In Netflix’s “A Castle for Christmas,” an American best-selling author of cheesy romantic novels tries to win a Pulitzer. Well, not exactly. Sophie Brown is trying to redefine herself. In 20 years, Sophie published 12 novels in her Emma Gale book series, which earned her fame and success. However, in her most recent novel, “Goodbye Emma Gale,” Sophie kills her most adored character, Winston. Due to its ending, she faces the wrath of a lot of unhappy fans. Will she write another novel for her former fans?
Directed by Mary Lambert, “A Castle for Christmas” is a happy-to-go romantic tale that tickles your heart and sometimes wets your eyes with emotions. For anyone looking for a holiday Christmas film, it really warms you up in those sorts of ways. The film is all about good values, the importance of spending Christmas together, and finding the voice that we tend to ignore. Let’s dig deeper.
‘A Castle for Christmas’ Plot Summary
The American author of the best-selling Emma Gale book series, Sophie Brown, decides to conclude the series and kills a prominent character. The death of a fictional character, Winston, vexes the fans, and Sophie faces outrage from her fans upon the book’s release. Sophie’s manager, Claire, convinces her to write another book to make up for the scandal.
After a drastic interview with Drew Barrymore, Sophie takes a break to avoid bad press and work on her new Emma Gale novel. She visits Scotland because her late father, Callum McGuinty, used to tell her tales of Dun Dunbar Castle when Sophie was a kid. Callum’s family worked as groundskeepers of the Dun Dunbar castle before finally moving to New York.
Sophie checks in at a village inn, The Castle Inn in Aberdeenshire, where she befriends some local folks from the knitting club. Due to her fame, Sophie is widely popular among women and quickly blends in. The following day, Sophie visits the Dun Dunbar castle and sneaks into a private room to find her father’s initials that he engraved as a kid. The current Duke of the castle, Myles, catches Sophie and asks her to leave.
Later that day, Sophie finds out that the Dun Dunbar castle is on sale and decides to buy it to preserve her father’s memories. But Myles is a hard nut to crack. Will Sophie be able to deal with an arrogant Duke and finish her new book before Christmas?
Why was Dun Dunbar castle on sale?
Myles’ father, the 11th Duke of Dunbar, wasted all the royal wealth and died alone in a hotel room in London. He only left an empty title for his son and successor. When Myles took charge of the throne, the lands had a mountain of debt, and the farmlands could be seized by the bank anytime.
The local community built their homes on these farmlands and had been tenants on Dunbar’s land for generations. If the banks seized the property, these people would become homeless. Hence, to pay off the debt on the farmlands, Myles decided to become roofless himself. He sold Dun Dunbar Castle to Sophie but under a misleading contract. Myles demanded a huge non-refundable deposit and put forth the condition that Sophie would need to spend ninety days in the castle. If she left the castle before Christmas, she would lose her deposit.
When Sophie came to live inside the castle, Myles gave her a freezing room and, in a child-like manner, conspired to make her leave. Their subtle banter soon turned into feelings that they couldn’t ignore. The love blossomed between them, but before they could cherish the new spring, Duke’s pride damaged their relationship.
‘A Castle for Christmas’ Ending Explained
Sophie’s divorce that happened last year took a toll on her emotional sanity. She was depressed and in denial. She only took a trip to Aberdeenshire to find herself in the place where her father spent his childhood. When she saw Dun Dunbar, she instantly fell in love with its vibe, ambiance, and Duke.
Initially, Sophie hated Myles more than anything. She could have murdered him if it was legal. But when she learned that Myles had sold his castle to save the local community, she couldn’t resist her charm. Myles’ etiquette and nature melted her heart, and the romance bloomed.
However, an argument on the day of Christmas separated the two love birds. Sophie, in a humble manner, asked Myles to stay with her in the Dun Dunbar castle. Myles thought she was offering him a corner as a guest in his own castle, which hurt his stubborn Dunbar ego. He accused Sophie of stealing his castle from him and asked her to leave.
Sophie’s emotional heart decided to leave Aberdeenshire on the same day, but her knitters’ club wouldn’t let her leave. On Christmas night, Myles read Sophie’s last book and had a change of heart. Myles’ father died alone in a hotel room, and he didn’t wish to have the same fate. Sophie taught him that one should spend Christmas with the people they love, but because of his arrogance, Sophie locked herself in a room in the inn. He was remorseful for his arrogant acts and thus quickly dressed up to invite Sophie to the party. Myles’ romantic gesture and a few cheesy lines melted Sophie’s heart, and the two arrived at Dun Dunbar castle like the Royal Duke and Lady. To surprise Sophie and mend her heart, Myles invited her daughter, Lexi, to make her Christmas Eve memorable.
The new romantics started living in the Dun Dunbar castle as they cherished their newfound love. Sophie even started working on a new book under a new pen name, Sophie McGuinty.
Did Sophie Complete Her Book?
The film ended on the sequence where Sophie re-visited the Drew Barrymore show after the success of her latest book, “The Heart of Warrior.” It was Sophie’s first novel in 20 years that wasn’t about Emma Gale or her cheesy love pursuits. The Heart of Warrior followed the story of the first Duchess of Dunbar, who fought bravely against the foreign enemies and ended up saving the village.
Sophie learned about her adventure from her visit to the Dun Glen Holy Well. According to Myles, legends grew around this wishing well because, before going to the battle, the first Duchess left a necklace at the edge as a symbol of courage. The locals often visited the well to pay their tributes to the brave warrior.
Myles also told Sophie that the Duchess fell in love with a commoner who fought beside her, and after the war, they both got married on Christmas Eve. They invited the whole village to the Dun Dunbar castle every year on Christmas Eve to celebrate their love and unity. Sophie, the commoner, and Myles, the royal, symbolized the characters in the legendary tale. Their romance became an inspiration for Sophie to use as material in her fictional book, The Heart of the Warrior. Myles and Sophie even carried forward the legacy of the legendary tale and invited the whole village to Dun Dunbar castle to celebrate Christmas with them.
A Castle for Christmas is a 2021 Romantic Adventure Christmas film directed by Mary Lambert. It is streaming on Netflix.
