Transplant Othello to the tumult of a country in social and political flux and en route to regicide -- England in the 1640s -- and render him uncertain about his sexuality, and you have the makings of Jacob Cullen, one of the most commanding characters in contemporary writing. As the book opens, Jacob is an educated, vigorous and dauntingly strong manservant in a Royalist household, who has begun to imbibe god-fearing revolutionary pamphlets. He is on the brink of marriage to his virginal sweetheart, but is unsure of his ...
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Transplant Othello to the tumult of a country in social and political flux and en route to regicide -- England in the 1640s -- and render him uncertain about his sexuality, and you have the makings of Jacob Cullen, one of the most commanding characters in contemporary writing. As the book opens, Jacob is an educated, vigorous and dauntingly strong manservant in a Royalist household, who has begun to imbibe god-fearing revolutionary pamphlets. He is on the brink of marriage to his virginal sweetheart, but is unsure of his emotional needs, and in possession of a boiling point he reaches all too often. He is also, we learn, fearful of being identified as the murderer of a local boy, and a potential nemesis arrives on the very day of his wedding feast, prompting the first of a series of impetuous, temper-fuelled bad decisions: Jacob flees, dragging his new wife and one of his brothers with him. Thereafter he proceeds to wreak havoc on the lives of others but mostly on his own fortunes - as a servant, a husband, a brother, a soldier, and, critically, as friend, co-conspirator and lover of another man disaffected by the lurch from freedom to tyranny now apparent in Cromwell's New Model Army. To step outside the law, outside the state, outside the established and natural order of things seems to supply the only prospect of happiness...All this makes for a truly heady historical narrative: gripping, unusual, packed with heady ingredients - truly, we are in a world turned upside down by political fervour, inflammatory pamphleteering, social flux, grisly combat, apocalyptically evangelical Christianity, sexual confusion, and murder most foul...The earthy, tangy quality of McCann's Republican-style prose, infused with a fresh twentieth-century sensibility, makes the whole entirely accessible and irresistible. Is this then perhaps the first great novel of the English Revolution?
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Add this copy of As Meat Loves Salt to cart. $35.98, good condition, Sold by Reuseabook rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Gloucester, GLOS, UNITED KINGDOM, published 2001 by Flamingo.
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Dispatched, from the UK, within 48 hours of ordering. This book is in good condition but will show signs of previous ownership. Please expect some creasing to the spine and/or minor damage to the cover. Aged book. Tanned pages and age spots, however, this will not interfere with reading.
Add this copy of As Meat Loves Salt to cart. $41.24, good condition, Sold by Bonita rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Newport Coast, CA, UNITED STATES, published 2001 by Flamingo.
Add this copy of As Meat Loves Salt to cart. $106.61, new condition, Sold by GridFreed rated 4.0 out of 5 stars, ships from North Las Vegas, NV, UNITED STATES, published 2001 by Flamingo.
Maria McCann has a winner with her epic debut novel. Very few writers can capture the feel and sound of another age as she does. The dialogue and situations always feel right for Cromwell's England. The story is appropriately harsh at times, as befits a country in civil war and a society of feudal servitude.
Jacob Cullen is dark, muscular, and handsome, with a yen to master his surroundings. Coupled with his jealous rage, he has a problem and conflict in his life. He meets Ferris in Cromwell's army and, not realizing it at first, falls in love. He hopes, and needs, that this newcomer in his life will help him be the 'good' man he says he wants to be, and relieve him of the guilt he feels for former actions.
Theirs is a bumpy flight, but with moments of great poetry and passion. Jacob is not exactly likeable, but he is powerful, real, and erotic. And we want him to succeed. This is not a meagre achievement for any writer presenting such a conflicted character. One hopes for a happy ending for our questionable hero.
Kudos to Ms. McCann for a stunning gift which holds our interest from first word to last, in a big, potent, and human novel of true love and tragedy.
Janie
Nov 29, 2007
Historical Novel wrapped around a short story
I put off buying this book for over a year because other gay novels seemed more interesting. Since it was recently recommended to me again, I bought and read the tome. I could barely get through it! This story is nothing more than a pendantic historical novel wrapped around a gay story! The author takes us agonizingly through the day-to-day minutia of a servants' lives, a war and finally touches briefly on our main characters! Their relationship was so couched in 17th century terminology as to make it almost make it non-existant! I found myself re-reading the synopsis and contacting others who had read the book and then re-reading the reviews to see if I was reading the same book that garnered 5 stars and rave reviews. Unfortunately this was the same book. About 3/4 of the way through this historical tome...two things happened. The story seemed to be going somewhere AND I started day-dreaming about The Brethren series!! ALWAYS A BAD SIGN. Everyone said the last two chapters are good and it gets better half way through. THIS IS NOT ENOUGH FOR ME!! I need a story compelling and gripping and for me to be able to get behind the characters. I need for the characters to take me on their journey. This did not happen for me. 3 stars for regurgitating historical info.
Sebastienne
May 11, 2007
dark, mysterious, fascinating character study
The last hundred pages are wrenching and when I saw what was coming I threw the book across the room and burst into tears, but in spite of that, this is now one of my favorite books of all time. McCann has the most beautiful, simple style ? her words are silk, you slide through the story without any friction to distract you. This is particularly amazing because the book is set in the 1600?s, during England?s Civil War. If you?re not a history buff, though, don?t let that put you off; this is not a book about a war, but ? like every great book ? it?s about people. I?ve heard it described as an erotic thriller, and I think that nails it pretty well ? but it?s literary fiction, and much deeper than any genre fiction could be.
