This was a delightful unexpected novel that blends erotic romance into a gothic horror. The story appeared to be a classic piece of dark romantic fiction, ignoring consent, until it evolved a more serious narrative of gaslighting and domestic abuse.

I would recommend this one to readers looking for a feminist smart story.

Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.

"Charles Perrault's Bluebeard gets a feminist Gothic makeover in this subversive take on the famous French fairy tale - from the filmmaker behind the cult film, The Love Witch, and for fans of Jane Eyre.

Judith is a successful novelist, but she's a little sensitive. She's from a good family, even if that family favors her more beautiful sister. She loves a drink (or 3) but isn't sure if she loves the handsome doctor who is courting her. She yearns for a romance to yield to but remains a virgin. Judith receives visions from the saints.

Then Judith meets Gavin, a handsome and charming baron, at a wedding on the Cornish coast. His love transforms her from a plain, lonely girl into a beautiful, glamorous woman overnight.

After a whirlwind honeymoon in Paris, he whisks her away to a Gothic castle in the countryside. But soon her perfect marriage begins to fall apart and she finds herself trapped in a nightmare, as her husband's mysterious nature, and his alternation of charm and violence, become more and more confusing and frightening. And then there are those whispers amongst the staff, unsettling rumors from London, and strange rattlings from the crypt...

From the visionary filmmaker of The Love Witch, this is a modern Gothic feminist take on the classic folktale Bluebeard."

This cover wins this Halloween season. There really is no other competition, I mean, look at it?

I went into this novel thinking I would be reading a twisty, subversive, modern take on the female gothic, as that's what all of the promo suggested -- that's not quite what I got, and once I reoriented my expectations, I enjoyed the book quite a bit. In BLUEBEARD'S CASTLE, Biller is't aiming to reinvent the genre as much as she is *reveling* in all that the genre has to offer and luxuriating in its camp glory. I would bet my life that Biller read a trove of VC Andrews books in her girlhood, with a healthy dose of REBECCA and JANE EYRE thrown in for flavor. Biller brings all that to bear with a stunning appreciation for the Woman's Picture, a film genre *made for* explorations of gothic modernity. The Douglas Sirk of it all is absolutely delicious, and I'd die to see it all on screen. I love that Judith is a self-aware (ish?) heroine who knows all the pitfalls of Dark Romance but also can't help falling for the first brute who calls her beautiful. Some readers might prickle at the book's ending, wherein Biller turns the narrator on the reader and chastises any judgment they might have cast on Judith; Biller does so with a wink, however...the girls who get it, get it, and the ones who don't, don't.

Enthralling and enchanting, this story is both timeless and modern. The pacing is disorienting mimicking a drunken stupor or a hysteric breakdown that helps the reader inhabit the mind of the protagonist. Overall, this is a fun read for lovers of Gothic and romantic literature.

Bluebeard’s Castle shifts between timelessness and jarring modernity. The initial meeting and rushed wedding of gothic romance writer Judith and noble’s son-turned-businessman Gavin reads like A.N. Roquelaure’s The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty or Pauline Reage’s Story of O, hypnotically sensual with flashes of violence. If not for the occasional use of internet slang, the story could just as easily be set between the 1930s to 1960s.

For women who grew up on a diet heavy with gothic influences, Biller has created a heady blend of references and homages to the works that convince women to ignore warning signs of brooding, violent, or abusive men—Rebecca, Jane Eyre, the Brontë sisters, vampire stories, and the darkest fairytales. Judith recognizes gothic tropes but still falls into the very traps she creates for her own characters. Gavin embodies the monsters she & we were raised to love.

I was familiar with Biller's stupendous film work and was curious about what her words, stripped of visuals would be like.

First of all this is very much not a book for everyone. Like Biller's script writing the book is filled with tropes and clichés, theses outright stated and is open about its themes and influences. But it's an interesting and curious work. People just don't write this anymore and brava to Biller for adhering to her unique style and for her publishers for giving her talent free-reign.

I found it a really fascinating, sad, and at times even funny work. Worth giving a shot for sure.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book!

