The emotional depth and feeling in Christopher and James's story had me from the beginning. TJ Alexander continues to be a master of their craft. I can't wait to see what comes next from them.

I love queer historical romance. They show that queer people have always been around, even if the history books like to pretend otherwise. And in times like these, books like this are more important than ever.

Lord Christopher Eden is an eccentric Earl. He doesn't keep a lot of staff, and he prefers to stay a recluse in his country estate. But his inheritance is on the line if he cannot find a wife by his next birthday, which is just a few months away. He hires a valet to make himself appear like a normal Earl and prepares to travel to London. But having a valet makes it very hard to keep his secret - he is a trans man, and no one knows.

This book made me feel so many feels. It was the slowest of slow burns, which made the beginning just a little slow for me, but it was absolutely worth the wait for the swooning (and spice) at the end! I cannot wait for the second book in this universe, because TJ Alexander is SO good at historical romance.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review!

This book was a delight! I could not put it down.

This is a slow burn, but the pacing itself was not slow. There’s a lot of heart in this book, and (whew) some very deep emotional grief as well.

Historical romances are a favorite of mine, and this author seamlessly gave us a story that will resonate with readers.

I really enjoyed the ending, the author did a fantastic job of giving these two characters the ending they deserved, without changing who they truly are.

I absolutely ADORED this book! The main character, Christopher, is faced with a problem - he must marry before his 25th birthday in order to inherit his family's estate. As a trans man in the regency era, Christopher is faced with trying to find a wife who he can confide his secret in. Christopher is not interested in all of the trappings that being the lord of an estate requires, which includes a large staff. Unfortunately, he knows that in order to secure a wife, he will have to basically pretend to have all the things a head of a estate has, such as a valet. Which is where our love interest James comes in. As Christopher and James get to know each other, Christopher finds himself dreaming of a future where he can live peacefully with James, riding horses together in a life of solitude. ROMANCE ENSUES AND IT WAS WONDERFUL!!!!
The prose and the flow of the story were really excellent and I loved the dynamic between Christopher and James. It was just so delicious I could not get enough!! I also particularly loved all of the side characters and I felt like they added a lot to the story.
Thank you so much to Netgalley for this arc!

*Received as a free ARC*
I was quite excited about this book, as I love A Lady for a Duke and the vibes seemed similar. I was not disappointed! Christopher was delightful. My only complaint is that there wasn't a ton of depth of character in much of anyone else. James got some by the end, but even he could have used some more fleshing out. But I'll still recommend it to people!

—"you must marry to inherit"

—trans hero

—"oh no my new employee is hot"

—slow burn to passion

Heat Index: 6/10

The Basics:

Lord Christopher Eden prefers to keep his distance from society, both because he's somewhat eccentric in general, and because he doesn't want anyone to know his secrets. The trouble is, Christopher is going to lose his estate—and his earldom—if he doesn't marry before his next birthday. On his quest to find a wife, he hires the prickly (some might stay STARCHY) valet James Harding, whose stern attitude is both annoying and, let's be real, super hot. As they become friends, however, Christopher's burgeoning longing for James does pose a complication for the whole "finding a wife" thing...

The Review:

TJ Alexander has become an author I can reliably recommend—you'll almost definitely like or love the book if they wrote it, and this is no exception. I am SO happy to see them hitting the historical romance space when it needs a voice like theirs so desperately. Historical romance is not dead! But damn, if you want to keep it alive you need not only diverse writers, but writers who write unabashedly what they want. That is TJ. They are fearless and they are determined and it's just a joy to read their stories.

While A Gentleman's Gentleman does touch on some very difficult topics—transphobia and homophobia are never confronted directly on the page, exactly, but they're forces that obviously shape the world and the circumstances in which Christopher lives—it has a really breezy, wryly humorous tone infused with some classic Historical Romance Pining. I don't know that any romance subgenre does Pining as well as historical romance, and you get the whole nine yards here.

This is entirely from Christopher's third person POV. While I do admittedly prefer dual POV, TJ does a great job of giving us a very clear picture of who James is, what he longs for, his quirks. Christopher is fairly smitten fairly quickly, but in a "This is so embarrassing and also inconvenient, I can't believe myself" kind of way. (There's also a really good beat wherein he discusses whether or not being attracted to a man makes him LESS of a man—something that was refreshing to see touched upon.) It's as the story goes on and he and James become friends that their feelings deepen. It's gradual, it's natural, but it never feels meandering. This is, inheritance plot aside, overall what I would call a character study romance.

