What do you think?
Rate this book
The Shadow in the Glass
Once upon a time Ella had wished for more than her life as a lowly maid.
Now forced to work hard under the unforgiving, lecherous gaze of the man she once called stepfather, Ella’s only refuge is in the books she reads by candlelight, secreted away in the library she isn’t permitted to enter.
One night, among her beloved books of far-off lands, Ella’s wishes are answered. At the stroke of midnight, a fairy godmother makes her an offer that will change her life: seven wishes, hers to make as she pleases. But each wish comes at a price and Ella must to decide whether it’s one she’s willing to pay it.
A smouldering, terrifying new spin on Cinderella – perfect for fans of Laura Purcell and Erin Morgenstern.
Now forced to work hard under the unforgiving, lecherous gaze of the man she once called stepfather, Ella’s only refuge is in the books she reads by candlelight, secreted away in the library she isn’t permitted to enter.
One night, among her beloved books of far-off lands, Ella’s wishes are answered. At the stroke of midnight, a fairy godmother makes her an offer that will change her life: seven wishes, hers to make as she pleases. But each wish comes at a price and Ella must to decide whether it’s one she’s willing to pay it.
A smouldering, terrifying new spin on Cinderella – perfect for fans of Laura Purcell and Erin Morgenstern.
416 pages, Hardcover
First published March 18, 2021
303 people are currently reading
21257 people want to read
About the author
J.J.A. Harwood
3 books316 followersJJA Harwood is an author, editor and blogger. She grew up in Norfolk, read History at the University of Warwick and eventually found her way to London, which is still something of a shock for somebody used to so many fields.
When not writing, she can be found learning languages, cooking with more enthusiasm than skill, wandering off into clearly haunted houses and making friends with stray cats. THE SHADOW IN THE GLASS is her debut novel.
When not writing, she can be found learning languages, cooking with more enthusiasm than skill, wandering off into clearly haunted houses and making friends with stray cats. THE SHADOW IN THE GLASS is her debut novel.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,085 reviews
September 6, 2021
Recompense
The Shadow in the Glass is a fascinating novel that animates a dark story of murder, mystery, power, ambition, family secrets, supernatural twists, and scheming consequences, all beautifully depicted in Victorian London. The historical aspect of nineteenth-century England is brought alive with vivid intensity, as the two worlds of the rich and those that serve them are brought to life. The sights and sounds, attitudes, and the ramifications of being poor and abandoned in nineteenth-century London are distinctly reinforced throughout this novel.
Eleanor Rose Hartley uniquely experienced those two worlds while never truly belonging to either. When Eleanor’s mother, a close personal maid to Mrs Pembroke, died, she became the ward of Mr and Mrs Pembroke of Granborough House. She lived an early life that promised so much potential and opportunity, an early life where she was treated as a daughter, a life where she bonded with Pembroke’s only son Charles, where she was taught to dance and behave with etiquette and most enduringly, read. When Mrs Pembroke died, the master had no intention of continuing with Eleanor’s privileges. She became a seventeen-year-old servant in the household under the command of the conniving head housekeeper. A Cinderella-type fall from grace, openly scorned and ill-treated by the master and the senior housemaids. Eleanor's only friends are other young female maids who also suffer at the hands of Mr Pembroke - with unwanted pregnancies and discharge without references, condemning them to extreme poverty and homelessness.
Eleanor’s only refuge is the library from which she is prohibited but has a secret key, a room hardly ever used now. One evening as Eleanor reads an unusual book, she cut her finger, and the blood dropped onto the latch revealing a fairy godmother offering her seven wishes.
With each necessitated wish from Eleanor, there is a deadly price to be paid as death surrounds the outcomes, but it all works for the benefit of Eleanor. I know the surprise is, why not wish for riches, but being the ward of Mr Pembroke, he would get possession of the money until she turned an independent age. Be cautious jumping to conclusions too early as there are twists in this clever plot. As the police get involved, there is a sense of impending reckoning, as the wishes run out, and a race to see whether Eleanor pays the ultimate price with her soul or freedom.
I loved the balanced touch on all the themes being woven together, including the historical setting, a supernatural and demonic contract, intriguing characters, and a thriller fuelled with ambition. I would highly recommend this absorbing book from JJA Harwood, and I would like to thank Harper 360 and NetGalley for providing me with a free ARC in return for an honest review.
The Shadow in the Glass is a fascinating novel that animates a dark story of murder, mystery, power, ambition, family secrets, supernatural twists, and scheming consequences, all beautifully depicted in Victorian London. The historical aspect of nineteenth-century England is brought alive with vivid intensity, as the two worlds of the rich and those that serve them are brought to life. The sights and sounds, attitudes, and the ramifications of being poor and abandoned in nineteenth-century London are distinctly reinforced throughout this novel.
Eleanor Rose Hartley uniquely experienced those two worlds while never truly belonging to either. When Eleanor’s mother, a close personal maid to Mrs Pembroke, died, she became the ward of Mr and Mrs Pembroke of Granborough House. She lived an early life that promised so much potential and opportunity, an early life where she was treated as a daughter, a life where she bonded with Pembroke’s only son Charles, where she was taught to dance and behave with etiquette and most enduringly, read. When Mrs Pembroke died, the master had no intention of continuing with Eleanor’s privileges. She became a seventeen-year-old servant in the household under the command of the conniving head housekeeper. A Cinderella-type fall from grace, openly scorned and ill-treated by the master and the senior housemaids. Eleanor's only friends are other young female maids who also suffer at the hands of Mr Pembroke - with unwanted pregnancies and discharge without references, condemning them to extreme poverty and homelessness.
Eleanor’s only refuge is the library from which she is prohibited but has a secret key, a room hardly ever used now. One evening as Eleanor reads an unusual book, she cut her finger, and the blood dropped onto the latch revealing a fairy godmother offering her seven wishes.
“ ‘I can grant wishes. I will grant yours, if you let me.’ A horrible certainty stole over Eleanor, like frost creeping up a window pane. ‘And what would you ask in return?’ she said, already knowing the answer. The woman’s eyes flickered to the book. ‘Perhaps I should’ve let you read a little further. Your soul.’ ‘What? No, I – no!’ ‘I’m not unreasonable,’ the woman said mildly. ‘I would only collect my due if you made all seven wishes. I’ve no wish to cheat you, my dear.’ ”Imagine if the devil had appeared to Cinderella in the guise of a fairy godmother and granted her several wishes, the consequences would have been so much different. Nevertheless, don’t let me suggest this is a demonic themed story, but certainly, the essence of evil men of position and how they abused servants will make your blood boil.
With each necessitated wish from Eleanor, there is a deadly price to be paid as death surrounds the outcomes, but it all works for the benefit of Eleanor. I know the surprise is, why not wish for riches, but being the ward of Mr Pembroke, he would get possession of the money until she turned an independent age. Be cautious jumping to conclusions too early as there are twists in this clever plot. As the police get involved, there is a sense of impending reckoning, as the wishes run out, and a race to see whether Eleanor pays the ultimate price with her soul or freedom.
I loved the balanced touch on all the themes being woven together, including the historical setting, a supernatural and demonic contract, intriguing characters, and a thriller fuelled with ambition. I would highly recommend this absorbing book from JJA Harwood, and I would like to thank Harper 360 and NetGalley for providing me with a free ARC in return for an honest review.
January 27, 2022
An interesting idea, and a real page turner. A good debut but I was ultimately left feeling a bit disappointed.
“It takes a good deal of magic to grant a wish, and magic has its price. All things do.”
Without realising it. This book had a lot of similarities to The Corset, which I read recently and really enjoyed. I feel this may have coloured my reading experience because I was expecting something different.
Eleanor (Ella) has been working as a maid in the house of her legal guardian. She was adopted as a child by the late Mrs Pembrokeshire but after her death Mr Pembrokeshire believed she should earn her keep.
Struggling to adapt, constantly under the watchful eye of the house keeper or the leering gaze of Mr Pembrokeshire, Ella long for escape. She frequently goes into the library at night to escape.
When one night a strange woman emerges from one of the books offering Ella 7 wishes in exchange for her soul. Ella soon accepts, but she doesn’t realise how much these wishes truly cost her.
Like I said, a great concept. I liked seeing Ella fight with her conscience over whether to make another wish or not.
My main gripe was the ending.
A good debut, I would still read more by this author.
**************************
Hi my name is Charlotte and I am a retelling addict.
“It takes a good deal of magic to grant a wish, and magic has its price. All things do.”
Without realising it. This book had a lot of similarities to The Corset, which I read recently and really enjoyed. I feel this may have coloured my reading experience because I was expecting something different.
Eleanor (Ella) has been working as a maid in the house of her legal guardian. She was adopted as a child by the late Mrs Pembrokeshire but after her death Mr Pembrokeshire believed she should earn her keep.
Struggling to adapt, constantly under the watchful eye of the house keeper or the leering gaze of Mr Pembrokeshire, Ella long for escape. She frequently goes into the library at night to escape.
When one night a strange woman emerges from one of the books offering Ella 7 wishes in exchange for her soul. Ella soon accepts, but she doesn’t realise how much these wishes truly cost her.
Like I said, a great concept. I liked seeing Ella fight with her conscience over whether to make another wish or not.
