lgbtqiahistoricalromance:A Light Amongst Shadows (Dark is the Night series Book 1) by Kelley York an
lgbtqiahistoricalromance:A Light Amongst Shadows (Dark is the Night series Book 1) by Kelley York and Rowan AltwoodJames Spencer is hardly the typical troubled youth who ends up at Whisperwood School for Boys. Instead of hating the strict schedules and tight oversight by staff, James blossoms, quickly making friends, indulging in his love of writing, and contemplating the merits of sneaking love poems to the elusive and aloof William Esher. The rumours about William’s sexuality and opium reliance are prime gossip material amongst the third years…rumours that only further pique James’ curiosity to uncover what William is really like beneath all that emotional armor. And, when the normally collected William stumbles in one night, shaken and ranting of ghosts, James is the only one who believes him. James himself has heard the nails dragging down his bedroom door and the sobs echoing in the halls at night. He knows others have, too, even if no one will admit it. The staff refuses to entertain such ridiculous tales, and punishment awaits anyone who brings it up. Their fervent denial and the disappearance of students only furthers James’ determination to find out what secrets Whisperwood is hiding…especially if it prevents William and himself from becoming the next victims.ReviewLucky me to discover this book was coming out, by doing a “m/m romance” search on Twitter. Going into the novel, I expected a blend of young Holmes/Watson and Ouran High School Host Club. Much as I love both, I am glad to say that is not what this novel turned out to be. Yes, we have two young men with investigation goals that fall in love and a boy’s school setting, but this novel is unique unto itself. According to York’s Twitter account, James is based off a young Jack Davenport (Norrington from Pirate’s of the Caribbean, Eggy’s father from Kingsman) and Will is from James D’arcy (Richard from An American Haunting)–two of my favorite underrated British actors. James has the saucy but steadfast nature we see in many of Davenport’s characters, and Will certainly possesses the quiet, cerebral sort of personality that I usually think of from D’arcy. Once the romance portion of the novel begins (Chapter 3), they’re both completely devoted to one another. Both young men have pasts that are not light, but where it might be simple to have these elements weigh them down and ruin everything, it instead unites the pair beyond what they’ve already discovered they enjoy about one another. There is definitely angst present, because the novel ends up being more like Holmes/Watson in The Devil’s Backbone, but the relationship between James and Will is a healthy one, and they have lovely moments with poetry and picnics. James helps Will through his laudanum issues, and Will respects James enough to wait for furthering the physical nature of their relationship (due to James’s past). They also combine their strengths to help them solve a series of crimes that threaten their fellow students, some of whom share their inclinations. So while it is not all sunshine and roses, they have mutual respect for one another, and they’re very tender.There are some genuinely creepy moments in this novel, and the plot of the school’s background definitely takes this to a dark place, but the boys also receive support and assistance from friends and faculty that are aware of their relationship. So, while there is period-typical homophobia, it doesn’t result in the young men having to always stay guarded or deter them from pursuing their own HEA. I’m really looking forward to seeing what happens to these two characters, especially since by the end of the novel they’re in a position to further explore the paranormal–together. -- source link
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