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Newlyweds Jane and David Vincent travel to Belgium and their ability to create invisibility via glamour makes them a target for emperor Napoleon's returning forces.Tags
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nessreader Action-adventure war thriller fantasy crossed over with regency romance mannerpunk. Both Glamour in Glass and the Silvered have a lot of plot and the action in relation to the love story, which is fine by me.
Member Reviews
*sighs* I'm loving these books... The style is very Jane Austen, but with magic. I like how the author keeps quite faithful to the style, even when she digresses from the typical Jane Austen subjects. And how she sticks to those subjects, even when magic or war are discussed. Jane's outlook remains firmly Jane-Austen like, even though she does change her mind about things due to her new profession and circumstances. For instance, Jane remains very conscious of propriety, even if she is sometimes annoyed by people who dismiss her because she is a woman, or when she observes different social rules in Belgium.
What I almost always dislike in books is when being pregnant diminishes a woman's capability of performing magic. Although that is show more also the case in Glamour in glass, I must admit that in this case, it makes sense. In other books it often seems just a ploy to introduce weakness for a woman, particularly if that woman is strong and powerful (in some cases, even a period results in weakness, for instance in the Daughter of the blood books by Anne Bishop.) Here though, it seems inevitable that performing glamour is a bad idea if you are pregnant, since already in the first book it was made quite clear that it can be dangerous to your health if overdone. Both Vincent and Jane are overcome by excessive glamour use before the author every thought of having anyone become pregnant.
Although I didn't really like the pregnancy, I love both Jane and Vincent, and even lack of glamour didn't stop Jane from contributing to science and to the war efforts. The glitches in their marriage that Jane and Vincent experience are natural to their characters and situation, and I like that even though it results in momentary unhappiness, their arguments are honest and performed with mutual respect, without unnecesary misunderstandings. And I definitely like how Jane grows character-wise, losing her pain over being plain and becoming more secure in her relationship with Vincent.
I've already started part 3 in this series, and I can totally see me reading all of them. If they keep up this level, that won't be any problem! show less
What I almost always dislike in books is when being pregnant diminishes a woman's capability of performing magic. Although that is show more also the case in Glamour in glass, I must admit that in this case, it makes sense. In other books it often seems just a ploy to introduce weakness for a woman, particularly if that woman is strong and powerful (in some cases, even a period results in weakness, for instance in the Daughter of the blood books by Anne Bishop.) Here though, it seems inevitable that performing glamour is a bad idea if you are pregnant, since already in the first book it was made quite clear that it can be dangerous to your health if overdone. Both Vincent and Jane are overcome by excessive glamour use before the author every thought of having anyone become pregnant.
Although I didn't really like the pregnancy, I love both Jane and Vincent, and even lack of glamour didn't stop Jane from contributing to science and to the war efforts. The glitches in their marriage that Jane and Vincent experience are natural to their characters and situation, and I like that even though it results in momentary unhappiness, their arguments are honest and performed with mutual respect, without unnecesary misunderstandings. And I definitely like how Jane grows character-wise, losing her pain over being plain and becoming more secure in her relationship with Vincent.
I've already started part 3 in this series, and I can totally see me reading all of them. If they keep up this level, that won't be any problem! show less
4.5 Stars
I gotta say I enjoyed this volume a TON better than book one.
The author’s writing style has smoothed out from her awkward tendencies in book one. No strange exchanges or showdowns here! I think it’s from not trying so hard to emulate Jane Austen. The atmosphere and the details of the Regency are still very firmly present; yet, the author isn’t trying to incorporate exact phrasing and spelling choices to the story nor is she forcing Jane Austen-esque character interactions into the story.
I also still enjoyed her main characters and their relationship. The secondary ones still didn’t make all that much of an impression on me; I can hardly remember most of their names. But the leads were still great. The author threw some show more pretty harsh circumstances and story twists at our characters, and I found how they dealt with them realistic. Especially with Jane’s twist, I think I can safely say that I would have dealt with her tribulations in almost exactly the same way.
