Love and Devotion (by Erica James)

(Amazon UK link)

I decided a few months ago to reread the novels by Erica James which I have acquired over the years. I started with some of her earliest published, and have - roughly - been reading in publication order, although I missed out a couple which I had reread just a few years ago. I have just finished reading ‘Love and Devotion’ which I had not read since 2006.

With this 18-year gap I had entirely forgotten both the plot and the characters. When I started, it felt oddly reminiscent of the novel ‘Stepping Up’ which I read for the first time a couple of weeks ago. A woman with two children asks her sister to be their guardian, should anything happen to her and her husband. The sister agrees, not imagining that she would ever need to take on this role… then tragedy happens.

However although these two novels have a similar starting point, they are very different in style and in the rest of the story. The aunt-guardians are totally different in personality, too. Part of the novel, of course, is the children’s aunts getting to know them better and becoming more confident in their role. But here’s where the similarity ends.

Harriet is the unmarried sister in this book. She is thirty-two, and employed as a computer programmer. She’s analytical, practical, and rather lacking in imagination. She is very close to her sister Felicity, and devastated when she learns what has happened. But she has never considered being a mother, and doesn’t seem to have any maternal feelings. 

However she’s very aware of her duty to her late sister. She can’t possibly have two young children in her flat, so she makes quite a sacrifice after much thought. She leaves her job and her home, moving in with her parents who don’t have the energy to deal with the demands of parenthood. Her parents Bob and Eileen are struggling with their grief in different ways and seem to be drifting apart. It doesn’t help that Eileen has ME and keeps pushing herself too hard.

Meanwhile a forty-something man called Will has moved into the house across the road from Harriet’s parents. He’s a divorced father of two older teenage girls, and he works as an antique salesman. He gave up a high-flying high-paying career as a lawyer after some kind of breakdown, but loves his current job. 

Two other important characters in the book are Miles, who runs the local bookshop, and his brother Dominic who is a typecast gothic narcissist. Dominic, Miles, Felicity and Harriet grew up together, and Harriet thinks of both these young men as honorary brothers. She used to idolise Dominic somewhat, but gradually realised just how nasty he can be. Dominic is both openly gay and proudly promiscuous. 

It’s a character-driven book, with many different subplots woven seamlessly together. I very much liked the scenes involving nine-year-old Carrie and four-year-old Joel. Erica James has a gift for characterisation, and particularly of young children. They both feel three-dimensional, and their conversation and behaviours seem entirely appropriate for their ages, and for children who have suffered the worst kind of bereavement. 

Carrie, at first, is angry and rude. Joel is nervous and anxious, terrified that he’s going to lose more people he loves. Harriet doesn’t really know how to deal with them at first; she’s sympathetic, of course, but quite abrupt. Her slow development of fondness and appreciation for the children is extremely well done.

Another side of the story is the discovery of a shocking secret in Felicity’s past which takes some time to unravel. Harriet is very slow to work out what’s going on - I had guessed quite quickly, but it took her a lot longer, with some misunderstandings and awkwardness along the way. And while it made a good subplot, it’s one of the parts I didn’t like so much. 

In addition, a lot of the characters leap into bed with others with little compunction and no real relationship. Perhaps casual sex is common in some circles; it’s not something I’m at all familiar with, and I found it rather sordid, particularly when there are explicit descriptions of what happens. 

It’s also a bit rambling and navel-gazing in places - the novel could probably have benefitted from some editing. And yet, I found it quite compulsive reading. The main characters are real enough that I cared about them; some places are very poignant, and I did not expect a very distressing event towards the end of the book. 

Overall I thought it a good read, but one I would recommend guardedly, due to the bedroom scenes and so many references to intimate activity. 

Review copyright 2024 Sue's Book Reviews