The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee (Book Review)

A fantastic tale of a spoiled bisexual British Lord romping around Europe – a great story where the aristocracy of the 18th-century meets Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda. This is Book 3 in my 52-weeks, 52-books challenge.

In The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee  we follow the adventure of Henry “Monty” Montague who 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.

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. His sister Felicity is along for the ride – she is also one to buck convention, always has her head stuck in a book and wants to become a scientist or doctor when society expects her to be a “lady”.

We embark on a break-neck speed journey around Europe detailing a “Grand Tour”; the aristocracies 18^th century version of finding who you were, “one” got drunk, slept around and had fun. "One" spent the time schmoozing with other well-to-does around Europe, nurturing family ties and basically having a ball. But for Monty this goes spectacularly wrong – he gets drunk and rips the bodice from the wrong lady, he has to escape naked across a well manicured lawn but not before he steals a memento, something small that won’t be noticed – except it proves to be very valuable.

What follows is a marvellous chase death-defying chase; they are attacked by highwaymen, lose their chaperone, get jailed, drugged and then kidnapped (kind-of) by pirates. Then to Venice, a sinking island and finally … hang on there … you’ll have to read it yourself. Along the way in this historical accurate story we learn about class & racism in a unique and interesting way. We feel Monty’s heart breaking when he learns about his best friend – Percy – who has epilepsy and when their tour ends will be locked up in an insane asylum. They’ve never slept together but have loved each other for many years; their life and awkward love for each other is intelligently intertwined within this story – will they, won’t they – will it ruin their friendship – and will Monty find a cure or stop Percy being locked up for the rest of his life.

This book for me straddles the YA book World really well, for an experienced reader; it’s over 500 pages long, it’s historically accurate and the plot meanders a little but it’s still a fantastic, perfect for an avid reader that isn’t quite ready for the massive epics like Stephen King’s The Stand, or fantasy epics by Brent Weeks or Brandon Sanderson.

It’s an exciting read with a vivid picture of 18^th century Europe, a forbidden romance and pirates, frankly what else do you need. It’s definitely the case that the three main characters were born in the wrong century and this book if read in the classroom would generate lots of interesting debates and discussion.It is very well researched and written. 

The verdict, a great read for either adults or advanced young adult readers, I give this book an 8 out of 10 planets. For me there was a little too much history and not enough attention given to the plot, but, then again, I always hated history in school. It’s still a great read.

John The Captain Ryan