lavendermarch's review against another edition
3.0
A cute faery love story. Enjoyable but by no means groundbreaking. Also, I was originally in this for the fae/faerie aspect. The romance was the entire plot. The magic wasn't even a subplot. Not fun.
artsymusings's review against another edition
2.0
The one thing that comes to mind after reading All That Glows is that while it isn't bad, it isn't good either. There are many things that could have been improvised to make it all a little more of an engaging read but, alas, All That Glows fell short.
On the one hand, Emrys is very skilled at making use of her magic despite being young in terms of Fae age. On the other hand, she feels a connection to Richard only because he senses her presence, which later turns out to be because Emrys desired it. Having lived through centuries of history, you'd think that Emrys would have an amazing personality and a badass attitude. You'd be wrong. The one thing that I found interesting was her gripes about mortality and death.
There are many things that are not consistent with the plot and the most striking of all, is the pairing of Emrys with Richard. The core of All That Glows is the love story which is, sadly, weak at best. I couldn't grasp how Emrys, being an elegant Fae and hundreds of years old, connects with a supposedly 'notorious, partying bad boy.'
From what I gathered, Richard isn't notorious at all nor he is a bad boy because getting drunk every other night isn't the definition of being bad. On the contrary, it makes him ordinary. There is no reason given whatsoever for his being the way he is. It takes the biggest shock of his life to turn him into the opposite of irresponsible and in just a span of a few weeks. I wasn't sold at all.
All That Glows is overwrought with metaphors that either results in very unpleasant imagery or don't make much sense. The book picks up its pace, especially towards the end of the book, when the action takes the front seat and Emrys manages to shine for a bit. In all, the execution of an amazing premise is lost in the lackluster romance and an unrestrained use of metaphors.
On the one hand, Emrys is very skilled at making use of her magic despite being young in terms of Fae age. On the other hand, she feels a connection to Richard only because he senses her presence, which later turns out to be because Emrys desired it. Having lived through centuries of history, you'd think that Emrys would have an amazing personality and a badass attitude. You'd be wrong. The one thing that I found interesting was her gripes about mortality and death.
There are many things that are not consistent with the plot and the most striking of all, is the pairing of Emrys with Richard. The core of All That Glows is the love story which is, sadly, weak at best. I couldn't grasp how Emrys, being an elegant Fae and hundreds of years old, connects with a supposedly 'notorious, partying bad boy.'
From what I gathered, Richard isn't notorious at all nor he is a bad boy because getting drunk every other night isn't the definition of being bad. On the contrary, it makes him ordinary. There is no reason given whatsoever for his being the way he is. It takes the biggest shock of his life to turn him into the opposite of irresponsible and in just a span of a few weeks. I wasn't sold at all.
All That Glows is overwrought with metaphors that either results in very unpleasant imagery or don't make much sense. The book picks up its pace, especially towards the end of the book, when the action takes the front seat and Emrys manages to shine for a bit. In all, the execution of an amazing premise is lost in the lackluster romance and an unrestrained use of metaphors.
siobhan27's review against another edition
3.0
I have stayed away from novels about Fae for years now because I went through a period in high school where that was all I read, and honestly I thought that I had read it all, so naturally I was hesitant to read it. But for me I would rather read everything and have an opinion than read nothing trying to have an opinion. And I am so glad I read this book because it was nothing like I thought.
I am so used to reading Fae books that are set in a magical world that I do not understand and have to try and remember all details about, but this one was so different! All that Glows is set in modern days and in a modern city! I loved that more than anything because I could actually see and imagine the places described in the novel, and that made connecting with the characters and the world itself, easier.
There was one thing that made me make this a 4 out of 5 instead of 5 out of 5, and that was the love story. Although explained at the end of the book, I still felt like the love between Emrys and Richard was way to serious to fast. To me it did not makes sense for them to feel that strong of a connection so quickly. BUT on the other hand I did enjoy their relationship as a whole. They were great together and brought out the best in each others character. I liked that the relationships between other characters were not as strong in order to emphasize their connection and i thought that was extremely smart.
The one aspect that I loved the most about this book was the mystery surrounding Richard and Emrys. It was what propelled the story forward and I have to say the reveal at the end was brilliant and I totally did not see it coming. The one aspect that needs to happen in a good mystery is the actual mystery. The fact that it stayed a mystery was great for me, and I loved that so much.
If you love Fae then this book is so for you, and if you are hesitant about Fae honestly don't be, this book will change your mind and make you love this genre. A great read!
I am so used to reading Fae books that are set in a magical world that I do not understand and have to try and remember all details about, but this one was so different! All that Glows is set in modern days and in a modern city! I loved that more than anything because I could actually see and imagine the places described in the novel, and that made connecting with the characters and the world itself, easier.
