"A Crown of Ivy and Glass" by Claire Legrand is a thrilling fantasy novel that captures the imagination with its vivid world-building and compelling characters. From start to finish, Legrand creates a rich and intricate world filled with magic, mystery, and danger. The novel gave me a YA fantasy fiction kind of vibe, with just the right amount of steamy romance that shows you that it is adult fiction.

This book is a wonderfully written novel that will delight fans of fantasy fiction with quite a bit of romance.

This is the first book by this author for me. I have seen many of her books everywhere and was very curious about her writing style.

Since this is my first book by her, I have no comparison to her other books.
I admit, after reading the book (and listening to the audiobook!), I read some reviews and saw that many fans of her books are disappointed with this first book in her new series.

My neutral opinion, since I don't know her yet, is that I really enjoyed this book 😁
I mean, the book got me out of the reading slump.
That means a great something, right?

Did I like everything about the writing style?  No, definitely not.  Was the story interesting and exciting?  Yes, definitely. 
Was the story a bit chaotic and muddled?  100%, but it was still incredibly fascinating, engaging, and exciting.

The topic was very fascinating.
It's a mix of ACOTAR, TOG, and an action-packed fantasy version of Bridgerton.
Only we're talking about all kind of magic and mythical creatures version of them here 😉

The only problem is that the author tried to pack as much action into this book as possible, completely overloading the book.
As a result, the story is sometimes difficult to understand or follow the narration. Because many descriptions are missing or it is simply unclear what the author meant writing some things.

I think the series has a very good chance of being very good, if the story were written a little more structured.

Nonetheless, I read this book with great joy and excitement and will definitely read the other 2 books in the series. Hopefully, they'll be a bit shorter than the 560 pages / 40 hours here 😬

This fantasy book has a very interesting world made of magic, fae, demons, and everything else you may have read in a fantasy book. The world building feels like it just started even though this is a massive read. It feels like there is much still to be introduced into the story in future books and that this series requires some grace for the plot to build over the series.

The main character of this book Gemma is very flawed and admittedly selfish. She enjoys her high social standing and puts herself above her family and friends often. The love interest Talan is a bit of a perfect pairing for her. I was hoping their story would go a bit of a different way but the end action scenes make up for it.

I was a bit confused at first that the book was listed as adult, as it reads like a young adult novel, until the first love scene happens. It is definitely adult! The love scenes are written well but the story does feel a bit jarring with the young adults suddenly having very adult conversations - like someone mashed two different possible versions of the characters together.

The audiobook narration is fantastic. I hope the series continues with a focus on Gemma's other sisters.
Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the ALC.

Dnf at 27% of the audiobook. If this book was shorter, I might have finished because some elements intrigue me. Everything intrigues me but the two main characters and what they're doing actually. If at least they didn't have the insta-lust going on between them so there would be some tension to that relationship.
Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I don't know, I didn't not like this book, but it didn't really keep my interest very well. I didn't really love any of the characters. I think my favorite character was main character Gemma's sister Mara who we don't see a ton of. Gemma was an ok character, she seemed a little vain though I did appreciate her chronic illness/panic disorder and thought it was well done. Talan was also very meh, he seemed like a very flat character to me. The romance didn't seem to have a spark and the romantic scenes seemed to be just kind of thrown in.
The plot and pacing felt a little scattered and inconsistent, which probably contributed to my inability to keep interest. It was hard for me to figure out where the book was going at times. The magic system seemed cool, but I didn't get a good grasp on it.
I feel like this one had promise, it just wasn't executed very well and it was unnecessarily long.

This is a wonderful engrossing book. The storytelling was just amazing and the world that was built was so detailed it felt like I was right in this world of magic. Gemma grew up beautiful and pampered, her family was high in the courts and she lacked for nothing. Men loved her and what she wanted was at her finger tips. Unless you consider the loss of her mother, her oldest sister being aloof, her father not caring about her at all, her second sister being shipped away at a young age to fight and protect their world and the searing pain Gemma feels whenever she is near magic. Which in her world is all the time unfortunately.

Gemma may seem shallow but she is very smart and cunning so when she see's Farrin and is knocked off her feet she is surprised when she quickly learns she doesn't have it all together like she thinks. Gemma has no idea the events that will turn her entire world off its feet nor the love she will feel for this man who showed up at their door steps that many others don't trust. With Magic all around a fude that has being going strong for longer than Gemma can remember everything she knows is put into question and when the truth starts to make itself known Gemma will question everything she loves and knows including her home, family and new love.

