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3.93 AVERAGE
3.93 AVERAGE
DNF-ed. I thought it was pretty boring. Too drawn out for me as far as the romance, and I wasn't a fan of the dual timeline, though I'm not sure why - I normally love them
Short & sweet review: Love, loss, and heartbreak set against the backdrop of 1920s England. This is a beautiful novel that WILL make you cry. I can’t stop reading about historical art scenes, and I have no regrets.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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Follow me on Instagram & Twitter @whatalexreads for book reviews, recommendations, and more!
This gives me “The Great Gatsby meets The Fault in Our Stars meets The Secret Garden” vibes. I don’t know how to explain it but the vibes and aesthetic are those three books. I really liked this. It was nostalgic and heartbreaking and heartwarming all at the same time. Very good read. Took me a minute to get into but all in all I would recommend. A great rainy day read or a book to read if you are emotional and want to cry a little (or a lot, idk you).
Would not recommend to get you out of a reading slump, because it’s a pretty slow read IMO.
The way two stories are being told between letters to the daughter, adventures of the past, and the daughters story in the present meshes together incredibly well. Can’t wait to read more from this author in the future.
Would not recommend to get you out of a reading slump, because it’s a pretty slow read IMO.
The way two stories are being told between letters to the daughter, adventures of the past, and the daughters story in the present meshes together incredibly well. Can’t wait to read more from this author in the future.
Song/s the book brought to mind: My Heart Will Go On by Celine Dion
For me, [b:The Glittering Hour|43263378|The Glittering Hour|Iona Grey|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1550534390l/43263378._SY75_.jpg|66297545] by [a:Iona Grey|8475695|Iona Grey|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1442983925p2/8475695.jpg] can be perfectly described in one word: beautiful. I loved the story and I'm so sad it had to come to an end.
The story of Selina and Lawrence broke my heart, but I loved it all the same and I especially enjoyed the dual timelines. The mid-1920s timeline is told mostly from Selina's perspective, and the mid-1930s timeline is mostly told from her nine-year-old daughter Alice's. I don't always love reading from a child's perspective, but I enjoyed it in this book, and it doesn't actually spend too much time from her POV. I wasn't sure about the synopsis of the book, but the cover drew me in and I'm so glad it did. The Glittering Hour is an amazing and moving story that is for sure to make you tear up, if not bawl.
I loved the flow of The Glittering Hour and it is a beautifully written novel. I think you can kind of figure out where the plot is going but that didn't take away from the book for me at all. I do think this is best read as opposed to doing the audio which is something I mostly never say. I loved the narrator, Imogen Church, but that was really the extent of what I liked. I don't know if it had to do with where it was recorded or what, but the audio wasn't consistent at all. It would be loud and then quiet, and the entire time I listened to it I had to almost have it on max volume to hear what was being said. It was also a little confusing with the different narrators without always having a chapter break, so I think reading the physical copy is the way to go with this one.
The Glittering Hour has both forbidden love and loss at the center of the story, and it will rip your heart right out. This is a slow-burn and a book that I would love to savor if I were reading it again for the first time. It would be best to take your time with and really enjoy if you can! Some of the things that the men say made me angry, and this book will definitely give you all the feels. I don't know why I haven't read anything by Grey before, but I definitely will be reading everything I can get my hands on now.
Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an advance review copy of this book, all opinions and thoughts are my own.
For me, [b:The Glittering Hour|43263378|The Glittering Hour|Iona Grey|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1550534390l/43263378._SY75_.jpg|66297545] by [a:Iona Grey|8475695|Iona Grey|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1442983925p2/8475695.jpg] can be perfectly described in one word: beautiful. I loved the story and I'm so sad it had to come to an end.
The story of Selina and Lawrence broke my heart, but I loved it all the same and I especially enjoyed the dual timelines. The mid-1920s timeline is told mostly from Selina's perspective, and the mid-1930s timeline is mostly told from her nine-year-old daughter Alice's. I don't always love reading from a child's perspective, but I enjoyed it in this book, and it doesn't actually spend too much time from her POV. I wasn't sure about the synopsis of the book, but the cover drew me in and I'm so glad it did. The Glittering Hour is an amazing and moving story that is for sure to make you tear up, if not bawl.
I loved the flow of The Glittering Hour and it is a beautifully written novel. I think you can kind of figure out where the plot is going but that didn't take away from the book for me at all. I do think this is best read as opposed to doing the audio which is something I mostly never say. I loved the narrator, Imogen Church, but that was really the extent of what I liked. I don't know if it had to do with where it was recorded or what, but the audio wasn't consistent at all. It would be loud and then quiet, and the entire time I listened to it I had to almost have it on max volume to hear what was being said. It was also a little confusing with the different narrators without always having a chapter break, so I think reading the physical copy is the way to go with this one.
The Glittering Hour has both forbidden love and loss at the center of the story, and it will rip your heart right out. This is a slow-burn and a book that I would love to savor if I were reading it again for the first time. It would be best to take your time with and really enjoy if you can! Some of the things that the men say made me angry, and this book will definitely give you all the feels. I don't know why I haven't read anything by Grey before, but I definitely will be reading everything I can get my hands on now.
Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an advance review copy of this book, all opinions and thoughts are my own.
This was a Book Club book.
It is not my usual genre and until Selina Met Lawrence I felt the book was dragging a bit.
Once the story line started to pick up I realised I was actually enjoying the book and getting to know the characters.
I loved the way Selina and Lawrence’s relationship was told and it felt very reminiscent of that first intoxicating young love. I thought it was realistic that they fought but I also empathised with Selina in her position. I think marrying Rupert was a safe choice and I can see why she did it.
