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TL;DR: This one is sneaky, it’s a slow read and deeply rooted in the psyche of our characters but it has a fascinating arc.
Source: Netgalley, Thank you to the publisher!!

Plot: A demon loves a city till a host of angels destroy it. She grieves her city as she grapples with the angel that stayed, seemingly cursed to her side.
Characters: Vitrine is our primary character. She is lost in grief for most the novel and she is a fascinating take on the ‘demon’ character. I really enjoyed her.
Setting: The ruins of a once great city. It was both sad and beautiful in turns.
Fantasy: As far as magic and the ‘fantasy’ of it I don’t think that was the focus so it’s overly strong. I’d consider this low magic, very much not of our world.

Thoughts:

I was half way through this book and though ‘I don’t know if I like this’. Then, as I finished and sat on it a while and it came together in my mind I realized that wow, that’s going to stick to me. The City in Glass is fascinating study of a woman trapped in grief for the city she lost. Vitrine is an immortal demon, one who has lived and grown her beloved Azril. Then it’s destroyed by a host of angels and she spirals into grief and anger.

We are limited to Vitrine, the entire story follows the grief maddened woman around the ruins of her city as she calls up ghosts and reflects on the lives and times lost. We also meet an angel who Vitrine cursed, and who finds himself trapped on the earth and with her in a way. The two have a fascinating, a tie that bonds them over the course of the novel till the bittersweet ending.

This is entirely a story of grief. Of loss, and memory and how we stumble and fall and struggle to rebuild after such devastation. The last half of the story begins to grow in hope and honestly by the end I was enthralled by this demon who I at times hated and other times loved. I reread that last chapter at least three times. It was a slow but beautiful burn. If you enjoy that type of a story this is a big recommendation - but it definitely won’t be for everyone!

This was such a beautiful story in fact it’s giving me almost Piranesi vibes in the way that it's written. It follows a demon who has fallen in love with this city, which she nurtured and built. The city and all of its people are destroyed by angels who come down from heaven and she is devastated but vows to rebuild it but throughout the years one of the angels keeps visiting her. It was emotional and lyrical. Plus it's a novella so a short digestible read.

“What a shame that would be, to fall in love and be made to stay.”
“I love her,” Vitrine continued, still watching the empty horizon. “Her name is in my book.”
“And you let her go.”
“There are many ways to love someone.”

A demon, an angel, and a city. This book was…vey dream like and strange. But in a good way, if you enjoy the vibes of This Is How You Lose the Time War, Piranesi and The Night Circus. This short standalone spans many years, seeing to a city’s loss and recreation. I think at its core, this story is about the nurturing of something precious, the loss of identity and country, the perseverance of generations, and more. There’s an ethereal and poetic quality to the writing that makes it beautiful.

I don’t think this one will be for anybody looking for plot or a clear storyline- it will probably feel boring to some. I enjoyed the experience, but I would approach this more like poetry rather than a traditional story. Definitely a quiet, dreamy read, if you’re in the mood for it.

3.75 - For essentially what was a sci-fi novel in the format of a short story/novella, I was really impressed by the world and plot the author managed to build in such a short time. Especially with this being a standalone, I really felt like the author managed to create an intricate romance, world, and history between these characters.

The City in Glass is a standalone fantasy/scifi, with an elaborate history and romance between an angel and demon. The demon loves the magical city Azril and has spent generations being the guardian and mother of its people and the city. When the angels arrive, the city falls, and the demon does everything in her power to destroy the angel and all the destruction he has brought. The demon and angel must come together and decide whether to fight as one to protect the city from an upcoming war and further destruction.

This is a love story, really, set in a fantasy world and magical city. The emotional depth between the demon and angel is strong and destructive. The imagery in this story was next level, and I really felt like I was watching the demon and angel battle each other and the world. The writing in this one was so beautiful and left me emotionally reeling at times, it felt very lyrical. In such a short story, you could really feel the pain and love between these characters, and for the city.

Thank you to Tor and NetGalley for sending me this free advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!!