My main gripe was the ending.
A good debut, I would still read more by this author.
**************************
Hi my name is Charlotte and I am a retelling addict.
March 23, 2021
Available 3/18/2021
"Fetching the first lot of water was always the worst part of Eleanor's morning...the pump made a horrible sucking noise and spat water all over her skirts". When she was sent to the butcher for the master's mutton, "A hand reached for her purse-she slapped it away. Another hand reached for her bottom." The streets of Marylebone, in nineteenth century Victorian England, were teeming with fruit-sellers, crossing-sweepers, omnibuses and carriages. There was poverty, homelessness and hunger everywhere.
Upon the death of her parents, Eleanor Rose Hartley became the ward of Mr. and Mrs. Pembroke of Granborough House. Mrs. Pembroke treated Eleanor like a daughter. "For a few shining years, she had been "Miss Eleanor", dressing in silks and satins...Eleanor was going to be a lady." Mrs. Pembroke filled Eleanor's head with the promise of a European tour once she was old enough to enter society. "It was hard to believe in fairy tales...[after Mrs. Pembroke died] Nothing felt magical in her little garret." "She'd been relegated from "Miss Eleanor" to plain old Ella...fourteen, and she'd watched her future crumble".
"Five minutes in the library was all she needed...to bask in the smell of old books and let all the anger ebb away". She had to get out of Granborough House somehow, even if it was only in her head...Would this library be the only escape she ever had?" In the safety of the library, she discovered a small, unfamiliar black book. Lo and behold, a middle-aged woman, with vacant black, totally empty eyes, seemingly like holes through her face, was sitting across from Eleanor. "I can offer you...security, freedom...the chance to see the world. You'll be safe, warm and well fed". The black-eyed woman proposed a bargain. She would give Eleanor seven wishes but there would be a trade-off. Eleanor would be bartering away her soul. "It takes a good deal of magic to grant a wish, and magic has its price".
"The Shadow in the Glass" by J.J.A. Harwood is a Cinderella-like Gothic fairytale fantasy. Eleanor is protective of fifteen year old Aoife. She worries because "Mr. Pembroke has made a name for himself below stairs as the worst lecher in London." She worries about Leah who was cast out, pregnant, penniless and without a job reference. Granborough House was dreadful, damp and dark. Eleanor dreamt of helping her friends. She was determined to regain her respectability, her place in society and travel the world. Once she realized the horror and sorrow created by her first wishes, she hoped to cancel the deal, however, her downfall had already been set in motion. Although she fiercely tried to advocate for her friends, she seemed relentless in her quest for money and power, no matter the cost. She tangled herself in a web of her own making.
This debut novel of historical fiction/fantasy seemed, at times, repetitive and dragged a bit. A taut, more compact version would have increased this reader's enjoyment. That said, the last third of the book was atmospheric, suspenseful and barreled toward a satisfying, unexpected ending.
Thank you Harper 360/HarperVoyager and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
"Fetching the first lot of water was always the worst part of Eleanor's morning...the pump made a horrible sucking noise and spat water all over her skirts". When she was sent to the butcher for the master's mutton, "A hand reached for her purse-she slapped it away. Another hand reached for her bottom." The streets of Marylebone, in nineteenth century Victorian England, were teeming with fruit-sellers, crossing-sweepers, omnibuses and carriages. There was poverty, homelessness and hunger everywhere.
Upon the death of her parents, Eleanor Rose Hartley became the ward of Mr. and Mrs. Pembroke of Granborough House. Mrs. Pembroke treated Eleanor like a daughter. "For a few shining years, she had been "Miss Eleanor", dressing in silks and satins...Eleanor was going to be a lady." Mrs. Pembroke filled Eleanor's head with the promise of a European tour once she was old enough to enter society. "It was hard to believe in fairy tales...[after Mrs. Pembroke died] Nothing felt magical in her little garret." "She'd been relegated from "Miss Eleanor" to plain old Ella...fourteen, and she'd watched her future crumble".
"Five minutes in the library was all she needed...to bask in the smell of old books and let all the anger ebb away". She had to get out of Granborough House somehow, even if it was only in her head...Would this library be the only escape she ever had?" In the safety of the library, she discovered a small, unfamiliar black book. Lo and behold, a middle-aged woman, with vacant black, totally empty eyes, seemingly like holes through her face, was sitting across from Eleanor. "I can offer you...security, freedom...the chance to see the world. You'll be safe, warm and well fed". The black-eyed woman proposed a bargain. She would give Eleanor seven wishes but there would be a trade-off. Eleanor would be bartering away her soul. "It takes a good deal of magic to grant a wish, and magic has its price".
"The Shadow in the Glass" by J.J.A. Harwood is a Cinderella-like Gothic fairytale fantasy. Eleanor is protective of fifteen year old Aoife. She worries because "Mr. Pembroke has made a name for himself below stairs as the worst lecher in London." She worries about Leah who was cast out, pregnant, penniless and without a job reference. Granborough House was dreadful, damp and dark. Eleanor dreamt of helping her friends. She was determined to regain her respectability, her place in society and travel the world. Once she realized the horror and sorrow created by her first wishes, she hoped to cancel the deal, however, her downfall had already been set in motion. Although she fiercely tried to advocate for her friends, she seemed relentless in her quest for money and power, no matter the cost. She tangled herself in a web of her own making.
This debut novel of historical fiction/fantasy seemed, at times, repetitive and dragged a bit. A taut, more compact version would have increased this reader's enjoyment. That said, the last third of the book was atmospheric, suspenseful and barreled toward a satisfying, unexpected ending.
Thank you Harper 360/HarperVoyager and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
May 16, 2022
5 Wishful stars for a sinister Cinderella / Aladin story where the delight of granting personal wishes comes with one of life’s most important lessons. ‘be careful what you ask for, you might just get it’
Atmospheric, mysterious, and the stuff of dark magic, the book takes us through a series of events as a result of seven wishes granted to Eleanor. A journey that exposes the worst, the inconsiderate and somewhat ignorant side of human nature, where the personal ambitions, requests and desires are taken in isolation without considering the consequences. At a cost!!!
The Plot
My name is Eleanor and I have one final wish. To share the account of my life, because only then will you understand my story, my choices, and my reasoning. Only then should you judge me.
History will show that I was orphaned by the sweet age of 9 and became a ward of the Pembroke family at Granborough House. Mrs Pembroke was a wonderful second mother, who bestowed on me the love and privileges of any caring and wealthy family. Charles her son became my soulmate, but I did not know what that meant then.
My life takes a dramatic twist when Mrs Pembrokes dies and with Charles away for many years, I am now relegated to the ranks of faceless housemaids. No more worthy of notice than the umbrella stand in the hall. That is until I am faced with the “… dark-eyed woman”, my mystical godmother. Although offering me the stuff of dreams, I was to be lured by this dark, unnerving, and chilling woman into making an agreement that would cost me my soul.
I was granted seven wishes and on completion of the seventh wish that she awarded me, my soul would be hers for all eternity. It is only after the completion of the 2nd wish that I realise my folly, because for one wish to be granted then someone else must die and I find myself tangled in this web of destruction where more wishes are needed to undo part of each "spell" and protect the ones I love. My plan of not using the seventh wish was my greatest error of judgement, as I am reminded.
“If you want something my dear you must ask for it. … I may not give you what you wanted but I did give you what you asked for’
In the end, the reader must know that I made my choices to protect those dear to me. I wanted a life immune from poverty, hunger and isolation, and the freedom to love my one true sweetheart, Charles.
Dear reader, I did make my choices and therefore, I am !!!"
Review and Comments
I loved this book with its explosion of imagination and insight into human nature. A rare combination. It worked with so many messages that are relevant in everyday life. In particular, what we do with the gifts or opportunities we are presented with in life, as we are constantly reminded that what we want or ask for may not be the thing we really need.
In the story we see a girl embroiled in a web of deceit and immorality whose life spirals out of control because of the poor judgements and errors she makes. Thinking she can outwit life she ultimately causes the destruction and downfall of her own.
A powerful and gripping story that is superbly written and expertly plotted.
__________________________________
Second read with a buddy and enjoyed the life lessons even more the second time round. I am surprised to see this rated so low, but I guess if you are lured to the book because of the promises of haunting read then its not that. If you want a fairy tale - well it's not that either. It has strong messaging with an historical backdrop that draws on the theme of Cinderella for its inspiration. I was gripped by the story and the impact of poor decisions, and getting what you asked for !!!
Atmospheric, mysterious, and the stuff of dark magic, the book takes us through a series of events as a result of seven wishes granted to Eleanor. A journey that exposes the worst, the inconsiderate and somewhat ignorant side of human nature, where the personal ambitions, requests and desires are taken in isolation without considering the consequences. At a cost!!!
The Plot
My name is Eleanor and I have one final wish. To share the account of my life, because only then will you understand my story, my choices, and my reasoning. Only then should you judge me.
History will show that I was orphaned by the sweet age of 9 and became a ward of the Pembroke family at Granborough House. Mrs Pembroke was a wonderful second mother, who bestowed on me the love and privileges of any caring and wealthy family. Charles her son became my soulmate, but I did not know what that meant then.
