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.
3.5 STARS
TW: child abuse, alcoholism, ableism, racism, homophobia.
This has been hyped for so long on social media and on BookTube since before it's release so I am so happy I finally have gotten a chance to read it! However, it didn't fully live up to the hype for me. I liked it, but I didn't love it.
The characters are pretty great. I love Monty as a character, which surprised me because the first fifty pages or so I thought I was going to get annoyed with him really quickly. He's charming, funny, and has a really great character arc throughout the story. Honestly, it's just super nice to see more and better written bisexual representation in literature, especially young adult because that is what I read the majority of the time. I think Monty learns the most throughout the story and he matures a lot which I loved to see. My favorite character, by far, is his younger sister Felicity. She's so independent and progressive for her time, which I love seeing in historical fiction, especially if it's done well, like it is done here. I believe she is asexual, at least that's how it came off in a particular scene, and I think we are going to be seeing her explore that in the sequel, which focuses on her. I loved her sibling relationship with Monty. Their bickering was entertaining and heartwarming because you can feel the underlying love they have for each other in their interactions. Our third main character, Percy, was a bit underwhelming for me. I don't think we got to know him enough as a character and I would have enjoyed to know him more, at least in terms of his budding romance with Monty. I am really excited to get to know Scipio more in Felicity's book because he was a lot of fun and incredibly charming. I liked his mentor type relationship he builds with Monty.
The plot was a bit iffy for me at times. It was entertaining and definitely fun but I don't think it was fleshed out as much as I'd like. There's this mission our trio goes on because of the actions of Monty, and I wish that storyline was developed a little more. I think it would make the story stronger, especially at the end. Instead it felt glossed over, and at times the story got a bit boring. I even found myself skimming through bits and pieces. I was also picking up my phone a lot more while reading so I had to force myself to focus. However, even if those things weren't great for me, there were parts of the plot that were really well done enough that I had a lot of conflict on what rating to choose. The parts I liked were ones where representation and the historical fiction were well written. For example, the way epilepsy is explained in the book and how it was viewed in the 1700's is so horrifying and really sad. I cannot personally say the representation is accurate because I do not know anyone close enough to me for me to be knowledgeable on the subject but from some reviews I've read it seems to have been written well. Obviously everyone's experience is different but at least some readers who either are epileptic or know someone who is epileptic were satisfied and thought it was respectfully done. It's a topic I don't think I've ever read about so that was really interesting and I am happy we have some epileptic representation for readers who are looking for it. Of course, with Monty being bisexual, there is a lot of commentary on how queer people in the 1700's were treated. Which is obviously, not great. I already knew this going into the story but the fact that people were incarcerated for being gay and had to hide in fear is still incredibly heartbreaking and terrifying to read about.
The writing is well done. Mackenzi Lee is a talented writer, especially when it came to the character development and the dialogue. This is such a funny book and I love the interactions between our trio. I smiled and laughed out loud fairly often while reading and I really enjoyed the camaraderie between the them. I do wish we got to know Percy more, something I brought up earlier that I want to expand on a little bit. I felt like it was really easy to know what Felicity (and of course Monty since it's all his POV) was feeling and thinking throughout the story because of how opinionated and outspoken she was. I liked that Percy was more quiet and reserved but I wish we got in his head more. Maybe a dual POV between him and Monty? I had no issues believing Monty loved Percy. It was evident and really sweet. But throughout the story, even the end, I had issues believing Percy reciprocated those feelings. It felt forced and undeveloped which sucks because a lot of this story is about Monty being head over heels for his best friend. I think if we got into his head more or if they had a bit more conversations about their flirty not-only-friends relationship they've been having maybe we would get more of his side, which would have made the romance more believable for me. I felt a disconnect between them. Which is unfortunate because what the reader is given about Percy's epilepsy, his personality, and his love for music I really liked his character. But when it came to the romance, it felt one sided and that Percy thought of Monty as a friend. Granted, the great thing about the plot is that although there is a romance weaved in with the meaty action-y adventure, it doesn't take up too much space. I think that is why I ended up enjoying it more than I would have if it was just a romance. However, it makes me wonder if the romance had more time in the story if it would have been better developed on Percy's side.
Overall, I did enjoy this story a lot and I do recommend it. I would maybe go into it without all the hype attached because I think that was the downfall for my reading experience. I was too hyped going into it and I ended up being a little bit more disappointed than I would have liked. I absolutely plan on reading the sequel, The Lady's Guide to Petticoats and Piracy, when it comes out. It focuses on Felicity who was by far the MVP of this book. I am so excited to get more of her story.
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