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Penguin (Cornerstone) Radical Love.
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.
Everything changes when Church meets the unworldly and free-thinking Ned, part of a group of African activist abolitionists who attend his chapel. The two bond over their broken childhoods, and Church falls obsessively in love with Ned's tender nature. In a fragile, colourful secret world under threat, Church's love for Ned takes him to the edge of reason . . . and beyond.
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 vulnerable survive in dangerous times.
Everything changes when Church meets the unworldly and free-thinking Ned, part of a group of African activist abolitionists who attend his chapel. The two bond over their broken childhoods, and Church falls obsessively in love with Ned's tender nature. In a fragile, colourful secret world under threat, Church's love for Ned takes him to the edge of reason . . . and beyond.
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 vulnerable survive in dangerous times.
288 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 2023
42 people are currently reading
1540 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 127 reviews
September 28, 2024
Amazing. Blackmore has got to be some sort of genius with historical fiction. He writes in such a clever way with so many twists and turns, always playing with the narrator’s POV while serving up true stories from centuries ago.
He writes in the first person with a narrator that breaks the fourth wall and talks to us, the reader. In this book John Church is the unreliable narrator who tells you lies and withholds facts, and then slowly reveals things that hit you over the head. It’s a scintillating drama and page turner that takes place in 1809-1813 just at the beginning of the Regency. I absolutely loved it.
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.
John also falls in love and the story is very sweet and romantic before 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.
••••••••
He writes in the first person with a narrator that breaks the fourth wall and talks to us, the reader. In this book John Church is the unreliable narrator who tells you lies and withholds facts, and then slowly reveals things that hit you over the head. It’s a scintillating drama and page turner that takes place in 1809-1813 just at the beginning of the Regency. I absolutely loved it.
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.
John also falls in love and the story is very sweet and romantic before 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.
••••••••
December 30, 2023
3.5, rounded down.
boy, am i in two minds about this one!! i really enjoyed Blackmore's previous novel, The Dangerous Kingdom of Love, but i do think that familiarity with that work potentially sours the experience of reading Radical Love.
the thing is, TDKOL is a queer historical novel with a cheeky and engaging, but ultimately deeply unreliable narrator, and it's a story informed by a thoroughly modern sensibility, because the author wants to use these historical personages to ponder the complexities of power, identity and queerness in the 21st century. Radical Love, on the other hand, is.... a queer historical novel with a cheeky and engaging, but ultimately deeply unreliable narrator, and it's a story informed by a thoroughly modern sensibility, because the author wants to use these historical personages to ponder the complexities of power, identity and queerness in the 21st century.
and naturally, i don't think there's anything wrong with an author revisiting certain themes or narrative approaches - i am both a devoted Discworld fan and a romance reader, for heaven's sake - but there does come a point where you kind of tilt your head at the author and think "but didn't you already pull this trick last time?"
and i think the difference is, if you're reading something i'll broadly describe as a Feelgood Genre, then it doesn't matter if it's the first or the tenth time that Sam Vimes saves the day, because every time it happens it feels good, and you are happy to have the author hammer you over the head with the same ideas for the umpteenth time, because you recognize them as *good* idea(l)s. this is only my second ride on the Blackmore merry-go-round but i can confidently say that i would not describe the feelings i had as "good".
which is not to dismiss the book out of hand, simply because it did not elicit pleasant feelings! as the old saying goes, art should disturb the comfortable, and i do share Blackmore's belief that we should never be silent about our history, lest it turn into our future (sadly, it is already the present for so many across the world).
he is *right* to point to the ease with which queer people are vilified and used as scapegoats for all possible economic and social ills, that building community is at once imperative and serves to paint an even bigger target on our foreheads, and how life used to be, and remains, a constant fucking struggle. in the Afterword to the novel, Blackmore states that he wrote this novel in lockdown, because seeing the public outcry for solidarity and support amid the Covid-19 pandemic reminded him how severely such an outcry was lacking during the AIDS crisis. how this terrible ilness was killing queer people in great numbers and no one cared if they lived or died, but they deserve to be remembered. in writing this novel, he brought life back to people whose only traces remain in 200-year-old court documents (Sally Fox you will always be famous!!), and managed to recreate a warm and welcoming space which instantly brought to mind the one depicted in Sosa Villada's wondeful novel that I read earlier this year.
so, my issue isn't with the fact that, similarly to TDKOL, Blackmore is creating a slightly anachronistic story, and keeps hammering you over the head with contemporary queer discourse - i like that!! if Kit Heyam's Before We Were Trans taught me anything, it's that you can't just assume that people across history had the same categories for gender and sexuality as we do, but you also can't assume that theirs was a past of uniformity, straightness and blandness. why shouldn't an author decide to roll around the past a bit and see which situations or scandals strike him as good material for a historical re-imagining?
however, here we reach my point of contention (which was, incidentally, one of my favorite aspects of TDKOL). i don't think it was a bad call on Blackmore's part to write a second book that was thematically very similar to the previous one, but i do think that it was a bad idea to have *the same fucking narrator*. sure, john church and francis bacon aren't the same character - they have different backstories, professions, spheres of influence, etc., but they have a narratorial presence that is almost identical. and at first, i was actually really amused by it? i was like "yass lezgoo, another one of Blackmore's delulu protagonists!! let's see you carelessly destroy lives in 300 pages or less!!"
but then as i kept on reading i got to thinking - what is the point of such a narrator? on a micro-level, he works almost as well as he did in TDKOL: a charming, engaging man who in turns paints himself both as a clever reformer and as a wretched, hunted minority, only for the camera to pan out to reveal he had been a manipulative, controlling, self-deluded weasel this entire time. when we got to this reveal in TDKOL, i was genuinely gobsmacked. i thought that Blackmore did an amazing job, showing how the desire for power and love (and even more importantly, the desire to think of ourselves as *good*) can leave us blind to the havoc we are wrecking in other people's lives. but while reading Radical Love, all i kept thinking was....why? why the same kind of narrator? why the same self-absorption, deceitfulness and cowardice? what is Blackmore trying to *say* about the damage queer people do to each other? john's backstory offered some sound insights about how trauma begets further trauma and leaves people emotionally and mentally scarred to the point where they control and hurt others. but why is this the story he wants to tell, book after book? is this the *only* kind of story there is to tell about queer history?
so, that's my (very confused and muddled) take on it. too much of a retread to feel exciting and fresh, while at the same time kinda bewildering when taken as part of a wider authorial set of ideas.
there was some good stuff there too, to be sure! i wouldn't emphatically cross Blackmore off, but I would be very happy to read something *different* from him in the future.
boy, am i in two minds about this one!! i really enjoyed Blackmore's previous novel, The Dangerous Kingdom of Love, but i do think that familiarity with that work potentially sours the experience of reading Radical Love.
the thing is, TDKOL is a queer historical novel with a cheeky and engaging, but ultimately deeply unreliable narrator, and it's a story informed by a thoroughly modern sensibility, because the author wants to use these historical personages to ponder the complexities of power, identity and queerness in the 21st century. Radical Love, on the other hand, is.... a queer historical novel with a cheeky and engaging, but ultimately deeply unreliable narrator, and it's a story informed by a thoroughly modern sensibility, because the author wants to use these historical personages to ponder the complexities of power, identity and queerness in the 21st century.
and naturally, i don't think there's anything wrong with an author revisiting certain themes or narrative approaches - i am both a devoted Discworld fan and a romance reader, for heaven's sake - but there does come a point where you kind of tilt your head at the author and think "but didn't you already pull this trick last time?"
and i think the difference is, if you're reading something i'll broadly describe as a Feelgood Genre, then it doesn't matter if it's the first or the tenth time that Sam Vimes saves the day, because every time it happens it feels good, and you are happy to have the author hammer you over the head with the same ideas for the umpteenth time, because you recognize them as *good* idea(l)s. this is only my second ride on the Blackmore merry-go-round but i can confidently say that i would not describe the feelings i had as "good".
