The first in a series that I believe will be one of my favorites! 5 STARS! Watch my full review on YouTube.

Life is never what it seems to be - all of us live under seeming illusions. Cora's life is no different. Who she is and what she considers to be her world are all fragile in reality. As her world implodes, she is offered a gift to travel and experience different ways of life. In the process she discovers who she is and what life is really about.

Going through my netgalley account and just found the section of books titled Archived, not downloaded. I apparently requested and was approved for this book but I never DLd it and so did not read it. I appreciate the approval and while still interested in the title I am not sure when I will get to read it. If/when I do I will be sure to post a review on Instagram, goodreads, storygraph, and Amazon.

This was such a unique story! I loved the characters - especially Will and Cora. I was so invested in the story and kept wondering what was going to happen. I loved how this book takes us to many different locations as well! Such a fabulous read!

Glamorous Illusions, first in the Grand Tour series by Lisa T. Bergren, was a very intriguing book. It is outside my usual romance genre so I struggled a bit in the beginning to get my footing.

Cora is a simple girl who's coming home to her parents' farm. After her father's stroke, life gets difficult ... until her birth father, Wallace Kensington (one of the rich and powerful Montana copper kings) shows up. After that, Cora's whisked away to a summer of adventure and siblings who don't want anything to do with her.

I liked the attraction between Cora and Will, though it never went anywhere in this book. I'd like to see if it's expanded upon in the upcoming books.

Though most of Glamorous Illusions is about the siblings on their Grand Tour (and the difficulty Cora has with fitting into this new world), towards the end it picks up and there's quite a bit of suspense. I certainly didn't expect the book to end the way it did.

Even though the characters in this book aren't based off real historical events, there was quite a bit of history in this book. Between talk of the Titanic to the World Fair of 1889, as well as the American old west, I consulted Google more than once to elaborate on things that Lisa Bergren referenced. As someone who is fairly new to the historical fiction genre, it seemed the author did her research in a way that was believable but not dull.

All in all, I'm excited to continue on with this series and see how the Kensington and Morgan siblings' Grand Tour plays out.

The book is fast-paced and I did enjoy it for all its historical detail but I felt like the plot went nowhere. It was an enjoyable read I was just hoping for more.

Love this story...talk about rags to riches! Cora Deihl comes home from Normal School to find her Dad collapsed from a stroke. She ends up doing all the chores on the farm...including carrying water to water the wheat. Which in the end dying, after all the hard work, there is no return and they are going to loose the farm.
Enter a complete stranger and her world is turned upside. She is no longer the poor farm girl...she is now a member of the Ultra Rich!!!
So begins her new journey of meeting unknown relatives, and being waited on! She begins a "Grand Tour"...never in her wildest dreams could she have imagined this. Such sites and splendor, and unbelievable food and lush surroundings.
There is also some romance thrown in...but with whom. I feel like I've been left on a cliff hanger, and thank goodness there are some more answers to come.
This is such an enjoyable read...loved the descriptions and be prepared for possible kidnappings, and murder. Don't miss this one!

I received this book from Litfuse Publicity Tours and the Publisher David C Cook, and was not required to give a positive review.

This is definitely an historical fiction book. Christian based as there are lots of religious quotes in here, so if you are into that, you will enjoy this book a lot.
Personally I thought it was over done.

The storyline was very good. A nice bit of mild romance, but be aware, it’s a love triangle that has its ups and downs.

I slowly worked through my first chapters by audio, as I found it better to listen to it than read it, however by the 30% mark I went back to the book and I must say, I enjoyed the later half.

A fairly good grounding for a book 1
I’m not sure I’d go on with this series though as it was just a bit too preachy for my taste.

It seems that everything is sadness and tragedy, but this is only the beginning of the story.
Cora discovers that her father is not the one she buried recently. And she gets the opportunity not only to meet her family - even though she is an illegitimate daughter - but she can make a Grand Tour in Europe. A unique opportunity!!

From there, the reader follows Cora in her discoveries, not only of the people of the family, but of everything that concerns the rules of the beginning of the century.
Besides, after losing her beau in an accident, Cora would not have imagined that other men could make her take an interest in romance again. But who would she be with? With William or Pierre?

This book is the first in the series. Two more books bring the story of the same protagonist and the closing of her emotional and psychological adventure.
This is the author's first book I read.
The plot is interesting. I found the pace somewhat slow, perhaps because of the speech of the main character, who is very opinionated and sometimes hesitates between stubbornness and naivety.
3,5 stars

Lisa Bergren is a new to me author but I’ll certainly be looking into reading more from her.
Although I don’t normally choose to read books from years ago I gotta say I really enjoyed this story. Looking forward to reading more from this author.

Meh. Something about this book just didn't click with me. For some reason the characters just weren't doing it for me, which was such a disappointment given how much I love her River of Time characters. This felt bland and dull in comparison.