This was, in fact, a chaotic and fabulous book, full of nothing but vibes.

I absolutely loved all of the representation, and while it was a little slow to start for me (the writing style/voice took a few chapters for me to settle into) it was an easy story to get sucked into, even if the pacing was all over the place. If you're looking for something completely over-the-top and dramatic, but in a humorous way, this is for you! There were many times when it felt like too much for me, but every now and then there would be the most sincere and soul-deep phrases that pulled it back. I think I would have really enjoyed this story more if it hadn't been for Arabella. I'm sorry, I have to say it, I could not stand her. I'm not saying her feelings aren't justified, but no. She took things too far and it pulled me away from the story and from Bonny and Valentine!

I think in the end I would have preferred this to be a fun romp of a novella, rather than a full-length novel because I was really ready for it to be over at the end, which is never a feeling you want to have while reading! However, I know I'm probably thinking too hard about it, and I know so many people will be delighted by it! It was definitely an experience, I can say that!

I unfortunately ended up having to DNF Something Fabulous.

I don’t know if it was the writing style or if it was because it felt a bit like nonsense.

I found myself skimming and not really enjoying the story so I’ve decided to shelve this for now.

I may try it again in the future when I’m more in the mood for something silly.

Alexis Hall is a fantastic writer and I've enjoyed this fun historical romp! I really love the grumpy/sunshine trope and both Bonny and Valentine fit it so well. I definitely enjoyed the goose chase around Surrey this book took us on and can't wait to read what Alexis Hall writes next!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review!

The banter is incredible and so so funny. The relationship builds up so nicely and the fact that the duke begs, omg I can't. Sometimes the sister annoyed me and the roadtrip problems were insane. Loved Bonny so much, he's perfect.

If you’re looking for an historical romance with a complex plot, serious characters and a bucket-load of angst, then move right along, because Alexis Hall’s Something Fabulous isn’t it.  If, however, you’re up for a frivolous romp through Regency England bubbling with wit and brilliant comic timing that, for all its ridiculous trope-y-ness, contains an achingly tender story of self-discovery, then dive right in.

The book opens with a delightfully – although somewhat more barbed - Heyer-esque proposal-gone-wrong in which Valentine Layton, Duke of Malvern, has decided it’s time to honour his late father’s wishes and become formally betrothed to Miss Arabella Tarleton, who has been intended for him since birth.  Miss Tarleton, however, has no intention of accepting Valentine’s proposal and makes that clear in no uncertain terms:

“There is no fashion, Your Grace, in which you could propose that would render it anything other than profoundly repugnant to me.”

Valentine is both astonished and affronted.  A refusal is something he had never remotely considered – after all, what impoverished young woman wouldn’t want to secure her future and that of her family by marrying a wealthy, young and handsome duke?

Later that night – or rather, in the early hours of the morning – Valentine (having made liberal use of the brandy bottle) is awoken by Arabella’s twin brother, Bonaventure – Bonny for short – who informs him that Arabella has run away and that they should go after her so Valentine can save her from ruin and propose again.  And that he’d better make a good job of it this time.  Valentine is not keen; it’s not that he doesn’t want to retrieve his wayward intended, he just doesn’t want to go without due thought or preparation. Or his valet.  Bonny, however, is something of a force of nature, and won’t take no for an answer, so before long, Valentine is being hurried along and into a curricle wearing a coat borrowed from the assistant gardener and a hastily tied – courtesy of Bonny – cravat.

That’s the set up for the fluffiest, silliest and most outrageously charming road-trip / grumpy-sunshine romance I’ve read in quite some time. (Or ever.) It doesn’t take itself seriously – even though it does have some serious points to make – and focuses entirely on the relationship between Valentine and Bonny, and on Valentine’s journey towards reaching a deeper self-awareness, understanding  how attraction works for him and that being seen and loved for who he is as a person is not impossible.

