Jul 23

Jul 23 A Crown of Ivy and Glass (The Middlemist Trilogy, #1)

Author: Claire Legrand
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Goodreads | The StoryGraph

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Note: Content and trigger warnings are provided for those who need them at the bottom of this page. If you don’t need them and don’t want to risk spoilers, don’t scroll past the full review.

Cover Description

Lady Gemma Ashbourne seemingly has it all. She's young, gorgeous, and rich. Her family was Anointed by the gods, blessed with incredible abilities. But underneath her glittering façade, Gemma is deeply sad. Years ago, her sister Mara was taken to the Middlemist to guard against treacherous magic. Her mother abandoned the family. Her father and eldest sister, Farrin—embroiled in a deadly blood feud with the mysterious Bask family—often forget Gemma exists.

Worst of all, Gemma is the only Ashbourne to possess no magic. Instead, her body fights it like poison. Constantly ill, aching with loneliness, Gemma craves love and yearns to belong.

Then she meets the devastatingly handsome Talan d'Astier. His family destroyed themselves, seduced by a demon, and Talan, the only survivor, is determined to redeem their honor. Intrigued and enchanted, Gemma proposes a bargain: She'll help Talan navigate high society if he helps her destroy the Basks. According to popular legend, a demon called The Man With the Three-Eyed Crown is behind the families' blood feud—slay the demon, end the feud.

But attacks on the Middlemist are increasing. The plot against the Basks quickly spirals out of control. And something immense and terrifying is awakening in Gemma, drawing her inexorably toward Talan and an all-consuming passion that could destroy her—or show her the true strength of her power at last.

TL;DR Review

A Crown of Ivy and Glass, an adult fantasy romance Giselle retelling, was definitely not perfect, but I had a ton of fun reading it and can’t wait for book two.

For you if: You’re looking for anxiety/chronic pain rep and love a steamy fantasy book.

Full Review

I loved Claire Legrand’s Empirium trilogy (first book is Furyborn), so imagine how excited I was when I read in her newsletter that she’d sold a new adult fantasy romance trilogy where each book focuses on a different sister and retells a famous ballet. I DMed the publisher to put me on a galley list right away (to which they kindly said “it’s a little early lol”).

A Crown of Ivy and Glass was far from perfect, but I definitely had fun reading it. This one is a Giselle retelling and focuses on the youngest sister, Gemma.

The not-so-great parts: The pacing was inconsistent, with a much slower build and sudden change 75% of the way in. Gemma is vain and self-absorbed and not very likable, especially in the beginning. Legrand’s “once upon a time” prose style also takes some time to get used to until it stops feeling cheesy, as does Gemma and Talin’s insta-love.

And for the good parts: Gemma gives us some solid rep, including anxiety/panic attacks and severe chronic pain, which Legrand has said was extremely important to her. I loved that it was a Giselle retelling, and it managed to surprise me even so. The magic system feels novel and interesting. Oh, and steamy scenes be steamyyy.

The next book is going to be about Gemma’s eldest sister, Farin, and based on the glimpses we got in this book, I can already tell it’s going to be a fantastic romance. I’ll be eagerly awaiting it!