In general, the book was good. However, there were a few problems that prevented me from rating it higher. First, is the structure of the story. There are two main sections of the book that read more like separate novellas than one continuous story. The beginning is in first person, and the second half is in third. This division detracted from the flow of the story for me. Another problem was that the secondary characters who could have seemingly been very interesting were ill-defined. Really my complaint on this point is that I wanted the book to be longer, so that I could know more about the backgrounds of all the characters. Finally, the ending was awkward and abrupt. Yes, there is an epilogue that tries to wrap up all the loose ends, but it didn't quite work for me. The epilogue switches back to first person also, so I was actually confused for a couple of paragraphs as to what exactly was going on. Sadly with a bit more development and a better structure, the book could have been great; the plot itself, the characters, and the environment that the author created all had lots of potential. ( )

http://rainbow-reviews.com/?p=1131 ( )

Excellent idea/premise, not the best execution. (Some of the phrases/words just didn't match up with the setting, which threw me out of the world.) ( )

Did you ever finish a book only to feel sad that you can never again open it anew and discover its delights for the very first time? Rarely if ever, I'm sure. Well for me, Wicked Gentlemen is one of those books.

And I am completely envious of any lover of dark fantasy and/or gay romance who has yet to crack the spine on this gem.

First time novelist Ginn Hale has created a world so tangible, so complete, that I felt as if I could smell, see, taste and feel everything right along with her characters. The basic premise, an alternate reality (resembling a gaslit, Victorian England) wherein a corrupt theocracy has called up the descendants of ancient Biblical demons (Prodigals) with promises of redemption only to ghettoize and oppress them, comments on a number of modern day social ills but never comes across as obviously didactic or preachy. In addition it has a complex plot, part mystery and part thriller, that's never short on nailbiting moments. But for me the most enjoyable aspects of the story were the two amazingly complex, yet subtly drawn, protagonists and the tender love story that develops between them. With her characters, Hale never hits a false note. She shows, never tells - meaning that one learns about the tortured, drug-addicted Prodigal, Belimai Sykes, and reserved priest/police captain, William Harper, from their actions, rather than a lot heavy handed exposition. They can be infuriating as often as they are endearing, but these contradictions only make them seem, like everything else in the book, utterly real.

And they're sexy, too.

This is a wonderful novel. I hope that positive word-of-mouth continues to bring it the legion of fans it deserves. ( )

In an alternative reality where the Inquisition rules and ostracized demons known as Prodigals live in the dark corners of the city someone is committing murder and someone else is covering it up. Belimai Sykes knows better than almost any Prodigal how important it is to stay out of the grasp of the Inquisition. Despite this, when Captain William Harper comes to him asking for his assistance in investigating the disappearance of his sister and the coinciding Prodigal murders, Belimai finds himself intrigued enough to give the case a shot. What he ultimately discovers could either lead to his complete destruction at the hands of the Inquisition or his salvation from a most unexpected source.

This book was not much at all what I thought it would be. Basically this is two stories in one book. The first story is told from Belimai's point of view. He is a demon and an addict who dreads having anyone get close to him while simultaneously craving the companionship of another being. He is certainly an intriguing contradiction in characteristics and I really enjoyed getting inside his head. The second story gives us insight into Captain William Harper as he investigates the murder of a child and discovers a horrible cover-up. I found Harper to be as interesting as Belimai, although for very different reasons. He is too serious to lighten his point of view with sarcastic witticisms, but at the same time he is dedicated not only to the ones he loves, but to his very strong sense of what is right and what cannot be tolerated.

Although I think the book description implies a very homoerotic overtone to the book, for the most part the stories more involved murder, mystery and justification of crime and punishment then of the relationship between the characters. This did serve to make the interaction between the leads more appealing to me for not being as "in your face". Even though Belimai and Harper become involved early on in the story, there is only one scene near the end that highlights the physical relationship between the two. This is in no way a frilly, flowery romance and actually, if I were to compare this book to any I've read in the past, the Harry Dresden books would be closest I can think of.

I really enjoyed this book a lot. The writing was straightforward and had just the right amount of description without being tedious or overly grotesque. I'd highly suggest this story to people who enjoy urban fantasies and murder mysteries. ( )