I was so excited about this book after it was compared to Bridgerton and ACOTAR, but it just wasn’t for me. Nothing personal. It was a bit too strange for me to be able to picture and the chemistry didn’t do it for me between the main characters.

This gorgeously written fantasy romance was amazing. It was absolutely lovely! There are so many fantasy books in the market nowadays, but this one stands out from the rest. I have been craving a book like this for years. Think early Sarah J Maas or "Poison Study.' Every phrase was poetry, and the descriptions were so vivid is was like I was there with the characters.
This book was everything I had been wanting and missing. Excellent dialogue, solid world building, an independent, likeable heroine, romance. I just savored each page and was very sorry when it ended. I will definitely be buying this book in print! TEN STARS!

I was... disappointed by this one. I've liked Claire's other books, but this one fell a little flat for me. The characters were nice, but I never really felt connected or like they had depth. The pacing was I think the biggest catch for me, it was inconsistent and very jumpy. For being an adult debut, I think I expected the writing style to be different from her YA books, and it just wasn't. It felt like I was reading another YA book from her, which was also disappointing, as I was looking forward to see how her writing would change with an adult book. Overall, it was good, but just not quite enough umph to push it over into fantastic.

Imogene (Gemma) is the daughter of a magical elite family that is feuding with another magical family. This requires all of her father's focus, which is why he and her sisters have no time for her. She does not have magic, and in fact it's use is physically painful to her. Rather than hiding away somewhere and living a happy non-magic life, she collects gowns and throws frivolous balls, causing horrible panic attacks and self harm. When a mysterious stranger from a far away land arrives who can numb her panic, Gemma ignores warnings from her best friend and faithful servant about him and throws herself headlong into a relationship based on deception and betrayal.
Pieces of the lore of this book were really fascinating, especially those about the mist, and the Rose Wardens who guard humanity from the creatures of the mist. Unfortunately it was way way way too long. The world building was bare bones, the character development was heavy handed for characters that came off as completely one dimensional and in Gemma's case Vapid. I could name 5 other people I was shipping, but I hated the relationship between Gemma and Talan which was 100% toxic all the way to the end. There were elements of the book that seemed to address mental illness and trauma, but they were repetitive and heavy handed, especially for a fantasy book.
*****Spoilers***** I stopped reading this book halfway through when Gemma's character flaws made me feel personally betrayed. Out of a sense of obligation to NetGalley who provided me an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review, I finished the book. While there were engaging parts toward the end, I am wholly underwhelmed.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy. This review is my own opinion.

Gemma is the only one of her family to be born with no magic and even worse it is like she is allergic to magic when she is around a lot of magic it makes her violently ill and full of physical pain. When Gemma is attracted to Talon she agrees to help him with the society part to getting his family name back in good graces, but for her help he must help her end her families feud with the Bask’s.
This is a really good book about the lost middle child. Her father is proud of Mara for becoming a guardian and he conspires with Farrin the oldest, and both sisters have great magic, where poor sickly Gemma is just there. But Gemma can get into some stuff and that is where the action and suspense come from and she gets into stuff a lot. The characters are fun and fit well. This is a fun book even for reluctant readers. I loved the audiobook the narrator was pleasant and it was easy to listen too.

This novel took me a minute to get into, but the first half was great. Some of the writing was slower than other parts, and I felt it wasn't as good as the other series but still has potential in the rest of the series. I liked the Gemma a lot as a character, she felt like a character I could relate to. There is enough romance and non-romance that anyone would enjoy it from that aspect, not too much, not too little. I look forward to the next book and hope it picks up some plot holes from this one.

This is being promoted as an adult title, but the characters do not reflect that. Both the male and female MCs have juvenile emotions and actions. The storyline does not flow and is irritating to follow.