When compared to Alexis Hall's Something series (which I love) I'd say this is sort of between that and a "traditional" historical romance vibe. It's set firmly in a more realistic, if optimistic, historical setting. Christopher does have a close queer friend, but he doesn't have a circle, as Hall's characters often do. And part of that is also necessity, right? Christopher is hiding, and I wouldn't say that the urge to hide is ONLY due to his transness (he has a great backstory that DID feel very classic old school historical romance in a lot of ways). But you're in that middle space, where Christopher isn't ashamed, exactly, but also feels pretty alone because while he has a friend that is gay, he doesn't have any friends who are trans.

By rooting this story in a more grounded world, TJ also gets to highlight the reality of trans history: that it is, in fact, a history. That there were and have always been trans people. And there will always be trans people. Regardless of whatever various corrupt regimes try to tell you. It's not that Christopher is truly alone; it's that he feels alone, and once he realizes he isn't, you can truly feel this weight lift a little.

All while he's falling head over heels in love with a very uptight hot man who's all about dressing him.

The Sex:

Although there is explicit sex in this novel, you do have to wait a good while for it. I'd definitely categorize this as a slow burn; but because the emotions are big and the longing is LONGING, I didn't feel undermined or whatever. Plus, what you do get is truly excellent and really unique to the characters. I don't know if I've read a sex scene before that had the exact same kind of... framing, I guess? In terms of where the characters were coming from emotionally speaking.

Also, Christopher is totally inexperienced, so.... a win for the lovers of virgin heroes (there are dozens of us! Dozens!).

I will say, though—if you're a fan of the stretched out tension? Yeah. There's a scene in this book that does tension SO. RIDICULOUSLY. WELL. I may have pearl-clutched a little.

Look, I'm not gonna ignore the elephant in the room: Trans people are under attack in my country. They always have been, but the loud part is very loud right now. Reading and buying and promoting trans romances should always be a priority. People NEED to be exposed to these love stories. It's political. It's emotional.

And, oh look, you also get to read a really great love story. You're winning on every level. Give yourself that win. Buy this book.

Thanks to Vintage and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This is my first TJ Alexander and I am so impressed. They have such an easy to read writing style, the characters were rich, the banter was funny and the romance was oh so slow, but finished with a bang (wink, wink). My first trans romance as well and the author really pulled on the heart strings with the struggle both characters went through to get to where they were.
Thank you to Netgalley, the publisher, and author for the e-ARC

A Gentleman’s Gentleman was charming and fun to read.

A slower burn, this was like a quick yet lovely meandering regency romance. Though clunky in parts, I liked the writing style, found the characters likeable, and I enjoyed every page.


This was my first time reading T.J. Alexander and I would absolutely read their work again.



Thank you to Vintage and NetGalley for the DRC

I’m a huge fan of TJ Alexander, and this book didn’t disappoint! While I rarely venture into historical romance, I really loved this.

This book was fairly predictable, and didn’t have a lot of spice, I still found it really enjoyable, and fairly comforting. I really enjoyed both main characters, and seeing themselves grow and develop throughout the book.

Just like others of TJ Alexander’s novels, what I loved the most was the queer joy - trans people have always existed, even when they’re outside the ‘normal’ being able to find gender affirming care and people to affirm you, and not having to apologize for who you are.

I could not help but request this book of this the moment that I saw that it was both transgender and a 19th century romance, because the combination of those two concepts is one of my favorite things to read. The only thing that prevented this book from getting a five-star rating is that the actual real romance part of it wasn't really something until about the last third of the book, and then it felt a little bit rushed. I am not going to talk about my favorite parts yet because spoilers, but I think it was still a really fun read, and thank you to NetGalley and Vintage Books for the advance copy.

TRANS PEOPLE WILL ALWAYS EXIST!

Wow, I loved this book. TJ Alexander is an auto buy author for me and I was so so excited to receive this e-arc from Net Galley and Vintage. I planned to read this in between chapters of another book and could not put it down at all.

Christopher is a content, but lonely, Earl who receives notice he must marry by his next birthday or his titles and lands will revert to the crown. This is a set up that isn't uncommon in regencies, but the premise here is Christopher has kept his world very, very all to protect his identity as a trans man.

He begins to open up his life slowly, first by hiring a valet- James Harding, to bolster the appearance that is his absolutely without a doubt a normal earl nothing to see here. Navigating a return to society and building connections outside of his small country life makes our Lord Eden go on a rollercoaster of nerves, dealing with the worries of being revealed, what he believes are unreturned feelings for his valet, and trying to figure out how to maintain his current lifestyle *without* tricking an unsuspecting woman into a life she isn't expecting. Christopher is so soft and kind, it's a wonder he's been alone for so long.

