The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue (Montague Siblings #1)

Rating 3.5/5

Warning: You will read this book in the voice of an English gentleman. It can’t be helped.

Due to the immense amount of hype surrounding the book, I was concerned that my expectations would far outweigh the abilities of this book to meet them; and while I can’t say I am as enamored with it as most of the book community, I have to admit that this was a very fun ride that I found extremely enjoyable.

This book follows Monty, a product of English nobility, who has been bread to be a gentleman; however, he is more inclined to live a roguish lifestyle and is the picture of debauchery. He likes to seduce both ladies and men, imbibe impressive amounts of alcohol, and essentially live a life against his father’s expectations.

As a last hurrah before he is expected to take over his family’s estate, and Percy, his best friend and love interest, heads to law school, they are going to take a tour of “the Continent,” which is basically mainland Europe. But the tour is complicated by the fact that Percy’s father, a domineering and abusive man who is completely embarrassed by Monty’s hedonistic lifestyle, hires a babysitter to accompany them on the tour which turns the tour into an overwhelmingly dull experience. It is further hampered by the presences of Monty’s sister, who is temporarily accompanying them until she is taken to finishing school.

However, the trip suddenly takes an adventurous turn after the group finds themselves pursued by the Duke of Bourbon who, we come to find out ,is after an item that Monty has stolen from him believing it to be a worthless trinket. The book then takes a turn into the mysterious and magical as the group tries to uncover the importance of this box and then use it to their own advantage.

I’ll admit that this story began slowly for me. I was not compelled by the plot until the actual mystery entered into the story and took the plot in a direction that was different from what I was expecting. Thought it wasn’t quite a four star read for me, there were plenty of positive points. Here are my favorites:

1. I love the voice in which the story is written. Lee does a fantastic job of capturing the vocabulary and style of 18th century English language. She also has a way of writing that is clever and witty.

2. I also enjoyed the relationships that are formed within the story. I particularly enjoyed how a quasi-pirates essentially take the group under their wing, particularly Monty, and gives him the fatherly relationship he never has.

3. Felicity is the character that truly made this book for me. I found Monty slightly irritating as he was usually selfish, stubborn and cowardly, but Felicity was amazing. She was bold, sarcastic, witty, smart, and not afraid to be brave in a time that was not kind to women.

4. I really enjoyed and appreciated the historical context Lee added at the end of the book. Though it was at the end, it really added to my overall understanding and enjoyment of the plot.

All in all this was a fun and enchanting read. Definitely worth a go

***Review posted on The Uncharted Word blog***

This book is undoubtedly one of the most humorous and entertaining YA historical fictions Ive read, beside My Lady Jane of course. The Gentlemans Guide is filled to the brim with comedic moments that are balanced out by surprisingly serious topics introduced throughout the characters long and arduous journey

Not only does Mackenzi Lee create a fun adventure filled with witty dialogue, bouts of debauchery, and intrigue, she also does an excellent job in exploring the human experience by providing situations and character relationships that inspire deep conversation.

Her characters Monty, Felicity, and Percy are each so unique, well-developed, and multifaceted. Monty, our far-from-perfect protagonist, is self-centered, self-serving, blas, reckless, insensitive, and cowardly. However, his heart is in a good place. Most of the time, at least. He is hyper-aware and very accepting of his sexuality; however, his confidence falters in the face of his fathers bigoted and domineering presence. Montys father plays a much larger role than expected as his treatment of Monty cuts very deep and affects his sons behaviors in a seriously notable way. It was extremely heartbreaking to read in a book that I thought would be all laughs and jokes. Well, it isnt, just so you know.

As for the other characters, Felicity was an amazing female character. Though initially insensitive to Montys plight, she becomes fairly sympathetic towards the end. She proves to have an open mind, and on top of that, she has agency and a great sense of independence. I was impressed with her experience in medicine and her ongoing pursuit of knowledge. Because of this, I think it would be safe to say shes the most clever and useful member of the group.

Percy is truly a sweetheart. Only he truly knew how to deal with Monty, and it was very amusing to see how the two boys interacted. I greatly appreciated how Lee didnt shy away from race and discrimination during this time period and instead dives right into these issues. Percys biraciality provides another dimension to this dark comedy and not only that, Percys medical condition also provides another topic of discussion.