which is not to dismiss the book out of hand, simply because it did not elicit pleasant feelings! as the old saying goes, art should disturb the comfortable, and i do share Blackmore's belief that we should never be silent about our history, lest it turn into our future (sadly, it is already the present for so many across the world).
he is *right* to point to the ease with which queer people are vilified and used as scapegoats for all possible economic and social ills, that building community is at once imperative and serves to paint an even bigger target on our foreheads, and how life used to be, and remains, a constant fucking struggle. in the Afterword to the novel, Blackmore states that he wrote this novel in lockdown, because seeing the public outcry for solidarity and support amid the Covid-19 pandemic reminded him how severely such an outcry was lacking during the AIDS crisis. how this terrible ilness was killing queer people in great numbers and no one cared if they lived or died, but they deserve to be remembered. in writing this novel, he brought life back to people whose only traces remain in 200-year-old court documents (Sally Fox you will always be famous!!), and managed to recreate a warm and welcoming space which instantly brought to mind the one depicted in Sosa Villada's wondeful novel that I read earlier this year.
so, my issue isn't with the fact that, similarly to TDKOL, Blackmore is creating a slightly anachronistic story, and keeps hammering you over the head with contemporary queer discourse - i like that!! if Kit Heyam's Before We Were Trans taught me anything, it's that you can't just assume that people across history had the same categories for gender and sexuality as we do, but you also can't assume that theirs was a past of uniformity, straightness and blandness. why shouldn't an author decide to roll around the past a bit and see which situations or scandals strike him as good material for a historical re-imagining?
however, here we reach my point of contention (which was, incidentally, one of my favorite aspects of TDKOL). i don't think it was a bad call on Blackmore's part to write a second book that was thematically very similar to the previous one, but i do think that it was a bad idea to have *the same fucking narrator*. sure, john church and francis bacon aren't the same character - they have different backstories, professions, spheres of influence, etc., but they have a narratorial presence that is almost identical. and at first, i was actually really amused by it? i was like "yass lezgoo, another one of Blackmore's delulu protagonists!! let's see you carelessly destroy lives in 300 pages or less!!"
but then as i kept on reading i got to thinking - what is the point of such a narrator? on a micro-level, he works almost as well as he did in TDKOL: a charming, engaging man who in turns paints himself both as a clever reformer and as a wretched, hunted minority, only for the camera to pan out to reveal he had been a manipulative, controlling, self-deluded weasel this entire time. when we got to this reveal in TDKOL, i was genuinely gobsmacked. i thought that Blackmore did an amazing job, showing how the desire for power and love (and even more importantly, the desire to think of ourselves as *good*) can leave us blind to the havoc we are wrecking in other people's lives. but while reading Radical Love, all i kept thinking was....why? why the same kind of narrator? why the same self-absorption, deceitfulness and cowardice? what is Blackmore trying to *say* about the damage queer people do to each other? john's backstory offered some sound insights about how trauma begets further trauma and leaves people emotionally and mentally scarred to the point where they control and hurt others. but why is this the story he wants to tell, book after book? is this the *only* kind of story there is to tell about queer history?
so, that's my (very confused and muddled) take on it. too much of a retread to feel exciting and fresh, while at the same time kinda bewildering when taken as part of a wider authorial set of ideas.
there was some good stuff there too, to be sure! i wouldn't emphatically cross Blackmore off, but I would be very happy to read something *different* from him in the future.
September 28, 2024
to start this off, i js wanna say i was looking for something w a happy (enough) ending when i began this book. after going over it again, i can definitely say was misled. by the warm, intimate hues of the cover & by the vague hea suggestion (they don't even mention the breakup) in the blurb. tbf maybe i've just read way too much historical m/m and expect books w witty, comical narration like this one to have happy endings. the thing is i would've been fine w a dissatisfactory, even sad ending, but no, blackmore had to put in his trademark stab-in-the-gut twist. it left me in shock the last time i read it in the dangerous kingdom of love, heck even the intoxicating mister lavelle. now it's js plain insufferable.
radical love by neil blackmore presents us w blackmore's trademark quirkily, slightly delusional, unreliable white cis male narrators, who always make it out alive on the backs of people hierarchically lower than them. my main problem w this, my main problem this entire book in general, is the fact that blackmore has already done this before. several times in fact. i already have low tolerance for this type of character as is, having to sit through them without my knowledgeable consent was js too much. the thing was after the breakup in the middle of the novel (which was alr disappointment bc the author hyped them upppp and i bought into it) i sorta expected the plot to ride itself out and end on a so so run-out-of-steam vaguely hopeful note, if that makes any sense.
in general, i don't think i get the concept of an unreliable narrator. like the prospect of the person of the person telling the story twisting the "truth" isn't all that foreign and shocking to me, and when authors employ it it lacks oomph, cheapening and trivializing the narrative. i have yet to read a book w an "unreliable narrator" that wasn't done in a cartoonishly teenage-rebel-idgaf way.
most of our narrator john's inconsistencies the author weaves into the plot before the Big, Final, Stab, as i shall be referring to it, i treated w amusement and even sympathy in me. i'm not sure the author was trying to do this, but his anger issues & manipulative tendencies are somewhat justified by the intense trauma he went through as a child. thinking about it now, it's lowk infuriating how he put so much care and effort into his relationships w people who never returned one-quarter of that intense, sensitive care back. tldr; i was not taking this white liberal and his simplistic, slightly flimsy, WASP takes on revolution particularly seriously, but i was rooting for him a lil bit. i was very much ready for this to wrap up on an dissatisfactory go-figure note, until said Final Big Fucking Stab.
i think my main issue w the ending was the fact that i expected the novel to end w john a decent character and placing that twist right at the very end... waiting until the very last moment to stab us... i js couldn't. the writing was as engaging and as witty as usual. honestly i could very much have done without the last five hundred words thank you very much. if you have any queer book recs w happily (enough) ever afters, preferably w poc (heavy on this) and/or trans main characters, now's the time to give them
radical love by neil blackmore presents us w blackmore's trademark quirkily, slightly delusional, unreliable white cis male narrators, who always make it out alive on the backs of people hierarchically lower than them. my main problem w this, my main problem this entire book in general, is the fact that blackmore has already done this before. several times in fact. i already have low tolerance for this type of character as is, having to sit through them without my knowledgeable consent was js too much. the thing was after the breakup in the middle of the novel (which was alr disappointment bc the author hyped them upppp and i bought into it) i sorta expected the plot to ride itself out and end on a so so run-out-of-steam vaguely hopeful note, if that makes any sense.
in general, i don't think i get the concept of an unreliable narrator. like the prospect of the person of the person telling the story twisting the "truth" isn't all that foreign and shocking to me, and when authors employ it it lacks oomph, cheapening and trivializing the narrative. i have yet to read a book w an "unreliable narrator" that wasn't done in a cartoonishly teenage-rebel-idgaf way.
most of our narrator john's inconsistencies the author weaves into the plot before the Big, Final, Stab, as i shall be referring to it, i treated w amusement and even sympathy in me. i'm not sure the author was trying to do this, but his anger issues & manipulative tendencies are somewhat justified by the intense trauma he went through as a child. thinking about it now, it's lowk infuriating how he put so much care and effort into his relationships w people who never returned one-quarter of that intense, sensitive care back. tldr; i was not taking this white liberal and his simplistic, slightly flimsy, WASP takes on revolution particularly seriously, but i was rooting for him a lil bit. i was very much ready for this to wrap up on an dissatisfactory go-figure note, until said Final Big Fucking Stab.
i think my main issue w the ending was the fact that i expected the novel to end w john a decent character and placing that twist right at the very end... waiting until the very last moment to stab us... i js couldn't. the writing was as engaging and as witty as usual. honestly i could very much have done without the last five hundred words thank you very much. if you have any queer book recs w happily (enough) ever afters, preferably w poc (heavy on this) and/or trans main characters, now's the time to give them
September 19, 2023
Radical Love is "based" on a true story, the life of the Reverend John Church (1782?-1835?) and his involvement in the Vere Street Coterie at The White Swan, a molly-house in London. " The up[p]er part of the house was appropriated to youths who were constantly in waiting for casual customers; who practised all the allurements that are found in a brothel." (The Phoenix of Sodom). Blackmore has carefully researched the gay historical background and does bring it alive in a sympathetic manner. The problem with the novel rests in the characterisation of Church. Without any justification, Blackmore characterises Church's male lover as a runaway African slave and introduces an abolitionist strand unconnected to the real life of Church. The romantic and erotic attraction between the two men side-steps the racial complexity of the times. Also, the prose used to portray Church is far too modern to capture the pompous and laboured person evidenced by his sermons. Radical Love is a likeable read, but it is not a revolutionary novel.
