A Gentleman Never Keeps Score by Cat Sebastian

Stunning collage art full of rich color, glorious details, and a sense of wonder--reminiscent of the work of Ezra Jack Keats--illustrate this delightful story celebrating the poetry found in the world around us. When Daniel sees a sign on the park gate that says Poetry in the Park, Sunday at 6, he wonders, What is poetry? and is surprised when a spider tells him: To me, poetry is when morning dew glistens. This leads the curious little boy to seek out other park animals and pose the same question. After he hears from Squirrel, Chipmunk, Frog, Turtle, Cricket, and Owl, Daniel creates a lovely poem that he recites at Poetry in the Park, in front of a crowd of poetry-lovers, including all his animal friends.

Wow, fantastic book. Just warm and lovely the whole way through, very cozy, and full of sweet domesticity. I wanted it to be about three times as long, not because it's incomplete in any way, but because I wanted to spend more time with these characters.

To be honest, I put off reading this book because of the serious subject matter, but of course Cat Sebastian handles Hartley's past with sensitivity and care. It's not at all an emotionally overwrought book, but I got choked up more than once, at all the small moments that led to Hartley and Sam finding happiness together. I loved both main characters, but the side characters all felt real to me, too, with their own motivations and personalities. Really immersive book.

I listened to the audiobook performed by Joel Leslie. He is not my favorite narrator, but he really knocked this one out of the park. I especially loved the voice & accent he did for Kate.

Reread in October 2024
... Third time I've read this book. Still love Hartley. In all honesty, he's likely one of my favorite romance novel leads, ever. Sam's a sweetheart and I find myself liking him more and more each time I read this book. Also, love the people they surround themselves with - just a solid group.

Reread in April 2021
So, probably 95% of the reason I love this book is because I adore Hartley. He's a great character, all prickly and sharp hiding a caring side beneath. Sam is a sweetheart, through and through. Love the found family going on, too.

I will add, after that ending, - honestly, after that and the previous book - I am really, really excited to read the next one and get Will and Martin's story.

(Side note: I was a little nervous upon starting this book because the last time I reread a Sebastian book that I loved...it wasn't exactly what I remembered it being. This one is. Might not love it quite as much the second time around, but it's still a solid five stars and one of my three favorite Sebastian books to date.)

Original review

Content Warning: There is some discussion of past sexual coercion in this book. All the characters mentioned consented, but it was not uninfluenced consent. This happens in one of the main character's past and to a supporting character. Everything between the couple (Hartley & Sam) is filled with enthusiastic, freely-given consent.

All. The. Love. Seriously. I didn't think Sebastian could top her last book, then I read this one. Admittedly, I was actually super excited to read this book because Hartley was a total show stealer in the previous in the series. In fact, I liked this book even more than I hoped to, so there's that.

Hartley - who, not to put too fine a point on it, whored himself out to his godfather for the money to help take care of his brothers - is a little bruised and battered. (Quite possibly physically, given his touch aversion, but definitely emotionally.) Sam is a total sweetheart and not exactly what I expect from a former prize fighter. More importantly than that, even for all their differences, they're perfect together. Usually, right about now, I'd be complaining about how quickly they had sex. While it was VERY early on, it also made sense - especially the way they built up more intimacy. (And, no, intimacy is not synonymous with sex.) It worked very well for them.

And this isn't healing sex. Hartley doesn't have sex and suddenly all his problems are gone. But they work through it together and, wonderfully, there's a lot of negotiations going on. They talk before having sex about what is okay and what isn't and there's explicit consent. <3 I wish more stories did this, not the main couple just hopping into bed. And, finally, the supporting cast is wonderful. I love the found family vibe here and I feel that the supporting characters went a long way in my loving to read the story even when the couple isn't on screen together - which does't always happen in romances. (The ending was perfect.)

One note, there wasn't the usual late story misunderstanding that so many romances rely on, but there were some minor misunderstandings early-ish. (Mostly because Hartley has a bad case of foot-in-mouth and doesn't think before he speaks.) But I love the way it was handled. So, yeah.

Liked this better than the first book in series, It Takes Two To Tumble because there was more of an edge to it. I'm always a big fan of “found family” stories, and Sebastian does a credible job of showing how Hartley slowly lets go of his guilt and shame so he can have a caring, physical relationship with Sam.

Can't put my finger on exactly why I don't love this author as much as I should - she writes well, in a genre that I adore. Maybe it's because her characters sometimes feel like 21st century males transplanted into the 19th century - there's something not quite real about them, despite the apparent historical accuracy. Or maybe her voice just doesn't push the right buttons for me. Still, a solid 3.5 stars for me and I'm definitely looking forward to Martin and Will's story.