A private detective finds passion, danger, and the love of a lifetime when he hunts down a lost earl in Victorian London.
On the trail of an aristocrat’s secret son, enquiry agent Mark Braglewicz finds his quarry in a music hall, performing as a trapeze artist with his twin sister. Graceful, beautiful, elusive, and strong, Pen Starling is like nobody Mark’s ever met—and everything he’s ever wanted. But the long-haired acrobat has an earldom and a fortune to claim.
Pen doesn’t want to live as any sort of man, least of all a nobleman. The thought of being wealthy, titled, and always in the public eye is horrifying. He likes his life now—his days on the trapeze, his nights with Mark. And he won’t be pushed into taking a title that would destroy his soul.
But there’s a killer stalking London’s foggy streets, and more lives than just Pen’s are at risk. Mark decides he must force the reluctant heir from music hall to manor house, to save Pen’s neck. Betrayed by the one man he thought he could trust, Pen never wants to see his lover again. But when the killer comes after him, Pen must find a way to forgive—or he might not live long enough for Mark to make amends.
The Meta Details:
Source: Netgalley
Format: eBook
Length: 246 pages
Publication Date: October 03, 2017
Genre: mm romance, historical romance, mystyery
Content Level: adult
Pearl Clutching Content: let’s start with the trapeze artist, move to the Gin Kitchen, and then just pulverize the pearls because this book is on fucking point
Trigger Warnings: murder, attempted kidnapping, mentions of torture, homophobia, and shitty mother fucking parents.
Featuring: PANSEXUAL AND GENDERQUEER HEROES AND ALL MY TEARS BECAUSE AMG I DIDN’T KNOW HOW BADLY I NEEDED A PANSEXUAL HERO IN MY LIFE.
Scorecard:
Recommended for: queers, all queers. and all queer allies.
Rating: must mother fucking read.
Ginny Lurcock’s Thoughts: I have this irrational fear of series. It’s just… they can go so wrong. So wrong. And who’s there to pick up the pieces when my formerly beloved series is lying in burning rubble around me.
KJ Charles, apparently, does not trigger this fear. Ever. As every time I have a chance to read one of her books I lose my damn mind.
Like, seriously, I just go out of my fucking mind over her books…
And An Unsuitable Heir is the perfect example of why. I didn’t think there would be a way to top Justin Lazarus. Fuck, I wasn’t even sure there would be a way to live up to the dramatic bombshell dropped at the end of book two.
It was that big.
But Pen Starling is something else. This shining jewel of genderqueer in an era when they didn’t even have a word for it, struggling against gaining power and privilege because it would have meant that the world was watching him. Watching him, weighing him, judging him.
Exposing him.
Seeing him naked…
And then there’s Mark Braglewicz. Mark fucking Braglewicz blew my goddamned mind. Clever, self-deprecating, strong, struggling over the right thing to do and… and… *sobs quietly* pansexual.
I don’t frequently see my orientation in books. I mean, it gets close, but not spot on. So to find it in a MM historical romance? I was. I am. There are not words for it. I didn’t think it would be possible but I love Mark nearly as much as Justin.
…
…Listen, Justin is unparalleled as a character.
With an amazing cast of characters, prejudice, solid pacing, incredible prose, murder
and a startling amount of ducks
(get the gifs now?)
This book was the perfect end to what has become one of my absolute favorite series. Not just of the genre or the year, but of all time. Please, I Implore you to check this out. If not for yourself, then for all the genderqueer and pansexual folks who are desperate for representation. Prove that it can sell. Prove that it can be profitable. Prove there’s a market.
Don’t let the curtain come down on representation.
I’m sorry, I am physically incapable of sharing all the duck gifs I got for this review. Which is super awkward, because I have one more and I really just want to go back to bed and reread the se…ries…
Oh.
Well, look at that. Two birds with one stone.
Seriously, though, everything about this novel is A+. The characters, the pacing, the plot, the prose, the drama, the angst, and the representation. I literally cried while reading it. I just cannot get over how wonderful it was. And my words are in no way sufficient. Hence a plethora of gifs.
Well, that and the duck thing made me giggle every time. So wonderful. It really reflects how perfect Pen and Mark for each other. It’s just…
It’s wonderful.
A complimentary copy of this book was provided in exchange for a fair and honest review via Netgalley.
Ginny Lurcock 