My life takes a dramatic twist when Mrs Pembrokes dies and with Charles away for many years, I am now relegated to the ranks of faceless housemaids. No more worthy of notice than the umbrella stand in the hall. That is until I am faced with the “… dark-eyed woman”, my mystical godmother. Although offering me the stuff of dreams, I was to be lured by this dark, unnerving, and chilling woman into making an agreement that would cost me my soul.
I was granted seven wishes and on completion of the seventh wish that she awarded me, my soul would be hers for all eternity. It is only after the completion of the 2nd wish that I realise my folly, because for one wish to be granted then someone else must die and I find myself tangled in this web of destruction where more wishes are needed to undo part of each "spell" and protect the ones I love. My plan of not using the seventh wish was my greatest error of judgement, as I am reminded.
“If you want something my dear you must ask for it. … I may not give you what you wanted but I did give you what you asked for’
In the end, the reader must know that I made my choices to protect those dear to me. I wanted a life immune from poverty, hunger and isolation, and the freedom to love my one true sweetheart, Charles.
Dear reader, I did make my choices and therefore, I am !!!"
Review and Comments
I loved this book with its explosion of imagination and insight into human nature. A rare combination. It worked with so many messages that are relevant in everyday life. In particular, what we do with the gifts or opportunities we are presented with in life, as we are constantly reminded that what we want or ask for may not be the thing we really need.
In the story we see a girl embroiled in a web of deceit and immorality whose life spirals out of control because of the poor judgements and errors she makes. Thinking she can outwit life she ultimately causes the destruction and downfall of her own.
A powerful and gripping story that is superbly written and expertly plotted.
__________________________________
Second read with a buddy and enjoyed the life lessons even more the second time round. I am surprised to see this rated so low, but I guess if you are lured to the book because of the promises of haunting read then its not that. If you want a fairy tale - well it's not that either. It has strong messaging with an historical backdrop that draws on the theme of Cinderella for its inspiration. I was gripped by the story and the impact of poor decisions, and getting what you asked for !!!
November 25, 2021
TW//
I received a copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway so thank you to the publisher for allowing me to have a copy of this book.
The Shadow in the Glass was pitched as a dark Cinderella retelling. It was really dark (and sometimes really triggering), but it was a very loose retelling. It follows Eleanor who is a maid for a cruel master. She wishes to be out of that place and stumbles upon a book that allows her to enter into a deal with a suspicious lady. Seven wishes in exchange for her soul.
The premise of this story sounded really promising. I love fantasy books and I’m always very interested in retellings, but things went downhill really quickly. The way that the master is cruel to his maids made me sick to my stomach. I’ve read tons of Cinderella retellings, but none that I’ve read have been as unsettling as this one. Sometimes when a book says dark, it feels like the words triggering and disturbing would’ve been better to describe the book.
That being said, I didn’t even feel too bad for the maids. I wasn’t particularly fond of any of the characters in this story. Aoife was perhaps the one that I enjoyed most, but most of the characters were either bland or infuriating. And the romance in the story… almost everything that could make a romance bad happened. I’ll put a spoiler warning here for those who don’t want to be spoiled:
As for the pacing, the plot moved along at a snail’s pace. The story was description heavy. The descriptions clogged up the story and distracted from the plot. This is just a personal preference thing though as I know some people prefer long descriptions, but I’m not a reader who enjoys long descriptions. The chapters were also insanely long. Another personal preference thing, but it was something that made the book pacing slower.
I had hope that somehow the ending would make the book better, but unfortunately it was an unsatisfying ending that was just as depressing as the rest of the book.
I could rant about this book for days, but out of curtesy to the author, I’ll stop my ramblings here. This was a book that I could tell a lot of effort and craft was put into making, but it was a book that was not my cup of tea. Definitely check the trigger warnings if you are considering reading this one as I know that the content in this book is challenging for a lot of people to read about.
I received a copy of this book through a Goodreads giveaway so thank you to the publisher for allowing me to have a copy of this book.
The Shadow in the Glass was pitched as a dark Cinderella retelling. It was really dark (and sometimes really triggering), but it was a very loose retelling. It follows Eleanor who is a maid for a cruel master. She wishes to be out of that place and stumbles upon a book that allows her to enter into a deal with a suspicious lady. Seven wishes in exchange for her soul.
The premise of this story sounded really promising. I love fantasy books and I’m always very interested in retellings, but things went downhill really quickly. The way that the master is cruel to his maids made me sick to my stomach. I’ve read tons of Cinderella retellings, but none that I’ve read have been as unsettling as this one. Sometimes when a book says dark, it feels like the words triggering and disturbing would’ve been better to describe the book.
That being said, I didn’t even feel too bad for the maids. I wasn’t particularly fond of any of the characters in this story. Aoife was perhaps the one that I enjoyed most, but most of the characters were either bland or infuriating. And the romance in the story… almost everything that could make a romance bad happened. I’ll put a spoiler warning here for those who don’t want to be spoiled:
As for the pacing, the plot moved along at a snail’s pace. The story was description heavy. The descriptions clogged up the story and distracted from the plot. This is just a personal preference thing though as I know some people prefer long descriptions, but I’m not a reader who enjoys long descriptions. The chapters were also insanely long. Another personal preference thing, but it was something that made the book pacing slower.
I had hope that somehow the ending would make the book better, but unfortunately it was an unsatisfying ending that was just as depressing as the rest of the book.
I could rant about this book for days, but out of curtesy to the author, I’ll stop my ramblings here. This was a book that I could tell a lot of effort and craft was put into making, but it was a book that was not my cup of tea. Definitely check the trigger warnings if you are considering reading this one as I know that the content in this book is challenging for a lot of people to read about.
March 7, 2021
I want to thank Edelweiss and Harper Collins for a chance at reading this... depressing? yes, depressing book. I'm going to spoiler cut this because I talk about some triggering stuff right out of the park (tw: rape, abortion/miscarriage, abuse):
November 8, 2021
2.5 stars
A darkly imagined Cinderella retelling... but I was so, so bored, confused by its purpose, and ultimately bothered by the lack of female agency.
Concept: ★★★★
Plot: ★★
Sense of urgency: ★
Oh boy, I do not want to write this review. It's always hard when you expected to love a book and then...you really, really don't.
The Shadow in the Glass follows Ella, the protagonist, as she works as a housemaid in the Pembroke's manor home where she used to grow up as a cherished ward. But then Mrs. Pembroke died, and everything changed. Mr. Pembroke's money dwindled and Ella transformed from reluctant ward to hired help.
Now a housemaid in a dark, dim manor where the female maids leave one by one in disgrace when Mr. Pembroke...tarnishes them....(spoiler: ), Ella is running out of options and hope.
But then in a mysterious book in the library, Ella summons a woman with black eyes. The woman says she can grant Ella 7 wishes in exchange for her soul.
Ella, being the kind of stupid that the plot needed her to be, says yes without thinking it through. It's only a matter of time before Mr. Pembroke turns his eye on Ella—and to Ella's worry, on the even younger Aoife—and Ella feels this is her only choice.
So then some wishes happen, Mr. Pembroke happens, Mr. Pembroke's son arrives on the scene with interesting results, and...yeah.
I had three large issues with this story.
I'm verging into pseudo-spoiler territory to discuss them, so consider yourself warned!
1.) This plot was so transparent and boring to have to sit through. From the get-go, we know the set up. Mr. Pembroke is a sexual predator in their home, Ella and the other girls need an out, and Ella takes that out in the form of a deal with the devil for 7 wishes. This concept was fine, but then it never, not once, adapted or grew into something rewarding. In a frankly bizarre form of storytelling, we as readers had to just sit through that plot with no growth, no surprises, no stakes, no intrigue. That is what happens, with the additions of some side characters doing unimportant things. I needed adaptability? Intrigue? Something to surprise me into being interested? Because I wasn't interested, at all, after the setup finished and things just stagnated with more and more of the same.
2.) Ella was not a strong enough character to fill this story. Given the issues of the first point above, I would have been satisfied if Ella was a strong character on the page. I would have been invested in Ella for Ella's sake, and that would have been fine. But I didn't care about Ella. There was something distanced about how she was written, and her stupidity in her choices and the plot holes left around her character's childhood and placement in this world just left me irritated with her and confused.
3.) The discussion of female agency and the historic predation of women was just...not handled to my satisfaction. I know that this novel did not set out to be a feminist retelling, or even contain female-agency themes. But my lingering feelings after reading this novel were sour when it came to the female representation and agency. Mr. Pembroke violates girl after girl in an abuse of his power and place in society. His son's plotline with Ella was essentially a socially-acceptable version of that abuse of power, in a supposedly "romantic" way. Again, I realize that this novel didn't set out to do anything with these historically accurate concepts, but at the same time this was a fantasy with a female demon and a girl who bargained for 7 wishes to literally escape that kind of predation and then...the plot went in different ways for a majority of the time.
I don't know, folks, this was clearly not for me. On to the next!
Blog | Instagram
A darkly imagined Cinderella retelling... but I was so, so bored, confused by its purpose, and ultimately bothered by the lack of female agency.
Concept: ★★★★
Plot: ★★
Sense of urgency: ★
Oh boy, I do not want to write this review. It's always hard when you expected to love a book and then...you really, really don't.
