Years ago when I first started on the boards, our pal Helio posted a feature entitled "Oporto's Bride."  I said back then that I would read it but never got around to it...until last week where I inquired about it and he emailed me the file, as it's no longer on SS because he's adapting it to a novel.

SPOILERS THROUGHOUT

Oporto's Bride revolves around the life of Lucia, a kind young woman who works a modest job as a clothing store assistant and whose dream is to one day become a bride.  She goes about her life as normally as anyone does; makes friends at work as well as an enemy, seeks guidance from her coworkers and old buddies about how and where she could meet dudes to marry, goes out for coffee, etc.  Pretty straight forward, right?  But the twist here is that Lucia is really Lucio and has been in this obsessive state of mind of becoming a bride since she was a little boy.  The thing is - Lucia puts on a really good act and fools everyone to the point where she's actually able to attract unwanted male attention.

The bulk of the story centers around her relationship with an awkward 20-something wealthy guy named Sebastian who she decides is perfect to marry.  The plan is to woo the guy, marry him, and then "commit suicide" by killing off Lucia and resuming her life as Lucio since the goal will be achieved.  Again, nobody suspects that she is really a he, but rather as her relationship with Sebastian grows, his family becomes more and more suspicious of her intentions, believing she's marrying him only for his wealth.  Little schemes are then devised by his family and friends to foil their impending wedding, including a plot to have her killed.

ENDING SPOILER

Ultimately when Sebastian discovers that Lucia is really Lucio, he's actually okay with it and they live happily ever after as guy and guy.  I told Helio that it was a pretty bold and brave route to take the ending, as it'll definitely rub some people out there the wrong way, but I think it delivers a good message.  The message isn't about living as the opposite sex or gay marriage, but rather about being who you are, as several of the characters stressed.  Lucia seemed happy living as a woman but wound up even happier living as a guy with Sebastian when all was said and done.  Granted, it's one of those "convenient" endings that ends very happily even though you know it probably shouldn't have because it just opens up more questions that weren't answered.  

There were some character motives that I questioned and I think Lucia's gender revelation could have come sooner, but in general I thought this was a nice story.  Well done, Helio.

Greg

Hey Greg, thanks a lot, man for your review. I hope the novel runs as I thought and better than the screenplay I wrote.