This is an incredibly thought-provoking novel set just after WW1 where a man had to hide his true desires of homosexuality behind what you might call a marriage of convenience. It’s superbly written with wonderfully captivating characters. By turns compassionate and sensitive, compelling and gripping, vivid and accomplished, its intricate romantic plotlines are told with rare brilliance. A real page turner and wonderfully accessible too and it’s the sort of book you can spend hours discussing with friends on the whys and wherefores of one of THE taboos of the early part of the 20th century.
'As with all the best novelists, Husband's talent seems to draw its energy from the experience of writing from perspectives far removed from her own as she inhabits other genders, other sexualities, other eras' Patrick Gale Lieutenant Paul Harris returns from the trenches to his father's home after suffering from shell shock. Paul's lover Adam awaits, but so too does Margot, the pregnant fiancée of his dead brother, whom Paul feels an obligation to care for. Forced to hide his true desires, Paul must decide where his loyalty and his heart lie. Set in the aftermath of World War I, Marion Husband's moving novel illuminates the difficulties faced in the post-war period by former soldiers, and explores early twentieth-century taboos, love and betrayal. Through vivid flashbacks, effortless prose and realistic dialect, 'the love that dare not speak its name' is explored with true feeling and passion. Exploring the prejudice of only a few generations ago, The Boy I Love is a classic love story. Just some of the amazing GOODREADS REVIEWS: 'A beautiful, melancholy book which feels terribly true to its time and to the characters.' 'A wonderful book. One of those that I just couldn't put down.' 'I absolutely loved this book. Found it utterly unputdownable.'