The Shadow in the Glass follows Ella, the protagonist, as she works as a housemaid in the Pembroke's manor home where she used to grow up as a cherished ward. But then Mrs. Pembroke died, and everything changed. Mr. Pembroke's money dwindled and Ella transformed from reluctant ward to hired help.
Now a housemaid in a dark, dim manor where the female maids leave one by one in disgrace when Mr. Pembroke...tarnishes them....(spoiler: ), Ella is running out of options and hope.
But then in a mysterious book in the library, Ella summons a woman with black eyes. The woman says she can grant Ella 7 wishes in exchange for her soul.
Ella, being the kind of stupid that the plot needed her to be, says yes without thinking it through. It's only a matter of time before Mr. Pembroke turns his eye on Ella—and to Ella's worry, on the even younger Aoife—and Ella feels this is her only choice.
So then some wishes happen, Mr. Pembroke happens, Mr. Pembroke's son arrives on the scene with interesting results, and...yeah.
I had three large issues with this story.
I'm verging into pseudo-spoiler territory to discuss them, so consider yourself warned!
1.) This plot was so transparent and boring to have to sit through. From the get-go, we know the set up. Mr. Pembroke is a sexual predator in their home, Ella and the other girls need an out, and Ella takes that out in the form of a deal with the devil for 7 wishes. This concept was fine, but then it never, not once, adapted or grew into something rewarding. In a frankly bizarre form of storytelling, we as readers had to just sit through that plot with no growth, no surprises, no stakes, no intrigue. That is what happens, with the additions of some side characters doing unimportant things. I needed adaptability? Intrigue? Something to surprise me into being interested? Because I wasn't interested, at all, after the setup finished and things just stagnated with more and more of the same.
2.) Ella was not a strong enough character to fill this story. Given the issues of the first point above, I would have been satisfied if Ella was a strong character on the page. I would have been invested in Ella for Ella's sake, and that would have been fine. But I didn't care about Ella. There was something distanced about how she was written, and her stupidity in her choices and the plot holes left around her character's childhood and placement in this world just left me irritated with her and confused.
3.) The discussion of female agency and the historic predation of women was just...not handled to my satisfaction. I know that this novel did not set out to be a feminist retelling, or even contain female-agency themes. But my lingering feelings after reading this novel were sour when it came to the female representation and agency. Mr. Pembroke violates girl after girl in an abuse of his power and place in society. His son's plotline with Ella was essentially a socially-acceptable version of that abuse of power, in a supposedly "romantic" way. Again, I realize that this novel didn't set out to do anything with these historically accurate concepts, but at the same time this was a fantasy with a female demon and a girl who bargained for 7 wishes to literally escape that kind of predation and then...the plot went in different ways for a majority of the time.
I don't know, folks, this was clearly not for me. On to the next!
Blog | Instagram
February 6, 2021
‘I’d like to propose a bargain. I will offer you seven wishes. Whatever you ask for, I shall grant you. There are few limits.’In this dark retelling, Eleanor is our Cinderella. After the death of her parents she was cared for by Mrs Pembroke, who Eleanor remembers fondly. It’s been three years since Mrs Pembroke’s death and in that time Eleanor’s once soft hands have reddened and cracked, the result of her new role as one of Mr Pembroke’s housemaids.
Eleanor’s life is a daily struggle; her body aches from the work she does, she is never warm enough and she is always hungry. Then there is the constant threat of Mr Pembroke himself. Reading is Eleanor’s only escape.
The dark spines of the books were rows of windows, waiting for the shutters to be pulled back.Eleanor imagines what she would wish for if she were granted some like the characters in books she’s read. Eleanor wishes that she could live a life without poverty, hunger and danger.
Eleanor tried to be good, she tried to be kind, but she wanted so many things that she could feel them gnawing at her from the inside.Eleanor needs to be careful what she wishes for, though, because her fairy godmother isn’t the one who made you believe bibbidi-bobbidi-boo was a real spell.
[image error]
No, wishes have some serious consequences in this fairytale.
Set in the nineteenth century, you know things are going to be pretty dire for women in general, but the teenagers who work at Granborough House also live with the constant threat of danger inside the house. I empathised with all of the housemaids but never connected with Eleanor. I didn’t like her, which made it difficult to become invested in the potential the wishes had to improve her circumstances.
I found some parts of the book repetitive and it felt like a longer read than it actually was, predominantly because the settings and the majority of the women’s lives were quite bleak.
I enjoyed anticipating how Eleanor’s wishes would be granted and seeing how she would react when she was given what she asked for, especially when expectation and reality didn’t line up.
I am left with a few unanswered questions but none that will keep me up at night. I expect the ending may not be for everyone but I loved it.
‘If you want something, my dear, you must ask for it.’Content warnings include .
Thank you so much to NetGalley and HarperVoyager, an imprint of HarperCollins UK, for granting my wish to read this book. I’m rounding up from 3.5 stars.
Blog - https://schizanthusnerd.com
July 20, 2021
3.5 stars
This is one of those books that’s been mis-marketed to its detriment. While sold as a fairy tale retelling, the Cinderella connection is quite loose; it’s actually more of a psychological thriller, with much of its tension generated by questions about how far its protagonist will go and what secrets she’s hiding from the reader. Set in Victorian London and with its fantasy elements minor/arguable, it’s also perhaps better classified as historical fiction than fantasy. That said, I enjoy historical fantasy and can appreciate a good psychological thriller, and loved many elements of this book, though it falls apart a bit at the end and fails to reach its full potential.
We meet 17-year-old Eleanor in a desperate situation: an impoverished orphan, she was taken in by a wealthy lady who is now long dead. The lady’s husband has relegated Eleanor to working as a maid, and Harwood has clearly done her research into conditions of servitude at the time: it’s exhausting, backbreaking, and demeaning. Not only that, the master of the house is a sexual predator with a history of raping his teenage maids, then allowing his housekeeper to throw them out on the street pregnant and destitute. Without any social safety net—and with their employer refusing to provide references to any of the maids, lest they sensibly leave—if they have no family or friends willing to take them in, they face a choice between begging (or starving) on the streets and entering the workhouse, essentially a prison labor camp most people will do anything to avoid. But just as her employer turns his attentions on Eleanor, a demon appears to offer her seven wishes in exchange for her soul.
The book has a tension-filled plot that takes its time to develop the reality of Eleanor’s situation, and her dreams for a better life, without ever feeling slow. It’s one of those books where you can never relax because the protagonist is never safe and you’re always waiting for another shoe to drop. The characters come across as realistic in their strengths and flaws, and I particularly appreciated the portrayal of Eleanor as someone who has realistically adapted to her marginalized life, picking up the sorts of survival strategies powerless people actually use (but fictional protagonists rarely do). She’s not a perfect person, she wants a life of luxury for herself and her few friends rather than, say, to reform the entire system, but that’s exactly how a real teenager in her position is likely to be.
The book itself can be read as a condemnation of the system that put young lower-class women in this situation, though I’m not entirely sure that was intended and had an “aha” moment upon seeing in the acknowledgments that the author had begun work on this book by the age of 17, though it took her 12 years to complete. Its outlook is an odd combination of a teenager’s black-and-white moral judgments (which take no account of context and assume Good People can always do the Right Thing and those doing the Wrong Thing are Bad People), with an in-depth exploration of Eleanor’s context, the general mercilessness of her society and the lack of good choices available to her. Eleanor’s friend Leah, in particular, seems to exist as the nightmare example of what would happen to Eleanor if she failed to fight back with whatever weapons are available to her. It’s a bit dissatisfying here but leaves me hopeful for the books Harwood will write entirely in adulthood.
The larger issue with the book, though, is that it sets up some delicious ambiguity about what’s really going on, only to largely allow it to fall apart at the end.
But in the end, the book doesn’t engage with this mystery as much as it could, and the end seems to foreclose alternate readings of the text, while still leaving Eleanor’s ultimate fate frustratingly ambiguous.
Ultimately though, I was very engaged with this book while reading it, finding it compelling, dark, and twisty, with believable characters in a claustrophobic but well-realized setting. The problems, while significant, are likely related to the author’s youth and inexperience, leaving me interested in what she writes next. Unfortunately, this book’s marketing seems to do it no favors, in emphasizing the ultimately insignificant Cinderella connection (right down to referring to the protagonist as “Ella,” which the book itself makes clear is a nickname forced on her—as nicknames are used for all the maids—to reinforce her subordinate status, while she always thinks of herself as Eleanor). Those looking for a fairy tale are likely to be disappointed, but those interested in something darker and more realistic should appreciate it better.
This is one of those books that’s been mis-marketed to its detriment. While sold as a fairy tale retelling, the Cinderella connection is quite loose; it’s actually more of a psychological thriller, with much of its tension generated by questions about how far its protagonist will go and what secrets she’s hiding from the reader. Set in Victorian London and with its fantasy elements minor/arguable, it’s also perhaps better classified as historical fiction than fantasy. That said, I enjoy historical fantasy and can appreciate a good psychological thriller, and loved many elements of this book, though it falls apart a bit at the end and fails to reach its full potential.
