Ilse Burnley

Ilse Burnley is a fictional character in Lucy Maud Montgomery's "Emily series". She is the best friend of Emily Starr and is also a distant relation on Emily's mother's side. She lives on the other side of Lofty John's Bush and they often played together there. Emily first spoke to Ilse after she chased off some girls while they were bullying Emily. After she was betrayed by Rhoda Stuart, Ilse and Emily became best friends. Though they do have many quarrels, Ilse says that conflict just spices up a relationship, and in "Emily Climbs" their rows are considered by schoolmate (and enemy of Emily) Evelyn Blake to be a sign of the good health of their friendship.

Personality

Ilse is somewhat of a tomboy. She has a blazing temper and often has raging quarrels with her friends that she forgets about the next day. She is especially hard on Perry Miller because, as she revealed to Emily, she liked him so much that she couldn't stand for him to make a fool of himself.

Appearance

Ilse is described as a tall girl with pale-gold hair and "eyes like yellow diamonds". As she grows older she is considered very beautiful and is pursued by many young men.

Relationships

In "Emily's Quest", Ilse gets engaged to Emily's love, Teddy Kent. However, she leaves him at the altar for another one of Emily's friends, Perry Miller. Ilse and Perry get engaged the same day of Ilse's and Teddy's wedding.