A nation almost destroyed by grief, horror and rage. A group of men both feared and hated by those in power. A destiny revealed and a return to civilised values. Sometimes the return from the edge is fraught with danger, yet hope abides.
Size: 91 KB (17,043 words)
Genre: Drama
Sex Contents: No Sex
Tags: Ma/Fa, Romantic, Fiction, Violent
Review by Erik Thread [other reviews by Erik Thread]
Reviewed: - (Review Updated: )
Despair and hopefulness, depression and joy, death and life: those are themes in the wonderfully written romance set slightly into the future, a future that seems more and more possible to those who have seen the horrors inflicted by "advanced" nations in World War II and by their independent colonies in subsequent decades (experienced in real-life or in book and film) -- and who, in that light, read and watch the news and commentary of today. The "Negro Problem" and the "Jewish Problem" and the "Muslim Problem" -- every majority culture seems to find a minority that is a "problem" for them -- comes to a head in the UK, and it rears an ugly head.
Alec has recently retired from the Brigades, a mercenary expeditionary force that uses cruelty and barbarism and skill and courage to defeat the enemies it is tasked to conquer, but he is living with remorse about what the war did to him. In "Return to Sanity" QM tells a love story that might be a prescription for a new life and renewed hope, a chance to put away the war toys and the nightmares, a chance to live.
This is a thought-provoking tale that pricks the conscience because it is a fantasy too close to reality. Can retribution for being wronged go too far? And can we have a return to sanity after so many atrocities on all sides?
This is a wonderfully written story. Very well proofread and edited by an author who writes extremely well in the first place, and who has chosen a strong second reader to support him. My only problem with the plot was the conclusion, which wrapped things up too quickly for the depth found in the narrative.
It will well worth the time you invest in reading it.
Oh, and yes, it is a love story amidst problems and worries and dangers -- not a sex story, but a love story.
