The Blue Castle by L.M. Montgomery (★★★★★)
Audiobook • Hoopla • Fiction • 1926
Short synopsis: Unmarried and stifled by her oppressive family, Valancy Stirling, upon receiving shocking news, breaks free to embrace love, adventure, and a life beyond her wildest dreams.
As many of you already know, this was our book selection for this round of the Cool Blogger’s Book Club, run by NGS. I was looking forward to reading another L.M. Montgomery book. Anne of Green Gables is my all-time favorite book (so much so that I’m collecting as many different editions of the book as I can!), but I read Emily of New Moon by Montgomery and hated it. (It does not hold up well; there are some very problematic plotlines!) I was curious how I would feel about this book. Good news – I absolutely loved it. Valancy was a perfect character. She was relatable, funny, sweet, and everything I want in a main character. I wanted the best things for her, and I definitely wanted her to get away from her vile family that didn’t treat her right. This book had a great pace and such a sweet love story. I really like how the author showed how the love between Valancy and Barney grew slowly, especially from Barney’s perspective. It wasn’t insta-love, but rather two people getting to know one another and realizing a deep, abiding love between them. What a great pick for the CBBC!
The Lost Story by Meg Shaffer (★★★★★)
Audiobook • Spotify • Fantasy • 2024
Short synopsis: Fifteen years after mysteriously vanishing and reappearing in a West Virginia forest, Jeremy Cox—now a renowned missing persons investigator—and his reclusive childhood friend Rafe Howell must return to the magical realm that once held them captive to find a missing woman and confront the buried secrets of their past.
Another book club pick, this time for my in-person book club! I’ll be honest: I wasn’t super thrilled that this book was the one that got picked because magical realism isn’t something I normally love in books. However, I am here to eat my words because I couldn’t get enough of this sweet fantasy story! From the moment the book started, I was immediately drawn into the world of Jeremy and Rafe and couldn’t wait to discover how the magical realm fit into the plot. All of the characters were so well-drawn and easy to root for, and I was really curious how this book would end. Would Jeremy and Rafe stay in their magical world forever, or would they rejoin the real world again? There were parts of the middle of the novel that felt a little slow and meandering, but the story quickly picked up and I found myself so happy with the way things wrapped up. If you’re looking for a book that will take you away from the realities of today’s dark world, pick this one up!
The Favorites by Layne Fargo (★★★★★)
Print • Owned (Book of the Month) • Contemporary Fiction • 2025
Short synopsis: An epic love story set in the sparkling, savage sphere of elite figure skating about a woman determined to carve her own path on and off the ice.
This book was sensational! It took me a while to get through (17 days!) but that’s not because it was a bad book. It was just very dramatic and I had to be in the right mood to pick it up. I love any book that gives me an inside look at the sports world, and this one was about two ice dancers who had an on-again, off-again relationship on and off the ice. Katarina Shaw is a complicated figure (let’s just say if you didn’t love Carrie Soto in Carrie Soto Is Back, you won’t like Katarina), but unlikable women in sports is like catnip for me. GIMME. There is so much going on in this book; it is part memoir from Katarina’s point of view and part transcripts from an unauthorized documentary. It’s a book filled with scandal and heartbreak and excellent ice dancing scenes (I am so mad I can’t look up some of these routines on Youtube; I had to settle with rewatching Tessa Virtue/Scott Moir routines, ha). There is complicated female friendship, competitiveness at the highest level, and sketchy Russians. This is not a book I’d recommend to everyone, but it worked so well for me. (4.5 stars, rounded up to 5)
What are you reading?
Wow, three five star reads! That’s amazing. It almost never happens (to me, anyway).
I’m reading The Woman Who Stole My Life and it’s excellent. I can’t believe I’ve never read anything by this author before (Marian Keyes). I’m going to look up her whole catalogue, she has a lot of books!
It was a really good reading week for me, that’s for sure! I didn’t even realize how great it had been until I sat down to write this post. <3
Three five-star reads! Wow! You are on a roll!
It’s been a good run so far – hoping I can keep it up!
I need some of that 5 star read mojo over here, Stephany! I’m glad everyone liked The Blue Castle. Now I have to come up with another book that people will enjoy just as much.
I am being VERY careful about the books I select because of where my headspace is at these days, so I think that helps. I’m so glad The Blue Castle was such a hit with everyone!
I also loved The Blue Castle and gave it 5 stars!! I did not like The Favorites as much but the dramatics got old for me. I loved Carrie Soto so I can like a difficult-to-like athlete but this was just a bit too melodramatic for me AND IT WAS SO DANG LONG!!!
I’m currently reading “A Great Country” by Shilpi Somaya Gowda – she wrote the book “The Secret Daughter” which I loved. This book tackles a lot of issues so I am curious to see if the author can land the plane or not…
It was a very long book – it took me forever to read it. And it was not one I always WANTED to pick up because I was like, “What new drama is going to happen NOW?!” But looking back, I really loved the way the author told the story and the ending was perfect.
I think I read The Secret Daughter – I remember liking it. Fingers crossed this one works for you!
Aww yay! I am glad The Blue Castle was a hit for you!
Also yay for a magical realism hit! I have not found one that I like yet but think it’s such a cool concept.
I am reading The Marriage Act and listening to Saving Noah.
I almost started The Marriage Act but the premise felt too real for me right now, lolllll.
I also loved The Blue Castle! I haven’t read the other two you mention, but they both sounds like something I’d like.
I’m so glad everyone loved The Blue Castle so much! Yay CBBC!
I am rereading TBC – missed book club because of…stuff – and loving it. CBBC has sent me down a rabbit hole of ordering all of the other L.M. Montgomery books that I had as a child/teen and somehow inexplicably got rid of in the intervening years. I blame multiple moves + “decluttering”. Sigh. So now I can embark on rereads of other favorites – Jane of Lantern Hill, Kilmeny of the Orchard, Story Girl… 🙂 You had an AMAZING reading week. I’m sure it was very welcome after past not-so-fabulous weeks.
Ohhhh two books I am interested in. One (blue castle) I have read. Interesting. Will put them on my TBR. Thank you.