A review by womangenius
O Caledonia by Elspeth Barker

reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

Extremely accurate depiction of what it's like to be an melancholy young girl who feels she doesn't fit in...but there's a lot of those books. It didn't give me much else to chew on. I would definitely have recommended this to a younger me. The moody Scottish Highlands setting was beautifully rendered, and adds to the whole Gothic affair. Definitely is a modern Gothic classic as advertised, if you are searching for such a vibe, you'll find it here (mid century modern, anyway). 

I don't understand why Janet died except in a figurative sense - the curmudgeonly old groundskeeper, symbol of old patriarchal Scottish society, snuffing out the young rebellious girl the exact moment she seizes some semblance of freedom. I can appreciate it in that sense but I'm just someone who prefers the events of a novel to also be grounded in a reality whose machinations have a logic to them, and Jim's random act of violence made no sense to me. "that's the point, killing her is as inconsequential to him as the rabbits he butchers for dinner☝️" Okay I don't care for me it's a three star book. Because it makes sense to butcher rabbits for dinner. Theyre not having Janet for dinner except metaphorically, as fodder for their endless snarking gossip.

However, I can see why it's so adored and it has a chance to grow on me if I stop worrying so much about realism.
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