Sorry to cut into the Advent Calendar which I hope you are all enjoying.
It's awards season again and the Speak Its Name Awards will be running once more.
The Awards will be:
Best Novel
Best Cover
Best Author
and Readers’ Choice.
The first 3 are chosen by Speak Its Name, but the Readers’ Choice gives you a chance to participate…
In 1912 youthful poet Cecil Valance spends a weekend at the family home of his close friend George Sawle. It is a weekend that is destined to become a minor footnote of literary history when a poem is dedicated to Daphne the teenage daughter of the house, a poem that takes on a life of its own following the 1st world war and its author’s death in France.
The Stranger’s Child explores the question of what we can really know about other people, whether it is old friends and acquaintances, family members or a poet who died a hundred years ago. We have bits and pieces of information, guesses, gossip, memories but often the most crucial parts of the jigsaw may be missing.
Throughout the book, we are tantalised over the course of a century with glimpses into the lives of characters who all have some connection with the War Poet Cecil Valance, whether they are concealing or trying to uncover his secrets. Some characters know some of the truth and choose to keep it private, others spend their lives in vain quest to ferret out ‘what really happened’.
Generally a vivid, absorbing read, bringing its several protagonists briefly but very vividly to life in lightening flashes, but in the end, it almost worked too well and I felt ended by feeling almost over-teased and cheated of simple narrative satisfaction – who were any of those people really?
Writer Fran Jacobs tagged me to fill out this meme on my current Work in Progress.
1) What is the working title of your next book/short story/project?
Dancing Phaedra
2) Where did the idea come from for the book?
The protagonist, Antyllus was a secondary character in Gaius and Achilles. Initially intended to be quite an unsympathetic character whose role was to be the nightmare ex boyfriend of one of the protagonists, he ended up as something rather more than that and I felt he deserved a book of his own.
3) What genre does your book fall under?
Historical fiction
4) What actors would you choose to play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?
Hmm, I don’t know who would be exquisite enough to play Antyllus – they would have to be a talented dancer as well, unless they used a body double. I could almost imagine a younger Alan Rickman playing Tiberius, Antyllus’ manager. Gabinius, Antyllus’ master… probably lots of possibilities…think of a large man, verging on the obese in his late fifties with a rather pompous manner.
5) What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
A former brothel slave uses his talent as a dancer to struggle towards autonomy.
6) Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
Self-published.
7) How long did it take you to write the first draft of the manuscript?
I have been writing the first draft throughout this year and am still completing it. I hope to have the book ready not long after the New Year.
What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
Mary Renault’s The Persian Boy and The Mask of Apollo share similar themes and settings. Eromenos by Melanie McDonald also addresses thorny issues of sex and power in ancient Rome in her recreation of the relationship between Hadrian and Antinous.
9) Who or what inspired you to write this book?
The main character himself Antyllus, I think, with the force of personality he developed in the earlier work – also early readers who told me how much they liked him!
10) What else about the book might pique the reader’s interest?
If you like historical fiction set in ancient Rome,if you are interested in ancient theatre, if you like gay-themed fiction that isn’t just romance, if you like angst and a character who struggles against the odds to assert his humanity – you may enjoy this book.
Valeran Park is a club for dominants and submissives who engage in power exchanges ranging from extended play sessions to ceding almost all autonomy to a master for an extended period.
Michael, a sensible, forty year old accountant, has signed one of the heaviest contracts available and is deeply committed to the D/s lifestyle and his own role as slave. When he learns, then, that his master has sold him to Drew, a rich and seemingly spoilt and indolent young man with a reputation for wild partying, he does not back out, despite his dismay, but accepts the decision. After all, surely Drew will grow bored of him soon enough and sell him on to someone more suitable?
Drew, however, seems determined to turn over a new leaf and prove to the sceptical Michael that he is worthy to be his master. He gets his chance sooner than he anticipates, when unexpected events plunge Drew into the midst of Michael’s extended family at a time of crisis.
It is in this busy family setting, rather than the rarefied atmosphere of Valeran Park itself, that Michael and Drew, two strong and stubborn characters, must find an equilibrium in a relationship where Drew, theoretically, holds almost all the power. This is one of the great appeals of the book. Drew and Michael are much more than their D/s roles but multi-faceted individuals who have other needs, roles and obligations in the wider world.
Neither of the characters is perfect, though both are likeable and there were times when I found it hard to readily empathise with their determination to remain within the perimeters of their set roles even when Drew was insecure or Michael was angry and frustrated, (and hadn’t even chosen to be with Drew in the first place).
In the end, however, the book did a great job of showing how, with patience and communication on both sides as well as mutual attraction and liking, a D/s relationship can be made to work for some people.
There were some loose and indeed mysterious ends at the finish of “Without Restrictions”, which leaves me looking forward hopefully to a sequel!
Without Restrictions by Miri Thompson Amazon Link
Evening Rounds by Steelwhisper
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
This was a brutal, vivid glimpse into another world, that of the fabled British boarding school. Although the setting is contemporary, the scene and the values and attitudes that led to it could equally have emanated from Tom Brown’s Schooldays. I can well believe however that little has changed, based on conversations I’ve had from those who had such a – privileged schooling.
The writing is polished and confident, of a piece with the formality of the setting. The story of youthful cruelty is relayed by the victim to his lover in the third person and with such a detached elegance that it was bordering on ambiguity whether this was his voice or that of an omniscient narrator.
A painfully elegant vignette that left me wanting more.
Throughout the month of July, you can download Gaius and Achilles from Smashwords for just $2.00 (usual price 3.99) using this coupon SSW50.
In other news, short story collection, Meeting Tiberius and Other Tales of Ancient Rome, which features stories about characters first introduced in Gaius and Achilles, should be released later this year.
The Storyteller by Blaine D. Arden
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
A pleasing little tale on many levels. A vignette introducing us to the unusual relationship between a blind young nobleman, hidden away by his family, and the tutor with whom he shares his exile. The erotic energy between the protagonists is palpable and intense, while a D/s dynamic in which the s is guided firmly and lovingly towards being stronger and more independent was refreshing to read about.