Magic and Mists_____2.5 stars

This had all the right tropes. A kingdom of magic! Fantasy, romance, revenge, an alluring young woman who didn’t quite fit—allergic to magic, a Capulet and Montague-type family feud, a missing mother, lovely swanlike swain who I didn’t like or trust, green ivy pathways—transiting points that the family can use except they always spit Gemma out and she’s always dreadfully ill. Then there’s the monsters in the edging mists (Middlemist) fought by the selected warrior women who transform (usually the youngest daughter in the family but because of Gemma’s reaction to magic, it’s her sister who has to go!) Oh those mistlands, the deformed beings, part of the Mistfires! Yes!
I mean so much happening that I was dizzy. High fantasy exploding! I should have revelled in it, I didn’t. Gemma is beautiful, facile, beguiling and nasty (I know magic makes her wretchedly tempered, but she’s mean!) The tone is totally Young Adult and a disappointment. Regency style or really just a fairytale-like fantasy? The Regency description is a step too far for me.
The story became a struggle to finish not long after I’d started.

A Sourcebooks Casablanca ARC via NetGalley.

To say the least I’m obsessed with this !
I can’t wait for people to read this.
All i can say without spoiling is if you love fantasy you have got to read this.
5/5

This book really was a disappointment especially having experience from the author’s previous work. There’s a shift about half way into the story that I felt like the author had two stories she wanted to tell but couldn’t find a way to correctly connect them and have it make sense.

I hope they continue into the adult genre but this wasn’t it.

2.75
This book had a very intriguing premise and good writing but sadly it turned into a bit of a slog for me. The gothic setting is fun but I didn't care about the character or the plot as much as I wanted to.

Lady Gemma lives in a world of magic and yet she has none herself and experiences something similar to anxiety or depression when it is used around her. Her family is locked in a feud and their only hope is to slay the demon that started it all to end it. Gemma meets a handsome man named Talan who appears to be the perfect solution to both her loneliness and her family's dilemma. She makes a deal with him so that they can defeat the demon together, only she begins to wonder what all Talan is hiding from her...

Note: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This is a fantasy romance, and I believe it will be a series,as the story wrapped up very much “for now”. Our main character, despite being from a powerfully magical family, is essentially allergic to magic, which is bad news, because everyone who can use magic in her world does. It felt very much like the author was trying to portray a chronic, invisible illness, and the way it constantly wears on you. That part I appreciated, despite not liking the main character very much. She came across a bit as a Mary Sue. Still, the romance is there, the world is well created, and I am invested enough to want to read the next one. A solid three star read.

This was a bit disappointing, as I loved Furyborn and that series. I couldn’t connect with this story, and I felt like I trudged along looking for a similar feeling that Furyborn gave me- and it did not deliver. I’m not sure if it’s fair, but I just couldn’t enjoy this one.

With comps of ACOTAR and Bridgeton, I had high hopes for this book. Unfortunately, it missed the mark for me. I do see the comparisons to these popular series, and I think there are some things people will really connect to (the chronic illness representation was my favorite aspect of the book and felt very authentic), but I couldn’t get past the fact that disliked the main character and felt like she was an unreliable narrator - which only furthered my lack of trust in the insta-romance (which felt like a core component of the story given the comps).

So with a MC I disliked and a romance I didn’t buy, I got about halfway through before I realized I just didn’t care what happened, read a few reviews addressing some of my frustrations, and decided to set it aside.

I still think it is worth trying for others, specifically for the representation, and since everyone connects with different voices. But I would go in with tempered expectations.

I didn't really like the fmc but other than that it was a solid fantasy read. Nothing new and nothing special, could guess the plot within the first 100 pages.

This story begins with Gemma Ashbourne, a beautiful woman from a family of magic royalty. But Gemma is different from her anointed family, magic makes her physically sick and she feels she is neither strong nor talented like her sisters, Mara and Farrin. Gemma carries a heavy weight of guilt and shame on her shoulders and it isn't until she meets Talan that things begin to change...

I think this story had a lot of potential. I really enjoyed the depth of Gemma's personality that was explored and the realistic portrayal of mental health issues and how they aren't always overcome. However I thought her motivations behind her actions, especially at the beginning were loosely defined. I found the first half of the book very slow and not overly compelling. In some ways the various characters and scenes felt disjointed. The "hierarchy" of beings seemed to be a convienent explanation for many characters' actions. There were also some convienently placed plot devices (secret corridors and curse breakers) that I thought could have been incorporated more smoothly. I enjoyed the final action scenes and the way Gemma and her sisters' relationships developed. Overall this was an interesting book and had a lot of potential but a few things were lacking.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Casablanca and NetGalley for this book in exchange for my honest review.

