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!

What a fun adventure! Thank you for the advanced copy. Historic romance can be so overdone, but I loved the representation available here.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the chance to read this title before release!

The good:
- Queer rep in a historical setting -- need I say more?
- I adored all the characters
- A happy ending that nobody was forced to compromise their ideals for
- While I saw the twists coming, the hints were well placed and the payoff was still satisfying.

The not so good:
- While the narrative pacing was very good, the plot's was ... not so much. Some plot points felt somewhat abrupt. I feel like the story would've benefitted with some more bridging between events.
- The relationship between the main couple developed well, but there were some gaps in that development. The growth of their friendship (once they got there) felt natural, but I felt there was a hole that would've bridged the transition from strangers to tentative friends. Filling in the holes in the plot's pacing I mentioned probably would've fixed this.
- Some of the descriptions felt rather clunky and out of place. A lot of attention was given to the specifics of Christopher's outfits, which wasn't needed sometimes. The intimate scene at the end didn't flow as well as it should as it felt like there was too much care in describing without being explicit that nothing much got described at all. It would've worked better to skim the happenings and focus on the emotions, or be more explicit with what was happening and lean into it fully.

Overall, I enjoyed it as a fun, quick read.

This is a trans regency romance that will have you swoon over the MMC (both of them)

Lord Eden is a man that is built different, with unique habits and quirks, when he is nearing his 25th birthday he gets word of his late father's will, in order to keep his title and his estate he must marry. After realizing he doesn't have an option he hires a valet to embark to London and find a woman who will be content with a loveless, marriage of convenience as it is all he can offer. Things get complicated when his valet James, who is astonishingly handsome and a little too good for Christopher's sake. They both keep secrets and their secrets might destroy their friendship.

From chapter one you fall in love with the main and secondary characters. This book is an absolute page-turner—fun, lighthearted, and utterly charming!

Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for the E-Arc.

I honestly didn’t know what to expect going into this one for the most part and I was delightfully surprised! I am ALL about queer histrom, but I had never read any TJ Alexander. It has been recommended to me by friends because I love Alexis Hall, Cat Sebastian, and KJ Charles, and this really hit it out of the park for me. Admittedly, I wish there was more slow burn between Christopher and James - I need seven more scenes like the armoire!! But for my first foray into TJ Alexander, I was not at all disappointed and will be looking out for more!

I enjoyed this read very much. The book is very easy to read and you fall in love with the characters very quickly. Very much a slow burn and at every corner you wish for the main character to be loved. If you are looking for a palate cleanser between books, look no further. Highly recommend!

I adored this queer and trans historical romance!! I enjoyed the characters and thought Christopher was hilarious when he was "playing detective". The representation of PTSD was well-done and I enjoyed the pacing of revealing Christopher's past to the reader. I do wish we had a bit more longing/forbidden glances or pashing brushes of hands, etc. The armoire scene was perfection!! I liked that readers got a spicy scene and thought it was very well done. I wish the book was longer only because I wanted to spend more time with the characters and didnt want it to end!

Heat Factor: A bit toward the end after an extremely slow burn
Character Chemistry: The intimacy between a Gentleman and his Valet cannot be overstated—especially when the Gentleman is used to being informal with his staff
Plot: Christopher must get married to fully inherit his estate…but Christopher has a secret that makes getting married difficult
Overall: A very interesting, thoughtful read—though not one that elicited big feelings

When A Gentleman’s Gentleman opens, Christopher is a recluse. He lives in a falling down old Abbey / country estate with only an aging cook and an even more aging butler. He doesn’t entertain, and he doesn’t attend dinners with the neighbors. He spends his days picking out his outfit, going on long horse rides, and reading. Christopher is, to use his words, “a man of unusual make” and he lives in dread of being discovered and forced into an asylum (and a skirt). Only his tailor knows his secret.

Christopher, however, is now being pushed out of living like a hermit. In order to fully inherit the estate, Christopher must marry before his twenty-fifth birthday, so off to London he must go for the Season. And going to London and showing everyone that he’s a normal earl means that he must have a valet. (As a sidenote, I’m not sure why it wouldn’t be acceptable for Christopher to marry the daughter of one of the local landed gentry, but if he did, he wouldn’t be in this pickle and we wouldn’t have a story.)

Enter James Harding, valet extraordinaire. Quite a bit of the first chunk of the book is Christopher and Harding navigating their relationship. Christopher adamantly does not want Harding to do things like dress him or wait on him, which is a huge part of Harding’s job. (And Harding takes great pride in his work.) Christopher is also used to having a casual relationship with his servants. So there’s a push and pull here, between Christopher’s desire for increased intimacy (through things like eating or riding together) and Christopher’s desire for hard boundaries between them (achieved by actions such as making Harding promise to never enter his bedroom at night).

About a third of the way into the story, Christopher and Harding decamp to London, where they engage in various shenanigans in the hopes of finding Christopher a bride. There are scenes that, in another book, would be played for laughs, but even the most farcical moments (such as Christopher climbing into a young lady’s bedroom due to a mistaken assumption and then being forced to hide in the wardrobe) are not treated as such. In other words: the stakes are high for Christopher, and the tone matches those stakes.

There’s a good deal of justifiable angst here—not only is Christopher worried about his secret, fearful about getting married, and carrying guilt and sadness about the death of the rest of his family, he’s also feeling attracted to Harding. This additional layer of queerness—that now Christopher is an unusual man in how his body is made as well as in the kind of attraction he feels—adds to Christopher’s inner turmoil (though the fact that Harding is Christopher’s employee does not play into it; if he’s worried about a power imbalance, it’s the power that Harding would hold over Christopher if certain information came to light). We’re in single POV here, by the way, which absolutely works in terms of raising the stakes of what Christopher is going through. However, this narrative choice does mean that the romance is less well developed, as the reader doesn’t get a ton of information about Harding’s feelings. Honestly, I was ok with the fact that the romance was sometimes secondary to Christopher’s journey because there was so much else to grapple with here.

I’m not going to talk about the ending, but I will say that much of the pleasure I got from this book stemmed from my stress in reading it: how were Christopher and Harding going to be together and be true to themselves? For much of the book, it seemed impossible. But don’t worry, this is a romance: nothing is impossible if love is on the line.


I voluntarily read and reviewed a complimentary copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. We disclose this in accordance with 16 CFR §255.

This review is also available at The Smut Report. (March 2025)

TJ Alexander’s “A Gentleman’s Gentleman” is a tender and heartfelt trans regency/historical fiction that stands out for its unique approach. The author masterfully transforms the strangers-to-lovers trope into a refreshing queer love story, making it a truly captivating read. 

The story follows Lord Christopher Eden, an eccentric man who prefers a quiet life with his childhood cook and father-figure butler, who learns that his late father's will requires him to marry by the end before his next birthday or he'll lose his family's fortune and estate. This is an impossible task as Christopher isn't attracted to women and doubts his ability to make a wife happy. Enter James Harding, Christopher's new valet, who despite a rocky start, develops a friendship during Christopher's quest to court a potential wife. Secrets, bouts of miscommunication, and more threaten this friendship as both must figure out what matters more: tradition or true love. 

Author TJ Alexander has crafted a story that blends comedy, slow-burn romance, and a nuanced portrayal of trans identity, that is unlike anything I've read. My only gripe is that it is more slow burn than romance. Just as we're starting to understand these two characters as something more than Lord and Servant, the book ends. It's unfortunate since everything else, including the world building, is handled well. If you enjoy LGBTQA+ stories that focus on the love, and not the misery, historical fiction set in the regency period, and/or a feel-good story, check this one out. Thanks to NetGalley and Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor for this ARC.

I usually don't love period pieces but this book was FANTASTIC!! The slow but built so much delicious tension and the characters rang so true. This was a pleasure to read and an amazing emotional rollercoaster in the best way with a sweet HEA! 5 stars!

I don’t think I’ve ever said “oh my heartttt” and cried as much as I did reading this! The grumpy valet and golden retriever earl 🥹

It has so many surprises and heartwarming moments. It was exactly what I needed in this current climate to give me some semblance of hope.

Thank you so much Vintage for the eArc.