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ofbooksandromance's review against another edition
5.0
5 “You and I, who we are, what we are, changes the world” stars
”You make me so bloody happy I can hardly stand it. And I’m sorry I was a coward. I’m sorry I hurt you. I never want to hurt you again because I love you. I love you so much and, if you’ll have me, I want to be with you for as long as this blasted world will let us be together.”
Actual review to come soon as i’m still crying my eyes out over this book. But for now I have a comment to say to this book:
I have loved the books by Sally Malcolm I have read previously so I knew I would enjoy this one but I was already a sobbing mess after the first chapter of this book. And I barely stopped crying during the entire book. This book totally broke me, but it also put me back together and made me feel better. This was everything I wanted in a book and I adored it. I also love a good hard fought romance and god was this one hard faught, it was painful but it was so worth it.
Brief summary
The book starts in 1917 when Harry and Ash fall in love while serving for their country during world war I. They are separated after that but they keep communicating by letters and Harry goes to visit Ash on his family’s estate and Harry starts to work on the estate to provide for his own family. They start to sneak around and spend all the time they can together but it’s complicated for them between their obligations to their family and the need to marry a woman to hide the fact that they are gay.
This book was fucking realistic to how I would imagined life to be in 1919. And while I adored that the book was so realistic in its approach it so painful to read because of it. This book was so gritty and emotional but in a good way. It did shatter my entire heart but it gave me an HEA so thats all I could have asked for and more. There is a lot of drama coming from characters outside of the main couple in this book and thats not something I normally enjoy but given that this book is set in the 1910s, I could understand it and none of it felt gratious. It was realistic to what I imagine life would have been for gay men in the 1910s so it totally worked for me.
”You make me so bloody happy I can hardly stand it. And I’m sorry I was a coward. I’m sorry I hurt you. I never want to hurt you again because I love you. I love you so much and, if you’ll have me, I want to be with you for as long as this blasted world will let us be together.”
Actual review to come soon as i’m still crying my eyes out over this book. But for now I have a comment to say to this book:
I have loved the books by Sally Malcolm I have read previously so I knew I would enjoy this one but I was already a sobbing mess after the first chapter of this book. And I barely stopped crying during the entire book. This book totally broke me, but it also put me back together and made me feel better. This was everything I wanted in a book and I adored it. I also love a good hard fought romance and god was this one hard faught, it was painful but it was so worth it.
Brief summary
The book starts in 1917 when Harry and Ash fall in love while serving for their country during world war I. They are separated after that but they keep communicating by letters and Harry goes to visit Ash on his family’s estate and Harry starts to work on the estate to provide for his own family. They start to sneak around and spend all the time they can together but it’s complicated for them between their obligations to their family and the need to marry a woman to hide the fact that they are gay.
This book was fucking realistic to how I would imagined life to be in 1919. And while I adored that the book was so realistic in its approach it so painful to read because of it. This book was so gritty and emotional but in a good way. It did shatter my entire heart but it gave me an HEA so thats all I could have asked for and more. There is a lot of drama coming from characters outside of the main couple in this book and thats not something I normally enjoy but given that this book is set in the 1910s, I could understand it and none of it felt gratious. It was realistic to what I imagine life would have been for gay men in the 1910s so it totally worked for me.
violetsto_'s review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
cozy and tender, but a little angsty, mm historical romance that reminds me of Cat Sebastian (especially Two Rogues Make a Right, which i believe is the book that led me to this rec). the depictions of war and resulting trauma give what is otherwise a sweet friends to lovers romance a bit of bite and angst.
MCs: nervous, dreamy, and optimistic Captain Ashleigh Dalton; and supportive and ever practical Private Harry West.
tropes: friends to lovers, class difference, hurt / comfort, forbidden love, lavender marriage
pov: dual third person
“Christ, they were happy enough for us to die together b-but God forbid we dine together.”
Harry smiled, reached out slowly, as if toward a spitting cat, and took Dalton’s hand. His fingers felt cold and stiff. Harry squeezed them. “You’re right. We are friends. I didn’t mean to say we weren’t, it’s just … I dunno. It’s different, back home. People don’t understand. It’s like we don’t fit no more.”
