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1[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/alexandtheironicgentleman.jpg]]
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3''Alex and the Ironic Gentleman'' is a novel written by Adrienne Kress and published in 2007.
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5Often mistaken for a boy because of her haircut and name, Alex Morningside is an inquisitive girl of ten-and-a-half who attends the prestigious Wigpowder-Steele Academy. Unfortunately, though she loves to learn, Alex just can't bring herself to enjoy her classes. Her teachers are all old and smelly and don't seem to know about anything that has happened in the world the past thirty years, and her peers…well they are quite simply ridiculous.
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7Luckily for Alex, the new school year brings an exciting new teacher. Mr. Underwood makes lessons fun and teaches her how to fence. But Mr. Underwood has a mysterious family secret--the swashbuckling and buried treasure kind--and not everyone is glad he has come to Wigpowder-Steele. When the infamous pirates of a ship called the Ironic Gentleman kidnap Mr. Underwood, Alex sets off on a journey to rescue him, along the way encountering a cast of strange and magical characters, including the dashing and sometimes heroic Captain Magnanimous, Coriander the Conjurer, the Extremely Ginormous Octopus, and the wicked Daughters of the Founding Fathers’ Preservation Society.
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9There is a [[ChangingOfTheGuard sort-of sequel]] to it, ''Literature/TimothyAndTheDragonsGate''.
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11----
12!!This book contains examples of:
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14* AffablyEvil: For a time, Captain Steele is fairly friendly towards Alex and welcomes her to the crew.
15* ArtificialIntelligence: The [=MakeCold=] fridge, in addition to being able to remember recipes, monitor the foods inside of it, and water plants with a spray apparatus, is also capable of lying, dreaming of alternate careers, and developing a fondness for boyish girls named Alex.
16* CharacterNameAndTheNounPhrase: ''Alex and the Ironic Gentleman''
17* ChekhovsSkill: Mr. Underwood teaches his students fencing, and how to correctly use the pronouns "I" and "me". Both become important later.
18* ConvenientlyAnOrphan: Alex has neither mom nor dad.
19* {{Determinator}}[=/=]SuperPersistentPredator: Daughters of the Founding Fathers' Preservation Society track Alex halfway across the world because she crossed a velvet rope.
20* DistressedDude: Mr. Underwood is kidnapped by pirates.
21* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: The Extremely Ginormous Octopus, who is an extremely ginormous octopus.
22* FelonyMisdemeanor: Alex spending most of the book repeatedly running away from the same [[SternChase implacable pursuers]] -- [[spoiler: a bunch of little old ladies who want vengeance because she stepped over the velvet ropes in a museum]].
23* ForTheEvulz: [[spoiler:Charles]], the villain of the train, does what [[spoiler:he]] does because [[spoiler:he]] likes to be evil.
24* GenderBlenderName: As stated before, Alex.
25* GoingDownWithTheShip: [[spoiler:Captain Magnanimous and his crew.]]
26* GroundhogDayLoop: When Alex gets on the train, she seems to be caught in an endless loop of party, drink, dance, eat, sleep for ten minutes, repeat. With every loop, someone disappears, [[NightmareFuel and nobody remembers them….]]
27* IWillFindYou: Alex will stop at nothing to track down her dear friend and English teacher.
28* LadyLooksLikeADude:
29** It is repeatedly remarked upon how many people confuse Alexandra "Alex" Morningside for a boy due to her name and her short haircut.
30** [[spoiler:The dreaded--yet female--Captain Steele, however, is assumed to be male solely because of her reputation.]]
31* LargeHam: The aging actor Extremely Ginormous Octopus is hammier than a barn full of pigs.
32* MeaningfulName: Lord Poppinjay the vain, rich man. Captain Magnanimous the… [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin magnanimous captain.]] "Senseless" Senslesky.
33* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Captain Steele the Inevitable
34* NeverMessWithGranny: While the Daughters of the Founding Fathers' Preservation Society may seem like vaguely nasty but overall harmless biddies, they are actually extremely dangerous--managing to track Alex halfway across the world and even [[spoiler:force evil pirates to do their bidding]].
35* {{Pirate}}: There are several, notably the crew of the Ironic Gentleman.
36* {{Telepathy}}: This is how Lord Poppinjay attempts to communicate with his staff, much to their bewilderment. Alex is able to "communicate" back by offering suggestions as to the course of action, but phrasing it as though it was Poppinjay's idea. He confirms that of course, that is exactly what he was thinking.
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