More of a 1.5 read but I'm rounding up because, at the very least, I was able to finish it.

A lot of reviewers that I've seen have made some points that I will be repeating here. This book was not only much too long, I would also say it struggles knowing what type of book it even wanted to be in the first place.

You've got a little Bridgerton, you've got a little ACOTAR and you've got a lot of cringey dialogue. The spicy scenes especially were full of lines that had me making faces, and not the "this is uncomfortable to read in public because it's sexy." No, this was "oh no, stop saying these things. I don't like it at all."

All of the crazy plots merging into one besides, the characters were unpleasant. Being in Gemma's heads was not a fun place to be and she really had no growth throughout the entire book.

Overall, this is a book no and if it hadn't been a NetGalley ARC, I very likely would not have finished it. Though, as I said, I have DNF'd a NetGalley before and I didn't this time which is the only reason it's not a literal 1 star review.

“A Crown of Ivy and Glass,” by Claire Legrand is a new adult romantic fantasy that may be of interest to fans of Sarah J. Maas’, “A Court of Thorns and Roses,” and, “Crescent City,” series, as well as Stephanie Garber’s, “Caraval,” series. Brimming with magic, political intrigue, romance, and betrayal, this book seems to have it all. And, while I found myself, by the end, rooting for the main characters, I had a hard time getting to that point. This title had immersive, atmospheric descriptions of people, places, and clothes – it’s a book dripping in detail, which is lovely. However, at times, it feels as if the dedication to the smaller details outweighs the plot taking place. When the book began, I found myself admiring these small details as a part of the overall world-building, but as the book continued, I wished that fewer of these details would make their way onto the page, and instead the story would focus more on the actions of the characters.

Speaking of characters – I never did fully come to like or admire the main character, Gemma, in this book, nor did I particularly like her love interest, Talan. Personally, I am not a fan of the insta-love trope in books, and I think this has something to do with my feelings on these characters. Gemma starts out unlikeable and unrelatable, in my opinion. The only thing that seems at all relatable is her chronic pain. Otherwise, she seems entirely focused on her appearance, from her clothes to her looks, to how others view her and her family members. She even tries to get her sister to dress differently to suit her own tastes, and to show off her family’s wealth and influence. She seems like the perfect caricature of a spoiled, rich woman. Please note that, while this is our first impression of Gemma, it is not the lasting impression of her. While I still wouldn’t classify her character as a favorite, over the course of the novel, we do come to know Gemma better – to realize that her vanity acts as a coping mechanism for her chronic pain and lack of magic, and is essentially the armor she dons to protect herself in a world where she does not fit in. She does eventually come to realize that there are many different types of strength, and though I still don’t love her character, I was able to finally respect her by the end of the book.

Gemma’s main love interest, Talan, is another story. I didn’t like him when he was first introduced, I didn’t like him when he and Gemma began their relationship, I didn’t like him during what might be called their, “courtship,” and I still, after finishing the book, don’t like him. I can’t even fully articulate why I harbor this strong dislike for him, other than that he is a suspicious character from the very beginning and, even after all he and Gemma go through, by the end of the book I STILL find him to be incredibly suspicious. I liked him more by the end of the book, due to his loyalty to Gemma, but I didn’t feel he was a character with much growth, beyond falling in love with Gemma, and I hope in the sequels to this book we will see more character growth from him.

Now, Gemma’s sisters were, personally speaking, the more interesting characters, and I wish we had gotten to see more of Gemma’s relationship with each of them, as well as more of their childhood together, before and after the events that made their family the way they are in the book. If the sequels follow each of her sisters, I think the story will only continue to get more interesting.

As for the overall plot – I’m still not entirely sure what it is, but I’m not yet convinced that’s a bad thing. Hear me out – in Fantasy, much of the first installment in any series is dedicated to a fair amount of world-building. “A Crown of Ivy and Glass,” is no exception. Gemma may be the character whose perspective we follow in this first book, while we get acquainted with the world and characters, but she is getting a lot of her information about the strange happenings of the Mist and the divide between the “old world,” and her own from her sister’s, one of which belongs to a secret society dedicated to protecting their land from the nightmares of old, and one of which is set to become the next head of their family, and whose power is rivaled only by their father’s. With the revelation at the end of the book about the three sisters, I believe we will begin to see a much more detailed, nuanced plot taking shape over the course of any future books, as they begin their true fight against the forces rallying against their land, and as they come into their own, both individually, and as a family.

