This book made me cry so much I had to stop reading it in public! Not because it was sad though, more because I don't think I've ever felt more seen by any character. There isn't much chronic pain rep in books, and not only having that, but the sheer relief she felt in first time she found herself painless made me sob. I was so happy for her. I also appreciated the representation of her having panic attacks, it was real and another thing that we don't see enough of in books. It all just made her even stronger and more incredible, just like in Fourth Wing.
Aside from loving the rep, I liked the world and magic system a lot too. It was interesting, and unique, and I can't wait to see more of it in the next book!
I did have a little problem with Talan though. I just found him SO suspicious from the start, and it seemed like everything he did just made him more sus but Gemma just kept forgiving him anyways (though as part of the chronic pain gang I do get it lol). I kinda kept hoping she'd pull an SJM and find a new love interest though, especially when I loved both her and her sisters best friends, Illaria and Gareth so much! He's fine overall, and I'm sure other people will love him because he certainly has book boyfriend material, but I don't trust him.
I will absolutely recommend this book. And also continue to cry over it.

I am in the process of reading this book right now. Just wanted to put this up for me to come back to and add to my review. The plot is of course amazing can't wait to read more!

As a long time fan of Legrand's books, I was certainly excited to hear about a new trilogy, though I was surprised that it is and adult novel. While I am very familiar with Legrand's young adult novels, I was certainly excited to dive into something for adults. It did not take long for me to be immersed in the world in which Gemma lived, and it is a world nothing like my own. From the start we are drawn into the lives of all the characters, especially our unlikely heroine, and the adventure begins.

I REALLY wanted to love this one, I just could not connect with the story. What I thought it was about and what the story was really about was very different and it didn't work for me :/ I think the writing style didn't hook me in and it took me a long time to get through this book .

I'm devastated to report how much I disliked this. I was so excited for it and it was one of my anticipated reads for the year.

To begin, it didn't feel like Claire Legrand. I"ve enjoyed everything I've read that she's written and she definitely has a tone/voice to her writing. This book didn't really have any of that and I think it's because it couldn't decide what it wanted to be. Is it YA, is it historical fantasy romance, is it pure fantasy, etc. The genre was all over the place. The plot couldn't settle and neither could the characters. I finished it still figuring out if I even liked the main characters or love story.

Altogether it was an average, confusing read from an author who is typically not average.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Gemma Ashbourne is the youngest member of a powerful family, but magic causes her pain and so she could never be a perfect daughter – but that makes her try even harder. With all that pain, desperation and low self-esteem she tries to hide, she developed more fears and has panick attacks. I liked that mental health issues are addressed in a fantasy novel and I could feel how it affects every aspect of Gemmas life, but it did not make me like her, the other characters – her love-interest is annoyingly perfect – or the plot of the book. Gemma lives in her bubble of self-pity and does not care for anything that does not affect her, so the fantastic world of demons, curses and family drama is pretty shallow.

GERMAN REVIEW
Gemma Ashbourne stammt aus einer der einflussreichsten Familien mit der stärksten Magie, doch sie selbst hat nicht nur keine magischen Kräfte, allein die Nähe zu Magie kann bei ihr starke Schmerzen auslösen.

Ihre fehlenden Fähigkeiten sorgen schon für Probleme in der Familie, denn ihre Schwester Mara musste ihren Platz als Wächterin übernehmen und daher fern von der Familie den Middlemist beschützen, und auch ihre Panikattacken machen Gemma das Leben schwer. Sie hat viele Ängste und Komplexe, weil sie das Gefühl hat, nie gut genug zu sein und eine Außenseiterin in ihrer eigenen Familie ist, und kompensiert das mit zahlreichen Partys und einer Obsession nach Schönheit aus – und sucht so woanders nach Bestätigung. Mit ihrer oberflächlichen Fassade, um sich selbst zu schützen, und ihrem Drang, immer allen zu gefallen, fand ich Gemma insgesamt ziemlich anstrengend und hatte eher Mitleid mit ihr.