June 19, 2023
I do enjoy Neil Blackmore's writing and this book is no different.
This book is set just pre-regency and into the regency era. It is the story of John Church, a minister who preaches the radical ideas of love and tolerance. It's a fairly short book, so I won't get into too many details, as I would hate to spoil it for anyone. Though, it is based on a real person and the events in the book are historical fact, so if you are aware of this particular person, you will already know the story. I specifically did not read anything about John Church before/while reading this, as I wanted to just know what is happening in this story. But, according to the author, it is quite accurate, in so far as he was able to be.
I will say that there is some excellent critiques that are unfortunately very applicable to today's society, around LGBTQIA+ rights and acceptance. There were also questions about what it means to be radical and who gets to call themselves radical and what actions are considered radical. It's something that I have thought of myself, not necessarily as a radical, but as someone who is very left leaning and active within social justice movements.
I have to say that I absolutely adore how Blackmore writes an unreliable narrator. I love how his narrators break the fourth wall and speak to the reader, confess to the reader, let the reader in on a secret. I don't know that I've really read many other books that do this in quite such a successful way.
This is now the third book I've read by Neil Blackmore and I will definitely be on the lookout for his next novel.
This book is set just pre-regency and into the regency era. It is the story of John Church, a minister who preaches the radical ideas of love and tolerance. It's a fairly short book, so I won't get into too many details, as I would hate to spoil it for anyone. Though, it is based on a real person and the events in the book are historical fact, so if you are aware of this particular person, you will already know the story. I specifically did not read anything about John Church before/while reading this, as I wanted to just know what is happening in this story. But, according to the author, it is quite accurate, in so far as he was able to be.
I will say that there is some excellent critiques that are unfortunately very applicable to today's society, around LGBTQIA+ rights and acceptance. There were also questions about what it means to be radical and who gets to call themselves radical and what actions are considered radical. It's something that I have thought of myself, not necessarily as a radical, but as someone who is very left leaning and active within social justice movements.
I have to say that I absolutely adore how Blackmore writes an unreliable narrator. I love how his narrators break the fourth wall and speak to the reader, confess to the reader, let the reader in on a secret. I don't know that I've really read many other books that do this in quite such a successful way.
This is now the third book I've read by Neil Blackmore and I will definitely be on the lookout for his next novel.
September 15, 2023
John Church preaches tolerance and love in early 19th-century London. An orphan, he has been badly abused and neglected, and his experiences of love always end in betrayal. A gay man, he watches his fellow queer men experience abuse at the hands of the criminal court, including death by hanging. He dreams of a world where it is possible to love freely, and even performs weddings in the eyes of God for gay men. But we witness his life unravel when he falls in love with Ned, a Black man living a precarious life, but trying to pursue justice and decency. Church's infatuation with Ned leads to him making terrible choices. Despite John Church's principles, he is an anti-hero and an unreliable narrator, whose life is poisoned by rage and self-deceit. Radical Love attempts to deal with a range of themes in a nuanced way, but this novel didn't hold together for me, because the characters lacked depth. John Church could be a fascinating character, but Blackmore did not manage to draw him convincingly, and his choices, emotions, and betrayals, came to feel contrived and shallow. Sadly disappointing.
June 29, 2023
Welcome, dearest reader, to London!
The year, 1809.
In a city that is tired and exhausted by many hard years of war and beset by soaring prices which are giving no indication of coming down any time soon, and tension between political parties, minister John Church preaches on the radical possibilities of love to a congregation growing in number who want to believe that perhaps the true salvation of love could be what is needed in this broken world.
At night, John is drawn north of the Thames by the siren call that is the more secretive, alluring, yet dangerous world of a molly house atop the White Swan on Vere Street, where those seemingly ordinary men can reinvent themselves, beguiling those around them as they step into the shoes of the most outrageous queens, and lads on the flirt with labourers and princes alike.
There, knowing what risks are involved, John soon finds himself performing marriage for these men who want nothing more than love and equality.
When John meets the unworldly and free-thinking Ned, one of a group of African abolitionists who attend his chapel, he cannot help but become besotted but in this fragile world, one wrong move can mean more than just the end of John. It could mean the end of everything he holds dear.
But will John realise that yes his intentions are good, he simply cannot expect those who grow close to him to give up everything at the simple promise of his affections, or will his own delusions cast him out?
Unflinching, moving, and beautiful, Radical Love is a sensual and powerful meditation on what it means to truly love, and be loved.
The year, 1809.
In a city that is tired and exhausted by many hard years of war and beset by soaring prices which are giving no indication of coming down any time soon, and tension between political parties, minister John Church preaches on the radical possibilities of love to a congregation growing in number who want to believe that perhaps the true salvation of love could be what is needed in this broken world.
At night, John is drawn north of the Thames by the siren call that is the more secretive, alluring, yet dangerous world of a molly house atop the White Swan on Vere Street, where those seemingly ordinary men can reinvent themselves, beguiling those around them as they step into the shoes of the most outrageous queens, and lads on the flirt with labourers and princes alike.
There, knowing what risks are involved, John soon finds himself performing marriage for these men who want nothing more than love and equality.
When John meets the unworldly and free-thinking Ned, one of a group of African abolitionists who attend his chapel, he cannot help but become besotted but in this fragile world, one wrong move can mean more than just the end of John. It could mean the end of everything he holds dear.
But will John realise that yes his intentions are good, he simply cannot expect those who grow close to him to give up everything at the simple promise of his affections, or will his own delusions cast him out?
Unflinching, moving, and beautiful, Radical Love is a sensual and powerful meditation on what it means to truly love, and be loved.
January 6, 2025
We're only six days into 2025, and I can already guarantee that this book will be in my top 10 reads for the year. Outstanding. Based on a true forgotten story and the real lives of queer people in London in the 1800s, this is a powerful exploration of sexuality and gender and shame and prejudice, written in such vivid and lovely prose, in a voice that screams from the page and demands to be heard. It's about the long fight for equality, and a timely reminder of how far we've come but of how far we still need to go. I haven't loved something as much as this in so long. It's beautiful, vulgar, sexy, romantic, funny, heartbreaking, startling, revelatory, educational, and thrilling. It's definitely a book that deserves a second read, with more understanding of the history, to really appreciate all the beautiful sentences and quiet moments of gay love and queer resilience. John and Ned will live in my heart for a long, long time. I'm in awe of what Blackmore has created here, and I'm now desperate for more books just like it. 5 stars.
November 3, 2023
Did I love this? No. Did I like it even? Not really. But it was a credible fictionalization of an actual historical person - an unreliable narrator, whose traumatized backstory and horrific childhood served to create a strong-willed, manipulative adult with not much self-insight and even less remorse. Will I re-read this? Probably not. Do I recommend it? Not sure.
August 14, 2025
Neil Blackmore, you son of a bitch. You’ve done it again.
August 27, 2024
Rating based solely on enjoyment - I do think it's a well crafted and interesting story! John Church is a very exciting and interesting main character and I think Blackmore does a really good job of weaving the story and sprinkling in things that come up later in a way that's not obvious but still satisfying.
April 27, 2023
I received this book from the publishers via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
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.
Set in the early 1800s, our morally grey, unreliable narrator is John Church, a sort of Reverend for a church that doesn't believe in sin or casting judgement, only love and acceptance which is a lovely thing really but the more we get to know about John, the more the reader wonders what kind of man he truly is as he omits truth, and warps things to make them go his own way - not to mention his obsessive need for love but also to control and keep the love of those who try to be close to him in a way that eventually drives everyone else away from him.
