Wicked Gentlemen is a novel in the Hells Below universe by Ginn Hale.
Finished on: 2.11.2024
[Here’s my review of The Counterfeit Viscount, set in the same world.]

Plot:
Belimai Sykes is a prodigal, a descendant of demons, and battles his own demon in the form of addiction. He is also uniquely talented, which is why William Harper, Captain of the Inquisition tasked with controling prodigals, turns to him for help with a series or murders, despite their fraught personal relationship. The more they uncover, the more dangerous things become for them as they start ot find a much larger problem than initially suspected.

I really liked Wicked Gentlemen, despite not being a huge fan of crime stories. But the crime aspect here takes a backseat for me to the romance, the world-building and the social commentary, all of which I greatly appreciate.

My first contact with Ginn Hale was The Counterfeit Viscount, the novella also set in the Hells Below universe, though otherwise unrelated to Wicked Gentlemen, and the promise I found in that novella was also delivered on in Wicked Gentlemen. Wicked Gentlemen is divided into two parts that are both about novella lenght and Hale uses that extra space to flesh out the world she created, and especially its sociopolitical dynamic. And since that is my wheelhouse exactly, I am here for it.

The way that the characters are set up with each other is also tailor-made to highlight the power differentials. I didn’t love that Harper is a cop, but at least the novel and the story is clearly critical of th Inquisition – in fact, that way it fails is pretty much like three major plot points. The plotting was pretty good, too. While some parts were rather forseeable, others surprised me more, but most importantly, it all fit together well.

In any case, I was rooting for Harper and for Belimai. Their path is not an easy one, but Hale has a deft hand at giving her characters life and making their decisions believable. This aspect, more so than the plot, I’d say, makes the book an entertaining page-turner and a very good romance.

Summarizing: really good.