A review by ceallaighsbooks
The Manor House Governess by C.A. Castle

emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

“In the in-between space of novels he found solace, his own boarding school life reflected in one particular work. He’d followed their trajectories with a prophetic eagerness, the works of great writers a crystal ball through which his own future was revealed, with its big country houses and the always brooding men. England and its green.”
AUTHOR—CA Castle
AUDIOBOOK NARRATOR—Cloud Quinn
PUBLISHED—2023
PUBLISHER—Alcove Press

GENRE—contemporary queer gothic genre fiction—Jane Eyre retelling with very strong Turn of the Screw, Pride & Prejudice, Northanger Abbey etc. vibes…
SETTING—modern day in a fictional historic country house in Cambridgeshire, England + flashbacks to a fictional boys’ boarding school
MAIN THEMES/SUBJECTS—genderfluid MC, precocious child character, orphans, boarding school, governess/tutor position at an English country house, privilege & queer presentation, the falseness of the cis-queer vs trans-queer dichotomy, classism, family secrets & drama, forgiveness & learning from our mistakes, gothic literature & the heritage of women writers, self-mythology & how we conceptualize identity

Blurbs:
“A queer, atmospheric reimagining of the classic English gothic novel, paying homage to writers like E M Forster and Charlotte Bronte while also bringing a modern sensibility and contemporary spin. In turns spooky, funny, and romantic…” —Mackenzi Lee, author of Stonewall Honor book and New York Times bestseller The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue

My thoughts:
PREMISE—★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Loved it.
EXECUTION—★ ★ ★ ★ Selfishlyyy I wanted a whole lot more just because I am *starved* for this sort of thing but other than that I thought it was excellent.
AUDIOBOOK NARRATION—★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 😘👌🏻

Bridgerton WHO?? (well, bar one very frustrating caveat 🫠) Castle has recreated the vibes of Jane Eyre & the angst of Pride & Prejudice in the modern world with a genderfluid femme-presenting gay man as the absolutely precious, lovable, devastatingly relatable MC who combines the traits of both Jane Eyre & Lizzie Bennett (with a little Virginia Woolf thrown in for good measure) in *the* most satisfying way.

WRITING STYLE—★ ★ ★ .5 perhaps a bit less literary than I expected or would have liked… but the content made up for it
CHARACTERS—★ ★ ★ ★ maybe a tiny bit less complex than I think they could have been but a) I think that was in service to the expectations of the genre (i.e. we had to have our tropes) & b) the characters’ dynamics with each other was *mwah*
STORY/PLOT—★ ★ ★ ★ somewhattt predictable due to the nature of the genre(gothic/romance/retelling, etc.) but interesting & engaging nonetheless

“…he held back from saying anything, sensing with a fluster that the locket could be useful to him at a later date, a clue in the manor’s slowly unfurling mystery. For it was inevitable that in every great house there was a family, and in every great family there was a secret, and only time would reveal it.”

BONUS ELEMENT/S—absolutely *loved* to find a genderfluid MC in this genre & the dynamics between the characters & the romance storyline was very satisfying for me personally as a trans person who has always loved & found a bit of themselves in this genre too.

PHILOSOPHY—Queer inclusivity & acceptance of folks’ autonomous right to self-identify, acknowledgement of the role of privilege & socioculturally systemic classism play in our everyday lives, letting folks & ourselves grow & learn from their/our mistakes, forgiveness, & some found family themes… *mwah* 😙🤌🏻

I would absolutely recommend this book to fans of Jane Eyre, Jane Austen (esp Pride & Prejudice & Northanger Abbey), & just general gothic romance fiction, especially with queer themes. This book is best read on audiobook at 2x speed. I found it to be a tiny bit slow otherwise… It is written in a sort of classic lit + contemporary lit style so at times it feels a bit disjointed simply due to the fact that it’s a bit new & unfamiliar & trends strongly towards genre fiction rather than literary fiction. Which are all good things! it just took me a minute to acclimate myself.

Final note: I would LOVE to see what Castle would do with these characters & themes set in the Georgian period. Totally get why he didn’t for this project but for sheer curiosity (& angst!) I would loveee to see it. SO grateful to him for writing something SO desperately needed in this genre.

“You have such a sentimental view of who I am, and you’re wrong to think it. Other people’s opinions—they do alter me. They alter me immensely. Who I am is conditioned by what other people think I should or should not be. Those torments you speak of? I know them. And those questions you asked yourself—I ask them still. I’m not brave, or anything of the sort. I’m as brave as the leopard that walks out into the world with its spots proudly on display—just doing what is necessary in order to survive, and incapable of enduring the pain that comes with being anybody else.”

★ ★ ★ ★ .75

CW // some painful moments of homo-&transphobia, bullying, animal death (not the dog), death of a parent (cancer)
Spice: 🌶️ (😩 robbed, we were! robbed!!)
Season: Fall
Music pairing: Chopin “Piano Concerto No. 1: Mvmt. 2,” Dario Marianelli & other Austen & Brontë screen adaptation soundtracks…

Further Reading—
Bron’s Bookshelf:
Additional titles:

Check out my review on StopAndSmellTheBooks.com for a selection of my favorite quotes.