One of the things I like about Neil Blackmore's writing is the campiness and the highlighting of queer characters throughout history and how gay, non-binary and trans people have existed in society for a long, long time. I loved the scenes of debauchery and joy at the molly house, and how the girls (aka the Queens) were free to be who they were and love each other, and the marriages of love that took place.
I can't speak for the representation in this book, that of the trans community but also of the Black community we see in the book. We learn a little bit of the experiences of what it must have been like to be Black during this time, when the abolition of slavery was still a very recent thing but that didn't mean the Black community were treated with the respect they deserved. Through Ned, we see what his life was like as a 'thing' or a 'product' before he escaped an unhappy home, and how he struggles to hold down a job as people didn't need a reason to fire a Black person back then. I appreciated all of this in the book, but I can't say if this representation was good or not - I hope it was.
It felt rather poignant and timely to read this book and learn once again about the historical treatment of people in the queer community - how it was almost better to be proclaimed a rapist or a murderer than a sodomiser. The fear people felt in case they were found out but how this fear didn't stop people from being who they were or feeling how they felt. In today's world, transphobia and homophobia seem to be on the rise again and it's sad to see it's history repeating itself but again, all of this hatred isn't going to drown out the love people feel and share for each other.
Neil Blackmore is really good at writing slightly shady characters. Unlike his previous book's anti-hero Mr Lavelle, I didn't find John Church quite as repugnant or disagreeable but because it was obvious in the narration that he wasn't the completely good person he pretended to be, it was hard to like him - and I'm not sure I liked to hate him either. It was a strange one.
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.
Set in the early 1800s, our morally grey, unreliable narrator is John Church, a sort of Reverend for a church that doesn't believe in sin or casting judgement, only love and acceptance which is a lovely thing really but the more we get to know about John, the more the reader wonders what kind of man he truly is as he omits truth, and warps things to make them go his own way - not to mention his obsessive need for love but also to control and keep the love of those who try to be close to him in a way that eventually drives everyone else away from him.
One of the things I like about Neil Blackmore's writing is the campiness and the highlighting of queer characters throughout history and how gay, non-binary and trans people have existed in society for a long, long time. I loved the scenes of debauchery and joy at the molly house, and how the girls (aka the Queens) were free to be who they were and love each other, and the marriages of love that took place.
I can't speak for the representation in this book, that of the trans community but also of the Black community we see in the book. We learn a little bit of the experiences of what it must have been like to be Black during this time, when the abolition of slavery was still a very recent thing but that didn't mean the Black community were treated with the respect they deserved. Through Ned, we see what his life was like as a 'thing' or a 'product' before he escaped an unhappy home, and how he struggles to hold down a job as people didn't need a reason to fire a Black person back then. I appreciated all of this in the book, but I can't say if this representation was good or not - I hope it was.
It felt rather poignant and timely to read this book and learn once again about the historical treatment of people in the queer community - how it was almost better to be proclaimed a rapist or a murderer than a sodomiser. The fear people felt in case they were found out but how this fear didn't stop people from being who they were or feeling how they felt. In today's world, transphobia and homophobia seem to be on the rise again and it's sad to see it's history repeating itself but again, all of this hatred isn't going to drown out the love people feel and share for each other.
Neil Blackmore is really good at writing slightly shady characters. Unlike his previous book's anti-hero Mr Lavelle, I didn't find John Church quite as repugnant or disagreeable but because it was obvious in the narration that he wasn't the completely good person he pretended to be, it was hard to like him - and I'm not sure I liked to hate him either. It was a strange one.
March 24, 2023
So there’s the unreliable narrator, and then there’s John Church. I have many thoughts.
I’m conflicted on how I feel towards the protagonist: he was charming and charismatic, he was manipulative and obsessive, he was humorous and witty, and just when you think you’ve got him figured out he drops another “OH I forgot to mention …” (lies by omission might just be worse than outright lies).
At first, I thought that this was going to be an interesting exploration of the necessity for “radicals” within challenging societal parameters (for legality and morality aren't always congruent) - if social commentary has one fan, it is me, if it has no fans, I am dead. Don’t get me wrong, many important themes were dissected, albeit through the lens of a capricious narrator: sexuality, gender and race relations to name a few.
What it ended up being was a character study of a gay priest in 19th century London, who preaches the “radical” notion that love conquers all by day, and officiates “molly-house” weddings by night, including between cis men and trans women. I thoroughly enjoyed how unwavering in his sexuality and acceptance he was, despite what the religious and historical contexts imposed - in this sense, he certainly was a radical. A childhood and early adolescence void of love and nurturing leads him to chase it obsessively in his adult life, clinging to it oppressively and often with devastating consequences. Despite it all, I found myself rooting for him consistently: charisma wins every time.
((POSSIBLE SPOILER))
My only issue was that the ending felt quite rushed - I would’ve liked a bit more insight into the trial and its aftermath.
All in all, though, a brilliant fictional account of real-life events, I’d highly recommend researching the Vere Street Coterie for a better understanding of the history of gay rights in the UK.
Thank you to NetGalley and Hutchinson Heinemann for the ARC.
I’m conflicted on how I feel towards the protagonist: he was charming and charismatic, he was manipulative and obsessive, he was humorous and witty, and just when you think you’ve got him figured out he drops another “OH I forgot to mention …” (lies by omission might just be worse than outright lies).
At first, I thought that this was going to be an interesting exploration of the necessity for “radicals” within challenging societal parameters (for legality and morality aren't always congruent) - if social commentary has one fan, it is me, if it has no fans, I am dead. Don’t get me wrong, many important themes were dissected, albeit through the lens of a capricious narrator: sexuality, gender and race relations to name a few.
What it ended up being was a character study of a gay priest in 19th century London, who preaches the “radical” notion that love conquers all by day, and officiates “molly-house” weddings by night, including between cis men and trans women. I thoroughly enjoyed how unwavering in his sexuality and acceptance he was, despite what the religious and historical contexts imposed - in this sense, he certainly was a radical. A childhood and early adolescence void of love and nurturing leads him to chase it obsessively in his adult life, clinging to it oppressively and often with devastating consequences. Despite it all, I found myself rooting for him consistently: charisma wins every time.
((POSSIBLE SPOILER))
My only issue was that the ending felt quite rushed - I would’ve liked a bit more insight into the trial and its aftermath.
All in all, though, a brilliant fictional account of real-life events, I’d highly recommend researching the Vere Street Coterie for a better understanding of the history of gay rights in the UK.
Thank you to NetGalley and Hutchinson Heinemann for the ARC.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 15, 2024
Mixed feelings on this one. I think Neil Blackmore has a talent for evoking historical settings in a way which feels present and alive. And this being based on a true documented event, I knew roughly what direction things were moving in, so I was prepared for a lot of grim stuff and executions and the like. But one thing that shakes me to my CORE is an evil narrator!!!!!! I don't want to spoil too much, because I do think this is a worthwhile take on the history of queerness in London, but the slow trickle of information which takes you from seeing the narrator as a bit full of himself but an overall decent guy to thinking Wow This Guy Is Evil. Is both incredibly skilfully done and made me VERY SAD.
While I think on a technical level this is an impressive novel, for most of the second half I found myself dreading picking it up to continue, and I can't say I enjoyed reading it much. The descriptions of the molly house were by far the best bits for me. So twas not for me, but a good read if a deceitful narrator is up your alley.
While I think on a technical level this is an impressive novel, for most of the second half I found myself dreading picking it up to continue, and I can't say I enjoyed reading it much. The descriptions of the molly house were by far the best bits for me. So twas not for me, but a good read if a deceitful narrator is up your alley.
June 8, 2024
Wow, I'm really glad I read this book. I think I was expecting a romance, but it really isn't. It's actually based on true events that happened in the early 1800s. I loved the narrative style of the main character, but I think what I loved the most was learning about a time in queer history that I've never really heard about before. It was fascinating and done in a way that I felt I could really empathise with all the characters. Just wonderful stuff and I can't wait to read more from Mr Blackmore.