The writing is deft and insightful with plenty of clever nods to the genre, the dialogue sparkles and the two leads are superbly characterised.  Valentine, the repressed, dutiful duke has no idea of his own privilege but is somehow endearing in his cluelessness;  he’s deeply lonely but doesn’t realise it, and he has very little experience of sexual attraction until Bonny, and the sudden wealth of feelings that assail him when Bonny is around completely blindside him. Watching Valentine slowly learn that he is allowed to have feelings, that he can feel attraction and affection - and the way Bonny accepts him exactly as he is and without question - is simply lovely.  As for Bonny, well, he’s just adorable; free-spirited,  vibrant, charming and kind, he’s not ashamed of who he is and what he wants, and isn’t willing to settle for anything less than to be loved in the way he loves – with his whole heart and soul.

There’s a small, but well-drawn secondary cast. I particularly liked Peggy, Arabella’s best friend and some-time lover who is a welcome voice of reason in contrast to Arabella’s frequent and overblown histrionics, and Sir Horley, the rakish older gentleman with an eye on Bonny and a heart of gold.  As one would expect from an Alexis Hall book, the queer rep is varied and excellent;  Peggy is genderfluid, Sir Horley is gay,  I got the impression Arabella is aromantic, and there are two delightful ladies who are married in all but name.

Sadly, the book’s biggest flaw is Arabella.  I understood her frustration and where she was coming from – no legal rights, no right to an opinion, no rights over her own body, even – but rather than making the attempt to explain herself or just talk to Valentine, she screams and throws tantrums and melodramatic fits, she makes ridiculous and unfounded accusations and generally behaves like a spoilt brat.  If she’d been the heroine of a book, it would have hit the wall before the end of the first chapter!  It’s rare for me to have such a visceral reaction to a character in a book, but I honestly couldn’t stand her and felt sorry for Bonny having to put up with her all his life.  And this leads to my other issue with the story, which is that the catch-up-with-her/she’s-run-away-again is a bit repetitive – although I fully accept this may be because I so disliked Arabella that I just wanted her to run away and stay gone!

Other than that, however, Something Fabulous certainly lives up to its name.  It’s funny, sexy, daft and just a bit over the top, but it’s all done with obvious love and affection and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

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This is such a fun and frothy regency romp! It's absolutely ridiculous in the best of ways. There is a diverse abundance of queer rep which always makes me happy, including a demisexual main character and a non-binary side character.

**Received an eARC via NetGalley for Bonkers Book Club**

After really enjoying Boyfriend Material and Murder Most Actual, I was excited to try this historical M/M romcom from Alexis Hall. Unfortunately, I think it's a little... out there... for my tastes. Fans of The Wisteria Society for Lady Scoundrels may enjoy this one, for while not fantasy, it takes a number of creative liberties and dramatic turns. Indeed, without giving too much away, the main character(s) go on a cross-country carriage adventure which involves kidnapping, dueling, and much, much more. It strayed so far from plausible that I found it hard to get into, but that's just my personal preference. For those who appreciate the fantastical and overly dramatic, I think this would be quite an enjoyable read; it's prose is well done and its leads are entertaining.

Thanks to Montlake for my eARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

4 stars - 6/10

Something Fabulous is the gay regency romp I never knew I needed in my life and never wanted to end! It was outrageous, over-the-top, hilarious, incredibly sweet and a little raunchy - everything I could ever want in a story! After Valentine Layton, Duke of Malvern, proposes to Arabella Tarleton, she runs away and her twin brother Bonaventure (Bonny) enlists Valentine’s help to bring her back home, resulting in a ridiculous cross-country chase.

Valentine is reserved, naive and lonely, hiding behind his duties as a duke instead of putting himself out there to live his life. On the flip side, Bonny is charming, flirtatious and so creative. They’re opposites in almost every way, but as they get to know each other again, their relationship takes a really precious and endearing turn. Valentine’s demisexuality and inexperience is definitely in stark contrast with Bonny’s flamboyant nature and wealth of experience and it makes for some awkward and sweet conversations and a lot of growth.

The banter and chemistry between Valentine and Bonny was next level. Their grumpy/sunshine dynamic pulled me in and What started out as Valentine thinking Bonny was just a ridiculous man obsessed with romance and stories turned into a fun and emotional journey toward self-discovery, acceptance and unconditional love.

