Lucy Maud Montgomery

In early 1920s Canada, drastic circumstances give Valancy, a twenty-nine-year-old unmarried woman resigned to being an "old maid," the courage to defy her controlling family and escape to a life of her own choosing.

The Blue Castle

An unforgettable story of courage and romance. Will Valancy Stirling ever escape her strict family and find true love?

Valancy Stirling is 29, unmarried, and has never been in love. Living with her overbearing mother and meddlesome aunt, she finds her only consolation in the "forbidden" books of John Foster and her daydreams of the Blue Castle--a place where all her dreams come true and she can be who she truly wants to be. After getting shocking news from the doctor, she rebels against her family and discovers a surprising new world, full of love and adventures far beyond her most secret dreams.

The blue castle

Sarah Campbell

Who could endure life if it were not for the hope of death?

the older sister to olive higgins prouty’s 

tink 😵‍💫⭐

the older sister to olive higgins prouty’s now, voyager

𝚕𝚒𝚕𝚢

5 ★ - (adored, absolute favorite)


rtc


CWs, or things that caught my attention: lying, illness (including possibly terminal health issues), difunctional family, nearly being run over

Christine

i am replacing Rilla as my top Montgomery book now. although tbf i think Rilla didn't even really have that distinction... it was probably Golden Road the more i think about it... but old habits die hard unfortunately. WHY didn't i read this 7 years ago !! man. i probably would've gone insane about it back then. i am slightly insane about this in a different direction now.

A beautiful story with wonderful descriptions about the nature of eastern Canada. The story progress was slow and the ending was completely predictable. I liked it because the atmosphere of the story was very similar to the writings of Jane Austen.

Shidehdeishidi

At twenty-nine, Valancy has never been in love, and it seems romance has passed her by. Living with her overbearing mother and meddlesome aunt, she finds her only consolations in the "forbidden" books of John Foster and her daydreams of the Blue Castle. Then a letter arrives from Dr. Trent--and Valancy decides to throw caution to the winds. For the first time in her life Valancy does and says exactly what she wants. Soon she discovers a surprising new world, full of love and adventures far beyond her most secret dreams.

Lamia Hajani

This was a surprising standout read! There's a lot of feminist themes, which I love. It's very much an attack on the "old spinster" trope and it feels like a YA novel before modern YA.

I enjoyed it- it was short, I read it fast.

Shape Mismatch

I thoroughly enjoyed this read. Reading the first of Montgomery, I'm blown away by her ways of weaving words. The plot keeps the story going, and her characters are relatable. Her commentary on social justice (or the lack thereof) is amazing, it hits home, as I hail from a closely knit community of judgemental idlers.

All in all, a very enjoyable read, that I'd gladly recommend to friends.

Mae Erceg

I can see why some people may have liked this book but there was nothing about it I liked beside our MC getting her blue castle fantasy. I was so bored the whole time and found myself struggling so hard to stay focused and push through. Almost DNF’ed the book because I was over it and it sadly didn’t get better for me. I’m very glad it’s over and I don’t ever have to read this book again lol.

jenn kause

Never personally enjoyed older romance novels but this captivated me! The main character was written extremely well and overall the book had so many aspects to it: while romance, it had comedy, sadness, and the overall end towards the book was heart-wrenching. 

Definitely an amazing read if you like romance (especially without the gushy part of it), but just pure passion, friendship/companionship, and the overall feeling of someone to spend the rest of your life with.

Jaclyn

Cecilia Spencer 

The Blue Castle holds a special place in my heart as one of my favorite books. The storytelling, the emotion, and the characters are just so amazing! If I could give this more than 5 stars, I would!

Valancy Stirling ist das Gespött ihrer Familie. Weit über zwanzig und noch immer unverheiratet! Nicht mal einen Verehrer hatte sie bisher! Dann passiert etwas, das ihr Leben radikal verändert. Und Valancy fasst sich ein Herz. Sie wird sich nicht mehr an die beengenden Konventionen halten, nicht mehr zu den ermüdenden Familientreffen gehen und sich nicht mehr von Onkel Benjamin triezen lassen. Stattdessen spricht sie die Wahrheit aus. Verlässt das Haus. Sucht sich eine Anstellung. Verliebt sich. Und findet das blaue Schloss, den Zufluchtsort ihrer Tagträume, endlich im richtigen Leben. Eine mitreißende Entwicklungs- und Liebesgeschichte vor der wilden Schönheit des kanadischen Ostens.

