Trigger warning: abuse

This was one of my MOST anticipated 2017 books, I love the summary and the cover and I WAS SUPER EXCITED TO READ THIS ONE! And it did (mostly) live up to my expectations! The only problem was, I was overly excited for this one and that means my expectations were through the roof and out about in the clouds so… My review!

Summary from goodreads.com

An unforgettable tale of two friends on their Grand Tour of 18th-century Europe who stumble upon a magical artifact that leads them from Paris to Venice in a dangerous manhunt, fighting pirates, highwaymen, and their feelings for each other along the way.

Henry “Monty” Montague was born and bred to be a gentleman, but he was never one to be tamed. The finest boarding schools in England and the constant disapproval of his father haven’t been able to curb any of his roguish passions—not for gambling halls, late nights spent with a bottle of spirits, or waking up in the arms of women or men.

But as Monty embarks on his grand tour of Europe, his quest for a life filled with pleasure and vice is in danger of coming to an end. Not only does his father expect him to take over the family’s estate upon his return, but Monty is also nursing an impossible crush on his best friend and traveling companion, Percy.

Still it isn’t in Monty’s nature to give up. Even with his younger sister, Felicity, in tow, he vows to make this yearlong escapade one last hedonistic hurrah and flirt with Percy from Paris to Rome. But when one of Monty’s reckless decisions turns their trip abroad into a harrowing manhunt that spans across Europe, it calls into question everything he knows, including his relationship with the boy he adores.

Witty, romantic, and intriguing at every turn, The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue is a sumptuous romp that explores the undeniably fine lines between friendship and love.

Buy this book at Amazon, Barnes and Noble or The Book Depository!

Percy, Monty and Felicity! These three were the ultimate team and I adored them to pieces. I saw someone mention that they wanted a novel about Felicity and I definitely agree. She was such an interesting character, I loved her personality, her intelligence, her snark. FELICITY DESERVES A BOOK! But oh boy, don’t even get me started on Percy and Monty. Their personalities were adorable, even though I found Monty a bit annoying at first.

Monty gets away with everything, and I think his ability to (mostly) never get punished is an example of his class, male and white privilege. I’m not sure if she did that on purpose BUT I think it was an excellent addition to the book, especially because it shed so much light on different privileges. *semi-spoilers* Felicity wanted both a real education and to become a doctor, but women during the 18th century were basically allowed to do neither. *another semi-spoiler* Monty started to have sex with a girl and left her alone, naked and exposed and as Felicity said, “ruined.” Because no one cared if a male was a virgin, all that mattered was a woman had to be one, and if she wasn’t a virgin, she was “ruined.” I think both of those examples (AND A LOOOOOOT MORE) showed Monty’s privilege, and the consequences his actions had on others, even though (at first) he didn’t acknowledge the bad things he’s done.

While Monty’s lack responsibility was a bit annoying, it showed his privilege AND Percy and Felicity helped him realize the truth: that everything he had done in the first half (ish) of the book had real life consequences. Monty’s character changes a lot during the book, and I ended up liking him. There’s a lot to his personality that we don’t get to see until his adventure really beings and I loved seeing him change and begin to understand.

Percy and Monty’s relationship was adorable, but also frustrating. I only say it was frustrating because Monty was always flashing his privilege and acting like he knew what was best for Percy BUT he did end up realizing this closer to the end of the book. Monty just really cared for Percy, and I understand (sometimes) why he acted the way he did. And let me tell you, their relationship is so adorable and shipable that I want to hug them both and never let go.

The ending was FANTASTIC. I kind of had a hard time getting into this book (more on that later) but the ending, as well as the second half, was well worth it. The ending was both intense, and amazing. The ending had my heart pounding, and I literally could not stop reading because I HAD to know what was going to happen next. Once the big action scene was over, my heart melted into a puddle and I wanted to cry or smile or both, because why not? Percy and Monty are the greatest ever and I kind of hope there will be a second book so we can see more of them (and Felicity)! The ending was sweet and beautiful and almost poetry like *cries*

The only thing I didn’t like about this book, was that it was a bit hard for me to get into. I thought the beginning, and kind of the first half of the book, was slow. Afterwords, it began to speed up and I started to like it more.

Kind of spoiler? As a mini note before I sum up my thoughts into something much shorter, I thought this book was going to be more magical? The summary said that they found a magical artifact but honestly, it wasn’t magical. I was expecting some magical things to happen and nothing did other.