Ihre neuste Mission ist es, einen Dämon zu finden, der ihre Familie verflucht hat, da sie hofft, dadurch ihren Vater stolz zu machen. Dabei hilft ihr Talan, in den sie sich beinahe auf den ersten Blick verliebt und dem sie einen großen Teil ihrer Ängste anvertraut. Da konnte ich Gemma auch nicht so richtig ernst nehmen, weil sie sich selbst als weltoffen sieht, aber auch ziemlich naiv ist, sich gedanklich entweder selbst bemitleidet oder Talan anschmachtet. Talan selbst ist schon fast zu perfekt um wahr zu sein, er bezaubert Gemma mit seinem außerordentlich guten Aussehen und seinem Charme, dazu unterstützt er Gemma in all ihren Plänen und ist ihr persönlicher Confidence-Booster. In Gemmas Augen ist er so vollkommen, dass er mir schon bald auf die Nerven ging.

Die Handlung klingt eigentlich ganz interessant, aber ich fand sie auch sehr chaotisch. Da ist natürlich der Dämon, der die Ashbournes verflucht hat, sodass sie sich mit Familie Bask bekriegen müssen, die aber den größten Teil des Buches nur eine Bedrohung im Hintergrund darstellen, sodass man kaum fühlen kann, warum man sie fürchten sollte. Man versteht auch kaum, warum die Ashbournes eigentlich so einflussreich sind, was Mara als Wächterin des Middlemist tut und auch generell erfährt man nur wenig über die Welt, weil Gemma in ihrer eigenen kleinen Blase lebt und nichts über ihre eigenen Probleme hinaus wahrnimmt.

Gleichzeitig habe ich aber auch irgendwie ein schlechtes Gewissen, wenn ich so hart über sie urteile, da sie offensichtlich psychische Probleme hat und daher noch weniger Kontrolle über ihre Gefühle als ein durchschnittlicher Mensch. Und natürlich hilft es in ihrer Situation auch nicht, alles zu unterdrücken und die perfekte Lady vorzuspielen, wenn sie sich selbst überhaupt nicht so sieht. Ich find es generell schön, wenn auch solche Themen in Fantasy-Romanen verarbeitet werden, aber das hat die Charaktere nicht unbedingt sympathischer gemacht und auch die restliche Handlung mit Dämonen, Familiendrama, Fehden und Geheimnissen konnte mich nicht überzeugen.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the chance to read “A Crown of Ivy and Glass” in exchange for an honest review.

As a reader who really enjoyed “Sawkill Girls,” this series was a little jolting when anticipating that it would be similar. Instead, it was more closely related to that of a Bridgerton type novel, which has its own unique traits. Setting the expectation of that before reading “A Crown of Ivy and Glass” would have helped me process that more quickly :)

Claire Legrand is such an incredible author and I love that she isn’t afraid to venture into this fantasy realm to explore a different layer of excitement for us readers. I always enjoy reading her literature, and look forward to the next book in this installment.

When you have anxiety or OCD, asking yourself "what if" questions leads only to bad things. Usually panic. A Crown of Ivy and Glass by Claire Legrand, the first book in the Middlemist trilogy, focuses heavily on the idea of anxiety while telling an intriguing fantasy story with romance elements.

A Mysterious Man and a Blood Feud

The book takes place on the continent of Gallinora. The gods have died in what was called the unmaking but not before giving magic to some people on the continent, some on purpose, some on accident. They also created a mist that runs down the continent to protect the world from demons and other nasty creatures.

Lady Imogen Ashbourne, or Gemma for short, doesn't possess magic in a family that's been anointed by the gods. Her two older siblings both possess magic, as well as her father. She struggles finding her place in high society. That is until a mysterious man, Talan d'Astier, shows up. He claims that her family has been influenced by a demon into a blood feud with another anointed family, the Basks.

Early on in the book, the focus is on political intrigue. Both the Ashbournes and the Basks are elite members of what is basically the nobility, though no one quite knows what started the feud. Claire Legrand sets up the book as if it's going to be about politics in high society.

But as the story unfolds, she moves away from this. The story moves from politicking at parties to facing off against all manners of fantastical creatures. There are demons, necromancers, and much more. While on it's surface, this shift may seem jarring, it makes sense in the context of the story. Why did the blood feud start? Who does it benefit? These questions are answered and make the shift make sense.

An Intriguing Plot

The plot of A Crown of Ivy and Glass is quite interesting. There are multiple plot threads of various lengths that help keep the story moving. The opening to the story, like a lot of first fantasy books, moves a little slowly. It doesn't show its full scope until midway through the book but as an avid reader of fantasy, this is par for the course. It's not that the opening is boring though. The political intrigue in its small scale is intriguing in its own right.

As the story moves forward the plot threads become intertwined. Even as new plot threads were introduced they seemed connected to the overarching plot.