My favorite part of this book, though, was the more in depth look at glamour that we got. Details on how it works, postulations on its uses outside of pretty colors and decoration, more on the cost users pay to utilize it, and theorizing on how to adapt it to current technologies all play a part in the story. The fantasy geek in me was thrilled to see all this stuff on the magic system.
To me, this book was worth wading through the first book for. While that one had some good points, it was mostly a slog through. But book two?! Vast improvement and a fantastic book overall. I loved the main characters still, enjoyed the new twists on glamour, and enjoyed the different story and situations presented for our leads to overcome. Highly recommended for lovers of historical fantasy with a side of romance. Look forward to the rest of the series! show less
I gotta say I enjoyed this volume a TON better than book one.
The author’s writing style has smoothed out from her awkward tendencies in book one. No strange exchanges or showdowns here! I think it’s from not trying so hard to emulate Jane Austen. The atmosphere and the details of the Regency are still very firmly present; yet, the author isn’t trying to incorporate exact phrasing and spelling choices to the story nor is she forcing Jane Austen-esque character interactions into the story.
I also still enjoyed her main characters and their relationship. The secondary ones still didn’t make all that much of an impression on me; I can hardly remember most of their names. But the leads were still great. The author threw some show more pretty harsh circumstances and story twists at our characters, and I found how they dealt with them realistic. Especially with Jane’s twist, I think I can safely say that I would have dealt with her tribulations in almost exactly the same way.
My favorite part of this book, though, was the more in depth look at glamour that we got. Details on how it works, postulations on its uses outside of pretty colors and decoration, more on the cost users pay to utilize it, and theorizing on how to adapt it to current technologies all play a part in the story. The fantasy geek in me was thrilled to see all this stuff on the magic system.
To me, this book was worth wading through the first book for. While that one had some good points, it was mostly a slog through. But book two?! Vast improvement and a fantastic book overall. I loved the main characters still, enjoyed the new twists on glamour, and enjoyed the different story and situations presented for our leads to overcome. Highly recommended for lovers of historical fantasy with a side of romance. Look forward to the rest of the series! show less
I enjoyed this second book in the Glamourist History series even more than the first--by the end I had to delay dinner for over an hour because the story was so heart-in-the-throat exciting that I could not put the book down. While Shades of Milk and Honey was sort of a Jane Austen lite with magic, Glamour in a Glass is more like Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell lite (one of my favorite books ever) and is set in 1815 while Napoleon is on the march after escaping from Elba.
Now that (SPOILER ALERT FOR THE FIRST BOOK) Jane and Vincent are newlyweds, part of the character development involves the two of them figuring out how to be a couple while working together doing glamour for wealthy clients like the Prince Regent. Vincent is not used show more to having anyone in his life he can trust, and Jane, though talented and determined, has insecurities, so there are some misunderstandings. For most of the book Jane and Vincent are on a working honeymoon in Brussels, which leads them into danger because its people are sharply, sometimes violently, divided in their loyalty between the newly liberated Napoleon and William I of the Netherlands.
As in the first book there are lovely descriptions of the beautiful, moving illusions that are part the magical art form Jane and Vincent are masters of, but there is also more “glamour science” because Jane and Vincent are working on an idea that would greatly expand the practical uses of their craft. Unfortunately, some players in the political conflicts are interested in the possibilities of glamour too, which ratchets up the plot tension. Book three in this charming series is Without a Summer, which I am looking forward to enjoying. show less
Now that (SPOILER ALERT FOR THE FIRST BOOK) Jane and Vincent are newlyweds, part of the character development involves the two of them figuring out how to be a couple while working together doing glamour for wealthy clients like the Prince Regent. Vincent is not used show more to having anyone in his life he can trust, and Jane, though talented and determined, has insecurities, so there are some misunderstandings. For most of the book Jane and Vincent are on a working honeymoon in Brussels, which leads them into danger because its people are sharply, sometimes violently, divided in their loyalty between the newly liberated Napoleon and William I of the Netherlands.
