The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzi Lee

This was suggested by Amazon a while back, and I requested it through WHPL.  It was an enjoyable read overall.

Set in the 1700s, Henry "Monty" Montague is setting off on a Tour, something akin to a Gap Year.   He's been kicked out of school for being gay and is on his last chance to inherit his father's estate.  He's an absolute drunk.  He's in love with his best friend, whom he is not sure is also gay but is most definitely black.  His sister wants to be a doctor, which is ludicrous at the time.  Their father is concerned about the family image, while their mother seems to have postpartum depression after an oops baby.

To "straighten Monty out", his father arranges for he and Percy (the black best friend being raised by white relatives) to go on the Tour but escorted by a rule happy guide, dropping sister Felicity off at Finishing School (not medical school), and then Percy will go to school in Holland while Monty learns the business of running the estate.  That is NOT what ensues.

The three end up having every possible thing go wrong, from pirates to highway robbers to alchemy to Venetian tombs collapsing.

There were several moments I laughed out loud, and I was really pulling for Henry and Percy (and for Felicity to fulfill her dream).

I'm putting this on our wish list!

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