Ben Stone has mastered being at the wrong place at the wrong time. His worse instance of bad luck yet – being framed as the murderer of the regional magistrate's son - is what puts the book's main plot in motion.
The chase is an intense one. Dogs and
men alike are hounding him, and to make matters worse, the weather is
absolutely terrible. Even as Ben is running, he knows escaping will mean never
seeing his aunt, uncle, and the girl he was falling in love with behind. Then
again, it's perhaps a good thing Ben got away from Ruth, the girl he was
falling for. After all, she's the one who has framed him for her
accidental murder, and she isn't very guilty about the murder or the framing.
Thanks to quick thinking and the help of a friend, Ben is able to escape
with a tangible plan, but getting away from his town doesn't mean he has truly
escaped. Being framed for the murder of the magistrate's son, even in the 18th
century, is the type of thing one doesn't easily escape from.
Unfortunately, Ben doesn't make it too
far before he is kidnapped, rather spontaneously, by a group of people who make
a living by hurting and stealing from others. While in that group, he meets
Jenny, a girl who helps and falls for him. Even better, he still makes it to
the town his friend told him to escape to, just...not in the way he expected to
get there.
Again and again, Ben's life takes another sharp turn, but little parts of
his past continue to follow him. When Ben and Ruth give themselves to each
other for the first time, Ruth tells Ben, “This means you'll belong to me
forever.” There's a sinister note to her words.In a sense, she is absolutely right.
Ben's bad luck when it comes to being at the wrong place at the wrong time, however, works to his benefit. Each time he becomes part of someone else's life as a result of being kidnapped or in a fight, that takes him further away from the town where he was framed for murder. His kindness, work ethic, and great looks also helps him get by fairly well no matter his circumstances.
Guilty of Honour is about survival and
escaping from murder, but it's also just the tale of a young man becoming an
adult.
I really like the plot and find the characters
interesting