As in the first book there are lovely descriptions of the beautiful, moving illusions that are part the magical art form Jane and Vincent are masters of, but there is also more “glamour science” because Jane and Vincent are working on an idea that would greatly expand the practical uses of their craft. Unfortunately, some players in the political conflicts are interested in the possibilities of glamour too, which ratchets up the plot tension. Book three in this charming series is Without a Summer, which I am looking forward to enjoying. show less
I'm a little in love with this book. It's not so much the story line (though that is surprisingly good, and that's coming from someone who is both irrepressibly drawn, yet sick to death of all the Jane Austen spawns and wannabes that are out there) as the individual bits and pieces that make up the book, and that Mary Robinette Kowal has passed on in her Author's Afterword, online blog, and in person. She's hit all my geeky and bookish markers, which auspicates a beautiful future.
So first off, a bit of personal history. I knew I'd be meeting the author at this year's JordanCon, and had not yet read any of her works. I was about to check out Shades of Milk and Honey at our wonderful local library, when I read that somehow, there had been show more a misprint in the first edition of her second book, Glamour in Glass and that first line of the novel is missing. That blog entry captivated me, and I immediately ordered the book. I won the book misprint lottery, and actually got a copy of the book that is sans intended first line, and decided to take MRK up on her suggestion to have the author, herself, write the line in my book when I met her.
Even missing that first line, I was enchanted with the sheer Austen-ness of the language of the book. Several times while reading, I would pause and declare to my ever patient husband, "She's really got it", which morphed into "she's channeling again" for the perfectness of language and sensibilities. Part of reasons behind this perfectness became clear when reading the afterward where MRK revealed the following, and won my heart forever:
The characters in the book were quite well drawn, the magic in the world (the bit that makes this a fantasy novel -- "Jane Austen, with Magic!") is tastefully suited to the period as well. And combine the two into an alternate history of sorts, and you get a tale well told. I must also add that something Jane experiences near the end of the book (and I'm being careful not to add spoilers) was really well handled. Having been in a similar situation several times (minus the element of glamour) myself, I can verify that such times call up a well of emotions, some not entirely what might be expected, but all equally valid. Tastefully handled.
Now, if all that wasn't enough, the author showed up in Regency dress at a costume party, in a gown she made herself. Plus, I was fortunate enough to hear the author, a talented voice actor as well as a talented writer, read chapter two of this book (which is the chapter that initially won me over when reading). If you ever have a chance to meet this woman, run, don't walk, to do so. Which, curiously enough, is exactly what you should do in regards to getting your hands on a copy of her writing. Get moving! Great reading awaits. show less
So first off, a bit of personal history. I knew I'd be meeting the author at this year's JordanCon, and had not yet read any of her works. I was about to check out Shades of Milk and Honey at our wonderful local library, when I read that somehow, there had been show more a misprint in the first edition of her second book, Glamour in Glass and that first line of the novel is missing. That blog entry captivated me, and I immediately ordered the book. I won the book misprint lottery, and actually got a copy of the book that is sans intended first line, and decided to take MRK up on her suggestion to have the author, herself, write the line in my book when I met her.
Even missing that first line, I was enchanted with the sheer Austen-ness of the language of the book. Several times while reading, I would pause and declare to my ever patient husband, "She's really got it", which morphed into "she's channeling again" for the perfectness of language and sensibilities. Part of reasons behind this perfectness became clear when reading the afterward where MRK revealed the following, and won my heart forever:
Because I am something of a geek, I wanted to eliminate as much language as possible from the book that would have been an anachronism. To that end, I created a word list from the complete works of Jane Austen and used that as a spell-check dictionary. It flagged any word that she didn't use, which allowed me to look it up to see it it existed in 1815 or if the meaning had changed. I then either selected an alternate word, or in a few cases , opted to keep the word because it was clearer that the other options, and I am writing for a modern audience.
The characters in the book were quite well drawn, the magic in the world (the bit that makes this a fantasy novel -- "Jane Austen, with Magic!") is tastefully suited to the period as well. And combine the two into an alternate history of sorts, and you get a tale well told. I must also add that something Jane experiences near the end of the book (and I'm being careful not to add spoilers) was really well handled. Having been in a similar situation several times (minus the element of glamour) myself, I can verify that such times call up a well of emotions, some not entirely what might be expected, but all equally valid. Tastefully handled.
