Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen by KJ Charles

11 reviews

onefineelephant's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

10/10. I accidentally read the second book (about Luke) first before reading this one but I'm not necessarily mad at the order since they are fairly standalone books. I do think it was an interesting perspective to have so much knowledge of Luke when he was not so much in this book until the end. Because I read the other book first, I more or less knew what was going to happen in this one but somehow I was still so surprised by the events. There is something about this author's writing style that makes me think about the characters and plot non-stop and yet also not have any idea where the story is going (in a good way). I love the genuine connection but also faults between Joss and Gareth. Their love is so wonderful, especially set in this time period. I also enjoyed the supporting characters quite a bit including the other Doomsdays and Gareth's new family. Overall, I highly recommend this book as well as the second. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Outing, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Ableism, Alcoholism, Misogyny, Medical content, and Abandonment

There is potential incest because a cousin implies to want to court his cousin but nothing actually happens. Also, at one point there is a threat of sexual assault/rape of a woman but this threat is not made to the woman and does not actually happen.

crystalisreading's review

adventurous emotional hopeful

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

More violence and tension than i expected, but nevertheless absolutely delightful. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Moderate: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual assault, Grief, and Outing

Minor: Misogyny, Slavery, Pregnancy, and Colonisation

gold_star_reader's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Very spicy!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content and Abandonment

Moderate: Homophobia, Physical abuse, Violence, Kidnapping, Outing, and Classism

Minor: Bullying and Alcohol

galleytrot's review against another edition

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

READ: Apr 2024 

FORMAT: Audio 

ENTERTAINMENT VALUE: 4.25 / 5⭐ 

TECHNICAL / PRODUCTION: 4.5 / 5⭐ 

FINAL – OVERALL: 4.5 / 5⭐ 

In this book, a sudden and unexpected death pulls Gareth from his life as a clerk in London into his birthright position of Baronet out in the smuggler-infested back country of Romney Marsh. He’s left with managing a half-sister he never met, a home he never got to live in, accounts that don't make sense, and social expectations that no honest man ought to be asked to uphold. The marsh and his home are in Doomsday territory, and the clan's gaffer – Josiah Doomsday himself – turns out to be a man with a very intimate (and rather recent) knowledge of Gareth's own law-breaking interests. Blackmail, secret dealings, and unpaid debts haunt Gareth, who wants nothing more than to simply observe the bugs and the newts that captured all of his father's attention when his very own firstborn son could not. 

I'm honestly not sure where to begin with this review. This book’s intricate story, its intriguing characters, and its strange and wonderful setting all converge together to create an incredible experience from cover to cover. I've read it twice now, and the second pass was not made any less interesting by already knowing what was going on or who was hiding what secrets. Poor Gareth has been pulled into a world he’d never expected to be a part of, with debts and responsibilities he could never have predicted, inheriting a wide and varied set of enemies he had no hand in making. 

KJ Charles writes some of my favourite historical fiction romances out there, and I’m happy to add this one to the stack. I’m also very excited to move into the second book of the series at some point, although I am waiting for a day where I can truly focus all of my attention into it. One of the things that really interested me about this book was the growth and understanding of Gareth’s father’s character, a man who never has a single moment on-page (and in fact, spends the entire length of the book very much not alive). I love that he is never redeemed for his failures as a father, and while we learn enough to have some theories about his potential neurodivergence, we also end the book with the certainty of his involvement in nefarious plotting and profiteering. 

This book has representation for gays. One of the main characters is mix-raced, with several other mixed-race and non-white family members. 

The following elaborates on my content warnings. These may be interpreted as spoilers, but I do not go into deep detail.

This book contains:

parent deaths (past, recent, off-page); child abandonment; mentions of war; mentions of deaths, fighting, and injuries; intimidation, blackmail; sexual assault (off-page); alcohol use; weapon violence (knives, cane, fists, gun); assault; mention of past slavery; homophobia; child abuse (physical); serious injury, blood; body shaming; kidnapping, confinement; and, murder (off-page).

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Sexual content

Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Sexual assault, Slavery, and War

callidoralblack's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death and Abandonment

Moderate: Bullying, Child abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Blood, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Confinement, Rape, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Outing, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Classism

jjjreads's review against another edition

emotional funny informative mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual violence, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Outing, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

theatrealpaca's review

adventurous hopeful tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

A beautiful, thrilling lovestory a with criminal suspense swirl throughout.  The conflict and the stakes of Jos and Gareth's love felt real and rooted the the period. The story was twisty and suspenseful while allowing for a ton of growth from all of the main characters. Plus, it was nice and spicy throughout! The narrator of the audiobook was wonderful and did a tremendous job with all of the accents.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Outing, Alcohol, and Classism

Moderate: Racism

purplepenning's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.25

An open-door, LGBTQ, Regency romance between a new baronet and the leader of a smuggling operation. High-stakes adventure, high-heat encounters, family support and family betrayal, lovely respectful communication (after requisite miscommunication), marshland entomology, Kentish dialect lessons, thoughtful discussions of the philosophies vs realities of war policies... As always, KJ Charles delivers an emotionally resonate, well-researched, entertaining historical with great diversity rep. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse and Abandonment

Moderate: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, Outing, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Gun violence, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and Deportation

srm's review against another edition

adventurous emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

Charles hits it out of the park again. Honestly, my rating it 4.5 instead of 5 simply so I don't get boring and repetitive with all her books. Also, the reader was meh. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Child abuse, Homophobia, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Death, Gun violence, Racism, Torture, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Classism

skudiklier's review

adventurous emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I really enjoyed this! There was more mystery/tension than I was expecting, and the climax was a bit scarier than I was ready for, but if anything that just raised the stakes for the book overall. It was really good and I was fully rooting for their relationship.

Minor spoilers ahead: 

I felt really bad for Luke, and also the end had me forgetting that they couldn't really get married 🥲🥲🥲

 

I definitely want to read more by this author! Thank you to Sourcebooks Casablanca and Netgalley for the chance to read and review this ARC. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Gun violence, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, Outing, Abandonment, and Classism

Moderate: Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Torture, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Body shaming, Bullying, and Child death