetGalley for the ARC. All thoughts, ideas, and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Content Warnings