Even the threads that aren't obviously connected to the overarching plot of the first book look like they will connect somewhere in the trilogy. Though interestingly enough, each book in the trilogy will focus on a different sister. Each book will continue moving the overarching plot along.

Romance

A Crown of Ivy and Glass is an adult fantasy romance novel. Gemma and Talan both fall for each other and unsurprisingly, this doesn't go perfectly smoothly. Claire Legrand does a good job making sure the romance plot thread is intriguing and lays the pieces for the payoff. The payoff feels well-earned and doesn't come out of thin air which is nice for the reader, and can be a hard path to write.

But being an adult romance novel, there are multiple multi-page scenes of sexually explicit scenes. One of my favorite lines in the book is unintentionally funny and is a bit jarring considering the word choice when compared to the rest of the book. The line, "In my entire life,... I never wanted anything more than I want to f*ck your perfect sweet little c**t." The naughty words only come out during the sex scenes which makes them feel all the more jarring. That being said, I found myself enjoying the romance between Gemma and Talan and I end up rooting for them as the story unfolds.

There's even some foreshadowing for later books of a Romeo and Juliet type romance between one of the Ashbournes and one of the Basks.

World Building

When it comes to fantasy books, it can be tough to build a well-thought-out, lived-in world. Claire Legrand does a great job of building the lore of the continent of Gallinora. She drip-feeds the history of the world in a natural way, avoiding long paragraphs of exposition. The descriptions of the world entice the reader to learn more.

I found myself wanting to know more about the world as I read. I soaked up and devoured every piece of lore that helped build the world and the characters in the world. The pacing of giving information felt perfect to me.

Allegory on Anxiety

My favorite part of the book, and one I connected to most was Claire Legrand's description of anxiety. Gemma suffers from what she calls the panic. It debilitates her throughout the story at times and she spends the book learning to handle it. However, even at the end of the book she isn't fully able to. As someone that suffers and will always have to deal with OCD, this was nice to see. It's not something one can just get over.

The panic comes to Gemma and she starts to learn ways to deal with it. The mini-prayer she creates was relatable. "I was not terrible. I was not a burden. I was not alone."

I found myself relating to Gemma multiple times throughout the book. I enjoyed reading about her growth and definitely was rooting for her as the story progressed. The scene where Gemma figures out why she has the panic in the first place is a fantastic metaphor that a lot of people with anxiety can probably relate too.

Final Thoughts

Overall, I would recommend A Crown of Ivy and Glass by Claire Legrand. I was a little surprised that I enjoyed the book so much. Romance novels are not usually the first book I would reach for on the shelf. So I was a bit apprehensive about how much I would enjoy a fantasy romance novel. Claire Legrand does a good job weaving together the romance and the fantasy though. The world-building is fantastic. The characters are intriguing and dynamic. The writing is a bit young-adult at times, but I didn't mind that so much. It's a great start for a trilogy and I look forward to continue reading about the Middlemist.

I have never been more conflicted about a book than “A Crown of Ivy and Glass.” There were some elements that I absolutely adored (mainly the sisterly relationships) and some that I abhorred (mainly the romantic relationship). The relationship between Gemma and Talan fell so flat for me and I hardly cared about its success even after reading 560 pages of romantic fluff. Although this book is adult fantasy, it read SO much as YA, but with far too many sex scenes. I’m all for a good smut scene, but there were too many, especially in the most inopportune times. As a reader, I more often prefer a slow burn romance, and Gemma/Talan happened instantly, and I instantly didn’t care for them.

I do wish this book was broken up into two novels. By the midway point I felt like I was reading an entirely different book and didn’t see a lot of cohesion. It would have benefited to be separate to elaborate more on certain relationships.

This book really did have quite a few good qualities. I loved the fantasy elements of this story and felt truly immersed in the world-building. Gemma’s magical disabilities were written very well and contrasted perfectly against her sister’s magical gifts. I do wish there was more focus on family relationships to romantic as the Ashbourne’s story is so rich with trails and tribulations. I would LOVE to have other books from Mara or Farrin’s perspective, (especially with a possible enemies to lovers romance with Ryder Bask?) Gemma as a narrator was insufferable at times and I would love to read other perspectives.

There is SO much potential in this series and would really love to read the sequel, hoping it’s a little more finely tuned. Thank you so much to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Casablanca for proving an advanced copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review. 3.5 Stars rounded up.

