The Gentleman’s Book of Vices by Jess Everlee was very fun and I will definitely seek out more of this author’s work. It’s a male/male romance set in 1883 London. Extrovert Charlie Price is embedded in a small community of queer friends, while Miles Montague, after his lover died in prison, isolates himself from everyone while writing philosophical and filthy erotica under a pen name. It’s a bit of a Grumpy/Sunshine story and I loved seeing how Charlie shows Miles how lonely he’s become through fear and depression and brings him out of it.
As someone who’s written a lot of erotica, I appreciated how Miles’ early writings, in the vein of Dickens, got him nowhere, but he then pours more of himself than he thinks into his erotica; it’s lovely that Charlie recognizes that and loves his work so deeply.
I also loved that Charlie, engaged to be married to save himself from financial ruin, is genuinely fond of the young woman he’s supposed to marry, and she is genuinely fond of him. They want to make it work. The resolution of their dilemma was emotional and heartwarming and satisfying; I would love to see Alma’s story continued in another book!
I’ve been in a reading slump and it makes me happy to find something that actually drags me out of it for a while. In short, this was great and you should read it.