This book is marketed as being a mix of, “Bridgerton,” and, “A Court of Thorns and Roses,” and I think the influences from these two series’ are quite obvious. Gemma’s affinity for fashion, romance, and gossip is very reminiscent of several “Bridgerton” characters, while the series following three magical sisters does evoke thoughts of, “A Court of Thorns and Roses.” Gemma even has some phrases later in the book that are almost word for word the same as SJM’s Aelin from her, “Throne of Glass,” series. There are plenty of other comparisons I could make between the series, but as I don’t want to spoil anything, I will refrain for now.

Overall, this book wasn’t a 5-star read for me, but I thought this was a good introduction to a new fantasy series, and I will likely pick up future installments to see where Legrand takes her characters, and the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the advanced copy of this book!

This book is marketed towards fans of Bridgerton and A Court of Thorns and Roses, and while I see aspects of those books in A Crown of Ivy and Glass, I think that may be misleading to some people. There are balls and romance in this fantasy world full of magic, but I feel like it's more focused on the plot than the romance. It took me a minute to understand the main character, Gemma, but after learning about her family and her chronic pain caused by magic, the book sucked me in. Of course there is a good romantic interest, a hot guy named Talan who is the only person left in his family after a demon destroyed them. Talan wants to regain family honor while hunting for the demon that ruined his family. He asks for help from Gemma and offers to help her destroy their family nemesis, the Basks. Talan thinks the feud may have been caused by the same demon that hurt his family. Magic, demons, undead, necromancers, and the mystery of the Middlemist make this book standout from other fantasy romance novels. I look forward to reading the rest of the trilogy.

Rating: ⭐⭐
Spice: 🌶️🌶️

"That selfish cowardice was my deepest, most terrible secret." - Gemma

If this book hadn't been an ARC, I don't think I would have finished it. I consider my time pretty valuable and as much as I don't like leaving something unfinished, after the first couple of chapters I would have hightailed it to a different book.

The premise, the cover, and the blurb were all 10/10 in my eyes, this book had so much promise! I was excited to be introduced to a new world, and fantasy romance holds a special place in my heart. Unfortunately, the execution left something to be desired and this book just wasn't for me.

I hated Gemma by the first 10 pages, and my feelings about her only went downhill from there. Her holier "I am rich, popular and everyone wants to be me" attitude was stuffed down the reader's throats and I couldn't for the life of me understand how I was to feel any sort of interest or sympathy for the character. She was such a brat, so self-aware of her selfishness but absolutely unwilling to change, and really, her crippling chronic pain was kind of deserved based on her awfulness.

"When a girl has condemned her sister to a life of servitude, that girl does not much relish the times when she must look said doomed sister in the eye." - Gemma

Was I hoping a monster would eat her? Yes, yes I was.

"Self-pity and hatred and the bitter bite of shame - these were the feelings I knew most intimately. What a pathetic creature I was." - Gemma

Talan was another hot mess of a character entirely, and the insta-love was not very convincing or comprised of any chemistry. By the time we moved on to any sort of romance, intimacy, or sexual encounters I was cringing. The back-and-forth I don't trust you, I love you, I hate you but I forgive you drama was all over the place, as was the pacing of their relationship.

"'I hate you,' I whispered, 'and I always will, for offering me this thing I cannot possibly refuse.' Talan looked away, his jaw working. 'For the chance to avenge my family and help yours as well,' he said quietly, 'earning your hatred is a price I will pay not happily but willingly.'"

Many other reviewers note the YA feel of this book despite being classified as an adult fantasy romance, with which I fully agree. Curse words and sex scenes do not make an adult novel.

I was more interested in learning more about the world and its magic system than I was in any of the characters. From the author's other successful series, I know a great series is possible, can we get a do-over? This one didn't work for me.

*I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you, NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the opportunity.