Customer Reviews

The Ladies of Missalonghi

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

I loved this book when I first read it. I found it funny and refreshing. In fact, I replaced my paperback copy with a hardcover copy. Then I read "The Blue Castle" by L.M. Montgomery, the auther of "Anne of Green Gables". That's when I discovered that "The Ladies of Missalonghi" is nothing but a rewrite of another book! It is more than just similar plotlines which often occurs in the Romance genre. It really is a knock-off of Montgomery's book which was first copyrighted in 1926. I was so disappointed that I now rate this book a 1 (the worst)

Very short, reads fast, makes you laugh. A feminist social satire set in the early 1900 somewhere in Australia. It's the story of Missy, a poor and put-upon spinster living under the autocratic tyranny of the male members of the family. She seems destined to a life of misery till a cousin, recently divorced (delicious scandal!!) arrives in town and sets the 'gentlemen' in their place with a scheme that leaves the women in the story and the readers of the book richer for the experience in every way.
Very witty and very wonderful.

Missy Wright, a dull little brown wren of a spinster (thirty-three) lives an impoverished life with her mother and aunt. Members of a the Hurlingford dynasty, these three women and several others of their aunts and cousins have been forced into hard times, due to the greed of,mainly, the Hurlingford Men.

Missy dares to dream of romance, and with the help of the assistant librarian, she begins to plot to "catch and marry" John Smith, a newcomer to Austalia's Blue Mountains. After Missy overhears her self-centered, about to be married cousin, Alicia, describe Missy, her mother and aunt in the most deprecating terms, Missy develops a backbone she thought she would never have. An unexplained illness takes Missy to a doctor and there, she devises the plan that will help her catch the elusive John Smith. In the meantime, a mysterious stranger has been buying shares in the Byron Bottling Company, creating havoc among the Hurlingfords. Una, the assistant librarian, helps Missy to develop her plan to wed Mr. Smith. After much persistence, Missy and John Smith are wed. It is only as the story unfolds in its delightful manner that it becomes known that John Smith is the majorty stock holder of the Byron Bottling Company, and in an unexpected twist, it becomes exceedingly clear who Una is, or was. Reading this book is as though you are watching a beautifully-done Technicolor film..in your mind, thought and heart.The characters are brought to life with the time-honored descriptive writing of Miss McCullough. This book can be read, and re-read, always finding a new thought, and a new way to believe that fairy tales and dreams can come true.

Colleen McCullough is known for long and winding novels like "The Thorn Birds," so I was surprised at the light touch in this story. It reminds me a bit of "Persuasion," by Jane Austen, but with an inimitable stamp of Australian life. McCullough really makes the charm and deceptive quiet of the Blue Mountains region - still beautiful and aloof from nearby Sydney today - come to life, and her plucky heroine is easy to like.

I read this years ago and could not believe how the author dared to steal the plot from LM Montgomery's The Blue Castle. Ripoff!!!

After reading the reviews below, I had to revisit The Ladies of Missalonghi. Though I've read it a couple of times before I had to examine it in a new light and compare it to the Blue Castle by Montgomery. It has a lot of the same plot elements of The Blue Castle, yet I still find The Ladies of Missalonghi to be more appealing. McCullough's novel is less melodramatic, the characters are more appealing, and the coincidences less contrived. The Blue Castle might appeal more to a young adult, but as an older reader I found the social themes, the physical relationship, and the family interactions more interesting in The Ladies of Missalonghi. Don't let the other reviews put you off, this is a very pleasant story that I still enjoy. Read both and decide for yourself.

I am at a loss as to what to say about this charming book. It was a lovely and engaging read. I gave copies to my mother and my sister, and thought happy thoughts about it. Well, I just read The Blue Castle by LM Montgomery and guess what? The Ladies of Missalonghi is A TOTAL RIP! What was this respected and talented author THINKING? I really don't understand what happened or why, but TLoM is...it's....it's.....an unalloyed rip-off The Blue Castle in EVERY way. I am going to assume the best and decide that it was intended as an homage. Any other conclusion is unthinkable. The book is great. But I recommend the original and not this re-write, after all credit should rest with the real author: the immortal LM Montgomery.

I read this book after reading the Thorn Birds, hoping that another book by the same author would be as enjoyable. I was thoroughly disappointed though. It had none of the magic that the Thorn Birds had, it was just another romantic story with a sappy happy ending. It wasn't even extremely enjoyable, it didn't grab you or fascinate you or pull you along with it. I couldn't believe the author of such a great book as The Thorn Birds could write such an uninteresting story. I only kept reading it because I hoped it would get better. It didn't. To make matters worse, it wasn't even realistic. It included a "ghost", which is an easy way to avoid reality and patch things up perfectly in a book. I would not recommend this book to anyone who enjoyed The Thorn Birds.

This is the charming of tale of Missy and her sudden realization that there is more to life than penny-pinching, rationing, and wearing brown. The ending was a little weird and almost discredited the rest of the book. But if you overlook that, this is a nice little book.

I read this book when I was about 18 and enjoyed it.

Then I read the Blue Castle, recognized instantly that this was patent plagiarism, and have since written McCullough off as a hack.

What kind of an author lifts a plot--not just the rough idea, but the complete, whole plot right down to the characterization? The heroines of both books even detest oatmeal, but are forced to eat it! Nearly every detail of the Ladies mirrors the story in Blue Castle. The Blue Castle is much better, and L.M. Montgomery deserves all the credit for the story.