We meet 17-year-old Eleanor in a desperate situation: an impoverished orphan, she was taken in by a wealthy lady who is now long dead. The lady’s husband has relegated Eleanor to working as a maid, and Harwood has clearly done her research into conditions of servitude at the time: it’s exhausting, backbreaking, and demeaning. Not only that, the master of the house is a sexual predator with a history of raping his teenage maids, then allowing his housekeeper to throw them out on the street pregnant and destitute. Without any social safety net—and with their employer refusing to provide references to any of the maids, lest they sensibly leave—if they have no family or friends willing to take them in, they face a choice between begging (or starving) on the streets and entering the workhouse, essentially a prison labor camp most people will do anything to avoid. But just as her employer turns his attentions on Eleanor, a demon appears to offer her seven wishes in exchange for her soul.
The book has a tension-filled plot that takes its time to develop the reality of Eleanor’s situation, and her dreams for a better life, without ever feeling slow. It’s one of those books where you can never relax because the protagonist is never safe and you’re always waiting for another shoe to drop. The characters come across as realistic in their strengths and flaws, and I particularly appreciated the portrayal of Eleanor as someone who has realistically adapted to her marginalized life, picking up the sorts of survival strategies powerless people actually use (but fictional protagonists rarely do). She’s not a perfect person, she wants a life of luxury for herself and her few friends rather than, say, to reform the entire system, but that’s exactly how a real teenager in her position is likely to be.
The book itself can be read as a condemnation of the system that put young lower-class women in this situation, though I’m not entirely sure that was intended and had an “aha” moment upon seeing in the acknowledgments that the author had begun work on this book by the age of 17, though it took her 12 years to complete. Its outlook is an odd combination of a teenager’s black-and-white moral judgments (which take no account of context and assume Good People can always do the Right Thing and those doing the Wrong Thing are Bad People), with an in-depth exploration of Eleanor’s context, the general mercilessness of her society and the lack of good choices available to her. Eleanor’s friend Leah, in particular, seems to exist as the nightmare example of what would happen to Eleanor if she failed to fight back with whatever weapons are available to her. It’s a bit dissatisfying here but leaves me hopeful for the books Harwood will write entirely in adulthood.
The larger issue with the book, though, is that it sets up some delicious ambiguity about what’s really going on, only to largely allow it to fall apart at the end.
But in the end, the book doesn’t engage with this mystery as much as it could, and the end seems to foreclose alternate readings of the text, while still leaving Eleanor’s ultimate fate frustratingly ambiguous.
Ultimately though, I was very engaged with this book while reading it, finding it compelling, dark, and twisty, with believable characters in a claustrophobic but well-realized setting. The problems, while significant, are likely related to the author’s youth and inexperience, leaving me interested in what she writes next. Unfortunately, this book’s marketing seems to do it no favors, in emphasizing the ultimately insignificant Cinderella connection (right down to referring to the protagonist as “Ella,” which the book itself makes clear is a nickname forced on her—as nicknames are used for all the maids—to reinforce her subordinate status, while she always thinks of herself as Eleanor). Those looking for a fairy tale are likely to be disappointed, but those interested in something darker and more realistic should appreciate it better.
March 18, 2021
Many thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for a chance to read and review this book. All opinions are expressed voluntarily.
A dark and gothic tale set during the Victorian times, The Shadow In the Glass is a compelling and engrossing story of a young girl’s struggle to better her life.
J J A Harwood’s debut novel has parallels of Cinderella and YES, it is being publicized as the dark re-telling of the fairy tale but I beg to differ. The author has definitely used the outer crust of the fairy-tale but filled it with such intense emotions and sentiments that by the end of it all, there’s not even a semblance of “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo”. It takes time to get into the meaty part of the story but once it does, there’s no keeping this book down coz like Ella, we are addicted to the play of light and darkness that revolves around her life.
Ella as a character is not easy to like. The whole story is being narrated in the third person and that could be one of the contributing factors. However, there’s also the fact that she’s a reflection of how we humans behave in a particular situation. She’s kind, loving, and extremely set on improving her life and also saves her loved ones and to that end, she doesn’t hesitate in using whatever means available; and if one is forced to pay an extreme price for the same, then SO BE IT. It is this attitude that confuses the reader, there’s no good or bad there’s only the GREY shade of Ella’s miserable life as a housemaid. To have known the pleasures of a good lady-like life and then have a rotten fate play such a cruel trick, it is easy to understand the desperation that forces Ella’s hand. In fact, whenever the circumstances coerce her to call in for a wish, the reader can’t stop sympathizing with her desperate attempts.
The quintessential question as to if there is any supernatural or fantasy element in the story or if at all just a bag of tricks pulled by the author kept me hooked till the end. I am not a huge fan of open-ended storylines, but for Ella’s story, I couldn’t think of a better ending. Charles’ love for Ella is bright and filled with a pure glow and his efforts to circumvent the state of affairs touching.
There are abundant reasons why this story will appeal to most readers of gothic fiction but the primary reason would be the Victorian London that Harwood has depicted. There are, of course, no rosy hues to the colors of London, it is the London that is viewed thru the eyes of housemaids and laborers and as such is dark like the story.
Awesome debut!
This review is published in my blog https://rainnbooks.com/, Goodreads, Amazon India, Meduim.com, and Twitter.
A dark and gothic tale set during the Victorian times, The Shadow In the Glass is a compelling and engrossing story of a young girl’s struggle to better her life.
J J A Harwood’s debut novel has parallels of Cinderella and YES, it is being publicized as the dark re-telling of the fairy tale but I beg to differ. The author has definitely used the outer crust of the fairy-tale but filled it with such intense emotions and sentiments that by the end of it all, there’s not even a semblance of “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo”. It takes time to get into the meaty part of the story but once it does, there’s no keeping this book down coz like Ella, we are addicted to the play of light and darkness that revolves around her life.
Ella as a character is not easy to like. The whole story is being narrated in the third person and that could be one of the contributing factors. However, there’s also the fact that she’s a reflection of how we humans behave in a particular situation. She’s kind, loving, and extremely set on improving her life and also saves her loved ones and to that end, she doesn’t hesitate in using whatever means available; and if one is forced to pay an extreme price for the same, then SO BE IT. It is this attitude that confuses the reader, there’s no good or bad there’s only the GREY shade of Ella’s miserable life as a housemaid. To have known the pleasures of a good lady-like life and then have a rotten fate play such a cruel trick, it is easy to understand the desperation that forces Ella’s hand. In fact, whenever the circumstances coerce her to call in for a wish, the reader can’t stop sympathizing with her desperate attempts.
The quintessential question as to if there is any supernatural or fantasy element in the story or if at all just a bag of tricks pulled by the author kept me hooked till the end. I am not a huge fan of open-ended storylines, but for Ella’s story, I couldn’t think of a better ending. Charles’ love for Ella is bright and filled with a pure glow and his efforts to circumvent the state of affairs touching.
There are abundant reasons why this story will appeal to most readers of gothic fiction but the primary reason would be the Victorian London that Harwood has depicted. There are, of course, no rosy hues to the colors of London, it is the London that is viewed thru the eyes of housemaids and laborers and as such is dark like the story.
Awesome debut!
This review is published in my blog https://rainnbooks.com/, Goodreads, Amazon India, Meduim.com, and Twitter.
April 4, 2021
An extremely dissatisfying book. A ridiculous bargain, an even more ridiculous love story. By the end of the story I wanted everyone to die including the protagonist and her love interest.
This is supposed to be a dark, gothic Cinderella retelling. It is one, I suppose - a boring one! But I admit the twist was cool.
Everyone blushes a bit too much in this book. The housemaids blush, the protagonist blushes, her lover blushes, the chair, table, windows....everything blushes!
*I received an eARC in exchange for an honest review from the publisher via netgalley
This is supposed to be a dark, gothic Cinderella retelling. It is one, I suppose - a boring one! But I admit the twist was cool.
Everyone blushes a bit too much in this book. The housemaids blush, the protagonist blushes, her lover blushes, the chair, table, windows....everything blushes!
*I received an eARC in exchange for an honest review from the publisher via netgalley
February 15, 2021
trigger warning
Eleanor makes a deal with a demon: Seven wishes she'll be granted, in exchange for her soul. She is determined to not use the last wish, so she won't have to surrender her soul, whatever that is. And she won't become bad, she'll care for those she loves.
Background: Eleanor is the rich couple's ward and is treated like their own child, Charles, until Mrs. Pembroke dies and Mr. Pembroke lets Ella work for her keep. For three years, she works her fingers to the bone, and then the deal is struck - at a time when her best friend Leah has been thrown out because the master raped and impregnated her, and the housemaids are wondering who will be next.
The first wish Ella makes is innocent, to confirm that all that magic business was not a dream.
She wishes for shoes the colour of moonlight.
Then my problems with the book start. Ella is so high and mighty that she thinks she'll do right, because she is a good person, isn't she? She waits with her wishes till something bad happens and she has to use one to fix things from turning even worse. She doesn't act, she reacts, and is appaled by the consequences she gets.
Instead of trying to plan her further path, she berates herself, wallows in guilt, until she has convinced herself she has nothing to do with the tragedies that surround her, and tries to be good, until - again - something happens that makes her react with a wish.
It's so very frustrating.
You as the reader are able to see the main direction the plot is going, especially that she is .
