We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

Merricat Blackwood lives on the family estate with her sister Constance and her uncle Julian. Not long ago there were seven Blackwoods—until a fatal dose of arsenic found its way into the sugar bowl one terrible night. Acquitted of the murders, Constance has returned home, where Merricat protects her from the curiousity and hostility of the villagers. Their days pass in happy isolation until cousin Charles appears. Only Merricat can see the danger, and she must act swiftly to keep Constance from his grasp.

It has been over 24 hours since I finished it and I still can't figure this book, or all it's high ratings, out.

My first reaction after finishing the book was, "What the hell?!" I have no idea what I was expecting from this book but I can tell you, I didn't get it.

First off, the book is filed under, horror, suspense and mystery on Goodreads. I don't understand how it could ever fall into those categories. There was absolutely no horror or suspense or mystery. I guess it is supposed to be a psychological thriller? I didn't see that either. Yes, there is a plethora of psychological disorders in it, ranging from agoraphobia to OCD but a thriller? No.

Secondly, there were so many threads left dangling and questions unanswered. A lot of books do this but nothing was really explained in this one. Nothing. Also, the one part that was supposed to be the shocking twist was seen from a mile away and the drama was lackluster.

We Have Always Lived let me down. I still can't say I hated it though, which is the confusing part. The one saving grace of the story was that there were a few fantastic prose throughout. They would come out of nowhere and take me by surprise.


2 out of 5 stars