DNF…wasn’t terrible, but wasn’t captivating enough to continue. The female main character wasn’t my favorite.

I ended up DNFing this book. It was sort of interesting, but ultimately didn't have much to make it stand out compared to other fantasy books.

This book is definitely for fans of ACOTAR, and there are a lot of comparisons to be drawn between the two series.

Unfortunately, I had to DNF at 66% because I have been having a hard time becoming interested in the plot and I was no longer able to pay attention.

One noteworthy thing about this book is that our FMC really feels like someone who would be the side character in another fantasy series, and her sisters feel like the characters that would be the leads. I thought this was a cool twist at first, but the more I read the book, the less invested I became in our MCs and the more I was missing what glimpses we got of the side characters.
This book feels almost unending, and while the length isn’t out of the norm for adult fantasy, I think it would have benefited from multiples POVs instead of just one.
The romance felt very insta-lovey, or at the very least, insta-lust, which is not my favorite. The writing and vibe seemed a bit YA to me, but then there was spice which is why this is considered adult. I think this will appeal to adult readers who like YA fantasy plots but also enjoy spice.

Overall I don’t think this was a bad adult debut, I just felt myself getting bored and because of the length I was not interested in finishing.

This book has been on my radar from the moment it was announced, so trust me when I say I had high hopes for it. I had previously read the first two installments in the Empirium trilogy—Furyborn and Kingsbane—and enjoyed them, so I was very intrigued by this first book in Legrand’s adult fantasy romance series. Sadly, this one was a huge miss for me.

Pitched as Bridgerton meets A Court of Thorns and Roses, A Crown of Ivy and Glass follows Gemma Ashbourne, a rich socialite and the only member of her family who doesn’t possess magic. When a man named Talan d’Astier enters the scene, she decides to strike a bargain with him in order to help each other with their individual family situations. Soon enough, they find themselves involved in the games of a dangerous demon.

I appreciate that this book portraits a main character who suffers anxiety and the discussions on mental health and chronic pain, but that’s it. The plot felt all over the place, I found the characters very much one-dimensional—and Gemma particularly insufferable—and the insta-love romance made me cringe from beginning to end.

The only reason I didn’t DNF it was because I was listening to the audiobook while commuting and doing chores, otherwise I don’t think I’d have been able to finish it. But even though this was a huge disappointment for me and I won’t be continuing this series, I’ll still keep an eye out for Legrand’s future works. If you haven’t read anything by this author yet but you want to, I recommend starting with her Empirium trilogy.

3.5/5 rounded up

I believe that A Crown of Ivy and Glass is Claire Legrand's adult debut, but it definitely felt like I was reading a young adult fantasy novel instead. There is nothing wrong with this at all, but just want to be clear on what you can expect should you choose to read this trilogy. I don't read a lot of fantasy, but I really enjoyed the world-building and this fascinating concept that the author came up with. There is some information dumping but that didn't really bother me, and I was more than happy to fully immerse myself in the story and its characters. The pacing is definitely on the slower side and by the end it felt more like 700 pages instead of the 550 pages it was. I do wish the pacing had been a little quicker, but I think if you go in expecting a slow burn you will enjoy it more.

I did listen to the audiobook which helped me a bit with the pacing, and it didn't hurt that Evelyn Rose was such a great narrator. I thought she did a beautiful job as the voice of Lady Gemma Ashbourne, and she was able to infuse the emotion of the story into her narration perfectly. There is a map on the inside of the covers, but I didn't look at it once and I'm not sure how helpful it actually was. The romance between Gemma and Talan moves a little too fast for my liking since this is the first of a trilogy, but they definitely bring the chemistry and heat. I think Legrand is a very talented writer, and I hope in the next 2 books that she will talk about the monsters in the storyline even more because they were the part that I liked the best. She also brought it when it comes to rep for anxiety, panic attacks, and mental illness. Overall, I really enjoyed A Crown of Ivy and Glass and I can't wait to see where the rest of the trilogy goes!

