The Blue Castle by Lucy Maud Montgomery revolves around fate of a young lady Valancy; her experience, her relationship with families, societies and men, her love life and her later fortune. The novel, exposes one to the realities of fate, how it shapes one's ideology, decision making and acceptance or rejection of fate.
The novel shows a lady called Valancy who is being seen as a non existing being in her family even in her community. The only thing that makes her significant a little bit is her surname “STIRLINGS” because her family is a well known family in Deerwood.

Valancy STIRLINGS is a twenty nine years old lady and she is unmarried, in her community the unmarried are referred to as ‘those who have failed to get a man'. Deerwood and the STIRLINGS have relegated Valancy to hopeless old maidenhood. However, Valancy is never bothered about this because she has seen the marriage of her so called family and never wish for any of their marriages. But the only thing that always cause her pain and tears is that no man has ever sought her out, no man desires her also she never has the chance to be anything but an old maid. She lost her father at a tender age and her mother doesn’t really care about her but cares about what people have to say whenever Valancy makes mistake, this makes her mother to be strict on her, she ensures that Valancy doesn’t do anything that will bring shame to her. Even when the family talk bad and make jest of valancy, her mother never stand up for her daughter.

Valancy’s life is always dictated by her family (Aunt Wellington, cousin Stickles, uncle Wellington, uncle Benjamin, uncle Herbert, aunt Alberta, uncle James, aunty Isabel, cousin Georgiana, aunt Mildred and cousin Cecil and Olive in which valancy is envious of because she is beautiful, bold and has a lot of suitors and free to do whatever she wants) this set of people always dictate what Valancy should do, what to wear, how to behave, how to eat, how to style her hair, every single thing about her life. Valancy always adhere and act according to what her family tells her to do. The only place she finds solace and happiness is in her imaginary blue castle which she created and John Foster’s books.
However, Valancy realises that she is dying, she always feel a tight grip on her heart and decides to see a doctor, she makes her first decision by not using the family doctor (Dr Ambrose) and goes against her family rules by seeing Dr Trent, a blunt and straightforward man whom the STIRLINGS dislike.

Valancy decides to see Dr Trent so as to know what is wrong with her heart, getting there, the man keeps looking at her surprisingly because she is a Stirling and he isn’t expecting her at his clinic. After examining Valancy and is about to give her the outcome of her health, he gets a call that his son is involved in an accident so he has to rush out leaving Valancy without telling her what is wrong with her. Immediately, Valancy regrets her action of coming to see Dr Trent.

After some days, Valancy gets a letter from Dr trent about her condition, she discovers that she had a dangerous and fatal form of heart disease- Angina pectoris with an aneurisms and it is in the last stage, in which she has just 1year to live and could die at anytime. Valancy is devastated, she thought about her life, how she was denied everything, how she can’t do anything she wants without getting criticized, how Olive always get everything without even trying and she makes a decision that she’s not going to tell her family not even her mother and never to let her family rule her life anymore, she’s going to go against them in every way and she is going to please herself.

Uncle Herbert and aunt Alberta decide to celebrate their silver wedding anniversary and this means the gathering of the whole STIRLINGS. Valancy prepares for the night party by changing the way her family want her to style her hair, before the party her mother and cousin stickler has already noticed some changes in Valancy and her mother was praying that her daughter won’t embarrassed her but her prayer was never answered because Valancy talked down and abused every members of her family in the party which left them so shocked, they all concluded that valancy is crazy. Valancy left the party in a hurry so that her family will not know that she had to deal with another attack coming from her heart. Getting home, Valancy is very happy with the outcome of the dinner and she is very pleased with herself.

Old Abel Gay and Bernard Snaith are seen as the troublemakers in Deerwood, these two are friends with huge age difference but they get along well. They are not recognize in the community and they are being treated as non existent, dirty, uncultured beings, they are called names but it never bulge them. Old Abel Gay has a daughter named Cissy Gay, Cissy Gay is a beautiful, sweet and gentle soul, she is a reserved being that knows God but she left Deerwood and came back home being pregnant out of wedlock and without the baby’s father the whole community shun her and mock her but she determines to have the baby but the boy died and Cissy fell ill. No one to take of her except for her father and Bernard Snaith which are not enough to look after her, most of the nurses employed to look after her don’t do a good job. Valancy knew about Cissy but can’t help her because she was also under the shackles of her family. After gaining her independence, she decides to leave the house and thought of Cissy and decides to look after Cissy because she was the only girl who likes valancy and always talk to her before her illness. Old Abel Gay decides to accept valancy to look after Cissy and will pay her which happens to be the first money valancy will earn in her entire life. Valancy left her house to take care of Cissy, her mother was against it but she doesn’t care. The whole family decide to talk to valancy but they were scared to go to old Abel Gay house, uncle james summon the courage to go to the house and talk to valancy but it doesn’t have any effect on valancy. They decided to involve the Dr stalling of their church to talk to valancy, she Is always scared of Dr stalling right from her childhood. Dr stalling saw valancy at old Abel Gay house and valancy is scared of him and knows that she can’t disobey him because he has this spell on her whichh she doesn’t know how she always obey the man, as the man was talking valancy almost accept to go back home but she overcame her fear by remembering what her favourite author John foster’s word about fear, immediately, she told Dr stalling that she’s not going anywhere.

