Backlist Burndown Review: Glamour in Glass by Mary Robinette Kowal

Mary Robinette Kowal stunned readers with her charming first novel
Shades of Milk and Honey
, a loving tribute to the works of Jane Austen in a world where magic is an everyday occurrence. This magic comes in the form of glamour, which allows talented users to form practically any illusion they can imagine. Shades debuted to great acclaim and left readers eagerly awaiting its sequel. Glamour in Glass continues following the lives of beloved main characters Jane and Vincent, with a much deeper vein of drama and intrigue.In the tumultuous months after Napoleon abdicates his throne, Jane and Vincent go to Belgium for their honeymoon. While there, the deposed emperor escapes his exile in Elba, throwing the continent into turmoil. With no easy way back to England, Jane and Vincent’s concerns turn from enjoying their honeymoon...to escaping it. Left with no outward salvation, Jane must persevere over her trying personal circumstances and use her glamour to rescue her husband from prison...and hopefully prevent her newly built marriage from getting stranded on the shoals of another country's war.

Glamour in Glass was every bit of an enjoyable escape for me as Shades of Milk and Honey. I absolutely love this time period setting and the magic of glamours just enhances that. In this one, Jane and Vincent work as a husband and wife team working as glamourists for noble families. Jane is adjusting to married life, as they are working on their “honeymoon”.

I have to say, one of the things I am really enjoying about this series is light and fresh and it is also so easy to read. I know, that may not sound like much, but Kowal makes this story flow seemingly effortlessly, taking you noble world of Europe in the 1800s.

I continue to enjoy Jane as a character. She is a strong female character that is edging a place for herself in the very misogynistic atmosphere that existed at the time. Women have their place, and it has typically been behind her husband and the men. Vincent treats her with respect, and sees her as an equal partner, but he’s also a bit clueless and awkward at times and is not always aware of how not everyone is the same as him. And is not always aware of how his actions may come across. Awkward is actually a very good word for Jane and Vincent’s relationship at times. Not bad, just they are still new to each other, and learning how to be a team and communicate and understand one another is just part of the process.

Definitely an enjoyable series so far, and I’m looking forward to reading the next one.

Audiobook Note: This series continues to be strong in audiobook format. Kowal’s “easy to read” book translates very well to “easy to listen to”. It is a very simple story to follow in narration, and Kowal continues to do a good job with narration. There are a couple of characters where I feel she went a little over the top, but as I got into the story, I quit noticing.

I have challenged and committed myself to reading at least one book from my backlist every month and posting the review on the last Friday of the month. I invite anyone interested to join me and link up their own Backlist Burndown reviews. I will offer the link at the bottom of my monthly Backlist Burndown reviews, and also will keep a running record of the reviews on my Dracarys! Backlist Burndown page available from my top menu.