When seventeen-year-old Sophia Petheram’s beloved father dies, she receives an unexpected letter. An invitation—on fine ivory paper, in bold black handwriting—from the mysterious Monsieur Bernard de Cressac, her godfather. With no money and fewer options, Sophie accepts, leaving her humble childhood home for the astonishingly lavish Wyndriven Abbey, in the heart of Mississippi.
Sophie has always longed for a comfortable life, and she finds herself both attracted to and shocked by the charm and easy manners of her overgenerous guardian. But as she begins to piece together the mystery of his past, it’s as if, thread by thread, a silken net is tightening around her. And as she gathers stories and catches whispers of his former wives—all with hair as red as her own—in the forgotten corners of the abbey, Sophie knows she’s trapped in the passion and danger of de Cressac’s intoxicating world. (From Goodreads)
I was so excited for this book. I'm partial to classic/fairytale retellings and retelling Bluebeard seemed so original to me. There were things I absolutely loved about this book, but for some reason it kind of fell short for me. I mean, it was completely enjoyable, but I probably won't revisit it.
The best part about this book was the southern gothic aspect. I loved the Abbey that somehow makes perfect sense with how out of place it is in old Mississippi. The setting is absolutely amazing. I just loved that the Abbey was brought over brick by brick from England, so the history of the Abbey combined with the history of the South just works so well.
The historical aspect is the other thing I love about this novel. It was interesting to see this dark fariry tale happening alongside things like the Underground Railroad. It was a fascinating time period, and I feel like it isn't really visited in YA lit. But in this context it was a great twist.
Sophie was a good heroine, but she wasn't anything terribly special. It might be because she's a product of her time period, but she just didn't jump off the page. She does grow through the book, but she's initially too frivolous and single-minded it got a little hard to forgive her or stay on her side later on. Her godfather, AKA Bluebeard, was way too skeevie. I know he's supposed to be, but it just got to the point where I wasn't enjoying reading his character. I will say that the tension when he's on the page is pretty great, because you just don't know how he's going to react.
The actual fairy tale retelling part was good, but it made the story predictable. I saw the major plot points coming and the things that should have been horrifying didn't seem too shocking. What made it worth it was the location, the time period, and...well, the ending. I may have placed too high of expectations on it, which is why it didn't quite live up to my hopes. I am definitely glad I read it, though, and I'm so happy that this retelling happened.