There are some parts of this book that were real tear jerkers, in gender affirming conversations and care between Christopher and the people in his life, to the trauma of losing his family and putting him in this situation to begin with. And as fans of TJ Alexander's other works will expect, there are no shortage of moments to giggle and laugh out loud along the way.

For readers who spend less time in the regency era, this may be a slower burn than you expect it to be, but for me it was perfection. I cannot wait for the beautiful physical copy to arrive on release day!! 🥰🥰🥰

I so thoroughly enjoyed this book! It took twists and turns in an exciting yet altogether not too predictable way. Parts of it were funny with plenty of British wit, and some were very emotional. I didn't expect the young Lord Eden's backstory to be how it was and certainly did not even predict how his valet Harding's would be that's for sure!

This will inevitably be one of my favorite books of the year. Absolutely wonderful in every way. Historical romance isn't always for me, but this book is the most me thing I can imagine. Even my favorite of TJ alexander, who I love.

Just delightful - a little silly at times but generally a lighthearted sweet little romantic romp. The conflict is believable but not a big ol' downer. You'll see the twist coming from twenty miles away but honestly I didn't mind that at all.

I was looking for a fun romance to make me smile, and this didn't disappoint. I've enjoyed all of TJ ALEXANDER's romances, so this was one I was so looking forward to reading. A GENTLEMAN'S GENTLEMAN is the trans regency romance that you've been looking for!

Reader beware, this is a slowwww burn romance, but it'll keep you smiling and giggling for the romance, and pining, and all the cute feelings.

This book follows Lord Christopher Eden, who is a trans man, as he endeavors to find a wife (to fulfill his fathers will). However, he's not attracted to women, and he may or may not have some feeling for his handsome new valet James Harding.

There is a huge reveal surrounding Harding that makes this romance even better, but you'll just have to read it to find out (cause I'm not spoiling that 😉)

There are some elements of PTSD and grief that are handled well throughout this story. And also some spice to make up for the slow burn, so make sure to read content warnings.

If you're thinking about this trans regency romance, I'd say give it a read!

Thanks to NetGalley and Vintage Books for a copy of this eARC!

Take Jeeves and Wooster, plop them in Regency England, and give them the slow burn romance you always knew was simmering somewhere under all the silliness. That is a simplest way I can describe this delight of a novel.

Eccentric, reclusive Lord Christopher Eden needs to leave the countryside he has hidden away in for years because his father’s will requires him to marry. If he doesn't, he will lose his entire inheritance. Having no idea how to navigate a London Season to find a bride, he hires a very traditional valet, James Harding, whose perfectly handsome features he is not at all smitten with. No, not at all.

The problem for Lord Eden is that he is not built like other men, and so he must not only hide his body from his new valet, but any woman he proposes to must be willing to have a marriage in name only. When his tall, dark, and swoon worthy gentleman’s gentleman comes up with a solution to his dilemma, Lord Eden must decide between what he thought he wanted, and what his heart truly desires.

With wit, pathos, and charm, this book is a loving look at the difficulties of living in a world that might be unwilling to see you the way you see yourself, and the joy of finding love despite it all.

Trans historical romance! Christopher, Lord Eden, has a Very Big Secret.... can he keep it from his beautiful and very attractive new valet, Harding? Alexander handles the trans elements of the characters elegantly without too much angst. The romance that blossoms between lord and valet is slow, but builds beautifully on trust, although the depth of Harding's character was a bit under-developed.

Queer historical romances will always have a special place in my heart as it is a reminder that we always have been here and always will be here. A Gentleman's Gentleman was an emotional stroll through a period of trans history that rarely sees the light of day. The characters are flawed yet loveable and while the pace of the story is slow it keeps you engaged until the very end. Our main character, Christopher, battles the trauma of losing his family and potentially losing his inheritance while trying to hide who he really is from not only the world but himself. TJ Alexander did a remarkable job immersing the reader in the recency era with period accurate details throughout the book. If you are a fan of Alexis Hall's A Lady for a Duke or Gabe Cole Novoa's Most Ardently you will most certainly enjoy A Gentleman's Gentleman!

This seriously was the MOST charming book I’ve read in a while. And the thing is, it feels completely different from every other book I’ve read by Alexander, but it’s still just as good? Seriously their writing range had me in AWE.

A slow burn LGBTQ+ regency romance with charming characters, lots of heart and humorous moments. Highly recommend!