Valancy is so happy with herself, she can do whatever she wants and thanks her sickness for being the reason why she can leave the way she wants now, she has started to have some feelings for Bernard Snaith but the man never look her way. After some months, Cissy Gay dies, this gives Valancy a mixed feelings, she becomes heartbroken but thankful at the same time, because she has the opportunity to spend some quality time with Cissy and to know her story.

 Valancy doesn’t want to go back home but she has no where to go, so she proposes marriage to Bernard Snaith, she tells him everything about her heart disease and doesn’t want to go back home. She only needs somewhere to stay until she dies. Bernard accepts to marry her and they go to the court to sign their marriage certificate. Valancy knew her family will flare-up and probably disown her but she doesn’t care.

Bernard Snaith’s house was on the other side of the Deerwood, getting there, Valancy is astound to see Bernard Snaith’s house which looks exactly like her blue castle, she becomes so happy with her decision living beside the sea with a lot of trees. Valancy goes back home to inform her family that she’s a married woman now, her family was angry with her decision because Bernard has criminal records and he’s not meant for Valancy but Valancy doesn’t care. All the members of her family tries to talk her out of it, even Olive, but she ignores them. She’s married and loves everything about her new home which is enough for her.

She lives happily with Bernard and on the island, she has the whole island to herself living the life of her dream even though she knew that Bernard doesn’t like her. One day, Bernard and Valancy decides to explore the town and to get some things, they are around the rail station and are to step across through the switch, they have enough time to walk through the rail before the train surface, Bernard in the front and Valancy walking behind him all of a sudden, Valancy’s heel is caught in a crevice of the switch and she couldn’t pull it out, she calls Barney to help her and the train is almost closing in on them, Valancy is trying to push Bernard out and telling him to leave her alone that he can’t die with her but Bernard will never hear any of that and continue cutting the heel lace, fortunately, he is able to do it and rescue her on time. Valancy realizes that nothing happen to her or her heart because Dr Trent told her that any excitement or serious issue will be very fatal for her heart but nothing of such happen to her at that moment. She was so confused even Bernard was looking at her stupidly. They left the station without talking to themselves, Bernard locks himself in the room that is forbidden to Valancy, he leaves the house very early and Valancy never hears anything from him.

She decides to go to Dr Trent, on getting there, she shows Dr Trent the letter she got from him and the doctor is surprised that the letter was a mixed up, the letter given to her is for one old miss Jane sterling. The doctor apologies for the mix-up and tells her that her illness is not severe at all, with appropriate drugs she will be fine. Valancy is not happy with the outcome, she knew that Bernard will not forgive her and will think she had trick him in getting married to her. She decides to leave his house and go back to her family. On her way home, she sees a man looking so wealthy in a good car, the man approaches her and tells her that he is Bernard’s father which happens to be the great and wealthy doctor, Mr Redfern. Valancy tells him that Bernard hasn't come home since last night and let him look around the house. The man tells Valancy everything about Bernard that the rumor of him being a criminal is not real but Bernard left home because the lady he loves so much broke his heart and Mr Redfern wants Bernard to come back home. Mr Redfern promise to come back the following day maybe Bernard will be back by then.

Valancy is not happy with the news, she realises that Bernard can't love her because he has another lady and she too has messed everything up. she decides to leave the place before Bernard comes back, she starts to look around the house for a pen and book to let Bernard know about his father, while looking for all this, she unconsciously enter the forbidden room and find out that the room is different from what she has been assuming, she sees different books and realises that Bernard is John Foster. she writes to Bernard, she explains everything about her health and apologize, she told him about his father and told him that she has gone back home. Getting home, Valancy sees her mother and tells her that she's back home and will stay with her, her mother, cousin Stickler and uncle Benjamin is surprised to see her, she tells them about Bernard being the son of the famous Mr Redfern and he's a writer (John Foster), the whole family becomes so surprised by the huge jackpot, even Olive begins to feel jealous of her cousin.

Valancy isn't really paying attention to her family reaction, she goes inside her room and locks herself up. After some days, Bernard shows up at Valancy house and uncle Benjamin ushers him in with so much joy and great respect for him which was never like that before. Valancy comes to the room and sees Bernard, Bernard holds her and explain everything about his family, that he is truly the son of the famous Mr Redfern but he is being bully by his friends and his school mates because of the drugs his father produce but he has to endure it until he met Ethel traverse, he was so much in love with her and thought she did too, not until one day he caught her and her friends talking about him that she's with Bernard because of his money and she had nothing to do with him because he smells like his father's drug. Valancy is so filled with compassion for him and forget about her own problem and hugs him. Bernard tells her that he loves her and that's why he left home to gather his thoughts. Valancy is shocked with this confession because she isn't expecting him to fall for her. They reconcile and begin their love life afresh and travel around the world together.

The novel is enriched with the following, but not limited, themes: relationship, overcoming fear, the power of knowledge, modernization and failure of modernization, etcetera.

The Blue Castle by Lucy Maud Montgomery is a great text which will enable the reader to navigate into different phases of life.

© Oluwatoyin AJAYI, 2023.