I did enjoy the insight into life after the war and reading a book set after WW1 not WW2. Poor Rupert watched his best friend die and got charged with “looking after” his sister and I like that they said Selina and Rupert has a small wedding because of Flicks death and the death of all of Ruperts friends in the war.
The ending ruined me. It escalated so quickly from Polly at the typewriter to the reveal that there had been NO TRIP TO BURMA (since the honeymoon).
I cried and cried while Lawrence stayed with Selina in the hospital and was kind to poor Alice. It was all too much.
Miranda was so nasty and her child was the worst.
It is not my usual genre and until Selina Met Lawrence I felt the book was dragging a bit.
Once the story line started to pick up I realised I was actually enjoying the book and getting to know the characters.
I loved the way Selina and Lawrence’s relationship was told and it felt very reminiscent of that first intoxicating young love. I thought it was realistic that they fought but I also empathised with Selina in her position. I think marrying Rupert was a safe choice and I can see why she did it.
I did enjoy the insight into life after the war and reading a book set after WW1 not WW2. Poor Rupert watched his best friend die and got charged with “looking after” his sister and I like that they said Selina and Rupert has a small wedding because of Flicks death and the death of all of Ruperts friends in the war.
The ending ruined me. It escalated so quickly from Polly at the typewriter to the reveal that there had been NO TRIP TO BURMA (since the honeymoon).
I cried and cried while Lawrence stayed with Selina in the hospital and was kind to poor Alice. It was all too much.
Miranda was so nasty and her child was the worst.
When I first started this book, I didn't expect to be so enthralled by it. It wasn't fully capturing my attention it was a bit of a slow start. As it started progressing more into Selina's life story, I fully became invested. I also loved that it was set in London. A lot of books we see in the 20's are solely set in America and this was a nice change of pace. I really enjoyed the intrigue, secrecy and buildup that was a large part of Selina and Lawrence's love story. They were so great together and I even after everything they came back to each other in the end. I also think this book had several connecting points between love and death and the ending proved that even more. I was glad to see the book told from many points of view but I especially loved the treasure hunt narrative in order for Selina to pass her memories and life events onto Alice. The last hundred pages were especially emotional and I really enjoyed how everything came together. I feel like the 20's is such a mystical time and I love reading books in that time period.
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I picked up THE GLITTERING HOUR by Iona Grey from BOTM with a very specific reading challenge prompt in mind. Though the book is set in two time streams in the 1920s and 1930s I am counting it for my 1920s setting prompt.
In the 1930s time period, we are following Alice, a young girl who has moved in with her grandparents while her beloved mother travels with her father overseas. Alice is able to keep in touch with her mother through a series of letters which detail her travels. Her mother has also set up a bit of a scavenger hunt for young Alice which will reveal Alice’s own origin story along with secrets from her mother’s past.
In the 1920’s, we are following Alice’s mother Selina, a beautiful young socialite who lives a life of parties and staying in her parents’ good graces. The status quo is threatened when Selina meets Lawrence, a struggling artist who would not meet her parents’ expectations for her. Though she falls in love, she finds herself drawn to making the decision her parents deem safe.
This novel had a very slow start and I’ll admit that if I hadn’t been reading this one for a prompt I might have set it aside fairly early on. That said, I did read reviews from a few friends that said that pushing through was a good idea and that the book really picked up as it got going. I am glad that I did because I did really wind up enjoying the book as a whole.
I enjoyed following Alice a lot and felt for her sense of abandonment with a family that seemed very cold for no reason. As she explores her mother’s past and the scavenger hunt letters, Alice learns more about her family and her own truth. I wasn’t entirely surprised by the twists along the way, but the story kept me very engaged in the latter half of the book.
Overall this is one I did really enjoy and I’m glad that the reading challenge really pushed me to continue on with it!
In the 1930s time period, we are following Alice, a young girl who has moved in with her grandparents while her beloved mother travels with her father overseas. Alice is able to keep in touch with her mother through a series of letters which detail her travels. Her mother has also set up a bit of a scavenger hunt for young Alice which will reveal Alice’s own origin story along with secrets from her mother’s past.
In the 1920’s, we are following Alice’s mother Selina, a beautiful young socialite who lives a life of parties and staying in her parents’ good graces. The status quo is threatened when Selina meets Lawrence, a struggling artist who would not meet her parents’ expectations for her. Though she falls in love, she finds herself drawn to making the decision her parents deem safe.
This novel had a very slow start and I’ll admit that if I hadn’t been reading this one for a prompt I might have set it aside fairly early on. That said, I did read reviews from a few friends that said that pushing through was a good idea and that the book really picked up as it got going. I am glad that I did because I did really wind up enjoying the book as a whole.
I enjoyed following Alice a lot and felt for her sense of abandonment with a family that seemed very cold for no reason. As she explores her mother’s past and the scavenger hunt letters, Alice learns more about her family and her own truth. I wasn’t entirely surprised by the twists along the way, but the story kept me very engaged in the latter half of the book.
Overall this is one I did really enjoy and I’m glad that the reading challenge really pushed me to continue on with it!
I truly got swept up in this story about Bright Young Thing Selina and her life of privilege and fun. The romance between her and Lawrence was beautiful; it left me teary-eyed and tingly. I also loved the way the author handled the dual timeline as well as the plot twist in the middle.
Enjoyed reading this story and watching it unfold throughout the book. The mystery, romance, time period, and childhood dreaminess all made this book worthwhile!