Blackmailer’s Delight by David Lawrence
This author’s work reminds me of old school, period romances like Georgette Heyer. The historical authenticity just leaks through in everything, in the language and the characters. There is no reflection of contemporary morals, no attempt to preach modern concerns. Just that perfect ability to use past thinking to highlight ideas we are still grappling with.
In its period detail, it also abandons the modern romance’s need to coddle the reader. This book isn’t easy. The plot is full of a kind of dread anticipation, a feeling of serious and unpleasant things about to happen, almost cringe humor in some way. It’s something I find hard to read and a couple times I had to take a break and read something else. But the author always resolves the bad things authentically and positively. I ended it feeling that I could trust this author to do the deep thing without mulching my heart in the process.
I really loved the way he resolved the blackmail situation by having his protagonist man-up and take full responsibility, make meaningful apologies with promises, even gear himself to reveal his secret – and all of this without endless internal explanations for behaviour.
I can see why this author hasn’t jumped into the limelight and I think it is a shame, his work deserves far more credit and attention than it gets.
His voice also jumps off the page.
I had previously half-read another of his works some years ago. I didn’t finish it then. I hadn’t understood what he was doing. I had thought it more serious than it was, and when one of those dread anticipation things came about I lost my nerve – I was going through a bad period at the time and couldn’t stomach something awful happening to the book characters. But I recognised this work as that same author immediately, just from the voice and style. And having learnt his method I would like to give that book another shot.
What else? If you like deeply immersed and lived period stories, with an authentic gay voice, and an emotional ride with a happy ending you should definitely try these books.
