Although set in an action-packed period -- the British Royal Navy during the 18th century -- this m/m novella is primarily character driven. Hal is a young, idealistic romantic, clinging to an utterly hopeless infatuation with his Captain; his shipmate Robert, ten years older, hides his own love for Hal behind pranks and mockery. When Robert finally decides to make a move, it backfires badly, and he is forced to reevaluate how he appears to Hal and come up with a different way to woo him. (Never a simple task to begin with, in a time in which "sodomites" were punished with death.) But Hal is so fixated on the nobility of his love, he may choose death before dishonor.Stressing the emotional lives of the characters more than the physical, this is a tender, surprising romance. Hal's stubbornness and rigidity don't make him easily likable, but he faces a powerful transformational journey that makes for a good story.(reviewed from e-arc provided by netGalley)
