Fortunes of War

Rating:
Summary: Gay pirates. Does it get any better?
Review: "Fortunes of War" was my very first Mel Keegan book, and I absolutely loved it. The story was rich and engaging, both the main and the supporting characters were endearing (if a bit shallow at times), and the descriptions were lovely.

In fact, I only had two problems with this book, both of them pretty minor. First, the numerous spelling errors got on my nerves a little, and second, Keegan wrote the book referring to one of the main characters by his last name. It confused me a little in the beginning when in dialogue, Dermot was called by his first name, but in the rest of the book, he was referred to as 'Channon'. I think I would have preferred it if Keegan had used 'Dermot' instead of 'Channon' when talking about that character.

Other than that, this book was wonderful. Almost every other gay novel I'd found before reading "Fortunes of War" had been bittersweet, often with a disappointing or sad ending. "Fortunes of War" was a breath of fresh air to a hopeless romantic like me, and I think it will be to anyone who loves to see a happy ending.

Rating:
Summary: A splendid historical romance
Review: Although the book starts out a bit slowly, as we are introduced to details of the political intrigue between Spain and England, it quickly picks up and we have a delightful attempted seduction scene which soon comes to fruition. Robin and Dermot fall into bed and in love, and there are separations, reunions, misunderstanding, dangers bravely faced.

As we move from English manor house, to Elizabeth's court, to middle-class London, to privateers in the West Indies, Keegan shows himself a master of creating a real sense of place. He is equally adept at developing, in a very natural way, the characters of the two lovers, as they grow and change over the eight years in which the events take place.

And it made me pull out my copy of The Drake Manuscript, always a sign that a book has intrigued me. If I have a quibble, it's not with the author, but with the publisher, for not providing a map of Dermot and Robin's travels in the Americas.



Rating:
Summary: The best of the genre.
Review: Fortunes of War is a real triumph in the traditon of historical novels. The fact that the main characters are gay only adds to the fun. This is fiction in the traditional sense - one of characters and plot. The story is spellbinding in the combination of love, lust and adventure. What a nice change from the teenaged Angst of most of those coming out novels. Read it for the pure enjoyment of a story well told.

Rating:
Summary: The Best Mel Keegan
Review: Fortunes of War was my first Keegan's book. It is so good that it prompted me to acquire all other Keegan's books which are available. Sadly none has come close to Fortunes of War. I do not care for the Spain vs England background. It is the story of the two lovers which gripped me and held me till the end. Our two lovers are such likable beautiful young men, their characters solid and almost real. When they were forced to be separated I felt a tug at my heart and just had to keep on reading until 3 in the morning to savor their reunion. Their love for each other is lusty, breathless yet tender and touching. I am a straight woman and have not touched a romance novels for years. However Fortunes of War has become one of my top ten favorites. I hope the book will be savored by a wider audience and not just men in love with each other.

Rating:
Summary: for all mel keegan fans
Review: hi i have notices as you must have many mel keegan books are out of print and to find old copys is hard and expenisve i have found a websight where you can order new copys for regular prices his old publisher is discontinuing his books and he found a new one this company only prints the books as there orderd so they only take direct orders and dont use book stores or amazon though i am going to right them and mention they couldl use amazon and print the books as there orderd that way who knows maby it will work out there based in australia anyway there websight is www.dream-craft.com check them out

Rating:
Summary: for all mel keegan fans
Review: hi i have notices as you must have many mel keegan books are out of print and to find old copys is hard and expenisve i have found a websight where you can order new copys for regular prices his old publisher is discontinuing his books and he found a new one this company only prints the books as there orderd so they only take direct orders and dont use book stores or amazon though i am going to right them and mention they couldl use amazon and print the books as there orderd that way who knows maby it will work out there based in australia anyway there websight is www.dream-craft.com check them out

Rating:
Summary: Best of the genre
Review: I've read Aquamarine and Ice, Wind, and Fire, and thought they were just so-so - but Fortunes of War is one of the best historical romances I've ever read, gay or straight (and I've read a lot of them). And if anyone is sick of the cliches of the standard heterosexual romance novel, this book is a great breather, very fresh and unique. The plot is not as predictable or naive as in some other Keegan novels, and there are more twists and turns than I would normally expect from him. The characters in this book are painstakingly developed, the setting feels completely authentic, and the writing is really a notch above that in Aquamarine and Ice. There are also fewer typos.

