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A review by nlgauvreau
A Turn of the Tide by Kelley Armstrong
3.0
This review is a rant about a-historicism. "But Nicole," you're likely thinking, "this is a time travel romance with paranormal elements. How can you be concerned about the history?" I just am. This has also been edited to reflect a misunderstanding on my part. The tl;dr of my rant is that in a book where the characters aren't from and haven't been to the 21st century, the historical aspects need to stand up more.
So I'll start with pockets. As in the things that may or may not be in your clothing. Early on we discover that Miranda designs all her own clothing so it will have pockets. She even "convert[s] [her] sister Portia to the wonders of pockets". She also revels in the fact that circa 1790 mens clothing has pockets.
As a woman of roughly the 1840s, Miranda wouldn't lack for pockets. They weren't the massive pockets on the 1860s, but they weren't the minuscule or fake pockets today's women complain about. In the early 19th century, pockets were actually a separate garment worn under the skirt or dress (they had slits in them. In fact, here's an example of a circa 1820 pocket: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/158413 By 1840 they may have been separate or sewn in.
Aside from pockets, Nicolas (another problem, he's francophone and the French spelling is Nicholas) says at one point, "Chérie, I am a sailor... I have waterproof matches." No, no he most certainly does not. Friction matches weren't even invented until the 1826; chemical matches existed, but were expensive and quite dangerous. Chemical matches were often made of glass or would need to be dipped in vials of asbestos and sulphuric acid. Waterproof matches are simply friction matches coated in wax. On the other hand, lighters have been around (though much larger) since at least the 1660s.
Let's talk about sex and condoms. I don't actually take issue with Nicolas saying he didn't have protection with him; condoms were becoming popularized and destigmatized in the 1770s thanks to none other than Casanova; they would have been made of animal intestines or skin and tied in place with ribbon.
No, my issue is with Nicolas blaming attitudes that don't consider female pleasure during sex on the Puritans. The Puritans were all about godliness, but it doesn't mean they were completely uptight and incapable of joy (we can blame The Scarlet Letter for that view). While premarital sex was illegal in the American colonies (I have little knowledge of Puritans in England) those laws weren't enforced and approximately 40% of children were born either completely out of wedlock or soon enough after a wedding that it was clear conception occurred before the wedding. Nicolas also blames doctors for not developing better methods of preventing procreation (and the spread of venereal disease). We've already established that condoms had become popular, and very explicitly to prevent the spread of syphilis. Chemical abortion also existed and was common (and legal before the quickening, aka before the pregnant person could feel the fetus move or between 18 and 26 weeks), it was indeed not done by doctors, but by midwives and female herbalists. Midwives especially were the people to deal with women's health until fairly recently. Women's health, and consequently contraception and abortion, simply wasn't the realm of doctors.
This concludes my rant.
So I'll start with pockets. As in the things that may or may not be in your clothing. Early on we discover that Miranda designs all her own clothing so it will have pockets. She even "convert[s] [her] sister Portia to the wonders of pockets". She also revels in the fact that circa 1790 mens clothing has pockets.
As a woman of roughly the 1840s, Miranda wouldn't lack for pockets. They weren't the massive pockets on the 1860s, but they weren't the minuscule or fake pockets today's women complain about. In the early 19th century, pockets were actually a separate garment worn under the skirt or dress (they had slits in them. In fact, here's an example of a circa 1820 pocket: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/158413 By 1840 they may have been separate or sewn in.
Aside from pockets, Nicolas (another problem, he's francophone and the French spelling is Nicholas) says at one point, "Chérie, I am a sailor... I have waterproof matches." No, no he most certainly does not. Friction matches weren't even invented until the 1826; chemical matches existed, but were expensive and quite dangerous. Chemical matches were often made of glass or would need to be dipped in vials of asbestos and sulphuric acid. Waterproof matches are simply friction matches coated in wax. On the other hand, lighters have been around (though much larger) since at least the 1660s.
Let's talk about sex and condoms. I don't actually take issue with Nicolas saying he didn't have protection with him; condoms were becoming popularized and destigmatized in the 1770s thanks to none other than Casanova; they would have been made of animal intestines or skin and tied in place with ribbon.
No, my issue is with Nicolas blaming attitudes that don't consider female pleasure during sex on the Puritans. The Puritans were all about godliness, but it doesn't mean they were completely uptight and incapable of joy (we can blame The Scarlet Letter for that view). While premarital sex was illegal in the American colonies (I have little knowledge of Puritans in England) those laws weren't enforced and approximately 40% of children were born either completely out of wedlock or soon enough after a wedding that it was clear conception occurred before the wedding. Nicolas also blames doctors for not developing better methods of preventing procreation (and the spread of venereal disease). We've already established that condoms had become popular, and very explicitly to prevent the spread of syphilis. Chemical abortion also existed and was common (and legal before the quickening, aka before the pregnant person could feel the fetus move or between 18 and 26 weeks), it was indeed not done by doctors, but by midwives and female herbalists. Midwives especially were the people to deal with women's health until fairly recently. Women's health, and consequently contraception and abortion, simply wasn't the realm of doctors.
This concludes my rant.