<i>Thank you to Tordotcom / Tor Publishing Group for a chance to read an arc this book! 🖤 </i>

<i>3⭐️</i> I enjoyed the ride but didn't really understand it. tropes: lyrical prose, angels and demons, queernormativity | no steam | digital

<i> “The piece of you in me burns. I cannot remove it no matter what I cut, and my brothers will not allow me to return while I have it.” “Good.” </i>

<i> characters </i>
🩶 Vitrine is a demon who has spent hundreds of years fostering Azril into a grand city. It was her everything, especially the humans she spent generations walking among.
🩶 The angel is at first cold and impatient without any understanding. He then slowly changed into a new kind of devotion to Vitrine and humans

<i> "...she could see, truly see, the city that would become Azril, and fatally and at once, like an angel would three hundred years later, she fell in love." </i>

<i> favorite bits </i>
🖤 Vitrine's grief was so poignant throughout the story. She loved her city and its people and to see it decimated in an instant was heartbreaking. Seeing stories from the people she met throughout the years and the effect they had on her was amazing.
🖤 The relationship between Vitrine and the angel was complex and interesting. To go from snarling and biting to sharing a love of a place to call home.
🖤 This authors ability to weave stories into stories always astounds me. I love the long breaks for lore and connecting the current and the past. We learn all the ways Azril became Azril and learn to love the city as much as Vitrine works on rebuilding.

<i> issues </i>
❌ I didn't really understand why the angel loved Vitrine. We don't get enough of the angel to know him in any real way to understand why he loved her, especially the first time he says it. And also why Vitrine loved him as well. I wanted to know more about the angels and why the city was destroyed. There was so much here I wanted explored that wasn't. I think people who don't need to know the why's and how's will enjoy this though.

<i> final thoughts: </i>
The writing and story was beautiful but I need more to really rate this book higher. I'm a person who needs to understand characters to enjoy their romance and I couldn't do that here. Overall, I did love the world and the story!

Check out my socials <a href="https://linktr.ee/buffyreads here</a> for more reviews!

Thanks to Tordotcom for the ARC.

The story itself was very unique, if not a little reminiscent of ancient Greek and Roman stories. While I did enjoy the read, I didn't feel like there was a lot more to it than what was already stated in the synopsis.

The City in Glass by Nghi Vo offers a lush, lyrical exploration of a demon’s obsession with a fallen city and the angel who helped destroy it. Vitrine, the immortal demon at the heart of the story, once mothered, ruled, and reveled in the dazzling city of Azril before it was reduced to ruins. Bound by her curse, an angel now haunts the remains of the city he burned, as both characters wrestle with their intertwined fates. Together, they explore the past of the lost city and navigate its uncertain future, with the ever-looming threat of war hanging over them.

Vo’s signature style shines through in the evocative prose, painting a vivid portrait of a city that feels alive with memories, joy, and grief. The premise is incredibly intriguing, especially with Vitrine as the powerful, complex protagonist. Her love for Azril, her mourning for its lost glory, and her anger towards the angel who destroyed it give the novella an emotional depth that pulls you in. However, while the story's setup is strong, it falters in execution. Despite the novella's brevity, there are long stretches of introspection and flashbacks that drag the pacing, making the story feel longer than it is.

Although marketed as a fantasy with romantic undertones, The City in Glass isn't a traditional love story. It feels more like a love letter to the city of Azril itself, with Vitrine’s passion and sorrow for the city taking center stage. The angel, unfortunately, doesn't quite live up to his potential. Though he’s key to the story, his character comes across as flat and lacks the same depth and complexity as Vitrine, making their dynamic less engaging than it could have been.

Overall, The City in Glass is a beautifully written, introspective novella that will likely appeal to fans of Vo’s work. While it didn't fully captivate me, the world-building and Vitrine’s journey were compelling enough to recommend to readers who appreciate lyrical, character-driven fantasy.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

The City in Glass by Nghi Vo is my third novel by Nghi Vo , though I have read her novella the empress of salt and fortune. I was so impressed by this book’s incredible writing. Nghi Vo has a unique new voice that just pulls me into her characters.
It was so well-executed and so, well, magical, that I was left satisfied.

Thank You NetGalley and Tordotcom for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

The City in Glass is a story of a city, a demon who loves it, and an angel who loves the demon. It’s set in an imaginary world close enough of ours to be recognisable in some parts, though not immediately identifiable as a particular culture or specific time. A distant past, maybe.

Vitrine is a demon, an immortal being of high emotions and capricious nature, but not evil. She’s arrived to Azril centuries ago when it was still a shanty-town of pirates. With love to its people and the town itself, she helps it to grow to a bright jewel, watching its fortunes ebb and flow through time. And then, out of the blue, four angels arrive and destroy the place and the people.

Only ruins, ghosts, and Vitrine’s rage remain. In her anger, she curses one of the angels, planting a part of her essence in his heart. Unable to return to his own plane of existence with other angels, he stays in Azril, watching as she begins to clear the destruction to make way for the town to reborn again.