June 13, 2023
Jeg er målløs..... Uden tvivl en af de bedste bøger jeg har læst
Please læs den så vi kan snakke om den i flere timer!
Please læs den så vi kan snakke om den i flere timer!
May 16, 2023
LGBTQ people have, very much like Black lives, been omitted from history and it has been fantastic to see an increase in visibility of both in the last few years within fiction. Neil has contributed to those stories in his past works but this title is more hard hitting and powerful.
The characters and narrative for Radical Love are taken from historical record and is a powerful reminder of past injustices, These days queer people who speak out or highlight homophobia are subjected to a verbal pillory via social media, although beatings and even murder are on the rise, but the public and media hysteria against gay people in the early 17c was horrific, as described here. Seen as subhuman sinners with no rights whatsoever, anyone accused of sodomy, whether true or not, was subjected to prison, persecution by a frenzied mob and even hanging.
John Church is an unreliable narrator. He omits truths - because he wants the reader to like him and understand his actions and also because he doesn’t want to face them himself. He is a complicated and conflicted character. We know from history what people will do to survive, even if that means trashing your tenets.
There are some stand out passages. In one John sees a future where men can walk hand in hand but that freedom is granted by people who feel that they should be grateful for this permission. The author mentions in his afterword that writing during the pandemic, where society is coming together to support everyone, contrasts starkly with the reaction to the AIDS epidemic and to people diagnosed.
A strong historical story that deserves to be highlighted.
The characters and narrative for Radical Love are taken from historical record and is a powerful reminder of past injustices, These days queer people who speak out or highlight homophobia are subjected to a verbal pillory via social media, although beatings and even murder are on the rise, but the public and media hysteria against gay people in the early 17c was horrific, as described here. Seen as subhuman sinners with no rights whatsoever, anyone accused of sodomy, whether true or not, was subjected to prison, persecution by a frenzied mob and even hanging.
John Church is an unreliable narrator. He omits truths - because he wants the reader to like him and understand his actions and also because he doesn’t want to face them himself. He is a complicated and conflicted character. We know from history what people will do to survive, even if that means trashing your tenets.
There are some stand out passages. In one John sees a future where men can walk hand in hand but that freedom is granted by people who feel that they should be grateful for this permission. The author mentions in his afterword that writing during the pandemic, where society is coming together to support everyone, contrasts starkly with the reaction to the AIDS epidemic and to people diagnosed.
A strong historical story that deserves to be highlighted.
May 19, 2024
'At some point, John, you will have to accept that people are exactly what their actions imply, not what you want their actions to mean.'
John Church is the greatest unreliable narrator I've ever come across. The way this book unfurls is exceptional, the way it builds tension, pulls on heartstrings and devastates needs to be studied!
A brilliant investigation into narrative, who tells stories and what they choose to highlight. Everyone in this book is an accessory and it's presented in such a nuanced way that you buy into John's imagination of the world. His flippancy with their lives is callous and brutal, and you don't realise your own complicity in their disposal.
John Church is the greatest unreliable narrator I've ever come across. The way this book unfurls is exceptional, the way it builds tension, pulls on heartstrings and devastates needs to be studied!
A brilliant investigation into narrative, who tells stories and what they choose to highlight. Everyone in this book is an accessory and it's presented in such a nuanced way that you buy into John's imagination of the world. His flippancy with their lives is callous and brutal, and you don't realise your own complicity in their disposal.
April 26, 2023
*3.65*
TW: homophobia, racism, rape, child abusers, violence, transphobia, death penalty, slavery and more.
“I was born to be nothing, but I have turned myself into something”
I want to start this off by saying thank you so much to the publisher for sending me an early copy of this book/ much love🖤
I feel SO conflicted about this book, but I think it’s because I went into it with the wrong expectations. I thought this was a book about romantic gay love throughout history, the difficulties of navigating in a world that wants to kill you, a book about community and find safe spaces to hide away from the world together. and in a way, it was. but the majority of this book was not like that.
we follow John Church, an orphan with a dark past preaching about how radical love of total acceptance is the only way for humanity to survive. I loved the idea of a man of god preaching these beliefs, but for a man who is paid and admired to share his thoughts- he’s very uneducated. throughout the entirety of this book Church reveals that he is under read, under educated and actually has very little understanding of radicalism (weird considering he claims and preaches about being a radical.) church meets Ned, an African man who escaped slavery and is attempting to live a normal free life whilst battling the traumas of his past. church and Ned begin a romantic relationship, very much like a flame. It ignites fast but burns out faster.
their relationship though? not the sweet gay romance I expected it to be. church is a very manipulative and controlling individual, who constantly pushes neds boundaries and fails to consider the dangers of not only being gay but also a person of colour. Ned specifically states he does not wish to have sex, so church puts him in a situation where he knows he will give in. Ned states he does not wish to go to the molly house, so church leads him there under false pretences and pressure him into going inside. Ned breaks up with church, so church begins to stalk him, waiting on his street for days just to get a glimpse of him, sending him countless amount of letters that change from romantic declarations of love to violent rages centred around betrayal.
church is an emotional, manipulative yet inspiring and conflicting man. he is such a complex and well written character that whenever I think about unreliable narrators, he will inevitably come to mind. I started off loving him, and as the book developed those positive feelings became eerie and uncomfortable.
I think I was expecting this book to be an accurate retelling of gay history (which it was) but told through a romantic story of overcoming and community (which it wasn’t) that’s not to say this is bad, I loved the direction this book took and thought it was such an important piece of history to tell. however, my major flaw is this: we get to page 200 as the convictions regarding sodomy arise, yet by page 275 all trials have been dealt with, sentences have been given and there’s very little detail of much else. Church himself went to prison and you don’t even discover that in the book (only in the afterword.) In my opinion, if I’m going to read a book about gay history told from such a dark yet realistic position, I would’ve likes more information regarding the life of those who were prosecuted after the fact.
however, this was a beautiful, intelligent book of such importance and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
TW: homophobia, racism, rape, child abusers, violence, transphobia, death penalty, slavery and more.
“I was born to be nothing, but I have turned myself into something”
I want to start this off by saying thank you so much to the publisher for sending me an early copy of this book/ much love🖤
I feel SO conflicted about this book, but I think it’s because I went into it with the wrong expectations. I thought this was a book about romantic gay love throughout history, the difficulties of navigating in a world that wants to kill you, a book about community and find safe spaces to hide away from the world together. and in a way, it was. but the majority of this book was not like that.
we follow John Church, an orphan with a dark past preaching about how radical love of total acceptance is the only way for humanity to survive. I loved the idea of a man of god preaching these beliefs, but for a man who is paid and admired to share his thoughts- he’s very uneducated. throughout the entirety of this book Church reveals that he is under read, under educated and actually has very little understanding of radicalism (weird considering he claims and preaches about being a radical.) church meets Ned, an African man who escaped slavery and is attempting to live a normal free life whilst battling the traumas of his past. church and Ned begin a romantic relationship, very much like a flame. It ignites fast but burns out faster.
their relationship though? not the sweet gay romance I expected it to be. church is a very manipulative and controlling individual, who constantly pushes neds boundaries and fails to consider the dangers of not only being gay but also a person of colour. Ned specifically states he does not wish to have sex, so church puts him in a situation where he knows he will give in. Ned states he does not wish to go to the molly house, so church leads him there under false pretences and pressure him into going inside. Ned breaks up with church, so church begins to stalk him, waiting on his street for days just to get a glimpse of him, sending him countless amount of letters that change from romantic declarations of love to violent rages centred around betrayal.
church is an emotional, manipulative yet inspiring and conflicting man. he is such a complex and well written character that whenever I think about unreliable narrators, he will inevitably come to mind. I started off loving him, and as the book developed those positive feelings became eerie and uncomfortable.