What's best about the novel is the intensity of the relationship between the heroes. They are hot, they are passionate, they are believable, and their relationship is believable. It makes sense that they are in love, a point a lot of romance novels neglect. The sex is hot too - not as ubiquitous as in Ice, and better, more intense, than in Aquamarine.

Somewhere among the pirates, battles and other thrills and adventures, there is a more serious gay theme. The heroes suffer for their love and are forced to make hard choices and big sacrifices in a world where homosexual love is not always welcome.

As usual, Keegan's dialogue is a bit stilted and odd in places, and some of the secondary characters are a little shallow, but whatever weaknesses this novel has are swept away by the desparate intensity of the heroes' relationship. It's impossible not to fall in love with them both, and little flaws can easily be overlooked when you're in love.

Rating:
Summary: A nice read, but lacking
Review: Is it too much to ask that a gay romance have an exciting plot, strong characters, smooth writing *and* hot sex? Fortunes of War succeeds in the first two, but fails in the others. The story of Dermot and Robin takes a lot of unexpected turns as their relationship develops and circumstances change around them. The two characters are strong and believable, unique individuals with a unique relationship. Never for a moment did I have a problem with the characters or their interactions.

My problems were with the actual writing. This was my first Mel Keegan book, and I had trouble looking past his stilted, distant style. Being a reader that enjoys full descriptions, I found myself frustrated by the constant re-use of single words. For instance, every horse in the book was referred to as a "nag," the Queen's hair was always "flame-colored." Keegan's writing style kept me from fully falling into the book. I always felt like I was being held at a distance.

While I wasn't looking for an erotic book, I was excited at the prospect of a gay novel with real sex in it. But I was disappointed there, too. Explicit, yes. Well-written, yes. Boring as hell, indeed. I felt nothing of the characters' emotions for each other in the sex scenes, and Keegan's attempt at antiquatedly formal language just pushed me further from the scene.

A story such as this, with characters such as these, deserves better.

Rating:
Summary: Best of the genre
Review: Mel Keegan is at the top of his game with this book. After I read this book I read Aquamarine and Ice, Wind and Fire, but they were disappointing by comparison. As far as historical romance goes, straight or gay, this is by far the freshest, most unique book I have ever read of that genre. The characters are the best I have seen from Keegan - painstakingly developed, absolutely appealing and yet convincing enough not to fall into that category of obviously way too hot to be true romance novel heroes. The historical setting is well researched and vividly evoked. The plot is more complex and much less predictable than readers of other Keegan books might expect, and the ending is romance novel perfect without being cliche. The dialogue, as usual, is ever so slightly stilted, and at times the characters seem a bit naive, but all of that is far outweighed by the intensity of the romance. For those who need action, there's plenty of that too. And yes, there's sex - not so ubiquitous as in Ice, Wind and Fire, but more and better than in Aquamarine. I've read more historical romance than I care to recall, and this is definitely one of the best.

Rating:
Summary: Pretty Good, But...
Review: This is a pretty good book that could have been a pretty great book with a lot of editing. Really.

Keegan's historical accuracy is quite nice, his prose tends to lean towards the purple in a good way, and there's just enough (really delicious!) smut to keep things interesting. BUT. His characters are rather flat and predictable and the plot is, well, weak.

The book is divided into two sections. In the first, big, butch, Spanish Channon woos delicate, learned, Irish Robin, and their relationship follows the standard queer romance formula, right down to the "first time" scene we've all read and loved a million times before. Sadly, the lovers are parted by the demands of their respective countries and impending war. Book two, which is markedly inferior to the first, deals with the lovers' unlikely reunion and their adventures on the high seas.

Unfortunately Keegan beats his readers over the head with his ideas to the point of tedium. And the poor editing (more spelling/grammar errors than I could keep up with, and conflicting plotpoints [Robin's never killed anyone in anger - wait, yes he has! etc]) really was disappointing. Still, I'll take my gay pirates however I can get them.