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Reading: A Man of Independent Mind
Apr. 5th, 2019 08:07 pmNow that all twelve volumes of the Comfortable Courtesan series have been published, L.A. Hall has moved on to publishing a series of standalone books focusing on other members of Clorinda's circle. The first one, The Ironmaster's Tale, retold the events of the first few Comfortable Courtesan books from the point of view of Josiah Ferraby; the second, A Man of Independent Mind, focuses on Sandy MacDonald, philosopher and freethinker, staunch friend to Clorinda and secretary and lover to Lord Raxdell.
A Man of Independent Mind begins with a series of extracts from Sandy's commonplace books giving his perspective on events recounted in Clorinda's memoirs, but the bulk of the book is made up of three novellas set about twenty years after the conclusion of Felicities Maximized. The first of these, 'Had we never lov'd sae kindly, we had ne'er been broken-hearted', is hands-down one of my favourite bits of the whole canon. It follows Sandy in the immediate aftermath of Lord Raxdell's death in an accident, and is absolutely heartbreaking (since I first read it serialised online it's been one of my go-to things to read when I'm in the mood for something that will make me weep) and a wonderful depiction of loss and grief and the comfort of friendship, and I adore it unreservedly.
The other two novellas, 'Building a Heaven in Hell's despair' and 'Ring out the false, ring in the true', deal with Sandy beginning to move on with his life; there's a wonderfully charming odd-couple romance with a new partner, and, even more delightfully, the two of them becoming involved in fighting crime together. Much more light-hearted than 'Had we never lov'd sae kindly', these are simply great fun.
I don't know whether A Man of Independent Mind quite stands alone. I think it would be possible to follow Sandy's story without having read the rest of the series, but my enjoyment was very much enhanced by encountering the many reappearances of beloved characters from Clorinda's memoirs and updates on where everyone is, twenty years on, and I suspect that it might be quite confusing for readers who didn't already know who all of the supporting characters were, so I would recommend reading the Comfortable Courtesan books first if possible.
(Disclaimer: I received a free advance e-copy to review, but will also be purchasing a pretty bound volume to add to my collection when the book is published later this month.)
A Man of Independent Mind begins with a series of extracts from Sandy's commonplace books giving his perspective on events recounted in Clorinda's memoirs, but the bulk of the book is made up of three novellas set about twenty years after the conclusion of Felicities Maximized. The first of these, 'Had we never lov'd sae kindly, we had ne'er been broken-hearted', is hands-down one of my favourite bits of the whole canon. It follows Sandy in the immediate aftermath of Lord Raxdell's death in an accident, and is absolutely heartbreaking (since I first read it serialised online it's been one of my go-to things to read when I'm in the mood for something that will make me weep) and a wonderful depiction of loss and grief and the comfort of friendship, and I adore it unreservedly.
The other two novellas, 'Building a Heaven in Hell's despair' and 'Ring out the false, ring in the true', deal with Sandy beginning to move on with his life; there's a wonderfully charming odd-couple romance with a new partner, and, even more delightfully, the two of them becoming involved in fighting crime together. Much more light-hearted than 'Had we never lov'd sae kindly', these are simply great fun.
I don't know whether A Man of Independent Mind quite stands alone. I think it would be possible to follow Sandy's story without having read the rest of the series, but my enjoyment was very much enhanced by encountering the many reappearances of beloved characters from Clorinda's memoirs and updates on where everyone is, twenty years on, and I suspect that it might be quite confusing for readers who didn't already know who all of the supporting characters were, so I would recommend reading the Comfortable Courtesan books first if possible.
(Disclaimer: I received a free advance e-copy to review, but will also be purchasing a pretty bound volume to add to my collection when the book is published later this month.)
