The Counterfeit Viscount is a novella by Ginn Hale. It takes place in her Wicked Gentlemen universe.
Finished on: 27.10.2023

Plot:
Years ago, Archie Fallmont, Viscount of Granville sold his soul to the handsome devil Nimble Hobbs. Literally. Now devils are disappearing from the city, and Archie is obliged to investigate the disappearances together with Nimble as it all seems to lead to an exclusive club only open to nobles. Their investigation soon brings them more trouble than they thought.

The Counterfeit Viscount is set in an extremely interesting world, has strong characters and a very sweet romance with its crime investigation. It definitely put Ginn Hale on the map for me as an author. I am curious to check out more of her writing.

The Counterfeit Viscount is one of those e-books that I don’t know where I got them from. Some free download? Part of a bundle? I’m not sure anymore, but I am glad that it is actually not the only thing of Hale’s that I have because the story definitely left me wanting more of Hale’s writing. As luck will have it, there is even more of the world she features in this novella – her novel Wicked Gentlemen.

That is particularly lucky because I found the world-building most interesting and like nothing I have read before in terms of set-up. It’s basically alternate history, but not so much interested in the history. It has steampunk-vibes without actually being steampunk. And the power dynamics within the world with the devils being the underclass despite or maybe because of their supernatural abilities was most interesting.

And I really liked Nimble and Archie. Given their complicated relationship with each other with various forms of dependency woven through, it’s also to Hale’s credit that she actually managed to make their romance really work for me. Plus, they are really vivid characters that I enjoyed getting to know. I couldn’t ask for more (but I will have it in Wicked Gentlemen).

Summarizing: Lovely stuff.