ALL the hurt/comfort! I practically know this chapter by heart, if that's not a too embarrassing admission, but I reread it a lot as a teenager. Broster really knows what she's about here - the undercurrent of Keith's embarrassment and shame around what he's already said to Guthrie and what he then ends up asking Ewen without meaning it that way - it adds some salt to the sweetness of how he's nursing Ewen. You can see how much she's learned as a writer since The Wounded Name, where the hurt/comfort is turned up several more notches but in a way that leaves a little too much of the author's id on the table, and the problem of honour is a lot more forced. Here Keith's awkwardness and his dilemma feel incredibly real, and it balances out the rest of it well.
I love the ending, too, with Keith riding away and realising how much he hopes someone will be along to rescue Ewen before Guthrie gets to him, though his sense of honour prevents him from arranging the rescue directly. Had Ewen been rescued, I expect Keith would have been suspected anyway.
And I missed last week's discussion, but it has my favourite minor character, Lt Paton, who doesn't like extreme measures and is willing to argue that he couldn't disobey Keith if he gets into trouble - he's a sweetheart.
Totally agree that Broster has learned some things since The Wounded Name! Salt to the sweetness, yes. Keith is not Laurent, the adoring puppy-dog...
And I missed last week's discussion, but it has my favourite minor character, Lt Paton, who doesn't like extreme measures and is willing to argue that he couldn't disobey Keith if he gets into trouble - he's a sweetheart.
Oh, you should check out the fic that hyarrowen recently posted! It has Lieutenant Paton in it. : ) (Also it has spoilers for the end of the book, in case anyone reads this who hasn't finished it.)
I love Lt. Paton's "Well I couldn't disobey a STAFF OFFICER" rules lawyering. Clearly he's delighted to have an excuse to thumb his nose at Guthrie, as who would not be?
Lt Paton was lovely! It was really sweet of him to sacrifice his shirt as a bandage, and it says yet more bad things about Guthrie's character that his junior officers would dislike him.
Oh, that's definitely not an embarrassing admission :D
Yes, the combination of tenderness and tension in this chapter is really well-done, and I agree about the development from The Wounded Name—Broster has learnt how to harness the iddy hurt/comfort to a solid plot and a well-developed emotional background in a way it wasn't there, and it becomes all the more meaningful for the depth of character here.
Had Ewen been rescued, I expect Keith would have been suspected anyway.
Now there's a good canon divergence fic idea! I was struck, reading this chapter again, by how much Keith actually thinks about the possibility of Ewen being rescued and how much he wants that to happen (and how explicitly he's willing to admit that to himself!). Much as I'd enjoy it, I think Keith turning round and deciding to try and rescue Ewen himself is a little outside the bounds of plausibility, but as for what he might do if someone else rescued Ewen... might we even end up with Keith and Lachlan working together???
ETA my agreement to the chorus of yes, Lieutenant Paton is a sweetheart :D
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I love the ending, too, with Keith riding away and realising how much he hopes someone will be along to rescue Ewen before Guthrie gets to him, though his sense of honour prevents him from arranging the rescue directly. Had Ewen been rescued, I expect Keith would have been suspected anyway.
And I missed last week's discussion, but it has my favourite minor character, Lt Paton, who doesn't like extreme measures and is willing to argue that he couldn't disobey Keith if he gets into trouble - he's a sweetheart.
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And I missed last week's discussion, but it has my favourite minor character, Lt Paton, who doesn't like extreme measures and is willing to argue that he couldn't disobey Keith if he gets into trouble - he's a sweetheart.
Oh, you should check out the fic that
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Yes, the combination of tenderness and tension in this chapter is really well-done, and I agree about the development from The Wounded Name—Broster has learnt how to harness the iddy hurt/comfort to a solid plot and a well-developed emotional background in a way it wasn't there, and it becomes all the more meaningful for the depth of character here.
Had Ewen been rescued, I expect Keith would have been suspected anyway.
Now there's a good canon divergence fic idea! I was struck, reading this chapter again, by how much Keith actually thinks about the possibility of Ewen being rescued and how much he wants that to happen (and how explicitly he's willing to admit that to himself!). Much as I'd enjoy it, I think Keith turning round and deciding to try and rescue Ewen himself is a little outside the bounds of plausibility, but as for what he might do if someone else rescued Ewen... might we even end up with Keith and Lachlan working together???
ETA my agreement to the chorus of yes, Lieutenant Paton is a sweetheart :D