“Hawthorn and Bitter” | Rejoice in Everyday Magic

Hawthorn and Bitter

by Shannon Kelly

Tea for Two

In her first foray into the literary scene, Shannon Kelly presents her reader with a tale of two women in 1820s England who are grappling with their innermost desires as well as their conflicting circumstances. Alicia, the spirited daughter from a well-to-do family, is on the cusp of turning twenty-five and being labeled an old maid if she does not wed soon. In contrast, kind Clara resides as a maid with her nasty relatives who have given neither her nor her future any thought once so ever short of what the next demand they make of her will be. 

Clara is tormented by her bullying cousin Adam and mistreated by Aunt Maude and Uncle Silas Garvey. Her biggest champion is her mentor Edith who teaches Clara about herbs, tinctures, and healing. Alicia’s parents, Lord and Lady Broderick, are indulgent of their daughter’s outgoing behavior, but still feel the weighty obligations that come with their stations. With fairytale underpinnings, Kelly’s debut novel explores more than the surface of what it means to know oneself and provides for the reader a story with rich characterization, flowing prose, and a heart.

Rising Joy

There were two particular aspects of Kelly’s reimagining that I appreciated as a reader who is invested in both fairytale retellings and queer literature. She makes a specific point of detailing not only the substantial hardships of coming into one’s own queerness, as is rightly the focus of so many novels, but also the joys of it. This dovetails in the most organic way with the outsized feelings that falling in love can produce, and Kelly ensures that every glance of understanding, touch of compassion, and bout of anticipation are given their weight throughout the book. 

Clara and Alicia fall within the “new adult” age—the range between adolescence and thirty when autonomy is usually on the rise, but so is self-doubt. Since the novel is set in The Past (read: Regency era), the heroines of this tale lack more autonomy over the structures of their lives than they would like. Watching them assert themselves when it comes to their values, their desires, and their hopes makes the reader rejoice with delight as the young women find ways to enjoy each other. 

~ Allie Coker

Author Interview with Shannon Kelly

LITSTACK: Are there aspects of Alicia and Clara’s personalities that resonate with you?

KELLY: When I first started writing, I assumed I resonated more with Clara’s character, but when my mom read the rough draft, she said she saw equal parts of me in both Clara and Alicia. After she pointed that out, I couldn’t unsee it. Part of me is very independent and also a bit paranoid, like Clara, thinking love and feelings are sometimes too overwhelming and untrustworthy, while at the same time, desperately wanting that warmth and connection of romance. But I also resonate with Alicia’s bold, clumsy, heartfelt way of being in the world. I guess it only makes sense that when writing, there are bits of the author in each of their characters.

LITSTACK: How did you decide to tell this story?

KELLY: When I was ten, I was watching Disney’s animated Cinderella, and I kept thinking ‘This is okay, but it would be so much better if Prince Charming was a woman, if Cinderella could be dancing in that ballroom in her dress with a girl!’ I had those thoughts about so many straight couples in books and movies, and it was such a relief to realize, as a teenager, oh, my feelings are legitimate, and there are lots of other girls who also want better representation in media! I’ve also always loved the book and movie The Secret Garden, and somewhat unconsciously, I’d wanted to combine the two for years. Mistlethwait Manor is located in the North York Moors, so of course that was going to be the location of my queer Cinderella retelling.

LITSTACK: What do you hope the reader will take away from the novel?

KELLY: What I hope for all readers is that they get pleasure and enjoyment from reading this story. And for queer readers, especially those in their teens, I hope this offers positive representation. When I was a teen, I had very little positive representation of lesbian relationships in the media. I had a few stories, which were very hard to find, and had tragic endings. I am really glad that there are so many good options today!

LITSTACK: What was the experience like to write about a different place (England) set during a drastically different time?

KELLY: I had so much fun writing about a different place and time period. I spent at least as much time researching Regency-era England as I did actually writing the plot of Hawthorn & Bitter. I read history books which informed and inspired me. I looked up everything from the names of pieces of clothing, to when the stethoscope was invented. I also watched lots of contemporary videos of British gardeners and foragers, to make sure all plants referenced were geographically accurate, and immerse myself in as much sensory detail as I could from hundreds of miles away. At the time of writing Hawthorn & Bitter, I’d been to England once, including some wonderful history museums in London, and time spent wandering in and around Oxford. I let as much of my research and experience guide me as I could, and discovered that I love writing historical fiction!

LITSTACK: There are characters throughout the book both hindering and aiding the success of Alicia and Clara’s relationship. What do you think their true motives are? What do they stand to lose or gain from their actions?

KELLY: Clara’s aunt and uncle are fueled by ego and jealousy, as Cinderella’s aunt and stepsisters are in the original tale. They are exaggerated definitions of how a person can get so twisted up by a grudge, to the point that they start to lose their humanity. The Grimm brothers’ stories are warnings in the form of symbolism and allegory, and I wanted to weave a bit of that in to this story. Aunt Maude and Uncle Silas enjoy the free labor of their niece, but they also just enjoy the power trip, so to speak. They have such small lives and shallow hearts that they’d rather cause suffering than end it. Cousin Adam takes after them. Adam is the symbolic guy who thinks he should be able to have whatever he wants, just because he can/is more “powerful”/etc. There is a lot of hyperbole in his character, but also truth. I wanted to portray and honor how dangerous it can be to be different. For me, being queer is not just about sex and sexuality. It is about being yourself, by deciding which cultural mores resonate, and which do not, and allowing your originality to shine through the noise of assimilation. The villains in this story are symbolic of the repression that some people use against others when they feel threatened by someone being true to themselves.

But likewise, the characters fueled by generosity, like Edith, are symbols of the people in life who don’t need motivation or recognition in order to want to bring goodness to others.

Alicia’s parents are motivated by societal pressure, and holding onto their status. In the end however, wanting their daughter to be happy wins out over how they might be perceived by others, or whether they will be able to keep their social standing.

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