A Gentleman's Gentleman

A Novel

By: TJ Alexander

Narrated by: Harrison Knights

A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK • A USA TODAY BESTSELLER • From the acclaimed author of Chef's Kiss, a groundbreaking trans Regency romance that's both delightfully witty and refreshingly iconoclastic.

“A Gentleman’s Gentleman is a thoroughly charming confection of a romance. If you’re looking for a tender, gentle slow burn, this is the book for you.” —Cat Sebastian, author of We Could Be So Good

The notoriously eccentric Lord Christopher Eden is a “man of unusual make” and even more unusual habits: he prefers to live far from the prying eyes and ears of the ton, and would rather have the comfortable company of his childhood cook and his aged butler than the swarm of servants and hangers-on befitting a man of his station. But Christopher’s pleasant, if occasionally lonely life is upended when he receives word from his lawyers that, according to his late father’s will, he must find a wife by the end of the Season if he intends to keep his family’s fortune and the Eden estate. Christopher cannot imagine a worse fate: as he isn’t attracted to women, his chances of making a wife happy are slim. Furthermore, if his quest to marry has any hope of succeeding, he must move to London posthaste and acquire some more suitable staff.

Enter James Harding, Christopher’s new, distractingly handsome—if rigidly traditional—valet. After a rocky start, the two strike up a fragile friendship amid the throes of the London Season . . . a friendship that threatens to shatter under the looming shadow of Christopher’s impending nuptials—and the secrets both men are keeping. With its heady combination of dry wit, slow-burn romance, and a nuanced portrait of trans identity, A Gentleman’s Gentleman stands to transform the historical romance genre as we know it.

A strong start, but...

I really liked the beginning of the book. I liked the characters, and the way Christopher transitioned was historically possible.

Then the plot involved 2 enormous, ridiculous coincidences. I was willing to put to with that since the story was enjoyable overall.

But the ending... the ending is terrible. The decision the characters make is naive in the extreme. And the way they execute it is both historically and psychologically inaccurate. I'm disappointed!

The narrator was great.

An absolute treat

I thoroughly enjoyed this story and gasped on several occasions. The author’s wit and ability to make you think it’d be just another paint by numbers romance flipped the canvas several times, making quite a stunning piece.

Wonderful read!

The story was enjoyable, I couldn’t put it down. Fun characters, crazy plot-twists, and a decent amount of action.

Queer joy

I re-read this in audio for a read-along hosted by the author. I didn’t do a great job of keeping up with the pace and discussion of the read-along because this month has been chaos in the worst possible way. But this book was a great comfort during a difficult time. It was lovely to re-visit old friends and immerse myself in queer joy. The narration by Harrison Knights is fantastic.

One of my new favorites!

Such a beautifully written romance with such emotional depth. I’ll be recommending this one to all my friends