The ending is quite absurd and doesn't fit in at all. It kind of reads as if the ending was thought of first, and then the rest of the book had to be written to make it happen. If you're looking for a Cinderella retelling: Go to the last chapter. The rest of the book is more a Faust retelling. The Marlowe version, but since I am more familiar with the Goethe one, it's Faust for me.
Bad things that happen are plot devices. The author treats their characters as props and doesn't care what reactions there might be to the traumatising and triggering events mentioned. I am so over rape as a plot device.
Listen, I just went through the reviews and kinda think all the people must have read a different book the one I was given.
The only reason why I read this to the finish was 1) I was wondering where the Cinderella aspect was lurking and 2) because I dnf-ed quite a few arcs in the last few weeks and didn't want to add another one on top.
The arc was provided by the publisher.
Eleanor makes a deal with a demon: Seven wishes she'll be granted, in exchange for her soul. She is determined to not use the last wish, so she won't have to surrender her soul, whatever that is. And she won't become bad, she'll care for those she loves.
Background: Eleanor is the rich couple's ward and is treated like their own child, Charles, until Mrs. Pembroke dies and Mr. Pembroke lets Ella work for her keep. For three years, she works her fingers to the bone, and then the deal is struck - at a time when her best friend Leah has been thrown out because the master raped and impregnated her, and the housemaids are wondering who will be next.
The first wish Ella makes is innocent, to confirm that all that magic business was not a dream.
She wishes for shoes the colour of moonlight.
Then my problems with the book start. Ella is so high and mighty that she thinks she'll do right, because she is a good person, isn't she? She waits with her wishes till something bad happens and she has to use one to fix things from turning even worse. She doesn't act, she reacts, and is appaled by the consequences she gets.
Instead of trying to plan her further path, she berates herself, wallows in guilt, until she has convinced herself she has nothing to do with the tragedies that surround her, and tries to be good, until - again - something happens that makes her react with a wish.
It's so very frustrating.
You as the reader are able to see the main direction the plot is going, especially that she is .
The ending is quite absurd and doesn't fit in at all. It kind of reads as if the ending was thought of first, and then the rest of the book had to be written to make it happen. If you're looking for a Cinderella retelling: Go to the last chapter. The rest of the book is more a Faust retelling. The Marlowe version, but since I am more familiar with the Goethe one, it's Faust for me.
Bad things that happen are plot devices. The author treats their characters as props and doesn't care what reactions there might be to the traumatising and triggering events mentioned. I am so over rape as a plot device.
Listen, I just went through the reviews and kinda think all the people must have read a different book the one I was given.
The only reason why I read this to the finish was 1) I was wondering where the Cinderella aspect was lurking and 2) because I dnf-ed quite a few arcs in the last few weeks and didn't want to add another one on top.
The arc was provided by the publisher.
April 4, 2021
“eleanor tried to be good, she tried to be kind, but she wanted so many things that she could feel them gnawing at her from the inside.”
cinderella meets doctor faustus—or, you know, reads doctor faustus and accidentally summons a demon who offers her seven wishes in exchange for her soul.
the shadow in the glass is a dark, addictive reimagining of the cinderella story set in victorian england. it starts slowly and meanders at a few points in the first half, but the tension escalates beautifully as the story progresses.
i really appreciated eleanor’s development; she grows from a naive girl to a delightfully morally grey character and i found her very compelling. the setting is gray and ominous and made eleanor’s powerlessness—as a woman, but specifically as a poor woman—particularly apparent. while the twist isn’t difficult to guess, it is particularly satisfying given its context, and i love that the line between reality and fantasy never quite crystallizes for us or for eleanor.
i struggled to put this one down and would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for dark fairytale retellings or gothic fantasy in general. it reminded me a little of a darker, more mature house of salt and sorrows , but this was such a unique, chilling take on a classic fairytale.
thank you to edelweiss and the publisher for providing me with a digital review copy.
rating: 4/5 stars
February 22, 2021
For me, the ability to make a reader feel all the emotions felt by the protagonist - the hatred, the betrayal, the pain, the love - is a sign of a great writer. Harwood truly immerses the reader in this society where women truly are treated as disposable prey. The third-person narrative really helps you understand the thoughts within Ella's head, and I loved being in it. As a character, she's so well-written - the perfect example of a flawed teenager who wants nothing more than to escape the life set out for her while also trying to navigate first loves and heartbreaks.
Ella's interactions with characters leave nothing to be desired. In particular, I fell in love with the character of the black-eyed woman - a temptress, no doubt - it was hard to know whether you should love her or loathe her at times. I also adored Ella's relationship with Charles. He was the perfect love interest and, if he existed in real life, he would be the man of my dreams.
The references to the source material - Cinderella - are subtle, but just enough to help you form a connection. I loved seeing how Ella's wishes gradually became darker and darker until suddenly we're not experiencing the Disney version of Cinderella, but the original version as it was intended to be experienced. I'm genuinely impressed with the subtleties here; Harwood forbids the source material from taking over her own narrative voice, instead coaxing it along in a bid to aid her in the formation of something entirely other, setting The Shadow in the Glass apart from the reams of Cinderella retellings throughout history.
My issue with The Shadow in the Glass is less about the writing itself and more about the formatting and how it affected my personal reading experience. I truly don't have a large attention span and I am generally against stopping in the middle of a chapter. This book is separated into parts, some of which span over 100 pages. For a reader with a large attention span, this works perfectly. However, for readers like me whose interest is quickly piqued by alternate pursuits, the long chapters don't necessarily work. Therefore, there were moments while reading this where the writing was lost on me and felt rather tedious.
Nonetheless, the action picks up in the second half and it truly grips you relentlessly. This book does not have a happy ending - I should say here that The Shadow in the Glass did not have the ending that I wanted, but it was definitely perfect for this book. The ending is open, left to interpretation, which works really well for a book of this calibre - it also really showcases the depths of Ella's impacts on peoples' lives, in particular for Charles. I do think, however, that there were some questions regarding Leah's and Aoife's aftermaths that I would have liked answered at this stage.
Honestly, it's hard to fault The Shadow in the Glass. Though there were moments where my attention was pulled elsewhere, I found this on the whole to be a dark yet enjoyable journey upon which I would absolutely embark once more.
Content warnings: alcoholism, poisoning, drug use, death of parents, miscarriage, abortion, sexual assault, murder, adultery.
Thank you to J. J. A. Harwood, Harper Voyager UK and Netgalley for providing me with an e-copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
Ella's interactions with characters leave nothing to be desired. In particular, I fell in love with the character of the black-eyed woman - a temptress, no doubt - it was hard to know whether you should love her or loathe her at times. I also adored Ella's relationship with Charles. He was the perfect love interest and, if he existed in real life, he would be the man of my dreams.
The references to the source material - Cinderella - are subtle, but just enough to help you form a connection. I loved seeing how Ella's wishes gradually became darker and darker until suddenly we're not experiencing the Disney version of Cinderella, but the original version as it was intended to be experienced. I'm genuinely impressed with the subtleties here; Harwood forbids the source material from taking over her own narrative voice, instead coaxing it along in a bid to aid her in the formation of something entirely other, setting The Shadow in the Glass apart from the reams of Cinderella retellings throughout history.
My issue with The Shadow in the Glass is less about the writing itself and more about the formatting and how it affected my personal reading experience. I truly don't have a large attention span and I am generally against stopping in the middle of a chapter. This book is separated into parts, some of which span over 100 pages. For a reader with a large attention span, this works perfectly. However, for readers like me whose interest is quickly piqued by alternate pursuits, the long chapters don't necessarily work. Therefore, there were moments while reading this where the writing was lost on me and felt rather tedious.
Nonetheless, the action picks up in the second half and it truly grips you relentlessly. This book does not have a happy ending - I should say here that The Shadow in the Glass did not have the ending that I wanted, but it was definitely perfect for this book. The ending is open, left to interpretation, which works really well for a book of this calibre - it also really showcases the depths of Ella's impacts on peoples' lives, in particular for Charles. I do think, however, that there were some questions regarding Leah's and Aoife's aftermaths that I would have liked answered at this stage.
Honestly, it's hard to fault The Shadow in the Glass. Though there were moments where my attention was pulled elsewhere, I found this on the whole to be a dark yet enjoyable journey upon which I would absolutely embark once more.
Content warnings: alcoholism, poisoning, drug use, death of parents, miscarriage, abortion, sexual assault, murder, adultery.
Thank you to J. J. A. Harwood, Harper Voyager UK and Netgalley for providing me with an e-copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
March 29, 2021
What if you were granted 7 wishes to do as you please by a woman who is sort of like a godmother? You would probably be so excited and would want the best kinds of things, right? Well, this is what happens in this new take based on the classic Cinderella of a young woman who is granted 7 wonderful wishes but sometimes what she wishes for doesn't necessarily have the best outcome.
Ella is a hardworking servant in Granborough House where she was once a ward of sorts to the Pembroke family after her parents died. Promised to be cared for, Ella grows up alongside the Pembroke's son Charles who she has always had a brotherly love for. But after the kind and loving Mrs. Pembroke dies, Ella is forced to become a lowly maid serving the house and family she was once part of. In her secret missions to the library in Granborough House where Ella finds refuge among the books and stories she loses herself in she encounters a mysterious woman who grants her 7 wishes to do as she pleases. Excited that she can change her life and of those she loves Ella begins wishing for good things to happen, but little does she realize at first that her wishes come with a steep price, a price that usually involves death.