The two don’t like or understand each other. Her anger doesn’t ease, but he offers no explanations to the angels’ actions. Years and decades go by as Vitrine clings to her grief, reminiscing the people she’s known. The two barely interact, but they are each other’s only company. Until she drives him away. She would want it to be forever, but in the end, she sets a limit of fifty years.

When the angel returns, he wants to bring refugees of a war to Azril to repopulate it. She demands a huge sacrifice of him to let them come. He agrees, and so the city comes alive again, and the cycle of watching it grow starts anew. It’s not the Azril she’s known before, but it’s her city and her people and she loves them. But it’s now his city too, much to her upset.

This was such a wonderful read. It doesn’t really have a plot that would advance from point to point. Instead, we walk the streets of Azril remembering the past with Vitrine, so named because of a glass cabinet in her heart where she holds a book with names of all the people of Azril—and the angel’s sacrifice. Years, decades and then centuries flow past, and the city grows under Vitrine’s supervision. Not that humans really know she’s there.

The angel comes and goes. He doesn’t speak much, but the reader sees him change from a cold vessel of judgement and destruction to a person who cares about the people of Azril as much as Vitrine does. Her anger eases eventually, and his love for her grows, though we have no indication of it other than that he keeps returning to her. He’s never named, and even at the end she refuses to ask his name or add it to her book. Instead, as a show of her love, she gives him her city—or gives him to the city.

Even without a traditional plot, this was a compelling read. The tone is pensive, but the pace is good, the language is rich, and Vitrine is ever changing like her city. The ending was a bit of a surprise, and while it made an impact, it’s sort of disappointing in the way it was handled. (MINOR SPOILER AHEAD)

I would’ve liked for her to set him free, like she did to everyone she loved, something he struggled with. She does ask if he wants it, but he doesn’t want her to ask. For me, it meant he wanted her to give it voluntarily as an act of love, but she takes it to mean he doesn’t want it. And although he goes to his fate voluntarily, I would’ve found it more meaningful if he’d done it free of the curse too. It’s a small mar though and doesn’t in anyway lessen my enjoyment of the story.

4.5⭐️

I absolutely loved this book so much. The writing is beautiful and covers many topics regarding grief, morally gray decisions, community and different forms of love.

I can see this book having polarizing reviews. Where it works really well for some and the complete opposite for others. This book really has no plot or true world building, but it's getting a slice of life from a demon and angel. You'll feel many different range of emotions thru out this book.

The only thing that wasn't perfect for me was the romance. I think it would have been honestly better with out as it just didn't feel quite right.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Publishing for this advanced read copy. My review is voluntarily my own.

3 ⭐️

This book was just so aggressively not for me. I think if you’re someone who likes short thought r experiments coupled with pretty prose, then this is for you. If you want a cohesive plot, deep magic or world building, or traditional character work…then this probably isn’t for you. This was my first experience with Nghi Vo but if she is always this all vibes to the extreme it might be only one. I will say the writing was pretty and some of the metaphors and symbolism were interesting. This isn’t 3 ⭐️ because anything was bad, it’s just not for me but I’m sure it’s great for the right kind of reader.

I received a copy in exchange for an honest review.

The City in Glass is a book I really appreciated and know I'll get even more out of on a second read. The conceit of the city-as-a-character is one that I enjoy reading in any iteration. The City in Glass is a blend between philosophical and contemplative narrative with subtle plot and clever character development. It reminded me of Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino (apparently Tordotcom agrees with me on this) and This is How You Lose the Time War, but with Nghi Vo's signature style prose. It's on the more speculative end of the fantasy genre, which I appreciate, with gorgeous atmospheric [literal] worldbuilding.

This is perfect for those who like to think about their SFF books without the prose feeling overly lofty or pretentious. At 215 pages, the prose is tight and the word choice judicious.

As always, I am a huge fan of Nghi Vo and her writing and will follow her down any writing path her chooses. This story was as great as her others, with a very devasting love story (not romance I would say) between a devil and an angel. Not my new favorite of Vo's, but I still had to lay on my back in the dark to process that ending.

Well, hmm. I don’t know how I feel about this one. It is a beautifully written story, as every Nghi Vo story is beautiful. I’ve also noticed many times that her books are better on a reread because knowing the broad strokes it’s easier to pick up the smaller threads, and I can The City in Glass following that pattern.

