Following the events of The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue, Monty, Percy, and Felicity are spending some time on a remote Greek island, exhilarated by having made it out of their adventure alive. However, with his sister and their pirate (excuse me, aspiring privateer) crew underfoot, Monty hasn’t had as much time alone with Percy as he wants. He tries to arrange an evening with just the two of them, but wonders if he can really have a romance. Is he too selfish, too promiscuous, too much himself, to be good for Percy?

I thought this would be a light, silly romp, but it turns out, there’s a lot of emotion packed into this novella, too. I loved seeing these three characters together again (yes, I know it hasn’t been long since I finished Lady’s Guide, but still). Felicity and Scipio continue to be wonderful, as does Percy, but it’s Monty who shines the most in this. Watching him grapple with his doubts and insecurities was unexpected but lovely. Here, we see Monty’s tendency to avoid romance in his physical relationships, and how now, faced with being with Percy, he has to reconcile the two. The way this is explored, how trust and familiarity is shown to be the best way forward, is excellent. These are important concepts for teens especially, and I love how Lee handles it.

However, some of the dialogue seems a little too casual and anachronistic. I feel like Lee strayed a bit from the 18th century voice in this on occasion, using what I felt was slightly too modern slang. However, I let it go in favor of the character development and plot Lee has proven herself so skilled at writing. 

In the end, Getting Lucky was an enjoyable tale, with lots of humor and more depth than I expected. The characterization and development is wonderful, and this serves as a lovely bridge between The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue, and The Lady’s Guide. It has only made me more excited for the third full novel in this series, which is due to be published later this year.

Overall rating: 8.7/10