Blackmoore

Sometimes, I feel like delving into a great work of Literature. I want to take my time as I turn the page of a George Eliot novel, for example, so I can really understand the intricate workings of her characters’ minds, appreciate her clever aphorisms, and contemplate the social and historical backdrop of the story.

And then, there are times I feel so checked out from reading that I would rather binge watch a whole season of Fuller House than crack open a book (I’m still reeling from that decision). There are times when I can't get a moment to myself, when the thought of trying to read Proust or Dickens while listening to Frozen for the five billionth time is beyond my mortal strength. When one of these black moods of intellectual indolence and despair befalls me, I look for a book that will keep me interested enough to look forward to reading it, but one that isn’t going to require me to keep track of too many characters, figure out complicated motives, or plow through pages of antiquated language. Julianne Donaldson’s, Blackmoore, is just that sort of book.

Blackmoore would probably be categorized as a “beach read” – it’s fun, light, and you can finish it in a weekend of dedicated reading. Donaldson freely borrows relationship motifs from Jane Austen novels (the embarrassing mother, the checked out father, the out-of-control hussy of a sister, and the imperiously disapproving potential family-to-be). She also works in a good portion of teen angst and “proper” romantic fantasies, which usually involve a lot of blushing, heart pounding, and standing too close to one another. What do most teenage girls want? Freedom from their tyrannical parents so they can make their own decisions and to be noticed, admired, nay, worshiped, by the man of their dreams. Oh, and to triumph over the more beautiful, but obviously less substantial, romantic adversary. Donaldson delivers.

Now, let’s talk about what this book is not. This is not literature with a capital “L.” There is every possibility you will grow tired of the caged bird symbolism. It is unlikely that any of the characters will surprise you. Most likely you will predict the ending. Still, if you’re not feeling stodgy and pedantic, there is every possibility that you will enjoy a trip across the moors to a grand manor, complete with secret passageways, where your most ardent and long-treasured teenage romantic fantasies will finally be fulfilled in the most proper way.