This is a wonderous world Claire Legrand created its so detailed it feels real and I found myself wrapped in this world she created and feeling like I was a Part of it. She also had me questioning who was truly evil and how it would all end. Though this is a trilogy and doesn't end with the story wrapped up(we have a lot more to come) I was happy with where this story ended and didn't feel like it was a cliffhanger(which I appreciated). There so much goin on in this book but it wasn't confusing and it felt like all of it was truly necessary for the story and really just made this story that much more outstanding and special. While reading this book I kept thinking when this trilogy is done this will be an epic story and after reading this book I know there's no way Im not correct. I can't wait for book two, we get a good idea of what's to come but I know that can only be the tip of the iceberg.

*Thank you Neutrally and Epic Publication for this wonderful book to review.

This is an adult fantasy?

It reads like teenage angst circa the early 2000s:
- a vapid, irritating main character who forces her stupid decisions even when they're counter-productive
- constant discussion of how beautiful everyone is
- instalove that waits about a chapter before jumping into make-out sessions
- terrible characterization
- a plot setup with an alliance that is thinly logical at best
- clandestine investigation kept secret from the literally no one else who cares

In the spirit of fairness, there are things I did enjoy:
- a main character who struggles with chronic pain and anxiety (I don't know if the rep is good, bad, or somewhere in between, but it's there)
- a well-cast audiobook narrator in Evelyn Rose
- the line "gentle as a kitten" - having recently taken care of kittens for the first time in my life, I can now identify with the wishful thinking that line embodies and it makes me smile.

I'm so sorry not to have loved this book. I fought my way to 22%, saw the 16.5 hours left, and gave up. I think there's a solid audience for A Crown of Ivy and Glass (the more visible side of Booktok that loves SJM, perhaps) and I am just not that audience.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for an audio ARC in exchange for an honest review.

ARC audiobook provided in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed the narration of this book! Her accent was perfect to fit with the characters and I always knew exactly who was speaking. The story itself is very well written but can be a little confusing at times. The biggest issue I had was a connection to the main characters. I didn’t feel like I fully invested in them because they weren’t very likable to me. The story itself takes you on a fantastical epic journey of discovery for Imogen and her family. I don’t want to leave any spoilers since this is the first book in the series, but it you’re into fantasy, you should check this book out!

Hmmm I don't enjoy giving low/negative reviews of books, but sometimes it's necessary.

A Crown of Ivy and Glass starts out really promising — I absolutely love the setup of Gemma's lack of magic against her powerful family's abilities. I think the incorporation of her chronic pain and anxiety is potentially a smart inclusivity move, but her steady moaning about it did start to grate on my nerves. Insensitive of me? Maybe, but she never really made positive progress on her anxiety, she is just completely dependent upon Talan to do this for her. Not my cup of tea, I like a strong independent woman.

The plot was also interesting at first, and I was excited to see where it led despite the fact that I didn't like any of the characters. Unfortunately I think the plot was convoluted and strange, and I found myself speeding up the audiobook in order to get to the end faster. Gemma, Talan, the Ashbournes, Phaedra, literally every character in this book aside from Farrin's friend (whose name I forget) is completely intolerable. I actively hated the FMC and MMC (they are completely pathetic and co-dependent from day 1), so there was no way I was ever going to give this book a positive review, sorry!

It is coherent, for the most part, and the audio narrator is excellent, but I won't be picking up the next book in the series because I'm uninterested in the story. The concepts had so much promise but I was disappointed in the execution. Thank you anyway to Claire Legrand, Sourcebooks Casablanca, Dreamscape Media, and NetGalley for my advance audio copy.

I made it to 40% and this feels so boring and shallow and I cannot believe this is the same author who wrote Sawkill Girls that I just devoured. I wanted to love this but it didn't work for me at all. I tried the e-ARC first and couldn't make it and then I thought the audio would be better....I was so wrong.

I wish I could give half stars because this one was more like 3.5 stars. I think I rounded down because of the self-harm. I don’t want to make light of Gemma’s problems but leaving something like that up to an individual isn’t a proper solution. This book was long, but in a good way. I thoroughly enjoyed the progress of the book, Gemma’s evolving relationships (both familiar and romantic) and the hint of new relationships in the future. This is obviously a story that still has more to share, and I do look forward to the next book. Gemma at the beginning do the book wasn’t my favorite person but she did grow into herself so that’s a plus.

