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3.73 AVERAGE
3.73 AVERAGE
4.5
Not much happened but Mary Stewart described it oh so beautifully that it didn't matter!
Not much happened but Mary Stewart described it oh so beautifully that it didn't matter!
Light, escapist, well-written book that I needed right now. #NoShame #ComfortRead
emotional
relaxing
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
3 1/2 stars. A good, autumn read with great atmosphere.
This has been a lovely read, but I feel it needs some fleshing out, the end felt rushed. I wouldn't have minded to spend another 100 pages at Thornyhold.
While thoroughly liking this book, I think I now understand Catherine Moreland's feelings in Northanger Abbey a bit better. You know, when she realised that instead of finding a dramatic and mysterious set of letters, she was actually holding a couple of washing and clothing bills in her hands.
But I was not self-delusional, it was the author herself, who kept leading me on with strong hints of magical intrigue and suspense and then have me bump into a wall of the comedy of errors.
Still, a cosy, comforting read and I enjoyed it very much.
While thoroughly liking this book, I think I now understand Catherine Moreland's feelings in Northanger Abbey a bit better. You know, when she realised that instead of finding a dramatic and mysterious set of letters, she was actually holding a couple of washing and clothing bills in her hands.
But I was not self-delusional, it was the author herself, who kept leading me on with strong hints of magical intrigue and suspense and then have me bump into a wall of the comedy of errors.
Still, a cosy, comforting read and I enjoyed it very much.
Audiobook read by the wonderful Jilly Bond.
I’m reading another Mary Stewart on Kindle (Nine Coaches Waiting), but for the spooky season, I couldn’t resist putting it on hold and switching over to this little gem, Thornyhold. Almost as though I'd fashioned it from my own thoughts of exactly the kind of autumnal read I was in the mood for, here is this book: a quaint, cosy, witchy read.
The heroine Geillis is a delight, a kind, self-aware introvert who is shy but plucky. She loves the slow, rustic rhythms of country life, and wants nothing more than to have a little spot of her own, after a sad, lonely childhood. She looks ahead with joy to a new life when she is given the rambling little country house, Thornyhold, in her late cousin’s will.
The story is very warm and domestic, with many scenes of Geillis cooking, making coffee, tidying and gardening, and I loved spending time with her in Thornyhold as she went about her day. Geillis is so delighted at having her own home, her own space to just be, and I felt that in my bones.
There's a strain of intrigue that keeps the plot humming along. Her late cousin was said to have been a witch, the hedge witch sort, and Geillis herself has a touch of it, which is brought out the longer she spends at Thornyhold. A local busybody who rather forces herself on Geillis with overtures of neighbourly kindness is fixed on getting an old spell book she thinks is hidden inside Thornyhold and Geillis begins a small battle of wills with her that is actually quite gripping in its own humble way.
There’s a lovely a found family side plot with a dash of romance too, as Geillis becomes great friends with a forthright young boy who’s an animal lover, as she is, and then falls for his widowed father.
As I understand it, this is one of the novels Stewart wrote late in life and compared to her romantic suspenses of the 50s and 60s, this is a much quieter, tamer read. But I wasn’t bored at all and relished in its message of how entirely enchanting the quiet comforts of a simple life can be.
I’m reading another Mary Stewart on Kindle (Nine Coaches Waiting), but for the spooky season, I couldn’t resist putting it on hold and switching over to this little gem, Thornyhold. Almost as though I'd fashioned it from my own thoughts of exactly the kind of autumnal read I was in the mood for, here is this book: a quaint, cosy, witchy read.
The heroine Geillis is a delight, a kind, self-aware introvert who is shy but plucky. She loves the slow, rustic rhythms of country life, and wants nothing more than to have a little spot of her own, after a sad, lonely childhood. She looks ahead with joy to a new life when she is given the rambling little country house, Thornyhold, in her late cousin’s will.
The story is very warm and domestic, with many scenes of Geillis cooking, making coffee, tidying and gardening, and I loved spending time with her in Thornyhold as she went about her day. Geillis is so delighted at having her own home, her own space to just be, and I felt that in my bones.
There's a strain of intrigue that keeps the plot humming along. Her late cousin was said to have been a witch, the hedge witch sort, and Geillis herself has a touch of it, which is brought out the longer she spends at Thornyhold. A local busybody who rather forces herself on Geillis with overtures of neighbourly kindness is fixed on getting an old spell book she thinks is hidden inside Thornyhold and Geillis begins a small battle of wills with her that is actually quite gripping in its own humble way.
There’s a lovely a found family side plot with a dash of romance too, as Geillis becomes great friends with a forthright young boy who’s an animal lover, as she is, and then falls for his widowed father.
As I understand it, this is one of the novels Stewart wrote late in life and compared to her romantic suspenses of the 50s and 60s, this is a much quieter, tamer read. But I wasn’t bored at all and relished in its message of how entirely enchanting the quiet comforts of a simple life can be.
I would have given this book five stars but THE BEGINNING WAS SO EVERLASTINGLY SLOW. LIKE MOLASSES. IT WAS REALLY GOOD BUT IT TOOK FOREVERRRRRRRRRRR. But anyway. Wow. The ending. The way it all came together. Truly this was a mystery but I love how it turned out. The middle is delightfully creepy. I was scared to death. But the end was a perfect fairy tale. Very interesting.
Spoiler
Spoiler
I’m sure I read this book years and years ago when I first got married… I read a lot of Mary Stewart that I found at the Northeast Harbor Library, where I hung out while Steve was at basic training. However, since this one was written in 1988 and Steve's basic training was in 1971, I must be wrong. I did read lots of Mary Stewart's back then, though!
I decided to read this book instead of listen to it. So I was able to digest it a little more slowly, and I completely enjoyed it. The Gothic feel of it, the witchiness, the description of cleaning out an old, isolated house in southern England… it’s flowers and brambles and old gardens. … with a thoroughly lovely, satisfying ending!
I decided to read this book instead of listen to it. So I was able to digest it a little more slowly, and I completely enjoyed it. The Gothic feel of it, the witchiness, the description of cleaning out an old, isolated house in southern England… it’s flowers and brambles and old gardens. … with a thoroughly lovely, satisfying ending!
emotional
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Well. It certainly contains words and sentences, presented in a competent, pleasant-to-read order. And class-based bigotry! And a surprise farcical ending. Meh.