The Orphan From Shepherds Keep: Three Men, Three Intertwined Lives, One Rightful Place In Each Other's Heart - A Gay Novel

There was nothing about this book which I disliked. I loved everything about it from start to finish and I was really sad when it was over. Seldom, if ever do I read a book twice, but as soon as I had finished this one, I started to re-read it again from the beginning just to be sure there were no gems I had missed the first time around. I loved the three main characters and many of the minor ones too. They are all so skillfully drawn. They are human and real and believable. There is lots of sex in the book, both actual (although it's tastefully described) and in the head of the main characters. The body and its needs and its desires in gay males is given its rightful place. But there is an underlying spiritual side to the story - well how could there not be when the principal character is called Elijah and he was brought up by a group of monks in a monastic setting? I'm not going to tell any more of the story because it stands on its own and giving a synopsis or outline would spoil the spell that the story itself casts on the discerning reader. Suffice it to say that there is no more moving scene in all literature - gay or mainline - than the death bed scene of Brother Jeshua in this book, in which Elijah, the orphan, (or Eli, as he prefers to be called) holds centre-stage. Read this book - there is no way that you could possibly be disappointed.

This book needs to be a movie. The storyline is so imaginative, and the characters are made real. I loved it and wish Lindsay Law would write another novel.

I really enjoyed this and devoured it in three days (OK, one of those days I was sick in bed). The prose was well written-- one of the few books I've read where the present tense style doesn't become grating. I also appreciate the fact that the author did not turn it into a porno whenever a character had sex. The main character Eli goes through a promiscuous phase, and it comes back to disrupt his life, but we aren't given a minutely detailed description of what he's doing which all too many gay romance stories do, sometimes repeatedly. Not wanting to be a prude, but there are websites for people who want that sort of thing. I'd like to give this four and half stars, though I can't find a way to do that. My criticisms are as follows. Parts of the story require considerable suspension of disbelief , beginning with the fact that Social Services leaves the newborn and orphaned Eli to be raised by a bunch of monks. Also Ferris recovers from his addiction and suicidal depression with very little effort: Ben is nice to him and poof! he's all better. Anyone who has had an addict among their friends or family knows that is a long hard road, with lots of two steps forward and one step back action. Ferris feels like a radically different character afterward and the narrative does not do the work for that. It also felt off that Eli's dancer boyfriend would dump him and refuse any further contact after a horribly traumatic event that was not Eli's fault. Dump him, maybe, but there…

I loved this book and have recommended it to many, including several Countertenors I know. The Dickensian characters spoke to me. Law makes us struggle with the question of what is right, versus what is safe. The musical references were many, from folk songs to German lieder. He gives the reader a vivid account of the many complexities of being gay as they present themselves. I was emotionally drawn to all three men. Law is a masterful story teller. I look forward to his next book.

What a terrific read. I'm bereft I must leave these characters behind. I was drawn into their lives and as I look back on my own I realize there was a part of me in each one. The author is a gifted writer and I hope he might continue telling such compelling stories.