Still listening to “A Crown of Ivy and Glass” - so far I’m enjoying it immensely and am completely hooked.

1.5 stars. This book was not for me. There as so much potential in the world-building and magic systems and even some of the side characters, but the main characters were the most unlikeable characters I have ever read. The entire book was a painful slog because I did not care one bit about our FMC or MMC. There as such a missed opportunity to have this book center around the middle sister, whose situation was 100x more interesting to me than Gemma’s.

The plot didn’t pick up until about 50% through the book, and even then it felt very awkward and disjointed and messy. I honestly wanted to DNF so many times but I help holding onto the hope that it would get better. The romance was so cringy to me and this was by far my least favorite smut I have ever read. I don’t normally like smut, but this was worse.

The only reason this book is getting 1.5 stars is that I do think the world is really cool and the other sisters were interesting characters. I just think that the book could have been so much better and it’s a shame that such a cool idea got lost behind awful characters and a messy plot.

Please take the trigger warnings seriously if you plan to read this book. They are there for a reason. These are not topics that are briefly mentioned and then moved on from, these are major recurring themes throughout the entire story which do make it difficult to read at times.

I will not be continuing with this series.

This isn't my first read by the author but I was dazzled bu her detailed storytelling. I saw her name, the cover and title and hit request for an ARC of this immediately. To me, it did not disappoint.
I will start this off giving praise for having a FMC with severe anxiety and panic attacks. Her chronic pain due to the rejection of magic near to her. I loved seeing someone more relatable and not written as perfect. Ok, yes, she's incredibly beautiful...that's fine. I like seeing that beauty doesn't mean the person isn't suffering.
Now, there's a lot going on here. We start off with the mystery of what her sister is trying to tell her before things go chaotic. Then there's the feud with the Bask family. The mysterious Talan. Drama with her other sister and father. The abandonment of their mother. Why Gemma is the only one with no magic and why does her body suffer when it's near? That last one..oof when we learn.

There's intrigue and betrayl. Romance and heartache. I'm loving this first installment.

Thank you to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the opportunity to listen rage and review this audiobook arc which is available June 13,2023.

Narrator is Evelyn Rose and she was great. Her voice was soothing and able to make different voice for all the characters.

The book itself was good. Not awesome but good. I enjoyed myself but it is a read once and done kinda book. If you like fairies and Bridgerton then this book is for you!

An intriguing story full of secrets and mysteries that take some time to unravel, and some that I suspect are yet to be unravelled. It combines a historical setting with magic, monsters and demons. The pacing was off in this book and I found it very slow paced and very long, but nothing of consequence really seemed to happen in the first half of the book. I also didn’t really gel with Gemma as a character or a narrator and found her quite bland. There was also a lack of chemistry between Gemma and Talan and they dance around each other for so much of the book it was tedious and could have been condensed. I don’t feel like we know very much about any of the characters other than Gemma even though we spend so much time surrounded by them. I would have liked to spend a little more time getting to know and understand them and the world that they’re living in. I’m sad to say I wasn’t enamoured with this book but would say that it had a lot of creativity and the concept itself was interesting.

I received a free copy of this book. All views are my own.

Wow!! I loved this book! It was pitched to me (well I watched a TikTok video) describing it as Bridgerton meets ACOTAR. Now that is quite the pitch and I can see how they get that but I felt like this is a great fantasy series that was what many people wanted from Kingdom of the Wicked. I say that having really enjoyed that series but some people disagree - lol.

This book has more than just a regular romantasy. There is clear world building, great characters, and such potential for the rest of the series. I am already really hungry for more, the one downside of reading this book before it comes out is the fact that we have to wait to really talk spoilers and we have to wait even longer for the rest in the series. I want to hear about Farrin and Mara. I feel like each sister has her own strong story and trauma I am excited to see what happens with both of them as well. Especially Farrin and her clear chemistry with Ryder. I want that. Especially because the main love story in this book is a little insta-love for me. I wanted a little more resistance and banter but I felt like building mystery and adventure were strong enough to make me keep going even when I was left wanting more from the romance.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone who is looking for a new romantasy series (who doesn't mind the torture of waiting for the next book in the series). Thank you NetGalley for the chance to listen to this audiobook!