Now, if all that wasn't enough, the author showed up in Regency dress at a costume party, in a gown she made herself. Plus, I was fortunate enough to hear the author, a talented voice actor as well as a talented writer, read chapter two of this book (which is the chapter that initially won me over when reading). If you ever have a chance to meet this woman, run, don't walk, to do so. Which, curiously enough, is exactly what you should do in regards to getting your hands on a copy of her writing. Get moving! Great reading awaits. show less
This is the second in the Glamourist Histories (not sure if I like this as a series title, but it is descriptive, I guess), I bought & read the first one Shades of Milk and Honey last year, I'm trying to remember where I found out about it. After consulting with SLOC (who's sick at the moment with a cold, and as such, his powers of remembery are lower than usual), we think I heard about it at Aussiecon4, as according to my book-list last year, I read it at the start of July.
Anyway, the premise of Shades intrigued me - think Jane Austen with added magic, and I really enjoyed that, so was very happy to see that there was a sequel.
The thing about this book that was particularly interesting to me was it tackles the idea of what happens in show more the "after" of the "happily ever after" that ends Jane Austen-type romances (or most romances, for that matter!). I guess it's especially true of period romances, in that they generally end on the wedding, and you never see the life afterwards.
With this book, you know that the two main characters love each other, but they don't know each other very well yet. Jane is constrained by the society values of the time, which means that her skill at glamour (the magic system) is thought to be an excellent accomplishment to have (like painting or playing music) but not something to pursue as a career. And it also is a dangerous thing to perform whilst pregnant - an extra fun thing to have to worry about on top of all the "normal" problems that can be associated with child-bearing of the time!
Jane is worried that she is becoming a burden on David and his work when he seems to be deliberately excluding her from a commission they have received from an english emigree in Brussells (they're in Belgium for their honeymoon just before Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo), and he's terribly secretive about what he's doing and who he's seeing. And David doesn't seem to realise that he's hurting her feelings when he does this. She also starts to doubt her abilities as a glamourist as David dismisses her suggestions for the commission without much thought.
All-in-all, there's lots of misunderstandings between the two of them before things are resolved happily (again)
It's not just about the "after" of the "happily ever after", as the story is set in Belgium just before the Battle of Waterloo, there's stuff about leading up to the battle; the development of new ways of working with glamour; spies on all sides of the conflict.
This will go into my "books to stay on the shelves" - of which we have many, but still have piles of books on the floor of the library! - and will look forward to others in the series.
And as an aside, I loved the cover of the book. The woman in period costume with the soap bubbles around her head is something that jumped out at me from the shelves. Possibly becuase I bought this at the local SF/Fantasy/Comics/Pop Culture shop, and a historical cover is more likely to stand out in that particular instance. show less
Anyway, the premise of Shades intrigued me - think Jane Austen with added magic, and I really enjoyed that, so was very happy to see that there was a sequel.
The thing about this book that was particularly interesting to me was it tackles the idea of what happens in show more the "after" of the "happily ever after" that ends Jane Austen-type romances (or most romances, for that matter!). I guess it's especially true of period romances, in that they generally end on the wedding, and you never see the life afterwards.
With this book, you know that the two main characters love each other, but they don't know each other very well yet. Jane is constrained by the society values of the time, which means that her skill at glamour (the magic system) is thought to be an excellent accomplishment to have (like painting or playing music) but not something to pursue as a career. And it also is a dangerous thing to perform whilst pregnant - an extra fun thing to have to worry about on top of all the "normal" problems that can be associated with child-bearing of the time!
Jane is worried that she is becoming a burden on David and his work when he seems to be deliberately excluding her from a commission they have received from an english emigree in Brussells (they're in Belgium for their honeymoon just before Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo), and he's terribly secretive about what he's doing and who he's seeing. And David doesn't seem to realise that he's hurting her feelings when he does this. She also starts to doubt her abilities as a glamourist as David dismisses her suggestions for the commission without much thought.
