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A review by nickfourtimes
Pure Steele by K Belair, Ariadne MacGillivray
5.0
1) "'I completed my studies and we all parted ways. I sent and received dozens of letters to my distant friends, saw and enjoyed the company of those who were near, and all the time I made it appear as though I flourished, when all the time I withered in a life swiftly crumbling away.
As for my father, I did not hear from him again until I had already met and fallen in love with James. A world away.
And so here I am again. In Africa, realising with a certain melancholy that I do not feel at-ease, the way I believed I would when I made my return. I thought it would all come back to me, that the skills of the Society would carry me through, but it feels now as though everything I had thought I learned was useless and everything I thought I knew was false. Somehow I am grown and yet feel smaller still, alone and afraid.
How much of my strength was truly his?'"
2) "'Steele, a moment. All this time, I've been writing a story. Primarily, it's been about you and, more broadly, it's been about all of us. Like every good story, there are threads beginning to develop, elements of the narrative that are evolving and changing with time. There is a very strong plot to our particular story, and a number of smaller, secondary plots. Now, I understand that you're rather accustomed to being the protagonist and I'll be the first to admit that I would have put you in that position. You seem a natural fit. But I think what we are learning here tonight and the reason it is quite jarring to the both of us, is that we might have slipped out of the main story.'
Now it was coming together in my mind and I could scarcely help myself.
'Think about it, Steele. From the moment she opened her mouth, that situation and that responsibility was within Eleanor's control. Not because it happened that way accidentally, but because she wanted it that way. She had charge of everything; even Van der Hoven knew it, only he was too proud to admit it in front of his men. She took the butt of a pistol to the cheek and never flinched. She saved our lives because she dared to do something I would never even have devised! That woman, Steele, could be our hero! 'The Unlikely Adventures of Daring Lady Adventurer and Botanist Eleanor Pryce in Darkest Africa featuring the brilliant Eleanor Pryce'. You know, her star is rising and you're very lucky she loves you.'
He paused for some time and then nodded slowly. 'The luckiest man in the world.'
'So make her proud, Steele.' I set my pen down. 'And tell me how we're getting out of here.'
'I'll think of something.'"
As for my father, I did not hear from him again until I had already met and fallen in love with James. A world away.
And so here I am again. In Africa, realising with a certain melancholy that I do not feel at-ease, the way I believed I would when I made my return. I thought it would all come back to me, that the skills of the Society would carry me through, but it feels now as though everything I had thought I learned was useless and everything I thought I knew was false. Somehow I am grown and yet feel smaller still, alone and afraid.
How much of my strength was truly his?'"
2) "'Steele, a moment. All this time, I've been writing a story. Primarily, it's been about you and, more broadly, it's been about all of us. Like every good story, there are threads beginning to develop, elements of the narrative that are evolving and changing with time. There is a very strong plot to our particular story, and a number of smaller, secondary plots. Now, I understand that you're rather accustomed to being the protagonist and I'll be the first to admit that I would have put you in that position. You seem a natural fit. But I think what we are learning here tonight and the reason it is quite jarring to the both of us, is that we might have slipped out of the main story.'
Now it was coming together in my mind and I could scarcely help myself.
'Think about it, Steele. From the moment she opened her mouth, that situation and that responsibility was within Eleanor's control. Not because it happened that way accidentally, but because she wanted it that way. She had charge of everything; even Van der Hoven knew it, only he was too proud to admit it in front of his men. She took the butt of a pistol to the cheek and never flinched. She saved our lives because she dared to do something I would never even have devised! That woman, Steele, could be our hero! 'The Unlikely Adventures of Daring Lady Adventurer and Botanist Eleanor Pryce in Darkest Africa featuring the brilliant Eleanor Pryce'. You know, her star is rising and you're very lucky she loves you.'
He paused for some time and then nodded slowly. 'The luckiest man in the world.'
'So make her proud, Steele.' I set my pen down. 'And tell me how we're getting out of here.'
'I'll think of something.'"