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The Governess
A queer thriller set in Victorian England. Miss Benson, a governess, is sent to teach Amy how to be a lady. Amy is discovering the joys of sex and suitors. Miss Benson's unconventional methods lead to scandal, heartbreak and murder as she becomes passionately obsessed with her young charge.
The Governess was longlisted for the 2013 Polari gay fiction prize.
The Governess was longlisted for the 2013 Polari gay fiction prize.
- GenresHistoricalLGBTErotica
187 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 9, 2012
4 people are currently reading
52 people want to read
About the author
Rachael Eyre
9 books47 followersI first realised I wanted to be a writer aged seven and have been scribbling ever since. After taking Creative Writing as a minor at university, I went on to write and indie publish The Governess, a historical thriller. That was followed by The Revenge of Rose Grubb, Love and Robotics, The Artificial Wife, Diary of a Teenage Lesbian and Book 666. My seventh novel Hello Satan was released in 2021.
I enjoy reading, theatre, history, art and podcasting. I host #NotJustTentacles, an anime podcast.
Please note: All my books contain LGBT+ themes. If you are uncomfortable with such subject matter, I advise you not to read them. They are not erotica either, so anyone anticipating this will be disappointed.
I enjoy reading, theatre, history, art and podcasting. I host #NotJustTentacles, an anime podcast.
Please note: All my books contain LGBT+ themes. If you are uncomfortable with such subject matter, I advise you not to read them. They are not erotica either, so anyone anticipating this will be disappointed.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
May 7, 2018
I absolutely loved this story to bits! The main character, Governess Benson, is a woman of dubious morality and her obsession for the young Amy Passerini and her subsequent actions will ruin more than one live in the course of the book. And yet, I can’t find it in myself to hate her.
The writing was superb, it was humorous and dark at the same time and Rachael Eyre has a delightful way of describing her characters:
I was greeted by the housekeeper, Mrs Macmillan. She might have hatched aged sixty, her face stamped like a medallion, frosty hair in a tight bun. Her gaze was piercing, her mouth puckered like the sex organ of a cat. She wore a cameo brooch at her throat - her late husband, I learned. Whenever she mentioned him, she ducked her head and murmured, "May he rest in peace." I pictured her in a scandal sheet, washing her crimson hands as his feet poked from a trap door.
Lady Emma was a subtler presence. Her delicate constitution was a myth. She spent her days lying on the couch, a beautiful study in boredom. Sometimes she exerted herself so far as to write letters or work on tapestries of Greek tales. She disdained all company but the housekeeper, condescending to children bored her excessively; she avoided them for weeks if she could get away with it. Obviously she had married beneath herself, over the years developing a slow burning hatred for her husband. Once she had been the toast of the county and while I could see that, twenty years' loathing had made its mark. The maids said she drank. More than once I caught the scent of narcotics on her breath.
This was exacerbated by our visit to Nanny Cairns. She led a lonely, objectless life up in her attic, wrapped in the cobwebs of the past. She existed on crumpets and weak tea, dressed in dark crape. I have always been repelled by old people, their smell like dank earth and broken machinery. Her blind yolky eyes frightened me. Amy didn't see this. She didn't mind the stifling room with its odour of rot, reminiscing about good old days she was too young to remember. I'd put off meeting Nanny, always with an excuse. The day Amy said, "Anyone would think you didn't want to meet her," I swallowed my pride.
Louisa quarrelled with her husband - the cause was vague, although she made dark hints - and came to live at the Lodge. Of course she had her baby in tow. I dislike babies as a rule; they're fat, sloppy and monotonous. This one required effort. It bawled incessantly, hurled fists of food and vomited over the furniture. We were forced to admire its beauty and accomplishments despite its resemblance to a bag of yeast. Its name was Charlotte. Amy loathed it on sight.
Don’t expect a sweet love story. Like I said, this is a dark tale of obsession, manipulation, corruption of a minor, perhaps even murder. And yet, there is no real villain here and perhaps no real victim either. Nobody is exactly blameless in the end. I highly recommend!
f/f, some m/f but nothing really explicit
Themes: Amy listened to her nurse with grave attention. A ribbon traced her delectable neck, stray locks tickled her ears. Her breasts strained against the yellow gown, slippery as the hollow of a groin. Why did she excite me so? I'd admonish myself- She's your charge, a child- but a sigh or swivel made me moist. It was unhealthy. However much I prayed to God and begged Him to take away this unseemly passion, I'd wake the next day as incorrigible as before.
5 stars
The writing was superb, it was humorous and dark at the same time and Rachael Eyre has a delightful way of describing her characters:
I was greeted by the housekeeper, Mrs Macmillan. She might have hatched aged sixty, her face stamped like a medallion, frosty hair in a tight bun. Her gaze was piercing, her mouth puckered like the sex organ of a cat. She wore a cameo brooch at her throat - her late husband, I learned. Whenever she mentioned him, she ducked her head and murmured, "May he rest in peace." I pictured her in a scandal sheet, washing her crimson hands as his feet poked from a trap door.
