Radical Love

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I felt that some of the characters could have been a bit more fleshed out as I didn't feel as bad when the Molly house is closed and when we find out why. I think this element could have been explored a bit more to really get it to hit home.

Bacon -- in his hopeless love, cast aside -- becomes a figure of sympathy. But is there no sympathy we can extend for Villiers? Or is he just rotten through and through? Based on the incredible true story of one of the most important events in queer history, Radical Love is a sensuous and prescient story about gender and sexuality, and how the most For much of the story, John questions “what is a radical” and reaches a number of conclusions - the word “radical” is seemingly relative, where people who claim radical views are entirely unmoving on certain challenging opinions. People who consider themselves radical may be completely out of their depth when faced with, say, racism like Lydia (or inter-sectionalism like Ned). However perhaps the overarching question should be “what is Love”. John believes he knows the answer and makes his decisions based on that, however as he faces the consequences of his actions, he appears to not have changed his mind. (And who am I to say if he is right or wrong?) Despite being left wishing there was a bit more (it kind of felt like the book ended rather abruptly), I am left feeling rather sad for most of the people in this book, as well as glad that I read it. I'm now mildly curious and might seek out other books about this time period.

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There is insidiously vulgar language and cursing – YMMV on if you like that. I loved it and felt it adds to the bawdiness and directness of Bacon and also Villiers, but in different ways. King James VI & I was such an Ass Twaddle. And Carr was such a Drama Queen. I also loved Queen Anne, what an independent and cunning spirit. George is beyond beguiling, as the Plan's brief asks for. I would have fallen in love with him too, I have no doubt. 🥰🥰🥰 Blunt, raw and unapologetically sexual, Radical Love is a story of human flaws, the dangers of both honesty and deception, and idealism This book is many things; beautiful in parts, crude in others - it examines humanity at it's lowest as people judged and shamed others, and also humanity at peace in love and feeling accepted by friends, families and strangers and allowed to be who they are.

Based on the true story of one of the most important events in queer history, Radical Love is a sensuous and prescient story about gender and sexuality, and how the most vulnerable survive in dangerous times. Based on real people and real events we’re guided through the story by a completely unreliable narrator. John is a liar, he omits things, forgets to tell you stuff then ‘remembers’ later in the story. But I liked him. I felt sad for him, he falls in love and it consumes him. He makes bad decisions but when we learn about his childhood we can see why he is so flawed. world of a gay molly house on Vere Street, where ordinary men reinvent themselves as funny, flirtatious drag queens and rent boys cavort with labourers and princes alike. There, Church becomes the BUT…I do hope that people who might not know our history, learn from this. Worse than rapists just for loving eachother? Let that sink in. This is a true story with very few added fictional elements (so cool!) At the heart of it is a molly house on Vere Street in London called The White Swan, which is an actual real place that existed 214 years ago where men dressed as women and were early Drag Queens. The cast of characters is super fun to learn about, how they dressed and hid from the public to be themselves. John Church is a “reverend” who preaches the idea of equality, tolerance or Radical Love, that love is love and love conquers all, and performs weddings in secret there. The fear and danger is palpable throughout the story since at the time it was illegal to be gay and people were hanged and pilloried and hated by the towns people. But the most striking part is that a lot of the ideas and themes could be right out of today's time.

I’m conflicted on how I feel towards the I have read several books on The Overbury Affair so I was intrigued by yet another novel which includes it. Sir Francis Bacon knows his value and knows how to navigate at the court of James I. Power is the highest reward of all. Bacon looks for new ways to influence the king after Rober Carr's downfall and he finds an eager student who is supposed to play the role Bacon has prepared for him.

Bold, irreverent and utterly original, The Dangerous Kingdom of Love is a darkly witty satire about power, and a moving queer love story that resonates through time. Focussing on John Church as the narrator meant for a really engaging character driven story - the epitome of an unreliable narrative and a character that even by the end you’re not really sure you know. He was funny, passionate, manipulative, unreliable and wholly engaging. I absolutely devoured this story and know I will be thinking about it for a long time after. I thought the way that the author created the dynamic between John and Ned was excellent and I particularly liked the way that the abolitionist history was also woven into this as well creating a complex and layered individual out of an otherwise unknown name in the documentation. Sally was an absolute force in this narrative, I loved the scenes in which she played a part. persecutions, Radical Love is a powerful story of desire flourishing amid danger" The Sunday Times, Best Historical Fiction of 2023 (June) I loved how it was based on historical fact and actually quite informative on the history of these times. It was an interesting perspective of court, the politics, shenanigans and all that goes on within the highest of circles. John also falls in love and the story is very sweet and romantic before the it turns cruel and dark. There are so many confessions and revelations around 75% through the ending that I won’t share here, but the book is a wild ride. If you enjoyed The Dangerous Kingdom of Love, you will like this book too.Welcome to England, 1809. London is a violent, intolerant city, exhausted by years of war, beset by soaring prices and political tensions. By day, John Church preaches on the radical possibilities of love to a multicultural, working-class congregation in Southwark. But by night, he crosses the river to the secret and glamorous world of a gay molly house on Vere Street, where ordinary men reinvent themselves as funny, flirtatious drag queens and rent boys cavort with labourers and princes alike. There, Church becomes the first minister to offer marriages between men, at enormous risk. Based on real people and real events we’re guided through the story but a completely unreliable narrator. John is a liar, he omits things, forgets to tell you stuff then ‘remembers’ later in the story. But I liked him. I felt sad for him, he falls in love and it consumes him. He makes bad decisions but when we learn about his childhood we can see why he is so flawed. What I wasn’t expecting was the language! Wow there was a lot of swearing in this and hugely crude and foul mouthed characters, throwing F bombs and C words left right and centre. If this bothers you then maybe this isn’t your book, but if you don’t mind it and can see past it into the story, you’ll be grand. This also isn’t a book where you warm and grow to love the characters involved I found, at least I didn’t anyway but the story was interesting. I won't go into too much plot detail other than what I've already outlined, because, frankly, I don't think it matters that much (spicy as it is). Sure, there's a bunch of scheming and murder and betrayal and all kinds of fun things - I've seen people compare this novel to The Great (which I've sadly not seen), and it reminded me a lot of Yorgos Lanthimos' The Favourite. But either way, what truly makes this book stand out isn't what's going on, but how it's told. For one thing (as the comparison to The Favourite indicates), TDKOL is really modern in its approach. It's sort of...deliberately ahistorical, not with regard to what it's depicting (I genuinely don't know or care how many of these things actually transpired), but with its sensibility. There's the hillarious Dramatis Personae in the beginning, there's the modernized and foul language, Bacon's asides to the readers...but more than anything else, for me, it is the way TDKOL handles identity and power. tensions. By day, John Church preaches on the radical possibilities of love to a multicultural, working-class congregation in Southwark. But by night, he crosses the river to the secret and glamorous