The Official Description: Peter Cratchit, a young lad preparing to make his way in the world, is the eldest son of Scrooge’s lowly clerk Bob Cratchit. Peter flourishes under the tutelage of his “Uncle” Scrooge and seeks to make his mark as a man of business, like his uncle before him.
One Christmas Eve, as Scrooge lays dying, Peter embarks on a risky ocean voyage that he believes will secure the future for his family. Onboard, Peter finds love, happiness, and success, only to lose it all by the voyage’s end.
Returning to London, Peter shuns his family and instead finds himself living on the streets, haunted by his failures and his dead lover, selling his body just to survive while he waits for the winter cold to claim him once and for all. But winter snows also mean Christmas is coming, and for the Cratchit family, Christmas is a time of miracles. Can a visit from three familiar spirits change Peter’s life again? Is there one more miracle in store for the lost son of one of Dickens’ most enduring families? (less)
Just the facts: Retelling, M/M relationships, street-involved character, historical fiction
A wonderful retelling of the original Christmas carol. – Kinzie Things
My thoughts bit: Peter Cratchitt is the brother of Tiny Tim! He’s had a rough life when the reader first meets him. In Peter Cratchit’s Christmas Carol, Peter is barely scraping together enough food to survive. In exchange for sexual favors, men give him much-needed scraps of food and some warmth in his otherwise cold existence.
It’s been a long road to where Peter Cratchitt is now. This story picks up shortly after the original work left off. Peter sets off on a voyage to make his fortune and take care of his family. On his voyage, he meets and falls in love with Augie. In their time together, they become very close and Peter experiences love for the first time. He’s content until things take a dark turn and everything begins to go wrong.
I loved this story even though parts of it were sad, other parts bitter-sweet. It is closely based on the original Christmas Carol and the author has done a great job of keeping the right atmosphere and language to go with the original. The writing is accessible and in the right style at the same time.
The atmosphere of the time is dark and a bit dismal at times…but that’s in keeping with the time period in which the story is set. It was, no doubt, difficult to live without an income in Dickensian times. Peter is living a hard life … and thinks that he can’t possibly be of any benefit to his family. I suppose we all have moments like that.
This is a great holiday story… and a lovely tribute to Dickens’ well-loved tale.
Things You May Want To Know: Please be aware, I’m by no means an expert on what may or may not have the potential to disturb people. I simply list things that I think a reader might want to be aware of. In this book: (SPOILERS) Extreme poverty, prostitution, death of a minor character, loss of a partner, death of Uncle, physical abuse, sexual abuse of sex worker, suicidal ideation, suicide.
Readalikes: Other stories that are similar or give the same feel.
- The Musician and the Monster by Jenya Keefe
- Becoming (Dancing with the Lion #1) by Jeanne Reames
- My Baby Chased Away the Blues by R.A. Thorn
Links: Goodreads // The Author // The Publisher
I received an ARC of Peter Cratchit’s Christmas Carol by Drew Martin Frayne from Ninestar Press via NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.
Kinzie Things 