All that said, it does a lot of really interesting things regarding grief, autonomy, and community. This is a love story, but not a romance. The ending left me feeling very what the fuck and that’s a large part of why I don’t know if I enjoyed this yet, because I don’t know if the ending was worth the journey, as much as I was engrossed. I definitely recommend this, especially if you’ve enjoyed previous Nghi Vo works.

The City in Glass by Nghi Vo is an intriguing concept novella travelling through the experiences of the demon Vitrine in a very unique narrative

Definitely a novella I will revisit

Thank you to NetGalley, Tor Publishing Group | Tordotcom and Nghi Vo for this ARC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

I wasn't as immersed in 'The City in Glass' as I have been in Vo's other books ('Siren Queen' and 'The Chosen and the Beautiful'). The writing, however, is just as magical, lyrical and well-structured as always.

Based on the blurb for this book, I went in expecting something more akin to 'Angels Before Man,' but ended up with a meandering tale that I felt was missing the spark from Vo's other writing.

Vitrine, our demon, and her angel have both tender and exciting moments of banter and touching connection. But, there are also many repetitive feuds that become a tad tiresome.

This is all sounding rather critical, but I still greatly enjoyed this story. I love the concept and the writing. I am always under Vo's spell - the way she writes such fascinating fantastical worlds is utterly captivating, and this one is no different.

At the end of the day, still a magical story in Vo's trademark style, but missing a little oomf compared to her other works. I recommend for fan's of Vo, but suggest new readers start elsewhere.

Vitrine is a demon. Centuries ago she found herself in the city of Azril, where she fell in love. Not with a person, but with the city itself. For generations, she is the patron of Azril, seeding chaos but also encouraging the city to grow and flourish. Until one day the angelic host arrives to wipe Azril from the map.

Enraged, Vitrine lashes out at one angel, managing to embed a part of herself in him. No longer pure enough for heaven, this angel becomes an unwilling companion to Vitrine’s slow efforts to rebuild the city of her heart.

It doesn’t really sound like much in the way of story but that’s not the point. The focus is very much on Vitrine, but even then her obsessive building and rebuilding of the city makes that the centre, and seeing everything stripped down to nothing and then layered and re-laid – it’s fascinating, ‘world’ (well, city) building laid out from the foundations.

It’s also a great deal about these two characters, the demon and the angel. But when the latter slaughters thousands, and the former seeks to build and nourish – well, it’s not so black and white as you might assume. It’s also not going to be what you might expect, or at least nothing so simple as a love story between polar opposites. And everything, everything is dark and hard.

The City in Glass is as gorgeously written as anything I’ve tried from the author. It has a lot more sharp edges than any of the Singing Hills novellas, though – I’d go so far as to say ‘starkly beautiful’. There is, perhaps, a lot to ponder here, if you’re so inclined. And if you’re not, well, there’s no shortage of wonderful words and beautifully painted images.

A demon loves her city and the people within. While she delights in the darker parts of life, she doesn't seem to cause them. However, a band of angels destroys the city and its inhabitants because of her wickedness. She curses one angel, who sticks around, falling in love with her. Slowly the city is rebuilt and resettled.

This is an unusual story, I felt like I was waiting for it to start even though I was sucked in. It is hard to describe but I did thoroughly enjoy myself throughout the entire story!

Thank you to Tor Publishing Group and Net Galley for the eARC!

This is my first Nghi Vo book and all I can say is wow. Thank you NetGalley and Tor for this e-ARC.

I have a special place in my heart for books that I would call "all vibes." There's not a lot going on here. You have a demon, Vitrine, who adores her City, Azril, a city full of beauty and revelry both. One day some angels come and destroy it. Vitrine, utterly devastated, seeks to rebuild the city from scratch. Oh and one of the angels is trapped with her because she cursed him and he's been ostracized by his own kind. And they s.l.o.w.l.y. fall in love.

And that's the whole plot, but the writing is just so lush and captivating that I really didn't need a lot going on to be immersed in the world of Azril, or I suppose New Azril. That is the only location for this book and we spend lifetimes with Vitrine and Angel as they interact with people as they live and die in Azril.

The characters were wonderfully fleshed out, the story moved me, and I now want to pick up more of Nghi Vo's books. There is really nothing else I want a book to do.

4.5 Stars

I loved every word of this novella. I read it while traveling, and so Vitrine’s love of her city and the arc of its course through history felt perfectly timed for me to appreciate it most.

The writing is gorgeous—I highlighted many lines throughout. Vitrine as a character was beautifully complex, and though I enjoyed the Angel and their arc together, it felt as if the secondary main character (or even the love interest) was more so Azril itself.

Totally unique, I’ve never read anything like it.