I really wanted to take off half a star for Arabella Tarleton’s character - she was so irritating, dramatic, violent and rude that it drove me up a wall, but I couldn’t take any stars away because without her insane antics, Valentine and Bonny would have never had a chance to fall in love and be together.

This book is campy (in the best way possible!) yet intelligent and deep, all things I’ve come to love about Hall’s writing. Like always, I didn’t want it to end, but when it did, I had a huge smile on my face for Valentine and Bonny. I can’t recommend this book enough - I already pre-ordered the paperback because I need to have this book in my collection!

6 stars.

(Thank you to the Bonkers Romance Book Club and NetGalley for a digital ARC)

This book is bottled sunshine, like dripping honey-covered fingers unabashedly being shoved in mouths, like giggles shared under the covers of a summer campout, like the perpetual buoyant optimism of a honey-bee (yes, you're sensing a bee-theme, and you'd be correct). This book is fiercely, unapologetically fabulous. It is goddamn hopeful. It dares to dream of love, of the experience of truly being seen, of the opportunity to live in the fantasy worlds that we bookish people wish we truly lived in.

I giggled. I squealed. I may have even squeezed my poor e-reader to my chest and flailed around at various points. This book may have single-handedly fought back the last 2 years of COVID-related-anxiety/life anxiety/seasonal depression - like a complete hard-reset of my central nervous system leaving me a bit brighter and shinier and hopeful.

There's really no other words, other than please RUN/DON'T WALK to get yourself a copy as soon as you can.

My ARC is digital, otherwise my highlighting job would have looked like a demonic two-year-old who is three cupcakes deep into a birthday party got a handful of markers and went to town. No joke: I think every other page of my e-book has highlights. Some of my highlights have highlights.

The story and characters and romance are superb, top-tier, flawless - what else to expect from Alexis Hall? But what really shines is the writing. I have no idea HOW he did it, but... I want this entire book to be taught as a masterclass of SOMETHING. I don't even know what it is?!?! But I need... so much more of it?! Please?!

And for those interested, a summary of the tropes you want and need and will certainly get:

•marriage of (in)convenience
•an absolute beaming ray of sunshine + a very un-self-aware grumpy cloud
•demisexual rep
•sapphic couples
•trans* / non-binary rep
•honestly, queer rep of every kind / everywhere / pretty much everyone in this book is queer and it's great
•road trips (but with curricles)
•only. one. bed.
•picnics
•rope play (but not how you think)

Something Fabulous by Alexis Hall
🌟🌟🌟🌟💫

*thanks to Bonkers Romance for the book!

This book is billed as a fun-filled, over-the-top queer Regency romp, and it fully delivers on that promise.

Valentine is a grumpy Duke who is disconnected from his feelings and from himself, and sort of on a “does what is expected” autopilot. Bonny is his opposite: loud, loquacious, confident, joyful. He truly believes in romance and the promise of love for everyone, including himself. I picture them as Mr. Darcy and a more boisterous Bingley from the 2005 P&P movie.

The plot is basically a series of increasingly improbable and hilarious hijinks. The banter crackles, honestly no one writes this kind of dialogue better than Alexis Hall. I loved all the side characters, though I did find the sister to be a bit much at times. I really loved Valentine’s slow realization of his feelings for Bonny, and I really appreciated Bonny giving him space to do so.

Recommended if you’re interested in something light, funny, queer, sexy, and completely full-suspension-of-disbelief bananas.

🌶🌶🌶 Sex is on the page in a couple of scenes, with some explicit descriptions

Thank you very much to the publisher Montlake and NetGalley UK for the digital ARC!

“Something Fabulous” by Alexis Hall set in the regency era and hella gay. *rainbows everywhere*

Valentine Layton, the Duke of Malvern, is somewhat grumpy and reserved, and he has two problems:
1. His recent proposal to Miss Arabella Tarleton, with which he hoped to fulfil their fathers’ wishes, went horribly wrong when she flees into the night.
2. Her brother, who goes by the ridiculous name of Bonaventure “Bonny” Tarleton, barges into his bedroom at an ungodly hour and demands that Valentine join him on a mission to find her.

