Review: We Have Always Lived in the Castle

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was Shirley Jackson's last book. In it she creates two very weird characters: Constance and Merricat. Naturally, they are creepy, as are their circumstances in life. Jackson wields all of her favorite blunt instruments of creepy -- evil townspeople, blood lust, greed, mental illness and persecution of the innocent. She had a real knack for shining a light into the darkest corners of humanity while keeping the circumstances surrounding this almost droll.
Phrases like this are spoken while buying a loaf of bread: "I wished they were dead. I was never sorry when I had thoughts like this, I only wished they'd come true."

This is a quick and easy read and a diverting tale. Because I favor relatable fiction, even very old, relatable fiction, I can't rate this as a favorite. However, Ms. Jackson's pen perverts the standard storyline so thoroughly, all while revealing (with distinction!) the many gnarled hearts you'd never want to love, that I must tip my hat to this empress of the perverse. Well done, well done.

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