This was an original and engrossing read with gothic elements that I really enjoyed, it had it's share of surprises and twists and the ending was not what I was expecting.
Thank you to JJA Harwood and Edelweiss for providing me a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.
Ella is a hardworking servant in Granborough House where she was once a ward of sorts to the Pembroke family after her parents died. Promised to be cared for, Ella grows up alongside the Pembroke's son Charles who she has always had a brotherly love for. But after the kind and loving Mrs. Pembroke dies, Ella is forced to become a lowly maid serving the house and family she was once part of. In her secret missions to the library in Granborough House where Ella finds refuge among the books and stories she loses herself in she encounters a mysterious woman who grants her 7 wishes to do as she pleases. Excited that she can change her life and of those she loves Ella begins wishing for good things to happen, but little does she realize at first that her wishes come with a steep price, a price that usually involves death.
This was an original and engrossing read with gothic elements that I really enjoyed, it had it's share of surprises and twists and the ending was not what I was expecting.
Thank you to JJA Harwood and Edelweiss for providing me a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.
May 26, 2021
I re-read a beloved book, I read a book that others had loved but that I found disappointing, I wrote a blog post to celebrate the many books I had loved but not written about this year, and somehow that sent me crashing into a reading slump.
I have picked up and put down books that I usually would have loved, I have done other things, and it was only with this book that I read a novel from start to finish.
It is far from perfect, but it hooked me in for long enough that I had to keep reading to see what would happen. It was the right book at the right time.
If it was a recipe it might read like this:
"Take the following ingredients:
- a large handful of Cinderella
- a dash of Doctor Faustus
- a teaspoon of Victorian Gothic
- a pinch of fairy dust
Mix together thoroughly and then throw the mixture into the air and see it fly."
The story begins with a young woman creeping into a library at night, knowing that she would be dismissed on the spot if she was discovered, but quite unable to resist the lure of books.
"Eleanor set down her candle and surveyed her subjects. Damp equatorial rainforests, steaming in the heat. Versailles, glittering in the dark like an earthbound star. Verona – Juliet on her balcony sighing into the darkness. It was a perfect night for poetry: she could stretch out her legs and whisper sonnets into the slow, hot silence ….."
Eleanor had become the ward of the Pembroke family after he mother had died, and Mrs. Pembroke had loved and treated her as she would have loved and treated one of her daughters who had died in infancy, leaving her with a single son. The sudden death of Mrs. Pembroke shattered Eleanor’s life: her widower decided that she had no claim on him and that she must earn her living alongside her household staff, and so Eleanor was renamed Ella and became a housemaid. Mr. Pembroke also fell out with his son, Charles, who left his household; and so his father ruled alone, drinking heavily and harassing the young female servants.
It was on one of her visits to the library that Eleanor encountered a mysterious woman with dark eyes. That woman offered her seven wishes, her price being that she would take Eleanor’s soul after she made her seventh wish. Eleanor accepted eagerly, thinking that she could help the other maids who had become good friends and that she could elevate herself so that she would never be poor or have to work again; and reassuring herself that if she didn’t use her seventh wish her soul would be her own to keep.
It didn’t take Eleanor long to discover that life with wishes was not at all straightforward. Her wishes had consequences, usually unforeseen, and almost always destructive ….
Eleanor was a fascinating character to follow. She was bold and passionate in her love for her friends and her hatred for those she felt had wronged her, and she did everything within her power to achieve what she felt was right and just for herself and for them.
I saw how the possession of the wishes, her changing circumstances – and maybe the mysterious woman with dark eyes gaining a hold on her soul – changed her. That was very well done.
I couldn’t say that I liked her, but I always wanted to know what would happen next.
The plot also kept me turning the pages with frequent developments, some of which I expected and some of which took me by surprise.
In the later chapters there were developments that I felt were too improbable, and I felt the characters were sacrificed for the playing out of the plot. And I can’t help thinking that better editing, just a few small changes, and the book being either shorter or longer, could have helped with those problems.
I did appreciate the distinctiveness of the story, and I was engrossed right up to the sudden and surprising conclusion.
That is why I say that ‘The Shadow in the Glass’ is an imperfect book but it was the right book at the right time.
I have picked up and put down books that I usually would have loved, I have done other things, and it was only with this book that I read a novel from start to finish.
It is far from perfect, but it hooked me in for long enough that I had to keep reading to see what would happen. It was the right book at the right time.
If it was a recipe it might read like this:
"Take the following ingredients:
- a large handful of Cinderella
- a dash of Doctor Faustus
- a teaspoon of Victorian Gothic
- a pinch of fairy dust
Mix together thoroughly and then throw the mixture into the air and see it fly."
The story begins with a young woman creeping into a library at night, knowing that she would be dismissed on the spot if she was discovered, but quite unable to resist the lure of books.
"Eleanor set down her candle and surveyed her subjects. Damp equatorial rainforests, steaming in the heat. Versailles, glittering in the dark like an earthbound star. Verona – Juliet on her balcony sighing into the darkness. It was a perfect night for poetry: she could stretch out her legs and whisper sonnets into the slow, hot silence ….."
Eleanor had become the ward of the Pembroke family after he mother had died, and Mrs. Pembroke had loved and treated her as she would have loved and treated one of her daughters who had died in infancy, leaving her with a single son. The sudden death of Mrs. Pembroke shattered Eleanor’s life: her widower decided that she had no claim on him and that she must earn her living alongside her household staff, and so Eleanor was renamed Ella and became a housemaid. Mr. Pembroke also fell out with his son, Charles, who left his household; and so his father ruled alone, drinking heavily and harassing the young female servants.
It was on one of her visits to the library that Eleanor encountered a mysterious woman with dark eyes. That woman offered her seven wishes, her price being that she would take Eleanor’s soul after she made her seventh wish. Eleanor accepted eagerly, thinking that she could help the other maids who had become good friends and that she could elevate herself so that she would never be poor or have to work again; and reassuring herself that if she didn’t use her seventh wish her soul would be her own to keep.
It didn’t take Eleanor long to discover that life with wishes was not at all straightforward. Her wishes had consequences, usually unforeseen, and almost always destructive ….
Eleanor was a fascinating character to follow. She was bold and passionate in her love for her friends and her hatred for those she felt had wronged her, and she did everything within her power to achieve what she felt was right and just for herself and for them.
I saw how the possession of the wishes, her changing circumstances – and maybe the mysterious woman with dark eyes gaining a hold on her soul – changed her. That was very well done.
I couldn’t say that I liked her, but I always wanted to know what would happen next.
The plot also kept me turning the pages with frequent developments, some of which I expected and some of which took me by surprise.
In the later chapters there were developments that I felt were too improbable, and I felt the characters were sacrificed for the playing out of the plot. And I can’t help thinking that better editing, just a few small changes, and the book being either shorter or longer, could have helped with those problems.
I did appreciate the distinctiveness of the story, and I was engrossed right up to the sudden and surprising conclusion.
That is why I say that ‘The Shadow in the Glass’ is an imperfect book but it was the right book at the right time.
April 4, 2021
3.5 stars.
The core of the story is a dark delicious gothic fairytale (Cinderella in the most broadest of sense) however it got bogged down with intricate, often boring details of 19th century life. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the author did extensive research to bring us those details (I got flashbacks to my history lessons in school) but it seemed at times, all that detail was added just because ( i.e. “don’t want to waste any tidbit I researched”) rather than to move the story along and it was often repetitive, and therefore the core of the story got dragged and somewhat lost in it all.
Our morally grey MC...Eleanor...I really wanted to like her...even though there was a vicious spiteful side to her, I was willing to root for her...characters like this are not a problem for me....yet unfortunately Ella missed the mark for me...she was so inconsistent....from being selfish/spiteful one moment to trying to act like Mother Teresa in the next 🤷♀️. It just made no sense and therefore I couldn’t get a feel of who she was. Perhaps if more time was taken on the “love” story, I may have warmed up to her more.
But I loved the Faustian bargain - 7 wishes for her soul. 😈
Triggers:
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Miscarriage/abortion (in detail)
Threat of sexual assault
Physical abuse
The core of the story is a dark delicious gothic fairytale (Cinderella in the most broadest of sense) however it got bogged down with intricate, often boring details of 19th century life. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the author did extensive research to bring us those details (I got flashbacks to my history lessons in school) but it seemed at times, all that detail was added just because ( i.e. “don’t want to waste any tidbit I researched”) rather than to move the story along and it was often repetitive, and therefore the core of the story got dragged and somewhat lost in it all.
Our morally grey MC...Eleanor...I really wanted to like her...even though there was a vicious spiteful side to her, I was willing to root for her...characters like this are not a problem for me....yet unfortunately Ella missed the mark for me...she was so inconsistent....from being selfish/spiteful one moment to trying to act like Mother Teresa in the next 🤷♀️. It just made no sense and therefore I couldn’t get a feel of who she was. Perhaps if more time was taken on the “love” story, I may have warmed up to her more.