I absolutely loved this book! It has a lot of great world-building and fantastic characters. Plus, the great mental health representation too. Can’t wait enough for the next book already!

I absolutely adore Legrand's previous work so I was very excited to read this! I ended up buying a physical copy even though I received the ARC.

Unfortunately, I don't feel like this lives up to her previous titles. I had so many questions that weren't answered, and felt like the book zigzagged between "fantasy" and "romance" rather than blending the two cohesively. The first half of the book was quite compelling, but the second half just fell flat and lost me for so long that it took months to complete.

The prose, of course, is excellent. Legrand's command of language shines through as always. It's just disappointing that the worldbuilding and plot didn't land.

This review hurts. I have adored this author since the very first time I read one of her books. I could not wait to get my hands on a copy and tell the world how much I loved this book. It simply was not meant to be in this case. I do not know how to express how saddened I was when I could not get into this book. I disliked the characters almost right away and could not find anyway to get myself to want to dive into their world in this novel. I also love long books. I often say that the thicker a book is, the more I will enjoy it. While I will be happy to read other books by this amazing author in the future, I will not continue on with this series. I was promised the feeling of Bridgerton and A Court of Thorns and Roses in this book and I just could no see it. I look forward to see this author continue in her career and continue to perfect her art.

Sad to say I DNFed this. I don’t know what it was about this, but I wasn’t feeling engaged at all. It also didn’t feel like an adult story to me. I can’t pin it down to one specific thing because I just kept being pulled out of the story.

I had a lot of expectations for this one but it fell short. I think the premise was very interesting and so was the MC at first but the plot kinda veered offcourse at certain points and the romance was a bit weak too. I'm still interested in the sisters' stories though as they sound promising!

OMG beautifully written! Loved the main character, even though she was so different then what I've read in the lead role in fantasy books YA or NA, she was not your typical fem lead and I don't mean 'she's not like other girls' she very much just wanted to live her glamorous life and had no business getting involved with any of the high stakes situations that they found themselves in but she was more then capable. It was so fun to read the story of the one character that seemed the least interested and capable to take on the story and use her emotional intelligence, her knowledge of people and 'society' to sort the issues of the fantastical world.

- NA Fantasy / Romantasy
- Steamy / Spicy
- Epic world building
- Interesting magic system
- AMAZING writing (lyrical, just so pretty)
- Fast paced

I wanted to like this book so much more than I actually did. I didn’t really connect with Gemma as a character, so being in her head was a bit annoying at times. I did however enjoy the world building, so I might read the second book

Claire Legrand is my favorite author. Anything she writes, I buy. I loved this book!! Everyone should read her books! Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley for the opportunity to read in exchange for a review!

This felt way more like YA than an adult, the main character was pretty flat and rather juvenile. The plot also felt a little all over the place. Not sure who i'd recoomend this to

First of a trilogy, A Crown of Ivy and Glass started out slow, I almost wanted to stop reading after the first chapter. I will not read the rest of the trilogy. Promiscuous Lady Gemma has no magic powers and the powers of others give her pain. She selfishly thinks life is all about parties and sex.
The story consists of a feud and hate with the neighboring Bask family and demon possessed Talon d’Astier. As magic and demons abound Gemma tries to save the world with her rebirth of magic and tons of sex.

I was really excited for this read and I was slightly let down. The hype around it had so much promise but even though this story has great bones, I felt left wanting. I think I will give this book another go later down the road and reread it and hopefully feel that magic.

Review: DNF AT 15% This one just didn't work for me. I was excited about this and was a bit bored, which scared me because this is a long novel. Thank you to the publisher and net galley for allowing me to read this ARC. I will still try another Claire Legrand novel in the future.

An amazing fantasy book that I found myself lost in! I really enjoyed the world building and over all vibe of this one

This was a masterpiece, as is anything that comes from Claire Legrand. I was hoping for something just as addictive as her Empirium trilogy, and I was not disappointed. 10/10, 5 stars, 100% recommend!

I really tried to give this one a chance but I just couldn’t really get into it. Plus, it’s super long, and I couldn’t really connect with the main character that much.