Marilla of Green Gables by Sarah McCoy #bookreview #tarheelreader #thrmarilla @sarahmmccoy @wmmorrowbooks #marillaofgreengables

Happy Tuesday! Today I have a review of a book I’m super excited about, Marilla of Green Gables, written by Sarah McCoy and publishing today by William Morrow Books! If you are an Anne of Green Gables fan, you’ll definitely want to read this review!

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My Thoughts:

Marilla of Green Gables is a beauty Anne of Green Gables fans will not want to miss! 

Marilla Cuthbert’s life prior to Anne begins when she is thirteen years old. Her mother has passed away, and she is now responsible for all the “wife’s” duties on the farm, growing up overnight. Also helping her is her beloved brother, Matthew, and her father, Hugh. 

Set in charming Prince Edward Island during the 19th century, Marilla of Green Gables is an imagined version of what her life may have been like.  

The town we all know and love, Avonlea, sparkles just as much as it did with Anne. While there are limits for the life of a farm girl, Marilla has a connection outside of Avonlea to her Aunt Izzy who is a “spinster” and seamstress living in a city. It is through her aunt that Marilla learns about life outside of Green Gables, and she makes friends. 

Of course there is a little romance with another farmer, and Marilla is busy delving into a world of politics and even abolition. Just where will Marilla land in her adult life? The safe, expected life at Green Gables, or in a much more wordlier life outside?

McCoy’s writing is lyrical, and it made me long for the nostalgia of reading Anne of Green Gables as a child. There is quality backstory here that adds to our understanding of Anne’s stories. It is like all the dots were connected in a beautiful way! 

If you are a fan of Anne, you will be charmed by Marilla’s imagined life! I wonder if McCoy will take on another Green Gables character!

Thank you to William Morrow for the physical copy. All opinions are my own. 

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Synopsis:

“Prepare to meet Marilla, a captivating heroine who will transport you back to the treasured world of Anne of Green Gables. Rich in historical detail, this charming novel vividly explores love, loss, friendship, and the coming-to-self of a girl on the cusp of womanhood.”
―Sue Monk Kidd, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Secret Life of Bees and Oprah’s Book Club 2.0 pick for The Invention of Wings

A bold, heartfelt tale of life at Green Gables . . . before Anne: A marvelously entertaining and moving historical novel, set in rural Prince Edward Island in the nineteenth century, that imagines the young life of spinster Marilla Cuthbert, and the choices that will open her life to the possibility of heartbreak—and unimaginable greatness

Plucky and ambitious, Marilla Cuthbert is thirteen years old when her world is turned upside down. Her beloved mother has dies in childbirth, and Marilla suddenly must bear the responsibilities of a farm wife: cooking, sewing, keeping house, and overseeing the day-to-day life of Green Gables with her brother, Matthew and father, Hugh.

In Avonlea—a small, tight-knit farming town on a remote island—life holds few options for farm girls. Her one connection to the wider world is Aunt Elizabeth “Izzy” Johnson, her mother’s sister, who managed to escape from Avonlea to the bustling city of St. Catharines. An opinionated spinster, Aunt Izzy’s talent as a seamstress has allowed her to build a thriving business and make her own way in the world.

Emboldened by her aunt, Marilla dares to venture beyond the safety of Green Gables and discovers new friends and new opportunities. Joining the Ladies Aid Society, she raises funds for an orphanage run by the Sisters of Charity in nearby Nova Scotia that secretly serves as a way station for runaway slaves from America. Her budding romance with John Blythe, the charming son of a neighbor, offers her a possibility of future happiness—Marilla is in no rush to trade one farm life for another. She soon finds herself caught up in the dangerous work of politics, and abolition—jeopardizing all she cherishes, including her bond with her dearest John Blythe. Now Marilla must face a reckoning between her dreams of making a difference in the wider world and the small-town reality of life at Green Gables.

“Sarah McCoy has given readers a precious gift: the opportunity to step back into the world of Avonlea, and the chance to get to know Marilla Cuthbert as a leading lady in her own right. In McCoy’s skillful and sensitive hands, Marilla emerges as a heroine of depth, complexity, and heart. I savored my time with this cast of old friends, enjoying the dilemma of whether to speed through these compelling pages or to pause and relish everything about the lovely world imagined within them.”
―Allison Pataki, New York Times bestselling author of Beauty in the Broken Places and SisI

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Have you read Marilla of Green Gables, or is it on your TBR? Are you an Anne of Green Gables fan? Happy Reading! ~ Jennifer THR

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Just for fun, a pic of the Puffin Classics edition of Anne of Green Gables I bought due to my excitement about Marilla’s books! ♥️