Dalton nodded and beneath Harry’s hand he turned his own over, threading their fingers together. “We d-don’t fit. That’s it exactly.” He hesitated, then in a lower voice said, “B-but we fit together, you and I.”
likes:
● ash and harry balance each other so well as brothers in arms, friends, and lovers. their friendship is so sweet and warm. the small glimpses of their relationship on the front lays the foundation for a rewarding friends to lovers journey. they’re not opposites, though ash is definitely the dreamer, while harry tries his very best to keep them grounded.
● the deepening of their friendship into love and desire is so heartwarming and exciting!
He heard Ash come up behind him and didn’t realise he was anticipating his touch until Ash slipped one arm around his waist and leaned against his back. At least he wasn’t alone in this constant need to touch. An embarrassingly soft noise escaped his throat as Ash kissed the back of his neck.
● ugh, the class difference is the real source of angst here, and authentically so. seeing their relationship stifled by stodgy societal conventions after everything they both sacrificed was heartbreaking! especially in comparison to the casual masculine intimacy shared on the front. the power dynamics of their class difference are excruciating and seem impossible to surmount, especially for harry.
● brutal but worthwhile depictions of war, injury, disability, and trauma as a result of wwi. ash and harry really struggle to fit back into society when they return home.
● hurt/comfort! including one of my favorite little mini-tropes: nightmare comfort.
● some other notable mini-tropes: the Intimacy of Christian Names, reading to one another.
● tender, casual intimacy :’’’)
“You could start,” he finished quietly, “by calling me Harry, when it’s just us. If you’d like to.”
A smile, that sweet smile that turned him inside out. Jesus, but it was going kill him one day. “Harry,” Dalton said, testing the word, shoulders relaxing and his weight swaying forward. “Yes, alright. Harry it is. That’s — Thank you, Harry.”
“You’re welcome — Ash.”
And God help them both.
smut (nsfw):
● once they start, they cannot get enough of one another!!! some of it’s tender, some urgent, some for the carnal thrill of feeling alive and in love. they explore physical intimacy so tenderly and excitingly, just another manifestation of their love and care and self-exploration.
“I want — ” He almost lost his nerve. “I want to kiss you again.”
Harry’s lips parted and Ash had a flash of memory — the warmth of his lips, the press of his strong body against Ash’s own. “Yeah,” Harry said roughly. “Me too. And more.”
More. Ash felt a twitch below his belt, a flush of heat across his skin and goosebumps rising on the back of his neck. “Christ, Harry.”
dislikes:
● ash and harry’s povs were difficult to distinguish at times and the overuse of he/him/his pronouns made some sentences and passages difficult to understand.
● the HFN(/HEA?) solution was predictable a little early on.
magicalrocketships's review
4.0
Been saving up this one to read for a while, and it didn't disappoint. Post-WWI queer love story dealing with PTSD and shell shock and disability, and trying to create a space for love and family. Lovely.
robazizo's review
3.0
3.75 stars. Objectively this was a good book, but it just didn't completely gel with me. It felt a bit unbalanced (very little time was spent on the developing relationship between Ash and Harry during the war, which made it harder to root for them later on in the story), very gloomy (things were looking very pessimistic for such a long time) and relatively low on actual romance. I guess this was just a bit too much realism for a romance novel for me, especially now when things are so unbalanced and unpredictable in real life. I guess I need more escapism at the moment. Olive was a wonderful side character though and I did appreciate the issues raised in the book concerning the changing times and the effects of the war on those involved.
tereoleneva's review
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: War
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
castairs's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
sarful's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
molsen7961's review
5.0
5 stars
Loved the external homophobia and class differences. Loved the secret relationship aspect. Loved that the characters were committed to each other early on. Loved that it stretched over a long time period so that nothing felt rushed or too fast paced. HEA was built up to instead of a skip ahead, rushed epilogue.
Did not love that the resolution to their problems was a marriage of convenience to a woman. Would have rather that they ran away together.
Loved the external homophobia and class differences. Loved the secret relationship aspect. Loved that the characters were committed to each other early on. Loved that it stretched over a long time period so that nothing felt rushed or too fast paced. HEA was built up to instead of a skip ahead, rushed epilogue.
Did not love that the resolution to their problems was a marriage of convenience to a woman. Would have rather that they ran away together.