This short novella is told from William's POV. He is a bastard squire in Robert's estate. For the past 5 years Robert was out in the Holy Land and so when he returns all William wants is to show his worth and get a Knight title. For me, there was something extremely childish about William. I don't know how old he was, I guess maybe early 20s, yet if I think of his behavior in the terms we live in now, he felt like a kid of round 6-8 years. He had a childish hot temper, getting angry and striking the other squires. He was obsessed with just one thing and didn't think of anything else. Basically all his behavior was oriented to one thing - impress Robert so he'll get his spurs.
When Robert sees him for the first time after 5 years he IS impressed and from that moment he has his interest in William, not just his skill but as a man he wants to bed. There isn't a lot of sex or sexual encounters in this book, it was mostly about noble Frenchmen who came to participate in a hunt and a small plot William overhears and tries to stop (yep, another way to impress Robert..).
It was interesting getting a glimpse into a time I don't think I ever read before (Medieval) yet I couldn't really get into the story because of William's childish behavior. If we remove the sexual encounters and one VERY gory moment of boar dismembering, this could have been a kid's book. I just couldn't connect with William and I didn't "feel" the sexual tension between him and Robert, it felt more like William was obsessed with showing his worth, and the sexual outlet was a bonus he didn't understand but had no problem accepting from his Sire.
Next on my list is an Anthology containing another short novella with William. I truly hope that as a grown up and respectful Knight I'll be more impressed with him.
Additional Details: Kindle Ebook, 86 pages, 11-13 September 2015 / On GoodReads
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