All the characters slowly evolve and become better versions of their past selves by the end. Monty and Percys relationship goes through rough times, but they eventually find their way. And in doing so, theyve become one of my favorite OTPs!

The story takes a surprising turn and transforms into a hectic, suspenseful journey accented with piracy and a touch of magic/alchemy. Unexpected? Yes. But still very captivating and even more romantic and dangerous than first anticipated.

A Gentlemens Guide is a book that expertly balances humor and charm with provocative social commentary. I was very surprised by the darker, more weighty elements. The author navigates themes centered around racism, slavery, domestic abuse, sexism, homophobia, disability and mental illness, dysfunctional familial relations, and so much more. These heavier themes add great purpose to this romp of a good time, and I really couldnt have imagined a better way of going about it. As a whole, this book is a perfectly blended adventure complete with fantastic characters. A total reread, if you ask me.

I eagerly looked forward to reading this book, because of the overwhelmingly positive reviews on Amazon and GoodReads.
I looked forward to the Grand Tour storyline, which was the selling point for me. But the Grand Tour was but an excuse to get the characters to the Continentmuch to my disappointment.
The abbreviated Grand Tour morphed into an adventure/teens in danger storyline l, but that plot was overshadowed by the characters (mostly Monty-caused) multiple problems.
Again I was surprised as the adventure storyline was eclipsed by a fantasy storyline about an almost-desperate search for an magical, all-powerful alchemical panacea.
The incredibly interesting and well-drawn characters saved this book for me. Of the characters, I loved Felicity most, not to mention her intelligence, bravery and self-confidence.
This book is written in first person, so at approximately page 150 Montys witty, self-centered chatter began to grate. Yes, Monty was funny, but how I yearned for multiple POVsPercy and Felicityto occasionally spare me Montys voice.
Recommended but if you get this novel, ignore the blurbs about the Grand Tour.
Unlike the majority of readers, Im rating this 3 Stars.

This book was everything that I hoped it would be and more. I read it alongside listening to the audiobook, and let me tell you, Christian Coulson can talk to me with that gorgeous voice of his all day and I will never grow tired of it!

The story itself was amazing. An adventure. A romance. It had pirates!! It made me so happy to see such a wonderful bi character in Monty. There was also gay rep and I’m certain there was a-sexual rep, which I hope will be made more clear in The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy! There was a strong female, a character with epilepsy, one of the main trio was a POC, and I don’t think this book took a single wrong step. It’s tied with Strange The Dreamer as my favourite book of 2017.

I’ve got so much praise for this book. I might even read it again soon. I cannot wait for the next adventure!

It’s never a good sign when, a few days after finishing a book, I’m struggling to remember what it was about in order to do it justice in a review – ‘The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue’ is one of those books, unfortunately. It’s entertaining enough and I enjoyed reading it, but it also suffered from a main character who is (to me, anyway) usually more annoying than charming and a tendency to throw everything but the kitchen sink in to the plot, just in case…

The basic premise is that our main character, Monty, is about to depart on his Grand Tour in the way that all well-heeled young men of the Regency period were wont to do, in his case accompanied by his best friend (and unrequited love interest) Percy. They’ve also been given the task of depositing Monty’s sister at a finishing school on the way and given strict instructions about what they can and can’t do. Likewise, at the end of their time together, Percy is supposed to be going off to university in Holland and Monty is already bemoaning that separation.

After Monty follows his dick into trouble in Paris, as well as proving himself to be more than a little light-fingered, trouble starts to follow them. The trio end up separated from their chaperone and on the run, as well as a few things about Percy coming into the open. This is where, for me, the plot starts to go off the rails a bit and the author really should have considered not throwing twelve more plot ideas into the book just in case.

I almost gave this book 3 stars instead of 4 because of Monty, who is pretty much insufferable most of the time. It’s rescued by the character of Felicity, who has all the common sense her brother lacks, while Percy still remains a bit two-dimensional at times. Anyway, apparently there’s another book which follows on from this one but from Felicity’s point of view – ‘The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy’ – due out later in 2018.

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