*Spoiler Alert*
Also, I have to talk one potential spoiler: Do you think Ryder was the one who saved Farrin from the fire? Because I feel like that would be an amazing storyline and I am already really shipping them I want them to be the focus of the next book. Enemies to lovers with the potential of a hidden secret crush that would be amazing. I'm here for it.

This book is being marketed as ACOTAR meets Bridgerton, but by the time I finished it, I feel like it's a mashup of Pride & Prejudice and (a better written and well structured) From Blood and Ash. There are multiple times where I the love interest, Talan, comes across as a mix of both Mr. Darcy and Howl from Howl's Moving Castle as well!

All that to say this book should've been a home run for me. I love a good bit of escapism with an epic romantasy. However, this is shifting between a 3 and a 3.5 star read. I just cannot get past the pacing issues and the shift in story that takes place past the 50% mark. While slow to start, the first half felt like it was setting up a different story. So much so that the second half (while much faster paced and intriguing) feels like it doesn't go together. Perhaps there's a development issue there? I don't know, it was a bit jarring though.

Legrand's ability to write complex, unlikeable female characters has always been something I have to admire, and Gemma is certainly that. While privileged, spoiled, and self indulgent, we also get a real feel of her inner anguish and the disability she tries to hide in this magical world. Being a part of one of the anointed families that inherited powerful magic from the gods would certainly put you in the limelight. Now imagine if it turned out you were basically allergic to magic and were in constant, chronic pain when too much of it surrounds you? That's what our main character Gemma goes through, and I think that makes this FMC much more interesting than the usual leads in the Romantasy genre.

However, it probably does say quite a bit that by the end of the book I was FAR more interested in her sisters' stories (and the potential romance teased between rivals at the end, omg!). I'd really love to read on in this series if Farron and Mira get a chance to lead their own novels!

Thank you NetGalley for letting me snag this arc! I listened to this in audio and loved the narrator! I thought that this book had an interesting magic system. They're fae, gods, and demons; the combination of all of fantasy aspects really had me intrigued. There's twists and romance! Def recommend!

2.5 stars rounded up to 3.

I’ve never read Legrand’s work. I’ve heard great reviews of it, which was why I felt compelled to pick this one up. Since it’s pretty hefty—about 560 pages and 21 hours of audio—I chose the ALC instead of an ebook to read, and I chose it despite the abysmally low rating on both NetGalley and Goodreads. I’m not an advocate for avoiding books just because they have collectively bad reviews; I know sometimes ratings can be skewed, especially before a book’s release. After finishing, however, the book seemed to me to earn its startlingly low ratings. Even with a pleasant narrator and a Regency feel, the beginning just droned on and on; and much of it was repetitive, among other things. I didn’t connect with the main character, and I had a difficult time getting into the narrative. The cover is beautiful, though.

What makes the beginning of this book such a chore to read is the nearly insurmountable amount of minutia that bogs the plot down. Every task Gemma undertakes, every thought Gemma thinks, and every feeling Gemma feels unfolds to the reader in painstaking detail—every time. The whole plot really is convoluted to the point of superfluity. Do readers really want to know every detail and step required to draw a bath, including the character staring at the water and watching it fill the tub if it’s just a transition scene? Does it propel the plot forward or stagnate its development? I think perhaps the book could use another round of dev edits in order to polish up the plot and trim it down.

My low rating comes almost entirely from the terrible plot consistency. If you’ve ever read Waverley (though that comparison is abysmal, but hear me out), you’ll know how a plot that drags for the first half can almost completely ruin a book. Not only does the plot in A Crown of Ivy and Glass drag until about 50-60% of the way through the book, but it completely changes direction thereafter and feels like a different story altogether.

I’d say the book has some underlying merit to it; the plot picks up pace and gets very interesting toward the end, but one cannot drag the pace for several hundred pages and then finish it so quickly and with such spontaneity. Cut the book back about 150-200 pages, trim the excessive inner monologue and dreary exposition, and the book could be a solid 4 star from me.

On a positive note, if not for the narrator, this book would have been a DNF for me. Rose’s voice gave Gemma a personality and quality I would not have found in the character had I read the book physically. Absolutely 4.5 stars for the narration. I did have a bit of a hard time following the character voices—there were quite a few—but overall, superb narration. If you feel you want to pick the book up and give it a try, I recommend audio consumption.

My thanks to NetGalley for the ALC, for which I willingly give my own, honest opinion.