| Title: |
White Rose of Night |
 |
| Author: |
Mel Keegan |
| Published by: |
Gay Men's Press, 1997 |
| ISBN: |
0-85449-256-9 [trade paperback, 282 pages] |
In 12th century England, fifteen-year-old
Paul becomes the squire and lover of a Saxon knight, Edward of Aethelstan.
Struggling to survive in the Norman world, Edward embarks with Paul on
Crusade to the Holy Land, where Paul is captured as a slave by a Saracen
captain. The love of the two young men is all that sustains them in their
further adventures, where they eventually join with the Arab leader Saladin
in seeking an honorable end to this horrible war. Mel Keegan's previous
books have offered action-packed gay adventure from future, present and
past. The second historical novel from this popular writer continues his
exploration of male love amid the clash of arms.
As is Mr. Keegan’s usual style, the story focuses
very intently upon a central gay male couple. As I said of Fortunes
of War, I am not as thrilled with the historical genre as I am with
Mr. Keegan's science fiction series (Death's Head), but this book
was entertaining and certainly illustrates how un-Christ-like the Crusades
really were.- Jay Moseley