I think I was expecting this book to be an accurate retelling of gay history (which it was) but told through a romantic story of overcoming and community (which it wasn’t) that’s not to say this is bad, I loved the direction this book took and thought it was such an important piece of history to tell. however, my major flaw is this: we get to page 200 as the convictions regarding sodomy arise, yet by page 275 all trials have been dealt with, sentences have been given and there’s very little detail of much else. Church himself went to prison and you don’t even discover that in the book (only in the afterword.) In my opinion, if I’m going to read a book about gay history told from such a dark yet realistic position, I would’ve likes more information regarding the life of those who were prosecuted after the fact.
however, this was a beautiful, intelligent book of such importance and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 5, 2024
💫 Powiedzieć, że „Radical Love” jest wybitne, to jak nie powiedzieć nic. Czuję się, jakbym dostał z liścia. Neil Blackmore poruszył moje najwrażliwsze struny, serwując powieść historyczną o miłości, pożądaniu i obsesji z autentycznymi postaciami, na tle XIX-wiecznej Anglii ze zwisającym nad nią widmem wojen i przemian społecznych. To czasy, w których bycie gejem określane było mianem sodomy, a groziło w najlepszym wypadku więzieniem. W najgorszym karą publicznej egzekucji. Neil w swojej powieści wykazał się ogromną dokładnością i rzetelnością w kontekście świata przedstawionego, przybliżając czytelnikom historię Vere Street oraz znajdujących się na niej Molly Houses (miejsc spotkań osób queerowych). W książce nie brakuje brutalnych opisów poniżania, egzekucji czy przemocy - miejcie to na uwadze, proszę.
💭„I had shown him that I loved him so much that I would destroy the world for him”.
💫 Pierwszy raz miałem do czynienia z takim bohaterem, jakim jest John Church. Burzenie czwartej ściany to jedno, ale sposób, w jaki kreuje swoją postać i konfrontacja jego wielkich idei o miłości, wolności i tolerancji z rzeczywistością wprawiła mnie w osłupienie. John nie jest taki, za jakiego się podaje. Cechuje go hipokryzja i kompletne delulu. Do tej pory nie jestem pewien, czy kierował się w życiu miłością, czy obsesją. Czy sam nie podjąłbym takich decyzji, jakie podjął on. Czy nie zostałem przypadkiem zmanipulowany i rozkochany w nim, by nie dostrzegać jego przewinień.
💫 Co znajdziecie w „Radical Love”:
-historię o strachu i ukrywaniu się gejów w Londynie 200 lat temu
-autentyczne postaci, wydarzenia i miejsca
-szarego moralnie głównego bohatera
-wrażliwą treść [TW: gw@łt, kary śm!erci, h0mof0bia, r@sizm, przem0c…]
-cudowny język, przepiękne idee, mnóstwo zapadających w pamięć fragmentów
💫 Ode mnie pięć gwiazdek, chociaż gwiazdki nie są w stanie oddać mojego zachwytu nad tą książką. Część mojego serca już na zawsze pozostanie pomiędzy jej stronami.
⭐️6/5
💭„I had shown him that I loved him so much that I would destroy the world for him”.
💫 Pierwszy raz miałem do czynienia z takim bohaterem, jakim jest John Church. Burzenie czwartej ściany to jedno, ale sposób, w jaki kreuje swoją postać i konfrontacja jego wielkich idei o miłości, wolności i tolerancji z rzeczywistością wprawiła mnie w osłupienie. John nie jest taki, za jakiego się podaje. Cechuje go hipokryzja i kompletne delulu. Do tej pory nie jestem pewien, czy kierował się w życiu miłością, czy obsesją. Czy sam nie podjąłbym takich decyzji, jakie podjął on. Czy nie zostałem przypadkiem zmanipulowany i rozkochany w nim, by nie dostrzegać jego przewinień.
💫 Co znajdziecie w „Radical Love”:
-historię o strachu i ukrywaniu się gejów w Londynie 200 lat temu
-autentyczne postaci, wydarzenia i miejsca
-szarego moralnie głównego bohatera
-wrażliwą treść [TW: gw@łt, kary śm!erci, h0mof0bia, r@sizm, przem0c…]
-cudowny język, przepiękne idee, mnóstwo zapadających w pamięć fragmentów
💫 Ode mnie pięć gwiazdek, chociaż gwiazdki nie są w stanie oddać mojego zachwytu nad tą książką. Część mojego serca już na zawsze pozostanie pomiędzy jej stronami.
⭐️6/5
September 8, 2023
"'Whom did I deceive?' I cried.
'Yourself, John. Yourself.' I was, for the last time, amazed. 'You killed your friends, John. You killed your friends and yet you still pretend that you are a good man, still you pretend you act out of goodness, out of... out of love.'"
Moją ocenę trochę miesza fakt, że Radical Love jest fikcją historyczną, opowiadającą historię prawdziwego Johna Churcha. Bo ogromnie mi się podoba kreacja głównego bohatera, w dodatku z niezwykłym piórem Blackmore'a (z któreym spotykam się pierwszy raz) przez całą te historię się wręcz płynie. Pytanie jednak na ile za tę kreację odpowiada autor, a na ile historia. Bo John Church ostatecznie nie okazuje się bohaterem pozytywnym, panują nad nim pasja, obsesja i hipokryzja, opętany swoimi potrzebami i poglądami, z klapkami na oczach wędruje przez Londyn, forsując soboe drogę łokciami.
Trochę żałowałam, że wątek ,,romansu" występuje tu w takiej formie, w jakiej występuje, i to pierwszy raz nie dlatego, że był ,,romansem". Kiedy pojawia sie na scenie, na dalszy plan schodzi cała fabuła drag queens oraz życia dość dużej społeczności queerowej, która, nie ukrywam, zainteresowała mnie najbardziej. Było zabawnie, było wręcz wyzywająco, była świetna zabawa. Ale ostatecznie to studium jednego bohatera historii, któremh Blackmore oddaje mikrofon narracji pierwszoosobowej, przez co trudno było uniknąć zmiany podmiotu skupienia.
'Yourself, John. Yourself.' I was, for the last time, amazed. 'You killed your friends, John. You killed your friends and yet you still pretend that you are a good man, still you pretend you act out of goodness, out of... out of love.'"
Moją ocenę trochę miesza fakt, że Radical Love jest fikcją historyczną, opowiadającą historię prawdziwego Johna Churcha. Bo ogromnie mi się podoba kreacja głównego bohatera, w dodatku z niezwykłym piórem Blackmore'a (z któreym spotykam się pierwszy raz) przez całą te historię się wręcz płynie. Pytanie jednak na ile za tę kreację odpowiada autor, a na ile historia. Bo John Church ostatecznie nie okazuje się bohaterem pozytywnym, panują nad nim pasja, obsesja i hipokryzja, opętany swoimi potrzebami i poglądami, z klapkami na oczach wędruje przez Londyn, forsując soboe drogę łokciami.
Trochę żałowałam, że wątek ,,romansu" występuje tu w takiej formie, w jakiej występuje, i to pierwszy raz nie dlatego, że był ,,romansem". Kiedy pojawia sie na scenie, na dalszy plan schodzi cała fabuła drag queens oraz życia dość dużej społeczności queerowej, która, nie ukrywam, zainteresowała mnie najbardziej. Było zabawnie, było wręcz wyzywająco, była świetna zabawa. Ale ostatecznie to studium jednego bohatera historii, któremh Blackmore oddaje mikrofon narracji pierwszoosobowej, przez co trudno było uniknąć zmiany podmiotu skupienia.
June 1, 2023
I read Blackmore’s previous novel The Dangerous Kingdom of Love back in 2021 so when I saw this review copy on NetGalley I was very exciting to see what new story was waiting for me.
Here Blackmore takes us to the early 1800s London and the life of John Church. An orphan, a preacher and a sodomite.
By day, Church preaches the transformative effect of radical love to all those who attend his service, but at night he crosses over the river to attend mollie houses on Vere street where drag queens sit alongside serving boys and aristocracy in a unique club where everyone is equalled. It is here that Church begins performing 'marriages' between men. First as a bit of a frivolous attraction requested by Mrs Cook who runs the mollie house and then for a more serious reason... for why shouldn't men be allowed to marry other men. Is this not the perfect example of the radical love he preaches in his sermons?
