Ever hear of the joke about two little boys escorted to two different rooms? One boy is locked in a room filled with an array of toys suitable for his age and interests. All he does is cry and scream, bewailing the fact that the toys are not to his standards. The other boy is locked into a room with only horse manure—and there is a lots of it. All he does is cry and scream, flinging the stuff everywhere in absolute glee. When questioned why he was doing this, his answer was, "Well, with all this sh*t all over the place, I figured there must be a pony in here somewhere." The second boy displayed how he handled adversity. But what is adversity? The dictionary says it is a state of hardship or affliction; misfortune. But what the dictionary does not go on to say is that adversity strengthens a person’s character – or destroys it.
A battered woman loses her self-esteem; a woman raped loses her self-respect. Told often enough you are slow and stupid, you start believing that you are slow and stupid. It’s a sad fact of life, but it is true nevertheless. How we, as people, deal with the cards that life dealt us determines how we are emotionally – morally.
Wright and Wrong shows how one woman overcomes adversity to triumph in the end. Proud Emeline Wright has faced a lot of adversity in her life. Orphaned as a young child, her experiences from living with her cousins right up to her adulthood is something that a weaker person may not have survived. The point is Emeline is a strong person but does not recognize it. She is atypical of a person s with low self-esteem as a result of her life experiences. So she is constantly second-guessing herself, her instinct guiding her but her mind always questioning what she is doing.
The hero of the piece is a quiet, thoughtful man who is looked upon as a simpleton by nearly everyone His strength and intelligence isn’t revealed until others come to rely upon him.
The antagonist is a man you want to hate. I say 'want' because although the story has him as a vile individual, my emotions were not always engaged in the telling of this tale. At times I felt disconnected from the story: when I was told how truly evil the antagonist was instead of being invited to participate in feeling the sadism that surrounded this person.
I have to admit that I did get lost at times in the telling of the tale, and I think that had more to do with the editing than the story itself. I am concerned about the historical accuracy, mainly the expletives used in that particular era, but that doesn’t detract from the story. There are a lot of secondary characters in this book that are necessary in telling the story properly. With a little creative editing, the problem of following the plot would not be an issue. What I would have liked to have seen was more depth to the secondary characters, and more to the hero as well. I could feel what Emeline was going through, but I believe more could have been felt if the psyche of the other characters were revealed a little more. What made these people tick?
I love historicals, and though the genre is obviously historical romance, there is an element of suspense included as well. There were a number of subplots within the larger overall story, which cleverly encourages the reader to continue on. When I picked up Wright and Wrong I was expecting a similar formula used by the standard historical. I was surprised by the depravities that Miss Shoup touched on, from rape to a little light bondage and ménage. One would think that these things are out of place in a historical romance, but the fact is, these things happened then as they do now. She dealt with it with finesse.
I’ve made a point about not outlining the storyline here. There are a number of reasons, but the main one is that you need to read this book to appreciate its difference. All the reader needs to know is this: set in the late 19th century, through a range of adversities, two lonely outcasts make their way home, becoming stronger through their suffering. Wright and Wrong is a touching story that should not be missed, especially if you love a happily ever after ending.

Reviewed By Emilie Spargo
© October 2005