Author : L.M.Montgomery
Genre : Romance
Publisher : Bantam
Pages : 224
Rating : 2.5/5
Valancy Stirling, considered an old maid at 29, lives with her family who put her down and poke fun at her every chance they get. Her only solace is reading books by her favorite author John Foster and dreaming of her fictional Blue Castle.
Valancy puts up with her family’s poor treatment of her, but when she realizes that she has a terminal condition and not much more time to live she decides to live out the rest of her days as she sees fit and starts speaking her mind. Her family members are horrified at this new outspoken Valancy and even further outraged when Valancy decides to take up a job which will have her moving out of the house and in with some very disreputable characters. Once out of the clutches of her nagging family, Valancy becomes much happier, makes good friends and even manages to fall in love with a Barney Snaith (a very unsuitable man). Bit it is all for naught, because the end – it is a-coming . . .
I read this book because of a suggestion on a Reddit discussion and while this is a pleasant old-fashioned romance (it was written in 1926) in the vein of “My Fair Lady” – as in poor, over-whelmed damsel in distress is plucked out of bad situation and ends up with the Prince of her Dreams etc. , I can’t see what the fuss is about. Although Valancy was an endearing protagonist – she has gumption and wit – and it is satisfying to see the villains of this story get their comeuppance, the plot details with Barney Snaith, his island home and his mysterious lifestyle got pretty flaky. This might, in the modern world pass off as a YA romance, full of wishful/fantastical details, but this seemed too fanciful for adult reading.
If you’re looking for a fairy tale romance, this one’s for you.
