scrow1022's review against another edition
4.0
Lovely story, made perfect sense, love how they think through how to do better.
0ri's review
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.5
megnolia13's review
1.0
I found the main character really annoying. It was like laying on the pathetic sympathy stuff without ever really diving into the reasons for that behavior. If there had been any exploration of the character’s behavior, this could’ve been maybe a 3-star. Basically, I should’ve trusted the cover spoke for the quality.
jordan1978's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
I started out really enjoying the story then it started to really drag just before the halfway point. In the second half, I nearly DNF’d so many times. I kept putting down the book and then would have to force myself to pick it back up.
kiki124's review against another edition
3.0
Too fast, too sappy.
Drifter and hermit meet cute,
plus Christmas magic.
Drifter and hermit meet cute,
plus Christmas magic.
araleith's review against another edition
5.0
As my first Christmas romance of the year (I am planning to try to read ten before Christmas), this was a great start. I loved Eddie and Grey and their complicated sweetness.
suze_1624's review against another edition
4.0
Loved it!
Can't believe this is my first book by this author. And I definitely feel there needs to be more from these two.
I liked seeing how they healed each other, how it wasn't all nice and easy for them but ultimately they were right for each other.
Eddie was a stand up guy underneath his ' I need to keep moving' facade. Despite being branded by his itinerant lifestyles, he was a guy who had principles and stood for them.
Gray wasn't perfect either - making rash assumptions and locking himself into his castle.
Whilst the story ended at a good place for the story, it left me wanting more of these two - please!
Can't believe this is my first book by this author. And I definitely feel there needs to be more from these two.
I liked seeing how they healed each other, how it wasn't all nice and easy for them but ultimately they were right for each other.
Eddie was a stand up guy underneath his ' I need to keep moving' facade. Despite being branded by his itinerant lifestyles, he was a guy who had principles and stood for them.
Gray wasn't perfect either - making rash assumptions and locking himself into his castle.
Whilst the story ended at a good place for the story, it left me wanting more of these two - please!
veethorn's review against another edition
4.0
Heartwarming and lovely, without being too saccharine.
kaje_harper's review against another edition
4.0
Glass Tidings is a low-key, slow burn holiday romance. Eddie had a neglectful mother, and then grew up in the foster care system, mostly in group homes. He's had impermanence deeply imprinted into his soul. When you can be moved to an entirely new home, school and life, on a moment's notice, with no more possessions than you can fit in a trash bag, you learn to not get attached to stuff. Or people. Eddie ran away at 16 and has been working the Ren Faire circuit ever since. He's now a skilled glass-worker, but still earns barely enough to live day to day and faire to faire.
This year, he met a man who promised him something more - a settled life that Eddie had only seen in movies. But that man turned out to be more interested in drugs, than in daily living, or in Eddie. Eddie left abruptly, back to his nomadic life. Except that witnessing a hit-and-run in a small town he was passing through, ends up with him asked not to leave town by the cops, and housed temporarily with a local do-gooder.
Eddie's sure it's a very temporary thing. He's going to leave any day now. Not like anyone will miss him, and no one has ever wanted him around long-term. He kind of wishes Grayson was different, because the man is kind and secure and older and appealing and his home is the kind of stability Eddie never had. But sticking around is a pipe dream. Still, as the hunt for the hit-and-run culprit drags out, Eddie is going to have a harder and harder time leaving...
Grayson is also solitary. It doesn't seem to be his natural state, because he has frequent impulses to take care of Eddie. There's a story to his determined solo life in this pretty, empty house. But to be more than a short term friend to Eddie, he'll have to deal with both his own baggage, and Eddie's deep-set lifetime of distrust in other people.
This was nicely realistic, and had emotional moments but was free of melodrama. It was sweet without being sugary. The relationship takes quite a while to feel more real than simple proximity, and both men are awful at communicating, but I really enjoyed this story of two loners discovering each other..
This year, he met a man who promised him something more - a settled life that Eddie had only seen in movies. But that man turned out to be more interested in drugs, than in daily living, or in Eddie. Eddie left abruptly, back to his nomadic life. Except that witnessing a hit-and-run in a small town he was passing through, ends up with him asked not to leave town by the cops, and housed temporarily with a local do-gooder.
Eddie's sure it's a very temporary thing. He's going to leave any day now. Not like anyone will miss him, and no one has ever wanted him around long-term. He kind of wishes Grayson was different, because the man is kind and secure and older and appealing and his home is the kind of stability Eddie never had. But sticking around is a pipe dream. Still, as the hunt for the hit-and-run culprit drags out, Eddie is going to have a harder and harder time leaving...
Grayson is also solitary. It doesn't seem to be his natural state, because he has frequent impulses to take care of Eddie. There's a story to his determined solo life in this pretty, empty house. But to be more than a short term friend to Eddie, he'll have to deal with both his own baggage, and Eddie's deep-set lifetime of distrust in other people.