„Not only had Tarleton burst in on Valentine unannounced at an unseemly – nay, ungodly – hour and subjected his proposal to excoriating critique; he was now getting his feelings everywhere.“

Begrudgingly, Valentine agrees to go, and finds himself much closer to the hopeless romantic childhood friend he lost somewhere along the way, when he had to take over the responsibilities of being a Duke. And so a chaotic romp through the English countryside begins, and it involves bees, only one bed at the inn (oh no!), sapphic saviours/kidnappers (depending on who you ask), a duel (of course!), a horny gentleman with a hunting lodge dreams are made of, and hungry flowers.

“Bonny had made himself: from books and stories, and hopes and dreams. As Valentine had made himself from duty and fear and mistrust and ignorance.”

Needless to say, I loved this. It has Alexis Hall’s signature style hilariously funny writing, which works really well in this historical setting. The characters are overly dramatic in the best way possible and I love them dearly. The banter! The incredibly gentle discussion of sexuality, gender and body image! The steamy scenes! It also makes a lot of important points about privilege when it comes to Valentine’s status as a Duke, and as a man.

This book has gay, sapphic, genderfluid and demisexual representation.

5/5 Stars

What a flirty, sexy, absurdly funny regency romp from Alexis Hall! Valentine, Duke of Malvern, is chasing his runaway fiancé across the English countryside with the help of her twin brother, Boneventure, when he discovers he may in fact be closer to love then he thought. I loved the playful witty banter, the whimsical + ridiculous storylines, the vibrant characters and of course, the historical queer rep. I definitely laughed out loud several times while reading this. I’ve read a couple of books from this author and I appreciate his creative + flexible writing talents. Note to readers: it helps to suspend disbelief to fully enjoy this one. It’s truly something… frivolous, fantastic, and fabulous.

Thank you so much to Montlake + Netgalley for this ARC.

I smiled and I grinned and I laughed out loud while reading "Something Fabulous". This book was over the top, hilarious and downright fabulous. I am a new fan of Alexis Hall and plan to read everything I can by this talented author.

I don’t really want to give a star rating because I think this is a good book objectively, but maybe not the right book for me right now. It’s funny with lots of hijinks, but also I was very over the hijinks halfway through. It’s almost a little satirical, definitely very over the top, but I think this is gonna be a big hit when it comes out in a few weeks. I did appreciate how there were very few straight people, and how accepting everyone in this world was.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the complimentary ARC. All opinions provided are my own.

I wanted to love Alexis Hall’s Something Fabulous. But while there are things I appreciate about it—including how funny parts are—on the whole it’s uneven for me & I was increasingly frustrated by some of the characters 😩.

The premise of this romance is that Valentine, a Duke, has just proposed very badly to Arabella Tarleton out of a sense of family duty. She runs away & her twin Bonny persuades Valentine to follow her & do better with his proposing.

A road trip romance that takes them all over, that encapsulates lots of adventures, & that opens the stuffy Valentine’s eyes & mind over & over again, Something Fabulous is—like others have said—often fun & funny & gives me some of those screwball comedy moments I love. One of my fave things is how consistently clueless Valentine is—how often he misses the obvious clues about relationships (especially those of a romantic nature) & people in general.

Alexis Hall tackles Valentine’s privilege again & again & that’s a refreshing element in this historical. As is Arabella’s unwillingness to give her life over to anyone she doesn’t want to, including (especially?) a Duke.

But by the end of the book I was exhausted by the characters & their hijinx & I just wanted something else to happen, besides Valentine still being insensitive & overly concerned with appearance & what he grew up believing in & for Arabella to stop being reckless & actually violent. At a certain point it just stopped working for me.

This book is by turns amusing & serious & Bonny & Peggy provide anchors for the story. The speech at the end is particularly lovely to me. But overall this romance didn’t win me over 😢.

3.5 ⭐️. Release date: 01/25.

CW: Bonny hooks up with someone else before he & Valentine begin a romantic relationship. Arabella sabotages Valentine’s curricle & shoots him later.


[ID: an ebook sits on a series of open hardbacks. A yellow flower pokes up from between two books.]

