The #KissAndLetMeTeleChat group are taking it back to the basics for the next few months, with our new Romance 101 readalong! Kicking spooky season off with a bang, we start our romance origin journey with the 1960 gothic romantic suspense novel, Mistress of Mellyn by Victoria Holt.
Check out my previous read 
From Duke Till Dawn by Eva Leigh
Genres: Gothic RomancePublisher: Reader’s Digest
Publication Date: January 1, 1960
Source: Library
Format: Audiobook/e-book
Mount Mellyn stood as proud and magnificent as she had envisioned… But what about its master–Connan TreMellyn? Was Martha Leigh’s new employer as romantic as his name sounded? As she approached the sprawling mansion towering above the cliffs of Cornwall, an odd chill of apprehension overcame her.
TreMellyn’s young daugher, Alvean, proved as spoiled and difficult as the three governesses before Martha had discovered. But it was the girl’s father whose cool, arrogant demeanor unleashed unfamiliar sensations and turmoil–even as whispers of past tragedy and present danger begin to insinuate themselves into Martha’s life.
Powerless against her growing desire for the enigmatic Connan, she is drawn deeper into family secrets–as passion overpowers reason, sending her head and heart spinning. But though evil lurks in the shadows, so does love–and the freedom to find a golden promise forever…
“We are born, we suffer, we love, we die, but the waves continue to beat upon the rocks; the seed time and the harvest come and go, but the earth remains.”
I think this is the oldest romance novel I’ve read willingly that wasn’t school related, and honestly I was okay with it? I went into this book with low expectations because I usually don’t love love goth-centric novels (sorry Poe); but this story actually worked for me in the weirdest ways. Like I wasn’t mad at it, but I also didn’t love it? I’m in the middle.
Holt really dived deep with the goth aesthetic, and really excels in creating this eerie and brooding atmosphere/setting. The mystery of the story takes center stage throughout the novel that I would argue this shouldn’t be considered a romantic suspense novel but rather a gothic mystery novel with a small undertone of a romance subplot.
Holt does give us a strong female main character, who I didn’t mind in the slightest. Martha is a woman down on her luck and takes up the position of governess, but finds herself caught in a haunted home where things aren’t what they appear to be. I wanted more chemistry and moments between our MMC and FMC (hence why I don’t think it’s a romance). The pacing was a bit slow for the majority of the novel due to just so many descriptions and inner dialogue, but if you read through the audiobook at 2.5-3x speed, it isn’t that bad.
All in all, Mistress of Mellyn was a decent read but not something I would read again (and if I’m honest I probably will forget the entire plot in a few days). If you are into gothic mysteries with a subtle undertone of romance, this might be a better fit for you than it was for me.
This sounds a bit like Jane Eyre, one of my favourites! Maybe that was an inspiration?