Of course I had to read this precious book a third time before the third book comes out. Of course I loved it just as much this third time reading it, eee. Claire is simply my most treasured author. She is such a great person. Her stories are the best. The most heartbreaking at times, though. How rude. But so truly perfect.
This time I am going to try my very best to write a shorter review. As I am certain I have already written all the words for this book twice before. And yet I know I'm not the best at stopping myself from writing once I start. Oops. I shall try. As always, the writing was fantastic. And I am so in love with this cover. It is beautiful.
This book is very much a romance. And I loved that so much. It is very much about Gemma swooning over Talan. And him her. And I just loved it all to pieces, honestly. I did not mind. But this book is not all about that. There is a fantasy part of it. There is some magic. All of it amazing. And I loved getting to know more about the world around Gemma's home. I could probably write about this book forever and ever. But truly going to try keeping it short. I may not succeed. Oops. But I will not mention that much about the plot. Honestly just because it's fully complicated and there is so very much happening, haha. So instead going to write a little about the different things that I love about this story. Which may end up being a bit too much. Oh, well. I loved it all.
There are so many great characters in this book. I so loved Gemma's dog, Una. I loved her best friend, Illaria. And I loved the family friend, Garreth. I even loved reading about the Basks, their sworn enemies. There are mentions of demons and curses. All pretty much awesome. We see a small peek at the queen in this world. And she was epic. We learn about the Middlemist and some of the monsters that are there. Loved it lots. Cannot wait to learn more in book three. There are some gorgeous balls. Some battles too.
There is so much going on in this book. At one point, Gemma ends up being kidnapped. Which was such a weird surprise twist, haha. Yet it was pretty fun and interesting too. She got taken by the Vilia women in the mountains. I am not going to share anything about them, just that their story was so good and I liked getting to know everything. A little sad. Such a great story. I loved the final part of the book most. When they visit the house by the sea. It was so creepy and I just found it to be awesome. Loved those scenes.
One of my favorite things about this book was reading about the relationship between Gemma and her sisters. I loved their strong bond. Sure, they argued a little. But they loved each other fiercely. Gemma is the younger one, Mara two years older, then Farrin two years older than her. It always breaks my heart to know that Mara was taken from them when they were young, to join the Roses. So rude. But so exciting too. I wish they had more time together. Excited to re-read Farrin's book. And to finally read Mara's story.
Of course, another of my most favorite scenes was getting to know what happened to Gemma. Why all magic keeps hurting her. What happened when she was younger. It broke my heart all over again. And it was the very best, in a way. So interesting and cruel. I loved it. Gemma was so broken in this book. Yet trying to seem strong. I loved how she actually became stronger as well. She was not only broken. But brave and loving. A little crazy at times, but I loved her for that. She hurt so much. But she did her best.
And of course every scene between Gemma and Talan. Sigh. They were truly so perfect together. It starts as an instant love, somewhat. She wants him the moment she sees him. I can't blame her, though, ha. As Talan was the best. I loved him to pieces. Such a beautiful, sad and romantic man. He also loved her right away. It does take some time before they actually get together, which I loved. They rush, yet also not. The romance feels a little too much at times, yet also not enough. I found it all to be pretty much perfect. Sigh.
What I loved most, I think, was Gemma and her pain. It was so painful to read about. Yet so very lovely too. Because I felt myself in Gemma, in so many ways. I have chronic pain. I hurt all the time. Of course, not near the same type of pain that Gemma felt. But similar. I also wish to be without this pain. Gemma is a bit more dramatic and hurting than me, but oh, how much I loved her. She was just fully precious. And relatable. It made me love her more. She hides behind her beauty and money. But she is so much more.
I have already written way too much about this book. I was supposed to keep it shorter this third time. Failed a little. And yet I still want to keep writing. Sigh. Which is honestly a good thing. As it just shows how much I love the stories by Claire Legrand. She is the best. And this first adult book by her was all kinds of thrilling. I just love it so very much. The story of Gemma and Talan is so good. There is a bigger story behind it all. We only learn a little bit in this first book. So much more to come and I am so excited.
There is just so much that I love about A Crown of Ivy and Glass. I'm pretty sure I could never run out of things to write about it. But tried keeping it short this time. The story is just wonderful. And the characters are the absolute best. The setting is stunning. The book is so very dark and depressing at times. But full of hope and romance as well. It ends in a bittersweet way. I had the same hopes that Gemma did. Sobs. And yet it was a great ending too. I think you should all read this wonderful book too. It is a special one.