There was one thing that made me make this a 4 out of 5 instead of 5 out of 5, and that was the love story. Although explained at the end of the book, I still felt like the love between Emrys and Richard was way to serious to fast. To me it did not makes sense for them to feel that strong of a connection so quickly. BUT on the other hand I did enjoy their relationship as a whole. They were great together and brought out the best in each others character. I liked that the relationships between other characters were not as strong in order to emphasize their connection and i thought that was extremely smart.
The one aspect that I loved the most about this book was the mystery surrounding Richard and Emrys. It was what propelled the story forward and I have to say the reveal at the end was brilliant and I totally did not see it coming. The one aspect that needs to happen in a good mystery is the actual mystery. The fact that it stayed a mystery was great for me, and I loved that so much.
If you love Fae then this book is so for you, and if you are hesitant about Fae honestly don't be, this book will change your mind and make you love this genre. A great read!
pwbalto's review against another edition
2.0
Beautiful Emrys is a member of the Faery Guard, old by human standards - she remembers Camelot - but still a relative “youngling” among her people. She is therefore considered the ideal candidate to provide invisible protection for the teenage heir to the British throne, the fun-loving and very Harry-like Prince Richard. Sparks fly, however, when she meets the prince, and she cannot resist revealing herself to him. When Richard’s father dies, assassinated by a rogue Faery power, they fight for their lives as well as their love.
Blending otherworldly glamour with contemporary glitz, suspense with passion, this book offers a lot to fans of the genre. Emrys’s adventure takes her from the shores of “tar-dark” lochs to the “flourishing, gold-leafed ceilings” of Windsor Castle. Some readers will overlook occasional missteps (“Richard’s lips turn sheepish with a grin”), while others may find such phrases unintentionally amusing. Fits well with Maggie Steifvater’s Lament and Ballad and Holly Black’s Tithe books.
for Booklist — Paula Willey
Blending otherworldly glamour with contemporary glitz, suspense with passion, this book offers a lot to fans of the genre. Emrys’s adventure takes her from the shores of “tar-dark” lochs to the “flourishing, gold-leafed ceilings” of Windsor Castle. Some readers will overlook occasional missteps (“Richard’s lips turn sheepish with a grin”), while others may find such phrases unintentionally amusing. Fits well with Maggie Steifvater’s Lament and Ballad and Holly Black’s Tithe books.
for Booklist — Paula Willey
elblackwell's review against another edition
1.0
Tedious, rambling, overly long.
And as if that weren't enough, first person POV.
And as if that weren't enough, first person POV.
cawleen's review against another edition
2.0
Definitely not my favourite book. The author seemed to want to make this like most other fantasy books (action/love-story) but ended up have a very poorly executed plot line. I definitely will not be adding any more of her books to my to-read list.
veuxmourir's review against another edition
2.0
Liked this, but the romance was a bit too much for me at times
bookish_satty's review against another edition
3.0
I got this book from the publisher, free of cost, in exchange of an honest review from my side.
Firstly I would like to thank the author and the publisher for giving me this opportunity of reading and reviewing this book.
Well, to be honest, I didn't get quite satisfied with this book's content. I mean I read so many good reviews about this book and then I miraculously got it to review but I'm so sad to confess my disappointment in this book.
I didn't like Emrys at all. She wasn't a mature person rather she had the attitude of a whimpering child. I mean she couldn't take big decisions without any help from her queen or from her friend. She was in love with Richard and I loved that part but once again she didn't have the guts to give up her magic for the sake of her love even when she knew that she loved him more than anything.
Richard was great and his sister Annabelle was also good and I liked the details about their living style and the day to day schedule of royals and the involvement of little politics in it made this refreshing but once again the main plot twist, I mean where the actual villain is caught was totally predictable. Even before the clues were given I knew who is the main culprit and I put together the pieces of the puzzle way before Emrys so the later part wasn't quite exciting for me.
Action scenes were good but less in number and the suspense element was missing to so this became an okay read for me.
Firstly I would like to thank the author and the publisher for giving me this opportunity of reading and reviewing this book.
Well, to be honest, I didn't get quite satisfied with this book's content. I mean I read so many good reviews about this book and then I miraculously got it to review but I'm so sad to confess my disappointment in this book.
I didn't like Emrys at all. She wasn't a mature person rather she had the attitude of a whimpering child. I mean she couldn't take big decisions without any help from her queen or from her friend. She was in love with Richard and I loved that part but once again she didn't have the guts to give up her magic for the sake of her love even when she knew that she loved him more than anything.
Richard was great and his sister Annabelle was also good and I liked the details about their living style and the day to day schedule of royals and the involvement of little politics in it made this refreshing but once again the main plot twist, I mean where the actual villain is caught was totally predictable. Even before the clues were given I knew who is the main culprit and I put together the pieces of the puzzle way before Emrys so the later part wasn't quite exciting for me.
Action scenes were good but less in number and the suspense element was missing to so this became an okay read for me.