A review by elainegl
The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery

4.0

I don't know what to say about this book. I loved it and I hated it. It starts off so gloomily. Valancy has had a rough life, but she feels so sorry for herself that I got sick of it. Multiple chapters are spent making you feel sorry for her and her miserable existence. I pitied her for her lack of spunk and hated that she was so unable to find any good in her gloomy world. Then something changes and she leaves her miserable existence and decides she is going to live only to please herself. So self-centered! Now her actions show that she's not quite as self-centered as she says she wants to be, but still, her desire is to only please herself. Then she falls in love, but again only wants to live for pleasure without any responsibility. That said, the story is intriguing. It has both some surprises in it (which I hope I haven't spoiled here) and some very overused plot lines. So I did enjoy this book and I'm glad I have now read something by LM Montgomery other than the Anne of Green Gables series. Also, this is a book for adults. There are multiple adult themes in the book, although compared with most books of today, it is quite tame.