I received an ARC from the publisher and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
Every time I think I can’t love Alexis Hall as an author more, he releases another absolute gem of a book and conquers yet another genre or style. In the first of two ventures into historical romance this year, Something Fabulous is everything I love (and even some stuff I’m a bit critical of) in HR, with a gay twist and Hall’s signature British humor.
The two leads are an absolute delight. Hall describes them in his GR pitch as “a overly dramatic beautiful rainbow sunshine unicorn” and “a overly dramatic demisexual grumpy duke.” While grumpy dukes aren’t typically my cup of tea, Hall’s rendition of the archetype in Valentine is brilliant. He’s very much aware of his position and responsibilities, but he’s not snobbish about it (much). I rooted for him to overcome his dedication to duty and conformity over all else, and this is perhaps one of the best renditions of that trope I’ve read. I appreciate the way it subtly touches on the issues gay men faced at the time, while retaining the generally positive, lighthearted tone and providing a believable path for Valentine to find his HEA with Bonny.
And Bonny is sentimental and lovely, and he’s one of those characters you can’t help but immediately love. I loved his kinship with his sister Arabella, and how he was interested in what she wanted.
The romance is so freaking fun. These two have the best banter initially, and I loved seeing them interact as they’re on this madcap chase after Arabella, with things slowly evolving from animosity due to their present situation and seemingly opposing worldviews to falling for each other.
The supporting cast is great too. I was particularly surprised by Valentine’s mother, the former duchess. She’s so different from many stereotypical mother characters in historicals, and was the catalyst for one of my absolute favorite moments.
This book is so charming, and I’d recommend it to anyone looking for more queer historical romance.

I got an Advanced copy from Netgalley

So, to preface, I am a huge Alexis Hall fan. His humor and sense of style just hit all my buttons.

What I absolutely adore most about this book is, even though it is supposed to be a comedic romp, it still has so much heart and just realness to it. The characters are absolutely fun and enjoyable.

Valentine, the main character, the one who’s voice we hear through the whole novel, goes through great growth and even when there are times you want to bonk him on the head, you still are rooting for him. It’s fascinating to see how Alexis Hall uses the regency backdrop to also bring in a character questioning their place in society and in general how they fit in, even when for all intents and purposes they should have no issue. Without going into spoilers, Valentine’s journey of self discovery was just wonderful.

The comedy was great, it bordered that line of ridiculous, but in a good way. You know some of this stuff is not plausible in ‘real life’ but in the universe of the book it is just worked in very well so it is not overdone. It’s fun. I smiled most of the time and even laughed out loud a few times.

Over all, I have this book on preorder and even after getting a chance to read an advanced copy, I will be keeping my preorder because I loved it so much and will definitely be reading it again.

There was a lot I liked about this book — it is sharp and funny, there are a lot of fantastic queer characters, the main couple are very swoony — but the overarching plot (chasing the love interest’s twin sister) was sort of irredeemably frustrating. The sister was an absolute unhinged monster, yet everyone around her (and the text itself) makes excuses for her and indulges her to the point where she literally nearly has our main character killed several times and HE is blamed for it, and made to feel as if he’s a monster for daring to express displeasure at the treatment he’s receiving. It’s played for humor, but I’m sorry, I don’t really find the victim blaming all that funny. Instead of having a conversation with anyone like an adult, she does the absolute MOST to vilify him and we’re expected to be on her side, because…the circumstances of being a woman in that time are unfair? Empirically true, but also not an excuse to behave monstrously and have everyone congratulate her for it.

A copy of the below review will be published on Dani's Bookshelf on January 25, 2022.

As a fan of Alexis Hall's immensely popular book, Boyfriend Material, I was really excited to see him branch out into the historical genre with Something Fabulous! I can't remember the last time an author I enjoyed as a contemporary writer did something in the historical sphere, which makes my interest in this book that much greater.

