A Tangled Web - L M Montgomery

I really don't understand what the good people at Hesperus were thinking when they chose these covers; they are appalling to the point of being off putting, nor do they reflect the nature of the books, it's hard to express how much I dislike them.

'The Blue Castle' is a slight but very enjoyable sort of Cinderella story, 'A Tangled Web' is something more substantial. It's also an absolute delight. It's set on Montgomery's beloved Prince Edward Island and is the story of the Dark and Penhallow family - over 3 generations 60 Darks have Married 60 Penhallow's creating a very tangled web indeed. There are all the petty feuds, grudges, alliances, friendships, loves, and scandals you might expect and all conducted under the watchful eyes of a clan that make secrets hard to keep.

Aunt Becky who is by way of being a clan matriarch (she knows all the things people would rather she forget, and is very happy to remind them - and everyone else - of just what she knows) having buried her husband and all her children is finally ready to die herself but she's got two things to do first. There is the serious business of deciding who will be left the Dark jug, and a last chance to put everyone in their places.

A clan gathering is called where we meet the family and the jug. The jug was once the property of a Harriet Dark back in England, it had been a gift from a suitor who proceeded to die at sea. In due course it travelled to Canada with Harriet's sister who broke and mended it, and in the process became a treasured heirloom with a romantic edge. Ownership clearly confers a certain honour and status on a person, and in a family so intertwined almost everyone has a claim. They're all also willing to fall out quite spectacularly over it.

Aunt Becky has her fun at the family's expense before declaring her decision won't be finally announced until a year after her death, a cousin is appointed as guardian of the jug and also adjudicator of family behaviour and then within the week Aunt Becky is gone and we can follow the affairs of the rest of the clan as they unfold.

Mostly these are centred around a trio of love affairs - the most compelling of which (for me at any rate) is between Hugh and Jocelyn; married and separated on the same day a decade ago first of all there's the suspense of finding out what went wrong and then of wondering how it will be resolved. There's also the story of Margaret, a poor relation who gets a happy ending without a man...

Generally though it's the combination of acute observation of human nature and gentle humour that make this such a joy. It's a gentle meandering sort of book which I absolutely didn't want to end with so much detail that further readings are bound to reveal more. There are so many books which I intend to read again, but only a handful that I know I'll turn to again and again - this is one of them.