Morgan Cheshire

When approaching an historical romance about same-sex lovers I always fear it will be tragic; while I know courageous men were able to find their happily ever after even then, most of the time it wasn't easy, or without drama. But the author, maybe cause she chooses to approach the story with a "prim and proper" taste, isn't reserving for these men a tragic or public exposure, their dilemma will be of course there, but lived inside their rooms, known only to their inner circle.

Harrison is from a wealthy family, not aristocracy, but middle class anyway, with a respectable career in the law field. He is the second son, so he is not expected to inherit the task to take on the family name, but in any case, he has to conduct a respectable life. A chance encounter have him face the reality of the poorest side of London, and there he meets Daniel; the impoverished son of another middle class family, Daniel is working as a clerk, but he is also doing volunteering job in a Catholic shelter. Even if it's not highlighted much, the author did notice how the Catholic origins of Daniel versus the protestant ones of Harrison are yet another point where they differ.

Harrison and Daniel's relationship is like embers more than fire; there is passion, and warmth, but they aren't full flames, so much that Harrison, until forced by someone else to analyze his feelings towards Daniel, hadn't realized they were love. I can probably see Harrison and Daniel go on for a long time with a deep friendship, and maybe in old age realizing they lived as a couple for most of their lives. While this is entirely possible if considering only Harrison, Daniel is aware of his feelings, and so, more likely, he was not to accept such development.

I don't think Harrison's attitude towards his homosexual feelings is unrealistic, actually I think many at the times did the same; many enjoyed long and deep friendships with other men, and most likely, they never turned into a love relationship... it was what they were expected to do, especially after the Wilde's scandal. Very few decided to not adhere to conveniences and expatriated in more tolerant countries (tidbit of history: did you know that Poland was the only European country who never criminalized homosexuality?)

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DP3D010/?tag=elimyrevandra-20… (mehr)

In 1720 Connecticut was still consider a land of discoveries, and Jem, his sister and her husband landed there from England searching for a new start. For Jem, a school teacher, is not exactly what he would have imagined: to help his brother-in-law, he signed a 5 years Indenture contract as farm hand. This is probably the point that more reminded me the old historical romances I was used to read, the use of this incipit for a love story was pretty common, only that, most of the time, it was a young widow buying the contract and of course she was fated to fall in love with her farm hand, that, most of the time, was from a noble family, the bastard son of some aristocrat, or someone who was forced to leave England, but that, at the end, was able to regain his noble status.

Jem is, indeed, the third son of a landowner in England, but he has no means, and will never have. His only worth are his profession as teacher and unfortunately his good looks; unfortunately since, as soon as he enters in an Indenture contract, a wealthy landowner decides he wants Jem as boy-toy and he is willing to do everything to have him. Jem is pretty much naïve, he is not that he is against the idea of being an homosexual, he has never once considered that idea since, from what I gather, he has never once considered himself from a sexual perspective. Before his misadventure I had pretty much the impression that Jem was asexual, like if marrying or having sex were activities not for him. That is indeed not a wrong concept, school teachers at the time were at the same level of priests or doctors, high demanded valuable professional workers but without private life.

In his bad luck, Jem finds a good or two, like the first man to buy his contract, Dan, an old farmer who lost his son to an Indians attack and who sees Jem as a substitute son, and Will, the local smith, who doesn’t accept the wrong doing against Jem, but not since he is actually interested in Jem, but more on a principle basis. Will will help Jem, and in doing so, they will fall in love, but that was not the hidden agenda of Will, only an event.

In a way that is the main point of this romance, it could have been a 100% breeches rippers, Jem could have been the perfect sacrificial lamb, all innocence and big, teary eyes, and Will could have been a 100% romance hero, knight in shining armor and all, but the author decided to play more subdue tunes; the drama is there, the love story also, but it’s all more sedate, less on the face of everyone, and that is probably correct because, even if you are in love, and people can see it, in 1720 Connecticut, living as an openly gay couple was not possible.

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