Into this story arrives Ned, part of a group of African activist abolitionists who attends his chapel and as their relationship develops Church falls obsessively in love with Ned and the worlds they might inhabit together.
This is a stunning historical fiction based on real people and legal cases from the time. The book kept me engaged the whole way through. I love the way Blackmore's uses first person narrative and speaks directly to the reader so we feel very much brought into the fold of John Churches' life while at the same time still managing to keep the story alive and interesting. But Blackmore doesn't shy away from the harder and crueller aspects of Churches’ life and the times he and the other characters are living through while also managing to connect it to present day attitudes and prejudices.
This is a masterclass in storytelling and how to make history relevant while not shying away from the actions of the past and their ongoing affects on our modern society.
Thank you so much to Hutch Heinemann and to NetGalley for sending me this ARC for an honest review.
Here Blackmore takes us to the early 1800s London and the life of John Church. An orphan, a preacher and a sodomite.
By day, Church preaches the transformative effect of radical love to all those who attend his service, but at night he crosses over the river to attend mollie houses on Vere street where drag queens sit alongside serving boys and aristocracy in a unique club where everyone is equalled. It is here that Church begins performing 'marriages' between men. First as a bit of a frivolous attraction requested by Mrs Cook who runs the mollie house and then for a more serious reason... for why shouldn't men be allowed to marry other men. Is this not the perfect example of the radical love he preaches in his sermons?
Into this story arrives Ned, part of a group of African activist abolitionists who attends his chapel and as their relationship develops Church falls obsessively in love with Ned and the worlds they might inhabit together.
This is a stunning historical fiction based on real people and legal cases from the time. The book kept me engaged the whole way through. I love the way Blackmore's uses first person narrative and speaks directly to the reader so we feel very much brought into the fold of John Churches' life while at the same time still managing to keep the story alive and interesting. But Blackmore doesn't shy away from the harder and crueller aspects of Churches’ life and the times he and the other characters are living through while also managing to connect it to present day attitudes and prejudices.
This is a masterclass in storytelling and how to make history relevant while not shying away from the actions of the past and their ongoing affects on our modern society.
Thank you so much to Hutch Heinemann and to NetGalley for sending me this ARC for an honest review.
June 18, 2023
This book was quite hard to read at times and whilst I don’t think it’s perfect, I do wholeheartedly recommend picking it up. We follow the first person POV of a so-called (he was given this name) John Church who is the reverend of a church in 1800s Southwark, south of the city of London, where he preaches tolerance and the inevitable revolution of humanity’s innate love despite the plethora of hatred surrounding him. This ‘radical’ view of society, politics and religion is one part of the book but it’s primarily about the queer experience of the time with John frequenting ‘Molly houses’ and performing weddings there with a whole host of fabulous characters who expressed their campy queerness with such beautiful honesty. There’s also a love that brews with a younger man Ned who left his life of slavery in Yorkshire on the path to discovering what life has in store for him and via his character we get another view of being queer and black during the timeframe. There is more to the story including Church’s tumultuous past, but as a whole I feel it’s exploration of queerness in the nineteenth century and character studies are what Blackmore does best - I’ve yet to read any of his prior historical novels but am certainly intrigued after finishing this one.
There are some plot points and things characters do or say that weren’t really to my liking BUT (and it’s a big one) the story of John Church and the Vere Street Scandal was a true one with only a small amount of characters being invented so can I really blame Blackmore for this? Not necessarily. I think his extrapolation of Church, the others and the story was done well and was an entertaining, if heartbreaking, read. I also loved his writing style with a vividness and graphic element at times that truly shows the brutality of the time - there are many TW topics with homophobia, hate crime and violence being most prevalent alongside others. As someone that doesn’t like smut scenes, I found these parts rather tastefully done which I appreciated - the language and crudeness from some of the ‘girls’ (drag queens/trans women/gender non-confirming people in the ‘Molly house’) was a little much but they were having fun, finally being their true selves in a space and time that never allowed for it so I can’t blame them, if anything this debauchery and outward campiness was something I thoroughly enjoyed. And finally, I found the way Church ‘broke the fourth wall’ in some essence was really fascinating, he talks to the reader as he’s telling us the story and unfurls truths (or lack there of) and speaks very candidly. This lends to Church being a rather unreliable narrator with us not always being able to trust what he’s saying and doing, and again I loved this finding it a very entertaining reading experience.
Heartbreaking and brutally honest, I would really recommend this book. I wouldn’t say it’s a new favourite but overall was really great. It’s certainly a difficult read at times but very insightful to the queer experience of people in the 1800s.
There are some plot points and things characters do or say that weren’t really to my liking BUT (and it’s a big one) the story of John Church and the Vere Street Scandal was a true one with only a small amount of characters being invented so can I really blame Blackmore for this? Not necessarily. I think his extrapolation of Church, the others and the story was done well and was an entertaining, if heartbreaking, read. I also loved his writing style with a vividness and graphic element at times that truly shows the brutality of the time - there are many TW topics with homophobia, hate crime and violence being most prevalent alongside others. As someone that doesn’t like smut scenes, I found these parts rather tastefully done which I appreciated - the language and crudeness from some of the ‘girls’ (drag queens/trans women/gender non-confirming people in the ‘Molly house’) was a little much but they were having fun, finally being their true selves in a space and time that never allowed for it so I can’t blame them, if anything this debauchery and outward campiness was something I thoroughly enjoyed. And finally, I found the way Church ‘broke the fourth wall’ in some essence was really fascinating, he talks to the reader as he’s telling us the story and unfurls truths (or lack there of) and speaks very candidly. This lends to Church being a rather unreliable narrator with us not always being able to trust what he’s saying and doing, and again I loved this finding it a very entertaining reading experience.
Heartbreaking and brutally honest, I would really recommend this book. I wouldn’t say it’s a new favourite but overall was really great. It’s certainly a difficult read at times but very insightful to the queer experience of people in the 1800s.
May 14, 2025
4.5⭐️ read in one sitting (a four hour flight😍) I cried multiple times — a must read
April 2, 2023
I loved this book!!
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.
This is a great historic fiction (based in fact) about the gay community in the early 1800s, the cruelty and persecution they faced.
Blackmore doesn’t pull his punches! This book is brutal, harsh, upsetting and honest. You feel immersed in the surroundings and you feel every stone that is thrown! I loved the scenes in the Molly house, you can see all the characters in your mind and feel the joy they feel at finding somewhere they’re allowed to be themselves.
The writing is beautiful! I found myself taking a deep breathe after some of the profound sentences! Blackmore links the events of that era with what is happening to the LGBTQ+ community now.
A must read!!!
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.
This is a great historic fiction (based in fact) about the gay community in the early 1800s, the cruelty and persecution they faced.
Blackmore doesn’t pull his punches! This book is brutal, harsh, upsetting and honest. You feel immersed in the surroundings and you feel every stone that is thrown! I loved the scenes in the Molly house, you can see all the characters in your mind and feel the joy they feel at finding somewhere they’re allowed to be themselves.
The writing is beautiful! I found myself taking a deep breathe after some of the profound sentences! Blackmore links the events of that era with what is happening to the LGBTQ+ community now.
A must read!!!
June 11, 2024
“Do you think desires disappear just because they are under threat? Are the parks still busy at night?”
“I wouldn't know.”
“Of course they are, Reverend. The parks will be full at night on the Day of Judgement. Our natures do not cease because our enemies seek to destroy us. That is what our enemies never understand. You cannot kill a person's nature, you can only kill the person”
Neil baby you have done it again, and I am once again honoured to be along for the ride. You have become my favourite living author, and your next move is overtaking James Baldwin and becoming my favourite ever.