Something Fabulous, at its core, is a queer Regency road trip romance. The book opens with Valentine finally acceding to his family's wishes and proposing to Miss Arabella Tarleton. But Arabella fancies herself the romantic heroine of her own gothic novel and flees into the night rather than agree to marry him. Her twin brother Bonny — also a romantic — thinks Valentine ought to go after her, and drags him out of bed and onto a road trip that involves way more adventures than Valentine could have possibly imagined. The more time the two of them spend together on the road, the more Valentine starts to question whether he's pursuing the wrong twin.

I love the setup of this book, as I especially love a good road trip romance, but while there are some things I really loved about this book, overall it didn't really work for me. 

I want to start with the positives, and I think my favorite thing about this book is that pretty much no character is straight (I can only think of maybe one, honestly). It was just really nice to see so many queer characters in a historical, and so many different types of queer characters, too! Arabella's best friend, Penny, for instance, prefers being a man some days and a woman others, while Valentine himself has never experienced any sexual attraction before developing a relationship with Bonny. And I really liked how when you suspect it might be a problem in the story for a character to be queer, Hall goes in the other direction and it really isn't.

I also really liked how this third act breakup was executed. I think it helped that the groundwork for this one was laid early, and you can see how it's going to be a problem. It did happen fairly late in the book, but the nature of the breakup and the way it was resolved all worked well for me and seemed true to both characters. Idk why I noticed in this one, but I feel like I've read a lot of bad third-act breakups lately and wanted to flag one that worked for me.

The last thing I really liked is the surprise turn of events with a character you think is going to be a villain. I don't want to spoil it, but I really loved everything about that plotline!

Unfortunately, those things weren't enough to make up for the things I didn't like about this book.

For one thing, the Tarletons are absolutely ridiculous, and I really wanted to smack Belle for being so overly dramatic and generally the worst. The way she was so determined to cast herself as the heroine in a gothic and manipulate others to her advantage and lie about the situation and generally escalate things out of control was incredibly frustrating, and unfortunately only got worse as the book went on. Which is such a shame, because I can definitely see how she'd be an incredibly relatable character, but mostly she was the worst. Bonny was dramatic and ridiculously romantic, too, but he didn't come across as quite as disconnected from reality as his sister, and unlike her, he grew on me significantly as the story went along.

The other thing that really bothered me and made me take a break from reading this is how sympathetic I was to Valentine, who got dragged out of bed at the crack of dawn and forced on this trip that turns into an absolute disaster. I know I personally do not handle it well when major disasters happen on my trip, so I couldn't help but be frustrated on his behalf. He's just generally irritated and upset and needs a bath and a bed, and instead he gets humiliated and tied to a chair and imprisoned, to name the least of his experiences. 

I'm sure it's supposed to be funny, and I can see in other books how one disaster after another is silly and fun, but this one was hard for me because he really could not catch a break, and so he was never at his best. Like, they kept calling him an asshole and saying he was the worst because that's who he is, with very little acknowledgment that the situation definitely brought out the worst in him! I think this is definitely a thing that's more personal to me than other readers since I would also absolutely be an asshole if I had to go on a trip like his, but yeah. I felt really bad for him, and his burgeoning relationship with Bonny was not enough to make up for it.

I'm disappointed I didn't love this book as I really love seeing more authors diversify historical romance, either through sexuality, race, or historical location (or a combination thereof), but alas, it just wasn't for me.

I do think a lot of other people will enjoy this, though, especially if they can get swept up in the ridiculousness and antics of the dramatic road trip! I definitely think it's worth checking out if it sounds interesting to you, and you'll know within a few chapters if the Tarletons are too much for you as well. I hope you enjoy it if you give it a chance!

I received an advanced copy of Something Fabulous from the publisher via Netgalley.

DNF at 40%

I wanted to love this queertastic historic romance! But it just didn't work for me. Maybe it was too rom-com? Maybe it was that the plot seemed to depend solely on miscommunication? Maybe it was that Bonny and Peggy are the most interesting and they are relegated to supporting character status by the prose?

But I think mostly it was that Valentine is an idiot and kind of an ass for the entire boo. I don't understand why he doesn't know anything about anything... If there were other perspectives in the book I think I could have powered through but since it is entirely from Valentine and so far I hate him... I am going to call it.

Thank you to the author and publisher for my complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.