The Blue Castle: Difference between revisions

''The Blue Castle'', by [[LM Montgomery|L.M. Montgomery]] (better known for the ''[[Anne of Green Gables]]'' and ''[[Emily of New Moon]]'' series), is the story of Valancy Stirling, a 29-year-old [[Old Maid]] whose overbearing family makes her life miserable. Her only escape is through her daydreams as the chatelaine of a beautiful blue castle. When she finds out she has a terminal form of heart disease and only a year to live, she decides to leave home and at least have some adventures before she dies. She makes friends with the town pariahs: Roaring Abel Gay, an alcoholic; his daughter Cecily, an unmarried mother dying of tuberculosis, and Barney Snaith, a rumored criminal living on an island cottage, soon to become Valancy's love interest. Rather dark by Montgomery's standards, this book is a significant exception to her usual style of light teen romance, and consequently sadly underrated.

 

* [[The Alcoholic]]: Roaring Abel, who earned his nickname because of his habit of driving around town drunk, roaring bawdy songs and swear words. Sometimes played for laughs, as he has a different "stage" of behavior according to how drunk he is.

* [[All Girls Want Bad Boys]]: Valancy is fascinated by Barney's outlaw status.

* [[Black Sheep]]: To the Stirlings, Valancy would certainly qualify, but Valancy is really more of a [[White Sheep]] to everyone else.

* [[Broken Bird]]: Oh, Cecily. First she winds up pregnant by a boy who only saw her as a summer fling, then the baby dies, and by the time of the novel she herself is dying.

* [[Celeb Crush]]: Valancy on her favorite writer, John Foster. {{spoiler|Also known as Barney Snaith.}}

* [[Changeling Fantasy]]

* [[The Makeover]]: Valancy, whose mother has been dressing her in thick layers of brown, gray and black, spends her first housekeeping wages from Roaring Abel on a short-sleeved, drop-waisted, collarless green dress and a lacy nightgown.

* [[Make Up Is Evil]]: Everyone knows Valancy is dull so thoroughly that a rumor that she wore rouge is not enough to sink her reputation, which it would have done for any other girl.

* [[Missing Mom]]: {{spoiler|Barney's mother died when he was a baby, just like Valancy's father.}} Cissy's mother died young as well.

* {{spoiler|[[Mistaken for Dying]]: Valancy's doctor, panicked by the news of his son's car accident, mixes up Valancy's letter with one to a dying old woman. She accepts the diagnosis because consulting another doctor would require telling her family (because she can't drive and Dr. Trent is the only one in walking distance) which would result in so much fuss and bother that Valancy's plans for a happy last year would be entirely spoiled.}}

* [[Not With Them for The Money]]: {{spoiler|Valancy in regards to Barney}}. Her family, not so much.

* [[Placebo Effect]]: Dr Redfern's medicines work using this effect, according to Barney.

* [[Pungeon Master]]: Uncle Benjamin, who often uses this trait to tease Valancy about her lack of a love life.

{{quote| '''Benjamin:''' "What is the difference between a young girl and an old maid?"<br />

* [[Scenery Porn]]: What else would you expect from L.M. Montgomery? Except this time it's set in Muskoka, Ontario, instead of Prince Edward Island.

* [[Secret Test of Character]]: {{spoiler|All of Barney's seemingly random questions about money ("Would you be happier if you had a million dollars?") turn out to be his way of assuring himself that Valancy is not another Ethel Traverse and does, in fact, love him for himself.}}

* [[Silent Treatment]]: Valancy's mother's preferred method of punishment.

* [[Sinister Minister]]: Dr. Stalling, but only in Valancy's eyes. Roaring Abel (and the reader) sees him as simply pompous, narrow-minded and rather stupid.

* [[The Unfavorite]]: Valancy, which is made all the more remarkable by the fact that she's ''an only child.''

* [[Victorian Novel Disease]]: Played tragically straight with Cecily.

* [[The Wonka]]: Valancy has shades of this, causing her family to think she's going crazy.

{{quote| "The greatest happiness is to sneeze when you want to."}}