All My Mothers
Book
MEET EVA MARTÍNEZ-GREEN, AN ONLY CHILD FULL OF QUESTIONS ABOUT HER BEGINNINGS. Between her...
Literary Fiction
The Saint of Lost Things
Book
Lindy Morris is stuck. She lives in rural Ireland, banished to a lonely bungalow by her Granda...
Literary Fiction Rural Life Ireland Trigger warning: domestic abuse
Muskets & Masquerades (Muskets Trilogy #2)
Book
Jack and Annalisa are married only five months when, enroute to France, a shipwreck separates them....
Historical Fiction Historical Romance
Bruce the Spruce: A New York City Fairytale About the True Meaning of Christmas Trees
Book
Bruce the Spruce has Christmas all wrong. Thanks to his fancy decorations and adoring admirers,...
Children Kids Christmas Holiday Christmas Trees Fiction
Sam Time
Book
Samantha (Sam) Hunter is living two lives. When her fiancé is away on business, lonely Samantha...
Historical Fiction Time Travel
Atomic Love
Book
Rosalind Porter's biggest mistake was love . . . Chicago, 1950. Before Thomas Weaver broke her...
Historical fiction
Morgan is my Name
Book
An atmospheric, feminist retelling of the early life of famed villainess Morgan le Fay, set against...
Historical fiction Retellings Arthurian legend mythology Audiobook Historical Fantasy
Who Buried Sarah - New Brunswich (Canadian Historical Mysteries, #5)
Book
Sarah, the only child of Rev. and Mrs. Cranston Estey, was betrothed to Connor McLagen of the...
Historical Fiction
Heather Cranmer (2721 KP) created a post
Dec 9, 2021 (Updated Dec 9, 2021)
Kyera (8 KP) rated Gentleman's Guide To Vice And Virtue in Books
Jan 31, 2018
Monty is quite enamored with himself and unconcerned about the responsibility that his title infers that he should possess. He doesn't think through his actions and gets in more trouble than the pretty face of his would lead you to believe. Despite that, and despite his absolute ineptitude, you can't help but love him as a character. His shenanigans and lack of forethought throw the trio into a situation that they might not make it out of unscathed.
Percy, his best friend, is much more responsible and adds a perspective to the history that we might not think of otherwise. Although his father is a titled man, he fathered Percy with a woman of colour which gives readers the perspective of a man of mixed-race rather than the white-privilege that we see from Monty. Felicity is well-educated because she is stubborn and refuses to bow to the whims of society. She wants to study medicine, so she finds any book she can on the subject and devours it. Felicity's character also allows readers to see the position of a woman in those times, to realize how far we have come in the treatment of woman, or just anyone who is not a Caucasian male, their equality, and how far we still have to go on all accounts.
I have noticed that some people find the story to be slow, which is not quite how I would describe it. The first few chapters might be tough to get into as it is not immediately the energy of a swashbuckling pirate adventure or high stakes battle in space, but it does find its stride. The journey the reader is taken on is highly enjoyable and certainly worth the slower early build up. Plus the flirting is precious and I want to believe that it is a historically accurate portrayal of a person from that time period.
Mackenzie Lee does a wonderful job of taking us on a Grand Tour of Europe, despite the fact that most of us probably are not familiar with the continent in the 1700's. She adds authentic little items into the story like cities, events or jobs that make the story feel real. It is clear that she did a lot of research and it makes her book shine.
I highly recommend this to young adult/teen readers even if they don't feel that they are historical fiction readers. This story is fun and will give you all of the feels, although you may want to hit Monty upside the head a few times. This cute story will leave you wanting more of the trio and wondering if you are a historical fiction fan after all.