This was nicely realistic, and had emotional moments but was free of melodrama. It was sweet without being sugary. The relationship takes quite a while to feel more real than simple proximity, and both men are awful at communicating, but I really enjoyed this story of two loners discovering each other..
lenoreo's review against another edition
3.0
https://celebrityreaders.com/2018/12/21/glass-tidings-by-amy-jo-cousins/
I received a free copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review/opinion.
3.5 stars — This book has recently been rereleased as an Indie read, but I read an old NetGalley ARC copy from Riptide Publishing…I doubt there were any major changes, but figured I’d mention which version I was specifically reviewing.
I find Ms. Cousins writes very differently from most authors I read. I don’t know how to describe the stylistic difference, but it’s definitely unique. I haven’t decided if I like it or not, but I guess I don’t mind it. I will say that in this one she presents us with a very flawed character in Eddie, who wasn’t always likable for me. He had a really rough upbringing, and so he sees the world in a very different way, and it’s often all about assuming bad intentions from everyone, and manipulating them first. It’s not that I don’t get how he ended up that way, but it’s not always comfortable to read from that perspective, you know? And we definitely had more time in Eddie’s head than in Gray’s. I actually thought some of his musings about his childhood to be really enlightening — things like growing up reading really old sci-fi or watching old VHS tapes b/c that’s what people were willing to give away. And while his character wasn’t my favourite, I did appreciate that he showed growth, and really seemed to be letting himself become vulnerable and feel.
I actually would have liked to learn a bit more about Gray, figure out better what made him tick. We definitely got glimpses, but I feel like there were more layers to him that we just didn’t get to peel back. His past with Brady didn’t completely explain his hermit tendancies, so was he just introverted? It wasn’t super clear. I liked what I did get to know about Gray, and I appreciated that he owned up to his own mistakes as well.
As for the two of them together? I enjoyed some of the more companionable parts, like them reading together, and forming that kind of friendship. I didn’t really feel that much chemistry between them…like under different circumstances, would they have even noticed one another? I don’t know. So the romance had its ups and downs.
I thought some of the side goodies were pretty intriguing, and I kind of liked how they weaved together — like Gray’s friend Christine, and her connection to Mrs. Wasserman. I also appreciated that we learned a bit more about who caused the accident, but I will admit I was a bit surprised Eddie never visited Lily Rose.
I also appreciated the descriptions of Eddie’s life traveling to Ren Faire’s, and how that worked for him. And I loved the bits of details we got about his work with glass…though I can’t help but wonder how he learned the trade in the first place.
So all in all it was an enjoyable Christmas read, but definitely a different one.
I received a free copy through NetGalley in exchange for an honest and unbiased review/opinion.
3.5 stars — This book has recently been rereleased as an Indie read, but I read an old NetGalley ARC copy from Riptide Publishing…I doubt there were any major changes, but figured I’d mention which version I was specifically reviewing.
I find Ms. Cousins writes very differently from most authors I read. I don’t know how to describe the stylistic difference, but it’s definitely unique. I haven’t decided if I like it or not, but I guess I don’t mind it. I will say that in this one she presents us with a very flawed character in Eddie, who wasn’t always likable for me. He had a really rough upbringing, and so he sees the world in a very different way, and it’s often all about assuming bad intentions from everyone, and manipulating them first. It’s not that I don’t get how he ended up that way, but it’s not always comfortable to read from that perspective, you know? And we definitely had more time in Eddie’s head than in Gray’s. I actually thought some of his musings about his childhood to be really enlightening — things like growing up reading really old sci-fi or watching old VHS tapes b/c that’s what people were willing to give away. And while his character wasn’t my favourite, I did appreciate that he showed growth, and really seemed to be letting himself become vulnerable and feel.
I actually would have liked to learn a bit more about Gray, figure out better what made him tick. We definitely got glimpses, but I feel like there were more layers to him that we just didn’t get to peel back. His past with Brady didn’t completely explain his hermit tendancies, so was he just introverted? It wasn’t super clear. I liked what I did get to know about Gray, and I appreciated that he owned up to his own mistakes as well.
As for the two of them together? I enjoyed some of the more companionable parts, like them reading together, and forming that kind of friendship. I didn’t really feel that much chemistry between them…like under different circumstances, would they have even noticed one another? I don’t know. So the romance had its ups and downs.
I thought some of the side goodies were pretty intriguing, and I kind of liked how they weaved together — like Gray’s friend Christine, and her connection to Mrs. Wasserman. I also appreciated that we learned a bit more about who caused the accident, but I will admit I was a bit surprised Eddie never visited Lily Rose.
I also appreciated the descriptions of Eddie’s life traveling to Ren Faire’s, and how that worked for him. And I loved the bits of details we got about his work with glass…though I can’t help but wonder how he learned the trade in the first place.
So all in all it was an enjoyable Christmas read, but definitely a different one.