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katara
A Crown of Ivy and Glass (The Middlemist Trilogy #1) by Claire Legrand
Fantasy, Romance, Adult, Young Adult, Magical Realism, High Fantasy, Netgalley
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.
Review: I have seen a lot of anticipation for this book, and though it had been a while since I last picked up anything from this author, I thought this was one book I would be nice to pick up. The premise and the world-building sounded promising. This was an author known for epic fantasies and one of the most popular authors BookTokers loved to trounce out to other readers especially if they wanted an introduction to epic fantasy of beautiful characters, magnificent world-building, and a storyline that will draw you into.
This series is being touted as a cross between ACOTR and the Bridgeton books. I read the latter when I was a teenager a long, long time ago. Those books were seen as nothing more than cheesy bodice-ripping historical romances. Though this does have the feel of a historical regency romance, it leans more toward the high fantasy romance. A world built around myth and magic and where our female lead has none of it running through her veins. Her family is prestigious and rich with magic running through their veins, but our female lead cannot even be around it. It causes constant chronic pain. She is even often ignored and forgotten by her own father and sister, Farrin. Her own mother had abandoned them. On top of that, they came for her sister, Mara, and took her to Middlemist where she would become part of the female warriors of shapeshifters and priories of Rosewood meant to protect the human realm of Edyn against deceitful magic. Her own family is embroiled in a blood feud against the mysterious family of Bask from the North. A feud caused by a demon called The Man with the Three-Eyed Crown.
But it all changes when she meets Talan d'Astier - a charming, mysterious, and sarcastic man. Gemma is drawn to him as he is to her and the two of them set out to find The Man With The Three-Eyed Crown, navigate their way through the UpperCrust of Society, and destroy the Bask Family.
This book was surprisingly a great read. I loved the world-building and the mix of regency within. The only downside to this is I am not quite fond of Gemma. Though she is not a perfect character, her personality seems a bit terrible. She's the youngest of three and her behavior shows it - she's selfish, vain, and dismissive. All the characteristics that made me dislike her the moment she came on the scene. I wanted to like her further as the storyline progressed but I didn't really see anything redeemable about her. Maybe I was just annoyed with her and just could connect with her any further.
This book is the first in a trilogy and I am hoping the other sisters will prove to be better than Gemma.
Overall, this first book is promising and I am looking forward to seeing how the trilogy plays out.
Stars:
4.5 out of 5
Title: Furyborn (Empirium #1)