Lady Emma was a subtler presence. Her delicate constitution was a myth. She spent her days lying on the couch, a beautiful study in boredom. Sometimes she exerted herself so far as to write letters or work on tapestries of Greek tales. She disdained all company but the housekeeper, condescending to children bored her excessively; she avoided them for weeks if she could get away with it. Obviously she had married beneath herself, over the years developing a slow burning hatred for her husband. Once she had been the toast of the county and while I could see that, twenty years' loathing had made its mark. The maids said she drank. More than once I caught the scent of narcotics on her breath.
This was exacerbated by our visit to Nanny Cairns. She led a lonely, objectless life up in her attic, wrapped in the cobwebs of the past. She existed on crumpets and weak tea, dressed in dark crape. I have always been repelled by old people, their smell like dank earth and broken machinery. Her blind yolky eyes frightened me. Amy didn't see this. She didn't mind the stifling room with its odour of rot, reminiscing about good old days she was too young to remember. I'd put off meeting Nanny, always with an excuse. The day Amy said, "Anyone would think you didn't want to meet her," I swallowed my pride.
Louisa quarrelled with her husband - the cause was vague, although she made dark hints - and came to live at the Lodge. Of course she had her baby in tow. I dislike babies as a rule; they're fat, sloppy and monotonous. This one required effort. It bawled incessantly, hurled fists of food and vomited over the furniture. We were forced to admire its beauty and accomplishments despite its resemblance to a bag of yeast. Its name was Charlotte. Amy loathed it on sight.
Don’t expect a sweet love story. Like I said, this is a dark tale of obsession, manipulation, corruption of a minor, perhaps even murder. And yet, there is no real villain here and perhaps no real victim either. Nobody is exactly blameless in the end. I highly recommend!
f/f, some m/f but nothing really explicit
Themes: Amy listened to her nurse with grave attention. A ribbon traced her delectable neck, stray locks tickled her ears. Her breasts strained against the yellow gown, slippery as the hollow of a groin. Why did she excite me so? I'd admonish myself- She's your charge, a child- but a sigh or swivel made me moist. It was unhealthy. However much I prayed to God and begged Him to take away this unseemly passion, I'd wake the next day as incorrigible as before.
5 stars
November 5, 2018
Oh wow! This was fantastically disturbing. Miss Benson uses her intellect to escape her background and drunk mother to attend teacher training college. She doesn't really want to be a teacher and sets her sights on becoming a governess. After a number of less that satisfactory positions, she is employed as 15-year-old Amy Passerini's governess.
I loved feeling of discomfort that reading this gave me as well as the unexpected twists and turns. I know intellectually that I shouldn't have been rooting for Miss Benson, and I think this plays a huge part in why I found it so disturbing, but I really wanted her to be happy.
Beautifully written, totally absorbing but pretty dark.
Note: There is one detractor (clearly not important enough to have affected my rating) but this really could have done with a read-through or two to catch the inconsistent en dashes, spaces around punctuation and other typos.
I loved feeling of discomfort that reading this gave me as well as the unexpected twists and turns. I know intellectually that I shouldn't have been rooting for Miss Benson, and I think this plays a huge part in why I found it so disturbing, but I really wanted her to be happy.
Beautifully written, totally absorbing but pretty dark.
Note: There is one detractor (clearly not important enough to have affected my rating) but this really could have done with a read-through or two to catch the inconsistent en dashes, spaces around punctuation and other typos.
November 6, 2018
My first by Ms.Eyre, will I be checking out her other work? Yes, she has talent but I need to recuperate first as reading this caused some unpleasantness and disturbing hotness too.
Was it love that started the forbidden relationship
Or infatuation? Certainly obsession played a serious role and triggered off a series of misfortunate events.
I cringed when I saw the digit 15, since this was a historical it was understandable yet my heart still broke for Amy. Was Ms.Benson her protector+lover+a soulmate or the total opposite?
I shouldn't have read this before Huntress, now I need to find the sun and break free from the darkness that came with this book.
Was it love that started the forbidden relationship
Or infatuation? Certainly obsession played a serious role and triggered off a series of misfortunate events.
I cringed when I saw the digit 15, since this was a historical it was understandable yet my heart still broke for Amy. Was Ms.Benson her protector+lover+a soulmate or the total opposite?
I shouldn't have read this before Huntress, now I need to find the sun and break free from the darkness that came with this book.
May 20, 2021
Rachel Eyre is a gifted and remarkable writer and I enjoyed ever page of this torrid and sometime erotic novel. Don't know how writers do what they do, it just really blows my mind that they start with a blank page and create a masterpiece as Ms. Eyre did. Bravo, can't wait to read more of this savants writing. Best Dr. Amanda
January 13, 2020
An interesting story. One of those where it is almost impossible to connect with the characters, and yet it's impossible not to want to know what happens next. The writing style manages to put quite a distance beween character and reader, and the character assassination is complete and universal. I am not at all sure any character is nice or likeable. Loved it. And the descriptions of these people and places are delivered with controlled malice and great inventiveness.
