The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen (Doomsday Series Book 1)
KJ Charles
2023
353 pages
Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
MM Historical Romance (Regency Era)
Plot: Gareth Inglis has just been elevated to a Sir, and he’s not at all happy about it. Though his boring life as a legal clerk in his uncle’s practice leaves much to be desired, it’s what he knows, and there’s safety in what’s known. His entire life has been a string of disappointments and abandonment, and he’s not sure if he can handle another one– especially after a handsome stranger Gareth knows only as "Kent" steps in to fill a deep longing Gareth didn’t know he possessed, only to disappear off into the sunset and leaving Gareth to face his new future empty and alone. Again.
Gareth’s inheritance, a grand house and modest plot of land called Romney Marsh, is situated upon a long stretch of English coastline that appeals mightily to smugglers, some of whom Gareth accidentally becomes acquainted with during one of his habitual late night walks. Though he’d love nothing more than to keep his mouth shut about the entire business, his honor requires him to testify against them in favor of the law (as a former lawman himself, Gareth can hardly side with smugglers, now can he?).
At the eleventh hour, Gareth learns that Kent, the mysterious stranger who sets his blood on fire, is none other than Joss Doomsday, the head smuggler of Romney Marsh, and suddenly Gareth finds himself unable to say a bad word against them and he’s feeling very bitter about it. This leaves him in somewhat of a pickle, as the people of Romney Marsh aren’t exactly welcoming of strangers, and even more hostile to attempted snitches (you know what they say about snitches, and it doesn’t matter that Gareth didn’t fully snitch– intent is bad enough).
But Joss Doomsday is not one to forget when a debt is owed, and Gareth’s silence may have saved his family a trip to the gaol. If there’s a way to repay him, Joss would do so gladly, and once the bodies start piling up, Gareth is extremely glad to have Joss in his corner. But what kind of future is there for two men mixed up in a business as dirty as theirs?
First Take: Argh! KJ Charles is the best. It’s been a while since I’ve scratched my historical romance itch, and Charles’ books always remind me why I love it so much: there is something extra swoony about two dashing young men carousing about in ye old England just trying to find their bit of happiness in a world dead set against them. The stakes are high, banter supremely witty, looks of longing are surreptitious and adorable, and the ultimate payoff is glorious. I loved this one, and can’t wait to read the sequel.
Characters: Sir Gareth Inglis is a kind and honorable man who is so used to disappointment that at this point, he expects it. So he is extremely surprised when he learns that his father left him everything upon his death, the excitement of which is tempered by his discovery that his father never really cared about him at all. It’s no surprise then that Gareth finds himself unworthy of love and in desperate need of someone to convince him otherwise. Joss Doomsday lacks an education, manners, and a proper grasp of the King’s English. But what he lacks in sophistication he makes up for with good sense, street smarts, and a mean right hook. He is well aware of the fact that Gareth Inglis could do much better than him, but Joss has never been one to back down from a fight, especially when hearts are on the line.
Praises: I visited Scotland earlier this year and became well-acquainted with bogs and marshes, and it was so fun to go back, this time in my imagination. In this book, the setting is as important as the characters and plot, and KJ Charles gifts us with a serenely beautiful but dangerous place in Romney Marsh– it has more secrets than a courtesan’s Little Black Book and I had a great time discovering all of them along with Joss & Gareth. As always, the characters are complex and dynamic and a little quirky– I’ll certainly pay more attention to beetles from now on. In a time when MM relationships are illegal and dangerous, it’s hard to imagine ever getting a HEA, but Charles crafts her stories in a way that makes that reality feel believable and worth alllll the trouble it takes to get there.
Critiques: Absolutely nothing to critique here, this story is really well done!
Prose: 3rd person dual POV from Gareth and Joss. KJ Charles is so good at making a reader feel fully immersed in the past. It is hard sometimes with historical fiction/fantasy, to keep the present from seeping in somehow. But Charles does a great job of making the prose and dialogue feel appropriate for the time. So much delightful witty banter. The way Joss & Gareth talk to each other is heart-melty and sweet.
Steam: 4/5 Things get steamy, but not overly so. There’s plenty of plot to keep you interested, though when KJ Charles writes a love scene, she makes it count.
Trigger Warnings: Violence, Parental abandonment.
Tropes: Opposites Attract, Betrayal, Secrets & Lies, Blackmail, Aristocracy & a Commoner, Enemies to Lovers, Fish Out of Water, Forbidden Love, Forced Proximity, Hidden Identity, New Guy in Town, Partners in Fighting Crime, Rags to Riches, Shared Past, Wrong Side of the Tracks, Small Town, Unexpected Inheritance
Cliffhanger: HEA, no cliffhanger.
Memorable quotes:
One couldn’t ask for perfect, he told himself, and decided not to consider if there might be a middle way between ‘perfect’ and ‘professional criminal’.
It suited Joss, too: he had no desire to break heads. He considered himself an honest trader, apart from the criminal parts.
Gareth had no idea why Joss wanted him, of all men, but by some miracle he did, and Gareth Inglis was, at this moment, the luckiest man in Romney Marsh. Possibly in England.
Stand-Alones, Prequels, Sequels, & Tangents: Book one in the Doomsday series. Book two, The Nobleman’s Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel, is set ten years in the future and follows a different MM couple. It could probably be read as a standalone, but this series is likely best enjoyed when read in order, as one of the main characters in book 2, Luke Doomsday, is featured prominently in this book as a young boy.
The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen: The Doomsday Books, Book 1
4.6 | 1,466 ratings
Price: 21.88
Last update: 06-05-2024
Top reviews from the United States
The Hopeless Romanticist
In Which a Reluctant Gentleman Learns that Snitches Get Stitches
Reviewed in the United States on June 1, 2024
Amazon Customer
Wonderful Characters/Story, Poor Pacing
Reviewed in the United States on May 27, 2023Sarah
Spice and heart inside a great story
Reviewed in the United States on February 2, 2024Kindle Customer
Adorable
Reviewed in the United States on March 16, 2024
Mainer
Wonderful historical romance
Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2023
Monika J.
Overall I liked reading it, and it's more of 4* than 3* so it's not bad.
Reviewed in the United States on June 3, 2024horse lover
Good read
Reviewed in the United States on April 26, 2024