All-in-all, there's lots of misunderstandings between the two of them before things are resolved happily (again)
It's not just about the "after" of the "happily ever after", as the story is set in Belgium just before the Battle of Waterloo, there's stuff about leading up to the battle; the development of new ways of working with glamour; spies on all sides of the conflict.
This will go into my "books to stay on the shelves" - of which we have many, but still have piles of books on the floor of the library! - and will look forward to others in the series.
And as an aside, I loved the cover of the book. The woman in period costume with the soap bubbles around her head is something that jumped out at me from the shelves. Possibly becuase I bought this at the local SF/Fantasy/Comics/Pop Culture shop, and a historical cover is more likely to stand out in that particular instance. show less
I keep wanting to like Kowal's books more than I do. I'm sucked in by the premise of her books, but then the reading experience doesn't pan out. There's something about her writing style that I don't like. This novel felt stilted and affected. Kudos to her for doing the work to make a historical novel authentic to the times, to the point of using the same language that was utilized in Jane Austen's time. I think the trouble lies in the fact that Jane Austen was writing in the language of the time as a natural thing, whereas Kowal is essentially using 18th century English as a second language. The flow isn't there, the wording is too exact, the dialogue too studied. It feels overworked.
So, despite the appeal of the story premise, Jane show more Austen + magic, which rings all my bells, it just wasn't the experience I wanted, and turned into a labor rather than a pleasure. show less
So, despite the appeal of the story premise, Jane show more Austen + magic, which rings all my bells, it just wasn't the experience I wanted, and turned into a labor rather than a pleasure. show less
Where Shades of Milk and Honey played homage to Jane Austen's novels, Glamour in Glass takes a large step away from homage by developing the characters and the magic system into their own worthwhile world. Jane still has her doubts and fears about herself, but her self-confidence is quickly growing, while Vincent is coming out of the shadows into a fully-fleshed human being. Being a newlywed is hard, and it must have been even harder in the Regency era, with such strict social rules to follow. I would very much like to read more about Jane and Vincent as a couple, how they function together-working, living, playing, etc. Hopefully, that will come in later books? One caveat to my enjoyment of these novels is that all the adventure seems show more to be crammed into the last 25 pages of the books. Things build slowly, and the story moves along at a nice, sedate pace, then-WHAM!!!-suddenly something happens and it's the worse thing in the world and only one person can fix it but how, oh how? And then it's fixed, tada! Well, not quite that easily, but essentially this is what the last few pages of these two books have felt like to me.
Anyway, of course, I'll read another book because I really do like Jane and admire her self-doubt and her ability to bull right through it, as well as her large amount of spunk. show less
Anyway, of course, I'll read another book because I really do like Jane and admire her self-doubt and her ability to bull right through it, as well as her large amount of spunk. show less
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Author Information
87+ Works 11,496 Members
Mary Robinette Kowal is a LibraryThing Author, an author who lists their personal library on LibraryThing.
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Awards
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- Canonical title
- Glamour in Glass
- Alternate titles
- Glamor in Glass
- Original publication date
- 2012-04-10
- People/Characters
- Jane Vincent; David Vincent; Bruno Chastain; Mme. Chastain; Yves Chastain; Luc Chastain (show all 8); Miette Chastain; Anne-Marie
- Epigraph
- Mary wished to say something very sensible, but knew not how. -- Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice
- Dedication
- For Mom and Dad. If not for you, I would not be a writer, nor have the courage to submit. Thank you for teaching me that the arts are important.
- First words
- Supposed to be "There are few things in this world that can simultaneously delight and dismay in the same manner as a formal dinner party." However, in the first edition, that sentence is omitted, and it begins with "Findin... (show all)g oneself a guest of honor only increases the presentiment of anxiety, should one be disposed to such feelings."
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)Jane discovered that a formal English dinner party was not a cause for dismay, but for delight -- so long as she had her husband by her side.
- Publisher's editor
- Gorinsky, Liz
- Original language
- English
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- 40,417
- Reviews
- 51
- Rating
- (3.74)
- Languages
- English, Hungarian
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 6
- ASINs
- 9