I also admit that the idea of a 15-16 year old and her governess (who comes across as cold, calculating and not at all nice) put me off for a long while. Still, if you can suspend that kind of disapproval, and I can, then it becomes increasingly easy to ignore the ages. Still a bit icky though.
However, the instance that there be a spacing flaw in every paragraph irritated the hell out of me. The occasional error I would ignore, but every page, and several times? Also hyphenating. At one point every single line bar three (and one of those what a paragraph change) showed hyphenation, including many that were single characters. Some uncertainty of POV also jarred somewhat. This definetly needs to be re-edited for that.
I also admit that the idea of a 15-16 year old and her governess (who comes across as cold, calculating and not at all nice) put me off for a long while. Still, if you can suspend that kind of disapproval, and I can, then it becomes increasingly easy to ignore the ages. Still a bit icky though.
However, the instance that there be a spacing flaw in every paragraph irritated the hell out of me. The occasional error I would ignore, but every page, and several times? Also hyphenating. At one point every single line bar three (and one of those what a paragraph change) showed hyphenation, including many that were single characters. Some uncertainty of POV also jarred somewhat. This definetly needs to be re-edited for that.
January 16, 2017
I really don't know what to say about this one. I don't think it would have been quite so bad, but I found Miss Benson to be extremely controlling, which I did not like. The story wasn't too bad, but Miss Benson started getting more and more controlling as the book went on, the relationship felt abusive to me. And I really couldn't figure out with the Epilogue meant.
August 18, 2019
I read this at a time when I'd had spinal damage and needed traction. It's not often you can say that going on the modern equivalent of the rack was a highlight of my day, but it was as I got to read this gem of a book for extended periods with no distractions.
If you're looking for skulduggery and lesbian romps in corsets, this is perfect for you. You will feel a little bit dirty, as Miss Benson has a touch of the Humbert Humberts, but you will also be charmed and seduced by her yourself. She is a sexy villain; I imagine her as being like a young Joan Ferguson in Wentworth.
I love all the side characters, like Amy's anything-for-a-quiet-life father, her hot mess of a mother, the disapproving Danvers-like housekeeper, the tutor who fancies himself as an intellectual genius. The book has a very filmic style. It's like a blend of Sarah Waters in romp mode, Jane Austen snark and Kind Hearts and Coronets dark comedy. I've re-read it in recent years (no traction this time) and still love it just as much as I did the first time.
If you're looking for skulduggery and lesbian romps in corsets, this is perfect for you. You will feel a little bit dirty, as Miss Benson has a touch of the Humbert Humberts, but you will also be charmed and seduced by her yourself. She is a sexy villain; I imagine her as being like a young Joan Ferguson in Wentworth.
I love all the side characters, like Amy's anything-for-a-quiet-life father, her hot mess of a mother, the disapproving Danvers-like housekeeper, the tutor who fancies himself as an intellectual genius. The book has a very filmic style. It's like a blend of Sarah Waters in romp mode, Jane Austen snark and Kind Hearts and Coronets dark comedy. I've re-read it in recent years (no traction this time) and still love it just as much as I did the first time.
February 19, 2018
Interesting
The obvious problematic thing about this story is the age gap between between the governess and her charge; the moral break between student and teacher. Its not something that can be overlooked because by the end of the retelling it is revealed that the age gap was necessary in the ploy of the mother.
A theme I've noticed in many of the Historical Fiction books that I've read is the belief that two women in a relationship is acceptable as sort of a gateway to marriage. Their relationships hold no merit. It was sad to see this was how Lady Emma viewed life or maybe she was doing what she thought was best for her child, especially considering the time period.
If Amy's mother had let her be and explore her liking for women on her own, a lot of this may have been avoided.
But as tragedies go....
The obvious problematic thing about this story is the age gap between between the governess and her charge; the moral break between student and teacher. Its not something that can be overlooked because by the end of the retelling it is revealed that the age gap was necessary in the ploy of the mother.
A theme I've noticed in many of the Historical Fiction books that I've read is the belief that two women in a relationship is acceptable as sort of a gateway to marriage. Their relationships hold no merit. It was sad to see this was how Lady Emma viewed life or maybe she was doing what she thought was best for her child, especially considering the time period.
If Amy's mother had let her be and explore her liking for women on her own, a lot of this may have been avoided.
But as tragedies go....
November 23, 2018
If I had to be a woman of ill repute I wanted it to be a conscious decision.I know we shouldn't judge a book by its cover... but this was surprisingly better than I expected. I mean, it's not a sweet love story, or even just a happy story.
Superficially the story could be said that's about a 27-year-old woman seducing a 15-year-old, who was also under her care, and was described by her as an innocent child, but it was also so much more than that.
It's such a complicated story. The main character's actions are questionable and/or reproachable in some cases but yet she's very likable and it was hard for me to judge her. There were some things that I just couldn't believe were actually happening, but they just made the book better for me, more complex, just like the characters - and no one more than Miss Benson.
This was a really good find, I'm glad I read it.
November 11, 2018
This story was just okay for me. I didn't find it controversial, as I expected, or engaging, which would've been nice, and I can't put my finger on why.
Moving on....
Moving on....
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews