The Gentleman's Book of Vices

Lucky Lovers of London, Book 1

By: Jess Everlee

Narrated by: Tommy Hawthorne

Is their real-life love story doomed to be a tragedy, or can they rewrite the ending?

London, 1883

Finely dressed and finely drunk, Charlie Price is a man dedicated to his vices. Chief among them is his explicit novel collection, though his impending marriage to a woman he can’t love will force his carefully curated collection into hiding.

Before it does, Charlie is determined to have one last hurrah: meeting his favorite author in person.

Miles Montague is more gifted as a smut writer than a shopkeep and uses his royalties to keep his flagging bookstore afloat. So when a cheerful dandy appears out of the mist with Miles's highly secret pen name on his pretty lips, Miles assumes the worst. But Charlie Price is no blackmailer; he’s Miles's biggest fan.

A scribbled signature on a worn book page sets off an affair as scorching as anything Miles has ever written. But Miles is clinging to a troubled past, while Charlie’s future has spun entirely out of his control…

Carina Adores is home to romantic love stories where LGBTQ+ characters find their happily-ever-afters.

Lucky Lovers of London

Book 1: The Gentleman's Book of Vices

©2022 Jess Everlee (P)2022 Harlequin Enterprises, Limited

Not bad, but not quite as good as hoped

The love story is pretty good, but there are some heavier real-world problems that I don’t care for in my escape novels. There’s the legality issues around M/M sex and some of the consequences were quite sad (though the worst of it took place in the past). But Charlie’s issues with his fiancée and the fallout from that was hard to read, especially not knowing if there would be a “happily ever after”. Thankfully, it does all work out, but there were some pretty sad parts along the way. Not really what I want in an escapist romance.

The narrator was able to do very distinctive voices, but I didn’t care for most of them. Alma sounded like a twit, Miles sounded like a street thug, and the folks at the Curious Fox also all sounded like thugs, and not the dandies that they are. Oh, and Smithy and Jo were terrible, too! Just some really odd vocal choices for these characters. I think there’s a lot of skill there, but just not a good match between characters and voices.

I fell in love so hard!!

This was an absolutely amazing story! It was spicey, romantic, and heartfelt, ugh so many emotions! A must read in my opinion!

Great set up for a rollercoaster last quarter

This book unfolded nicely. I bought into the characters and meandered along as the story developed and became richer and richer. By the time the beginning of the end hit I had a pit in my stomach and was held hostage till the very last “page” (minute since it’s audio) and loved all the twists and turns. This was such a pleasant surprise.

Cute

My first by this author and narrator.
This was ok, a little long-winded, and honestly, too much monolog for my taste.
You've got a group of like-minded people just trying to survive in a world that doesn't allow any form of gay or 'ruin' behavior.
One MC, Charlie has managed to get himself into some pretty major debt and has only one option. Marriage. Miles, who has managed to become a hermit writing and working in a bookstore he owns and hates.
Overall, the story has good flow, and even though we do not find out much, if anything about the family side of Miles, we do find out how he got the store. We have a little more information on Charlie. The ending is predictable but entertaining.

The narration is OK, not my favorite, but I've heard worse. Had good separation between characters, but for me, the voice for Miles and the woman were grating.

I will not be looking for additional books in the series. One was enough.

Narrator really delivered this unique story

Sometimes it's all about the narrator! No matter how good the story is, the narrator makes or breaks it. Tommy Hawthorne is a new narrator and he delivers. Such talent. Finished Book of Vices and immediately ordered Rulebook for Restless Rogues.