This story was definitely an interesting ride. Given that it is advertised as a modern feminist twist on classic Gothic romance, I found myself skeptically waiting for the author to take that turn as things began to get complicated between Judith and Gavin. We follow Judith through the ups and downs of Gavin’s love bombing, gaslighting, manipulation, praise, degradation, and abuse and time and time again observe Judith’s excuses for her Phantom Lover and willingness to believe in his love for her despite the evidences of Gavin’s evil nature. I found that the story is pretty slow-paced, and that as Judith keeps crawling back to Gavin, I was waiting for bigger change to actually happen. However, as I read on I realized that the author wasn’t going for a feminist retelling that entirely switches the roles of the story but rather one that alters it’s implications. Instead of blatantly having Judith overpower Gavin or entirely change her ill fate, the author strengthens her feminist purpose by leaving the maiden archetype almost entirely the same and instead implying the message that it is no shortcoming of the woman if their husband is capable of resorting to the behavior portrayed by Gavin. I think Judith’s role as a writer of Gothic romance herself also adds some great commentary on women’s romanticism of the men in their life as a defense mechanism. Judith’s rich and romanticized life is most likely anything but relatable to readers, yet her portrayal of femininity inspires likeness with female readers. For Judith, femininity is defined by the limits, constraint, and submission that is found as naturally in Gothic romance as it is in the real female experience. Through Judith, Anna Biller presents a realistic story of “bad men and the women who love them” enriched by phantasmagoric themes.

A re-telling of the Bluebeard fairytale, Anna Biller's modern interpretation is full of her signature aesthetic and gothic vibes. Some of the plot felt a bit slow and repetitive, but I really enjoyed the atmospheric setting and the descriptions of the castle, the lavish clothing and food, gardens, etc. I would love to see this adapted into film, as Biller is a master of set design and I feel like this would be such a broody, gorgeous movie. I also wonder if a film version would showcase the campy elements better than some of the dialogue did. If you're not familiar with Biller's style, this might not be as appealing for standard horror readers.

I first became a fan of Anna Biller as an artist after seeing her film “The Love Witch.” Her sense of visual storytelling (and style) is right up my alley; everything from the set design, the costumes, the sound, the lighting (three cheers for that lighting) speak to my love of a certain kind of movie from the 60s/70s that I grew up renting from the local video store.

When I found out she’d written a novel, I was chomping at the bit to read it.

I’m delighted to say that every ounce of her style is represented in this story. Not surprisingly, she’s an extremely visual writer, and her skills as a filmmaker translate seamlessly into long form fiction. There were many moments while reading this novel that I felt as if I were living in a series of Corman/Poe, Hammer, and Dan Curtis movies and I couldn’t get enough of it.

I loved this story very much and highly recommend it anyone who loves a good mixture of gothic romance and gothic spookiness (and basks in the dark coziness of both).

I can’t wait for her next novel.

A campy modern Gothic, Bluebeard’s Castle is a modern retelling of the Bluebeard story, with a critical lens on gaslighting and believing women. Judith is the neglected daughter of a lord, a professional writer, and always in the shadow of her glamourous sister. While at a wedding of a friend, she meets Gavin, a handsome stranger who sweeps her up and they embark on a passionate love affair, which leads to a quick marriage and setting up house in a literal castle. Life is perfect! But Gavin becomes more and more controlling, and before long, Judith finds herself in a trap.

This is darkly comic, but also a really good commentary on abuse and isolation. It was dramatic - lots of swooning - but also sharp and clever. I had a good time reading it, even if it was mostly horrifying. Biller breaks the fourth wall at the end, speaking to the reader, and pokes holes in our assumptions and reactions throughout the novel. Excellently done.

Absolutely gorgeous gothic cover, I'm obsessed. This was fun and camp - it had the elements of everything I want and love so perhaps I was a little easy to please. But Anna Biller gets it, and if you don't get it then you just don't get it. Your loss.

So you take the Bluebeard story and give it a contemporary setting by way of a heroine obsessed with gothic romance tropes and 1950s Hollywood glamour and wrap it up in Anna Biller's very specific feminist philosophies revolving around catering to the male gaze and misogyny as a form of agency and empowerment, throw in some sketchy ghosts, family trauma, toxic friendships, terribly chic fashion, and salacious food porn and you have this head-scratcher of a book that you can't seem to put down even though you find this brand of feminism uncomfortable to contemplate or participate in.

This book has really slow world building and it was very hard to connect to the characters in a way that made me want finish the book. Sad, I loved the love witch!!

Gorgeous cover and interesting premise. I have enjoyed Biller's films and wondered how she would make the transition to literature, as she often works with quite artificial, stilted, and even cliche dialogue in her movies. The sumptuous visuals of her films really make the worlds she works within, and so I wondered how she might operate without them, whether the cliched elements of the work might still seem subversive or interesting in the book as they do in her movies. Unfortunately, this read as a book written by someone who has not read enough literature to know what makes a novel fresh and interesting. The cliched parts just seemed cliched. It was honestly a slog to get through. Disappointing.

I just reviewed Bluebeard's Castle by Anna Biller. #BluebeardsCastle #NetGalley I believe the story line with so much historical importance had an entertaining start but would have expected more from the Love Witch Director.

This book was like revisiting the Dirty John podcast. You feel for Judith and part of you recognizes the trap she’s in but you also knows she can see it and can’t do anything about it. Everyone in this book is terrible. I was left feeling fairly disappointed with the ending. Why? Why this and why that? Why why why?