𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓖𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓵𝓮𝓶𝓪𝓷’𝓼 𝓑𝓸𝓸𝓴 𝓸𝓯 𝓥𝓲𝓬𝓮’𝓼
Lucky Lovers of London Book 1
By: Jess Everlee
Gay Historical Romance

𝒪𝓋𝑒𝓇𝒶𝓁𝓁: 4.5/5
𝒮𝓅𝒾𝒸𝑒: 2.5/5

𝑅𝑒𝓋𝒾𝑒𝓌:  There were a lot of really cute moments sprinkled throughout this book that I loved. I cannot wait to continue this series!
That being said, I am a little sad about the spice, there was promise of something really good between characters but most of the scenes were fade to black or not descriptive.

𝒜 𝐹𝒶𝓋𝑜𝓇𝒾𝓉𝑒 𝒬𝓊𝑜𝓉𝑒:  “You’re wrapped me round your damn finger too tight to just shake me off now, mate. And you know it. You love me. You said you did.”

𝒯𝓇𝑜𝓅𝑒𝓈: Dual POV; GrumpyXSunshine; Class Difference; LGBTQ+ Rep; Found Family; MM Romance

𝒯𝓇𝒾𝑔𝑔𝑒𝓇 𝒲𝒶𝓇𝓃𝒾𝓃𝑔𝓈:  Sexual content; Homophobia; Alcohol; Drugs; Death; Infidelity; Addiction; Sexism; Misogony; Emotional Abuse; Classism

I thought this book was very well written and I enjoyed the concept/plot twists which actually did surprise me. I'm just not a huge fan of historical romance in general and I did expect this book to be a lot more horny than it actually was. 

I really liked all the characters and can see why people love this book, I just expected a bit more I think.

This book was an ok read. The writing was well-done, but I struggled to connect with the characters on a deeper level. Overall, I would call this a solid romance but it's not a favorite. I'd recommend this to anyone looking for a historical gay romance. I previously read the 2nd book in the series and I definitely think this one was better in both writing and plot.

I listened to this as an audio book and my biggest criticism is the voice the narrator used for Smithy. Every time he used the voice, it really pulled me out of the moment.

READ: Dec 2023 

FORMAT: Audio 

ENTERTAINMENT VALUE: 4.5 / 5⭐ 

TECHNICAL / PRODUCTION: 4.75 / 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. 

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.

Less filthy than anticipated, considering the setting. A very charmed story, filled with nuanced, detailed characters, with a delightful, decadent setting. 

This was lovely.
Romantic and sweet, full of heartfelt emotions and found family vibes that were truly top-notch, with just the right amount of angst and heartache to make the book, with it's historical setting, feel realistic.

It's also surprisingly tame in some ways, especially considering the chosen profession of one of the leads: there are several closed-door scenes that I was a bit surprised to see.
However, "The Gentleman's Book of Vices" IS an extremely sexy book: the chemistry between the two leads, the build-up to their relationship and the way their dynamic plays out, all of that is very, very hot so I must say, I wasn't disappointed at all by the steam (or lack of it). On the contrary!

I also adored the characters. Miles and Charlie are fantastic protagonists: opposites in so many ways, but both of them are terrified of their lot in life and secretly desperate to find a bit of happiness and love. The whole cast of side characters, though? They stole my heart completely. Noah/Penelope, Forester, Warren, Jo and even Alma and Smithy: all of them are terrible meddlers, and the best kind of people. I'm so, so curious to see if any one of them will be getting their own story: I'm especially desperate for Noah's 🥺

So why 3 and a half stars?
Well, I got a bit bored at one point. I think this book started off great, and then lost a bit of steam. Maybe it was a tad too lengthy for its content: I ended up skimming a few bits, especially during the second half of the book. A shame really, because otherwise I would have truly loved it.

Anyway, this was a minor issue, so I'm sure lots of readers with more patience than me will enjoy this book more: either way, I'd wholly recommend giving it a go, if you love queer historical romances.

I received an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.