The Temple of Optimism

The period – 1780. The setting – Buxton and the hills of Derbyshire in central England. The hero – young Edward Horne. The heroine – Daisy Apreece, ten years older than Edward and the wife of a man who’s been insufficiently thwarted by life. The question is the one that makes the world revolve: can love conquer evil? In particular, will Daisy get her man?

‘Sizzles and swoons through its eighteenth century Derbyshire tale with the riotous gusto of a Rowlandson cartoon, resurrecting all that period’s sinewy linguistic delights – brilliantly controlled, very funny, and as fresh as new snow on the moors.’
(Adam Thorpe)




Fleming has produced a first novel of quite exhilarating brilliance…There is a ripeness, both in the writing and in the characterisation, that could only have come with experience. It is as richly absorbing a debut as I have read in years…One detects the hand of a master.


It is magnificent…It tells a complicated, exciting story; it is extremely funny; it tackles important issues such as the purpose of convention and the freedom of the individual; and it is superbly written...I will read it again, slowly.


The fact that historical novels often lack the spark of originality heightens the achievement of James Fleming, whose first novel, The Temple of Optimism, gives him an honourable place in the Fleming literary tradition…Brilliant powers of description bring these characters to life for readers, who will enjoy the exceptional quality of writing and plotting.


[Fleming’s] vigorous and poetic prose, flawless dialogue, rich and comical cast of characters and his exquisite observations of period detail make this a feast of a novel.

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