Das Schloss in den Wolken

Jana

❤️❤️❤️ 
Ich möchte es am liebsten gleich noch einmal lesen 😍

Aleena Korell

I just love this book very dearly. It's a comedy, it's a love story, it's a cinderella-type reverse-tragedy; but above all, it's about identity and self-acceptance, and in a roundabout way, about forgiveness.

Twenty-nine year old Valancy lives a dull, restrained life with a strict, rather domineering mother and cousin and an overcritical extended family who all have the idea of her as a timid, meek, strange little creature who never says or does anything unexpected. Unmarried (considered an old maid) and with no prospects, she sees nothing in her future that would disrupt the monotony of her life.
Until she gets a diagnosis from a heart doctor that changes everything. 

Strangely, the news that she has only a year to live is freeing to Valancy, and she makes the decision to spend it truly living. To the shock of her family, and to the town, Valancy no longer censors herself-- she does and says whatever she likes. She moves out of her mother's home. She does not bend to the will of her family any longer. And she falls in love-- but all will come to reckoning when her year is up.

I love that this is about someone who is "too old" for a coming-of-age story-- someone who has been overlooked and unseen for so long that she no longer dares to hope for anything else. But she gets her "coming-of-age", or rather her "coming-of-identity" story. Valancy grows and changes and learns who she is-- someone who is worth being seen and loved and known. And in learning about herself, Valancy sees her family-- having long resented them for how they have treated her-- in a new light as well.

Also, Barney is just the sweetest. 

Gorgeous prose, an incredible sense of atmosphere (I can just see the Canadian forests changing seasons through L.M. Montgomery's descriptions), and wit along with imperfect but lovely characters-- this will always be a comfort-read. I'm graduating this one to a Favorite.

Liv Rockwell

I read this as my escapist side book. Pleasantly surprised. It's a simple story that delivers in its bits of joy, which you can tell is what are this book's intentions. 

Also learned that the flowery, child-like wonder prose that I attributed to Anne is actually just L.M. Montgomery. Another pleasant surprise that convinces me that there have been, are, and will be plenty of people who enter life insisting on wearing rose colored glasses.

Rachael 

Valancy Stirling, an inhibited twenty-nine-year-old spinster, undergoes a total personality change when a doctor tells her she has no more than one year to live. Oppressed by family and small-town prejudice, her apparently imminent death gives her the courage to assert herself and seek love.

Julie Nicole Waldvogel

This book is very highly recommended! I read the first chap lap tee and didn’t think much of it, but how wrong I was! There was wit, and funny details that made me laugh, and the ending was splendid. Read it for a book club and it was amazing!

Vera Knightly

The definitive paperback editions of L.M. Montgomery's beloved novels get a brand-new look for the next hundred years -- now with beautiful covers from renowned paper artist Elly MacKay! At twenty-nine, Valancy has never been in love, and it seems romance has passed her by. Living with her overbearing mother and meddlesome aunt, she finds her only consolations in the "forbidden" books of John Foster and her daydreams of the Blue Castle. Then a letter arrives from Dr. Trent--and Valancy decides to throw caution to the winds. For the first time in her life Valancy does and says exactly what she wants. Soon she discovers a surprising new world, full of love and adventures far beyond her most secret dreams.

karissa🌙

Ayne

univierse

The Blue Castle' is a novel full of humour and romance. It tells the story of a woman named Valency and her discovery of a new world of love and happiness. Valency escapes the clutches of her overbearing family and finds solace in her new friendships and new surroundings. This early work by L. M. Montgomery was originally published in 1926 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography. Lucy Maud Montgomery was born on 30th November 1874, New London, in the Canadian province of Prince Edward Island. Her mother, Clara Woolner (Macneil), died before Lucy reached the age of two and so she was raised by her maternal grandparents in a family of wealthy Scottish immigrants. In 1908 Montgomery produced her first full-length novel, titled 'Anne of Green Gables'. It was an instant success, and following it up with several sequels, Montgomery became a regular on the best-seller list and an international household name.

The Blue Castle

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