The fact that this is a true story is astonishing. And the fact that it remains so pertinent is damning. Blackmore both educates on the history of queer people in London and the Vere Street Coterie, while also reflecting on the treatment of gay and trans people during the AIDS crisis and today (as explicitly stated in the afterword). What Blackmore is doing is so important and cannot be understated. He does not romanticise the past, but shines a light on the slight glimpses of romance that queer people managed to snatch in a society intent on destroying them.
The use of narrative voice is expertly done, and at times very funny. I gasped aloud multiple times at the narrator’s bombshells. The way Blackmore plays with the reader’s sympathies and knowledge is genius and makes for a completely engrossing read.
I could go on forever. Neil is great and this book is fantastic and queer people are revolutionary with our very existence. Major props to Neil for his ardent support for trans people that shines throughout this story.
Please please please write a new book soon I need it !!
“I wouldn't know.”
“Of course they are, Reverend. The parks will be full at night on the Day of Judgement. Our natures do not cease because our enemies seek to destroy us. That is what our enemies never understand. You cannot kill a person's nature, you can only kill the person”
Neil baby you have done it again, and I am once again honoured to be along for the ride. You have become my favourite living author, and your next move is overtaking James Baldwin and becoming my favourite ever.
The fact that this is a true story is astonishing. And the fact that it remains so pertinent is damning. Blackmore both educates on the history of queer people in London and the Vere Street Coterie, while also reflecting on the treatment of gay and trans people during the AIDS crisis and today (as explicitly stated in the afterword). What Blackmore is doing is so important and cannot be understated. He does not romanticise the past, but shines a light on the slight glimpses of romance that queer people managed to snatch in a society intent on destroying them.
The use of narrative voice is expertly done, and at times very funny. I gasped aloud multiple times at the narrator’s bombshells. The way Blackmore plays with the reader’s sympathies and knowledge is genius and makes for a completely engrossing read.
I could go on forever. Neil is great and this book is fantastic and queer people are revolutionary with our very existence. Major props to Neil for his ardent support for trans people that shines throughout this story.
Please please please write a new book soon I need it !!
December 20, 2024
Exquisite and heartbreaking. This fictionalised account of the real-life minister John Church, who preached in early 1800s London, is a story of how homosexuality was so hated and feared by the population that “sodomites” were seen as the very lowest of the low. Church meets and falls in love with Ned, a black man and member of his congregation, whilst also frequenting a molly house. Molly houses were the underground meeting places for queer people - intensely illegal places, the author fills this one with light, beauty, humour and community connection.
Blackmore has put together an account that gives individual personality to the many queer people named in the eventual downfall of Church. Lifting them from mere anecdotal outings intended to shame into characters that the reader grows to love. Even the narrator of John Church himself is revealed several times to be unreliable. And yet, his passion for his belief of radical love, acceptance and tolerance creates such a vivid portrait.
This incredibly well-researched and beautifully written novel is a treat. Blackmore writes in the afterword:
This novel was written during the Covid pandemic, amid widespread media commentary that society should and had compassionately come together to cope and deal with the crisis. Hearing this over and over again, I could not help but think of the gay men and trans people of my youth, who died in such huge numbers during the AIDS crisis, and the abuse, neglect and hatred they faced from that same society. This book is written in remembrance of them.
Blackmore has put together an account that gives individual personality to the many queer people named in the eventual downfall of Church. Lifting them from mere anecdotal outings intended to shame into characters that the reader grows to love. Even the narrator of John Church himself is revealed several times to be unreliable. And yet, his passion for his belief of radical love, acceptance and tolerance creates such a vivid portrait.
This incredibly well-researched and beautifully written novel is a treat. Blackmore writes in the afterword:
This novel was written during the Covid pandemic, amid widespread media commentary that society should and had compassionately come together to cope and deal with the crisis. Hearing this over and over again, I could not help but think of the gay men and trans people of my youth, who died in such huge numbers during the AIDS crisis, and the abuse, neglect and hatred they faced from that same society. This book is written in remembrance of them.
August 20, 2025
I have strong feelings about this book. Sometimes I loved it, at other times I hated it. I loved the way almost forgotten queer history has been brought to life in this book. I love learning new things in a fun way :) The whole atmosphere of the book was on point. I could feel the love and desire, but also the anxiety and fear. The dangers of being gay when it is illegal and the sense of community between the gays are very well portrayed. The hate towards gays sometimes jumped from the pages. It was painful to read, especially knowing this kind of hate towards queers was (and in some places is) real. Due to the portrayal of hate, the molly house felt even more like a safe space. I loved the scenes in the molly house (shout out to the queens!).
John Church, the main character, is an unreliable narrator. I do like me an unreliable narrator and I think it worked quite well in this story. I adored his speeches about love, but I also enjoyed the hypocritical ways he acted. Sometimes he felt like a deep character, but sometimes he and also Ned felt flat. I don't know why. I was as if I lost the connection with them at some points. Maybe this is due to the lack of any self-insight of the main character, but I am not sure.
Anyway, I would definitly recommend this book!
John Church, the main character, is an unreliable narrator. I do like me an unreliable narrator and I think it worked quite well in this story. I adored his speeches about love, but I also enjoyed the hypocritical ways he acted. Sometimes he felt like a deep character, but sometimes he and also Ned felt flat. I don't know why. I was as if I lost the connection with them at some points. Maybe this is due to the lack of any self-insight of the main character, but I am not sure.
Anyway, I would definitly recommend this book!
April 11, 2023
NO SPOILERS
When I read Neil Blackmore’s previous two books, The Intoxicating Mr Lavelle, and The Dangerous Kingdom of Love my initial reaction to both was “Wow, holy moly!”, or some such mild expletive. (My later reaction, to both, was “Double wow, holy moly!”) Now, having today finished Radical Love my initial reaction is a pause, silence, a stare to middle distance. then came “Blimey!”, although I think it was was the blimey which begins with an F.
Obviously the story and much of the plot are not from Blackmore’s imagination but the fleshing out, the filling in and the glorious asides are. Radical Love is written in the first person, the narrator being Reverend John Church who talks as if he were sitting with me. The asides felt as if he was telling me some extra bits, for my ears only and I remember felling this about the previous two books. Blackmore is an absolute master of this technique and it’s what will make me look for his books always.
The writing brings to life a time of extremes, fear and loathing (not an original phrase from me) and love and joy. It hilights the bigtory, injustice and cruelty of the time which sadly is all too prevalent today.
As I began reading I was hilighting phrases which I wanted to quote because they were pure wisdom but I had to stop as I would have been quoting most of the book. The easiest thing is for you to read it. You should all read it. This is an important book, written with skill, understanding, beauty and wit.
When I read Neil Blackmore’s previous two books, The Intoxicating Mr Lavelle, and The Dangerous Kingdom of Love my initial reaction to both was “Wow, holy moly!”, or some such mild expletive. (My later reaction, to both, was “Double wow, holy moly!”) Now, having today finished Radical Love my initial reaction is a pause, silence, a stare to middle distance. then came “Blimey!”, although I think it was was the blimey which begins with an F.
Obviously the story and much of the plot are not from Blackmore’s imagination but the fleshing out, the filling in and the glorious asides are. Radical Love is written in the first person, the narrator being Reverend John Church who talks as if he were sitting with me. The asides felt as if he was telling me some extra bits, for my ears only and I remember felling this about the previous two books. Blackmore is an absolute master of this technique and it’s what will make me look for his books always.
The writing brings to life a time of extremes, fear and loathing (not an original phrase from me) and love and joy. It hilights the bigtory, injustice and cruelty of the time which sadly is all too prevalent today.
As I began reading I was hilighting phrases which I wanted to quote because they were pure wisdom but I had to stop as I would have been quoting most of the book. The easiest thing is for you to read it. You should all read it. This is an important book, written with skill, understanding, beauty and wit.
November 13, 2024
When I realised about halfway through that I didn’t like the main character I at first thought the book was poorly written, but oh was I wrong! It was literally the whole point of his character; for him not to understand his own wrongdoings and being completely unreliable as a narrator since he wants to present himself as a good person to the reader. Furthermore, this book raised a lot of important questions regarding the history of opressed groups and who writes the history we remember. Summa sumarum: very good book!
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