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A review by harrowhcrk
Of Trust & Heart by Charlotte Anne Hamilton
2.0
When her noble family sends Harriet from Scotland to New York, it is with one task: find a husband. But while she finds love, it's not with a suitable man like her family hopes, but with the beautiful Rosalie, a singer at a speakeasy.
There is nothing I love more than a queer romance that ends with actual happiness, and while this is rare enough in contemporary romances, this is even rarer in historical romances. Of Trust & Heart had all the trappings of a story I would absolutely adore: Scotland, speakeasies, 1920s, a lesbian MC, an almost exclusively queer cast of supporting characters, a sweet and happy ending.
Harriet, Rosalie, and Charlie were all such wonderful and endearing characters, who you can't help but root for. Secondary characters like Jeffrey, Henry, and Martha too were all so well-written, and I looked forward to every additional crumb of information I could get on them. The romance between Harriet and Rosalie was fast-paced but sweet; I ached for them through all their difficulties and cheered for all their little victories. The same goes for Charlie and Jeffrey: the pain both so clearly felt hit me just as hard as my joy when they finally managed to make everything work. There wasn't much real conflict between the main couple themselves, which I loved; the main pressure came externally, and Harriet had the support of her family every step of the way,
Both the plot and the setting were wonderful, too. I love a good 1920s story, and I love one that can highlight some of the sexier aesthetics without hiding any of the cruelties of the time period. The author makes it clear exactly how hard the world is for someone who doesn't love in a way that's acceptable to the time period--Harriet thinks on it often, how ridiculous it is that love can be illegal, and how it's both heartening and tragic that those in queer or interracial relationships (or both) have the speakeasy as one place they can be themselves. There are themes of grief and loss, too; all the characters are still affected by the war. In all, I loved how the author made it clear that the 1920s was not at all a perfect time period, without showing all the outright homophobia and racism; the stakes were clear without making the story any less light.
I loved this book..... up until about 92%. And here's where the spoilers come in, so while I'll try to keep it as vague as possible, look away to avoid. One final conflict happens in the last few chapters, and the author sets up such an easy fix for it, wherein everyone could live happily ever after and remain with the person they love.... and then the story decides that, no, incest is actually a better solution. I understand that the two cousins will not ever perform their "marital duties" and in fact will only ever appear as a couple in public, and that both of them have their own life partners, but I can't get past the solution being first cousins getting married. Especially when there was a solution that could have avoided it readily available. It just left me uncomfortable and with a bad taste in my mouth, which is really disappointing since up until this point it was a solid 4 stars.
Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled for allowing me to read and review an ARC of Of Trust & Heart. All opinions are my own.
There is nothing I love more than a queer romance that ends with actual happiness, and while this is rare enough in contemporary romances, this is even rarer in historical romances. Of Trust & Heart had all the trappings of a story I would absolutely adore: Scotland, speakeasies, 1920s, a lesbian MC, an almost exclusively queer cast of supporting characters, a sweet and happy ending.
Harriet, Rosalie, and Charlie were all such wonderful and endearing characters, who you can't help but root for. Secondary characters like Jeffrey, Henry, and Martha too were all so well-written, and I looked forward to every additional crumb of information I could get on them. The romance between Harriet and Rosalie was fast-paced but sweet; I ached for them through all their difficulties and cheered for all their little victories. The same goes for Charlie and Jeffrey: the pain both so clearly felt hit me just as hard as my joy when they finally managed to make everything work. There wasn't much real conflict between the main couple themselves, which I loved; the main pressure came externally, and Harriet had the support of her family every step of the way,
Both the plot and the setting were wonderful, too. I love a good 1920s story, and I love one that can highlight some of the sexier aesthetics without hiding any of the cruelties of the time period. The author makes it clear exactly how hard the world is for someone who doesn't love in a way that's acceptable to the time period--Harriet thinks on it often, how ridiculous it is that love can be illegal, and how it's both heartening and tragic that those in queer or interracial relationships (or both) have the speakeasy as one place they can be themselves. There are themes of grief and loss, too; all the characters are still affected by the war. In all, I loved how the author made it clear that the 1920s was not at all a perfect time period, without showing all the outright homophobia and racism; the stakes were clear without making the story any less light.
I loved this book..... up until about 92%. And here's where the spoilers come in, so while I'll try to keep it as vague as possible, look away to avoid. One final conflict happens in the last few chapters, and the author sets up such an easy fix for it, wherein everyone could live happily ever after and remain with the person they love.... and then the story decides that, no, incest is actually a better solution. I understand that the two cousins will not ever perform their "marital duties" and in fact will only ever appear as a couple in public, and that both of them have their own life partners, but I can't get past the solution being first cousins getting married. Especially when there was a solution that could have avoided it readily available. It just left me uncomfortable and with a bad taste in my mouth, which is really disappointing since up until this point it was a solid 4 stars.
Thank you to NetGalley and Entangled for allowing me to read and review an ARC of Of Trust & Heart. All opinions are my own.