False Colors, by Alex Beecroft

False Colors: An M/M Romance


Alex Beecroft

There is something about the Age of Sail in historical fiction that is highly conducive to M/M romance. Perhaps it sets the stage (or should I say "deck"?) for inevitable personal contact with quite immediate and fatal circumstances. Unlike two men in love in the landlubber world, there is little chance to hide the relationship, and however hard one might try to avoid the other, there is no way to do it. Further, since part of the theme of the genre and even part of its poignant appeal is the constant threat of exposure, you are going to find lots of room for gay relationships in the work of such authors as Alex Beecroft with this novel and Captain's Surrender and M. Kei's Pirates Of The Narrow Seas series.

In False Colors Alfie is attracted to his superior officer John, presently captain of a ship set up for failure. For his part, the strictly brought up John is puzzled by Alfie's unusual friendliness and relaxed behavior around him. They become friends, but it is not until Alfie so caringly looks after John when he is severely wounded that Alfie has an opportunity to show his affection, something John firmly rejects. When Alfie's old captain, Farrant,  arrives and John learns of his notorious life as a sodomite he confronts Alfie, is horrified by his candor about his sexuality, and rejects him once and for all. Alfie takes off and signs on with his former captain. John and Alfie meet again in Jamaica. John has come to grips with his own sexuality by now, but Alfie is on trial for sodomy. Unbeknownst to him, John goes to bat for him and exposes the plaintiffs at the cost of a captaincy of his own again. They sign on with the same mission to the Arctic where they try hard to avoid each other, but it's no use. A tense and ill fated encounter in John's cabin makes matters worse. It is not until they are back in Jamaica that there is any chance for a rapprochement.

It sounds like a simple story, but there are many facets to the fractious romance. The former captain, Farrant, is terrified of falling in love and acts recklessly, almost suicidally. Farrant's wife has been convinced by her husband's doctor that he is ill and that a cure can be found, a suggestion still made in these more enlightened times. John's childhood with a philandering father and religious zealot of a mother contrast with Alfie's antiquarian parents' utter rejection of their homosexual son. The impact of torture on each man, under different circumstances, stands as both a bond and a barrier between them. The seamier life of "sodomites" in the era comes up to shake John's growing acceptance that he and others like him are "made this way by God".

This is a well told story with really only one flaw. Beecroft's handling of scene changes and time passing can be abrupt. We lose some of the character development that could have taken place. This is the earlier of the two novels, so it cannot be faulted for the fact that Captain's Surrender bears a strong resemblance to it. I hope Beecroft gets out of this mold for any further books, which I fondly hope she writes.

What I liked about this novel, and I liked it a lot, is that unlike many M/M romances, it is not afraid to show struggle and self reproach as would be the case in such an era. Beecroft told me wshe has gotten grief for the more "real" aspects of her writing, things like rotten teeth, scurvy, and other "unromantic" parts of the scene. Personally I think the book was much the better for it, but then I am not what you would call a romance fan. I read books like this as literary historical fiction, and Beecroft satisfies the need for more than just a love relationship with its fits and starts. She gets into the times, not only the events but also the cultural impact constant even hysterical condemnation has on people who are simply in love. She handles John's religious self questioning and Alfie's hopelessness about finding love. He thinks to himself at one point that all he wants is to have someone in whose arms he can awake. To me that is the quintessence of love and, for lack of a better word, marriage. That anyone, including a god, can seek to deny anyone that homely comfort appals me. I thank Beecroft for making that point so strongly in this gutsy novel.

I bought this novel for use on my Kindle 3. As always, I thank the author and publisher for allowing text to speech to be enabled so I could read it.