It did not take long for me to be immersed in the world in which Gemma lived, and it is a world nothing like my own. From the start we are drawn into the lives of all the characters, especially our unlikely heroine, and the adventure begins. At first we seem to be strolling, but soon enough we are carried away at a full run with twists, turns and mysteries all around. If you enjoy fantasy with a bit of romance woven in, give this a try. I am looking forward to see what happens next.

A hero whose family has lost the queen's favor. A heroine who's the odd one out. And a mutually beneficial proposition. Oh my! A Crown of Ivy and Glass is full of action, twists, steam, magic and paranormals which make for an entertaining read!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for this one. I REALLY wanted to love this one, I just could not connect with the story. What I thought it was about and what the story was really about was very different and it didn't work for me :/ I think the writing style didn't hook me in and it took me a long time to get through this book .

While I am a fan of the Furyborn series this book was a miss for me. I found the female MC to be difficult to connect with. The world building was excellent but it was really the characters that made the story rough for me.

DNF at 25%. This was advertised as a mix between Bridgerton and ACOTAR and it just feels like a terrible fanfiction. The protagonist (and the only POV we apparently get to deal with as an audience) is whiny and annoying. There was nothing redeemable about her. And I just do not care what happens.

A Crown of Ivy and Glass by Claire Legrand is definitely for those that binge-watched all of Bridgerton and Queen Charlotte and are now trying to occupy their time until the next season.

Following the Lady Gemma Ashbourne through her aristocratic lifestyle in this New Adult Fantasy Fiction, we find that not all is so splendid as they seem. Born to the Ashbourne name, Gemma is part of a select class called the Anointed--families who were directly blessed with magic by the Gods themselves. However, the issue for Gemma is that she possesses no magic at all and actual grows violently ill when near it. In comes the very handsome Talan d'Astier, whose family was seduced by a demon and it inevitably destroyed them. He comes bearing Gemma a proposal, help him navigate high society to earn back his family's reputation and he will help her destroy her family's enemies, the Basks. But with attacks on the world's defenses from monstrous creatures, plots soon spiral out of control and something is happening to Gemma, something terrifying.

Aproximately 33% through. This is definitely an interesting concept and though some find the MC very childish and consider this book to fall more into YA, I believe that is the point. Gemma is unknown to the truths of the world. Gemma is kept in the dark by her father and sisters, all she knows are the shining things of her life and is aching to know more, to be seen as more than a porcelain doll. Then comes a boy who may possibly see her as she would like to be. In the mean time, we shall see how events unfold.

There was a lot of world building in this book. A lot. But, I liked it. That wasn't a deal breaker for me. I enjoyed reading about the magic, curses, demons, etc. What I didn't love was Gemma. She was a hard one to root for at times. I do feel like she was better toward the end so I have high hopes that she'll be more likeable in the next book.

This book just wasn’t for me. I felt like the pacing was a little too slow and I never found myself eager to pick the book back up. It wasn’t the writing that I didn’t care for but the development of the story.

Lady Gemma Ashbourne seems to have the perfect life but her reality is anything but perfect. When Talan d'Astier comes into her life, one bargain changes the course of their lives.

I had never read Furyborn so I was really excited to read this novel. I thought the plot was interesting; I liked the idea of Gemma being the only one with no magic and her relationship with Talan intrigued me as well.

However, when I read the novel I found it difficult to care about the characters and parts of the novel bore me. The writing style and narrative didn't hook me in and the plot confused me at times.

This is my first book by Claire Legrand and have seen very positive things about this author! I was really pumped to get an e-arc of this book and start reading it! That being said, I really struggled through this book. I personally had a hard time connecting with Gemma (FMC) and couldn’t get past the writing style. Once the pace of the book picked up (way too late) I enjoyed it a little more!

Something I think Claire Legrand does super well is create characters that you’re not sure about. Do I like them? Do I hate them? Do I sympathize with them? Are they good, bad, morally grey?

Gemma is a third daughter of a magical family
who is not only missing magic, it makes her sick. She finds out her family and a rival family were pitted against each other by a demon and decides to take her fate into her own hands.

This book has a unique magic system that isn’t super difficult to make sense of like some fantasy worlds, which is my favorite type. The world feels old fashioned but the values don’t (Aka there are no noblewomen expected to remain virginal) which I love.

Between this book and the furyborn trilogy, I think I’ll read anything Claire writes.