The Memoirs of Gérard Vreilhac is an erotic novel, but it is much more than that. It has history, sex, romance, humour, fear, anxiety, tragedy, politics, war and richly detailed lives. The setting for most of the story is Paris, and the city comes alive, but the characters leave and return, and leave again, giving us constantly fresh views and new paths to follow. The historical research is fascinating and impeccable; the writing is seamless, drawing the reader into a flowing tale of one man’s life and of everything that surrounds it.

For anyone who enjoys historical romance with an emphasis on history, and correct history at that, this book is a perfect read. It follows the life and loves of Gérard Vreilhac, who narrates his memoirs in a way that draws us into both his life and the period through which he lived. He is an unassuming story teller but in the course of his tale the reader finds much to admire and like in his personality, and comes to care greatly about him, his friends and his loves.

Whilst Gérard’s account concentrates on individuals, and often on sexual relationships, this is set against the background of the French Revolution, the Napoleonic Wars and their aftermath for France. National events have an inevitable effect on the characters and their interactions. The author is painstaking in his use of historical detail, and we learn a great deal of what it must have been like for the ‘ordinary’ person to live through such turbulent times. Gérard is just reaching adulthood as the Revolution starts and his old age coincides with the comparatively peaceful but nevertheless difficult period following Napoleon’s final defeat and the restoration of the monarchy. In this tale the narrator’s life and the life of France reflect each other.

Throughout his life, Gérard prefers men, but there are major female characters, too, ranging from Luciana, his Italian lover for a while, to Lucie, his wife, married to provide him with a ‘respectable’ family life, but by no means neglected. The women in the story are as vividly drawn as the men, strong characters in their own right, contributing richness and diversity to the reader’s view of the period. The eroticism in the account is reserved for Gérard’s sexual encounters with men but is always very much part of the story, furthering the plot or details of character. This, of course, adds to its enjoyment and readability.

There are four main romantic interests in Gérard’s life and each is drawn in loving detail. There is Julien, the charming and endangered aristocrat, who appears and disappears more than once in the course of the novel. There is Laurent, the Parisian, effeminate in his dealings with Gérard but adventurous and bloodthirsty when it comes to soldiering. There is Akmoud, the exotic Egyptian servant, who makes Gérard’s time in Egypt pleasurable and memorable. There is Anatole, the French prostitute who leaves the streets for Gérard and eventually follows him into the countryside. There are others, but these four are at the heart of the book and we care deeply for the fate of each one. Nothing runs smoothly for anyone, and there is sometimes almost unbearable tension, which can be followed by tears of pity or a sigh of heartfelt relief. Whilst Gérard never denies his attraction to other men, he admits to loving these four and it is one of the strengths of the novel that the reader is brought to love them too.

Gérard starts his story as a gardener at the château owned by Julien’s family. He has a varied life, as a clerk to a revolutionary tribunal, as a prisoner during the Terror, as a soldier who is promoted (all the way to Colonel) almost in spite of himself, as a bank manager, and finally, in retirement, as a gardener for pleasure. He experiences the Revolution and its horrors at first hand but survives to join Napoleon’s army and leave France for a while. He helps to rebuild the economy through the bank he works for, and finally realises that gardening is a very important part of what he is. During the course of the narrative, the men in his life weave in and out of each other’s stories, and so do their families and friends in turn, so that we are treated to a tapestry of French life during the early nineteenth century.

At the beginning of the story Gérard tells us that his short term memory is failing but that his memory of the past is vivid. The story he tells is indeed vivid and we are left feeling grateful to the friends who persuaded him to write his memoirs.

If you enjoy intelligent historical fiction and like it spiced with accounts of sex, this book is highly recommended.

The Memoirs of Colonel Gérard Vreilhac
Anel Viz
Dreamspinner Press, 2010
e-book $6.99 / quality paperback $16.99
ISBN (e-book) 978-1-61581-248-6 / (paper) 978-1-61581-247-9
www.dreamspinnerpress.com

 

Wilde Oats is published three times a year, in April, August and December. Click here to be automatically informed of new issues when they are published.

Gérard’s account concentrates on individuals, and on sexual relationships against the background of the French Revolution, the Napoleonic Wars and their aftermath for France.  The author is painstaking in his use of historical detail, and we learn a great deal of what it must have been like for the ‘ordinary’ person to live through such turbulent times.  Highly Recommended.