But I loved the Faustian bargain - 7 wishes for her soul. 😈
Triggers:
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
Miscarriage/abortion (in detail)
Threat of sexual assault
Physical abuse
October 17, 2023
Was expecting more from this, but it was a good pick for the spooky season.
May 21, 2021
SPOILERS because that's how mad I am at this book.
I wanted to love this book so much. Sadly it just didn't meet my expectations and here's why:
-The main character was a horrible person and I did not like her one bit. Throughout the plot, she tried to justify herself and be sympathetic to readers but I just had no sympathy for her. She tries to "help" ( and I say that so loosely) her friends in trouble but also never really does. She leaves a 15-year-old girl alone with a PREDATOR and just kind of makes empty promises about helping until the girl decides she's had enough? LIKE WHAT?!
Eleanor annoyed me for the majority of this book.... let's just leave it at that.
-The magic system really was confusing.....like a random woman shows up for wishes and it wasn't really explained? Was she the devil, just some random demon? I DON'T KNOW. It never gets explained and it just ends abruptly.
-The love interest, Charles, was a sweet gentle soul who was so CLUELESS. I just couldn't like him and his pairing with Eleanor didn't make sense to me.
What did I like about this? THE WRITING, it was so good. J.J.A. Harwood is an incredible writer and has a vivid imagination, which is why I continued to read this book. Sadly, the story and characters just didn't grasp me in any way that I could fully enjoy her writing. I will keep an eye out for her other works in the hopes to leave a better and more positive review of her works in the future.
I wanted to love this book so much. Sadly it just didn't meet my expectations and here's why:
-The main character was a horrible person and I did not like her one bit. Throughout the plot, she tried to justify herself and be sympathetic to readers but I just had no sympathy for her. She tries to "help" ( and I say that so loosely) her friends in trouble but also never really does. She leaves a 15-year-old girl alone with a PREDATOR and just kind of makes empty promises about helping until the girl decides she's had enough? LIKE WHAT?!
Eleanor annoyed me for the majority of this book.... let's just leave it at that.
-The magic system really was confusing.....like a random woman shows up for wishes and it wasn't really explained? Was she the devil, just some random demon? I DON'T KNOW. It never gets explained and it just ends abruptly.
-The love interest, Charles, was a sweet gentle soul who was so CLUELESS. I just couldn't like him and his pairing with Eleanor didn't make sense to me.
What did I like about this? THE WRITING, it was so good. J.J.A. Harwood is an incredible writer and has a vivid imagination, which is why I continued to read this book. Sadly, the story and characters just didn't grasp me in any way that I could fully enjoy her writing. I will keep an eye out for her other works in the hopes to leave a better and more positive review of her works in the future.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 16, 2021
This book started off strong but slowly lost footing. I enjoyed the writing and the characters but the plot had pacing issues. The book felt too long. Definitely an interesting story worth reading, and an author to watch. Thank you to GoodReads for granting a free copy.
Check me out on Bookstagram/Instagram! I'm @Iheartya311
Looking to make new book friends? Join LiterALLy BOOKiSh on Facebook to read reviews, play games, join discussions and more!
Check me out on Bookstagram/Instagram! I'm @Iheartya311
Looking to make new book friends? Join LiterALLy BOOKiSh on Facebook to read reviews, play games, join discussions and more!
August 10, 2020
This book is tense, gothic, and so, so creepy. The beginning takes its time warming up, but by the end its a breathless race (both literally and emotionally). Harwood does an amazing job of bringing Victorian London to vivid life through her gorgeous prose. A super riveting read that just got more and more tense as it went on.
June 6, 2021
It was an okay book - very Cinderella meets Faustus (if Mephistopheles was really the fairy godmother.)
March 3, 2021
The Shadow in the Glass by JJA Harwood is a dark gothic retelling of Cinderella.
After her parents died Eleanor was taken by Mrs Pembroke to live at Gainsborough House. They treated her like their own daughter. They also have a son called Charles. But when Mrs Pembroke dies, Eleanor’s life changes and is set to work as a maid under the lecherous eyes of her once stepfather Mr Pembroke. Who has a reputation as force himself on his pretty maids and dispose of them when they become with child and to be sent to work in the workhouse.
Eleanor’s only respite when she steals herself to the library to read the books that take her away to different worlds, far away from Gainsborough house. She wants more for herself and she saved up her wages to escape and get a place of her own. But one day, she finds her room turned upside down and all her money gone. She is distraught until if by chance, she makes a deal with the devil. Who gives her seven wishes but after seventh wish her soul will be taken, But she promises herself she will not make her final wish. She hopes the other wishes will help her change her life for the better.
Although the story was a bit low at first, The shadow in the Glass is a dark atmospheric retelling of Cinderella that I really enjoyed. This is a historical novel and a bit of magic thrown in. But it also showed what a different class woman where at that age and how hard they worked and how they had to ask permission for everything they did. This is classed as young adult, but I thought more adult story due to some of its content. 4 stars from me.
After her parents died Eleanor was taken by Mrs Pembroke to live at Gainsborough House. They treated her like their own daughter. They also have a son called Charles. But when Mrs Pembroke dies, Eleanor’s life changes and is set to work as a maid under the lecherous eyes of her once stepfather Mr Pembroke. Who has a reputation as force himself on his pretty maids and dispose of them when they become with child and to be sent to work in the workhouse.
Eleanor’s only respite when she steals herself to the library to read the books that take her away to different worlds, far away from Gainsborough house. She wants more for herself and she saved up her wages to escape and get a place of her own. But one day, she finds her room turned upside down and all her money gone. She is distraught until if by chance, she makes a deal with the devil. Who gives her seven wishes but after seventh wish her soul will be taken, But she promises herself she will not make her final wish. She hopes the other wishes will help her change her life for the better.
Although the story was a bit low at first, The shadow in the Glass is a dark atmospheric retelling of Cinderella that I really enjoyed. This is a historical novel and a bit of magic thrown in. But it also showed what a different class woman where at that age and how hard they worked and how they had to ask permission for everything they did. This is classed as young adult, but I thought more adult story due to some of its content. 4 stars from me.
February 16, 2021
’Wishes were supposed to be nice things. They were granted by smiling fairy godmothers and left everyone living happily ever after. They couldn’t leave her like this – lost in horror and disgust that was deep enough to drown in.’
Eleanor “Ella” Rose Hartley was once a little girl going on a young lady of society. However, this all came crumbling down, when her charge Mrs Pembroke suddenly died. Now Ella is forced to work for the House in which she once held higher standing; working long and hard days whilst freezing, starving and aching. But one night changes everything. A woman appears to Ella and offers her seven wishes that’ll enable her to change her life. The problem is, all magic comes with a price, and it’ll cost Ella’s soul.
To describe The Shadow in the Glass as a dark retelling of Cinderella is an understatement. It’s a story brimming with cruelty, vengeance and desire. To liken it to Laura Purcell’s work is a good starting point as I imagine other Purcell fans will notice the similarities to The Corset.
The Shadow in the Glass embodied such an ominous essence in a multitude of ways to easily describe it as harrowing. To put it bluntly, especially when Goodreads classifies this as YA, I felt this book’s nature was unnerving. There is physical abuse of the household maids, multiple references to past rape and potential future rape of maids, and also a graphic description of abortion and miscarriage. All of this left me feeling suffocated because of how gut churning and worried I was for the characters, and so, it certainly isn’t a light read.
By the book’s end, it’s easy to understand Ella’s decisions and actions even if one does not agree with them. She envisioned a particular life for herself, one she feels was robbed from her, and from where the story picks up, Ella imagines bitterly what life would’ve - should’ve - been like. It’s this bitterness in her heart that underpins everything and prevents her from seeing herself as anything but prey and a victim. She was ambitious, conceited and devious, punishingly so, often making her a rather off putting protagonist. However, in the same vein, she’s good hearted, rounding out her more questionable traits. Because of this, I found her a strong founded and well developed morally grey character.
I really enjoyed the novel’s predominant theme of power; through the power imbalance of employer and employee, societal social standing and also the magical elements of the power the wishes offered. The historical time period permitted such illustrious portrayals of Ella and her fellow maids being subject to the House’s hierarchy and the judgement and gossip of better off ladies in wider society.
The power the wishes held over the whole story, and not just Ella’s options, provided such a foreboding feeling about how things would turn out. It was impossible not to worry that things wouldn’t spell well for Ella. However, it became hard to accept that Ella wouldn’t use her wishes when she faced particular challenges, especially when it was clear how conniving Ella could be yet acted holier than thou with respect to the wishes - this issue, I felt, was primarily because of the novel’s weakest link: leaden prose. It wasn’t merely descriptive, it was excessive at times and subsequently sluggish. The book really would have benefited from its length being refined to not feel so overloaded. That’s ultimately what’s knocking my rating from 4 stars to 3 stars to an otherwise enjoyable debut.
This was a real pageturner for me - I’m talking laying awake at night itching to pick up my kindle and continue reading. I couldn’t get my mind off it. I stayed up into the wee hours to finish it. Other than some repetition and drawn out parts, this was an excellent debut. It’s not the first of its kind but it offers a grimly exhilarating spin on a classic fairytale and insight to the potential this author has going forward. Definitely worth picking up, especially if you love Laura Purcell.
Thank you kindly to the publishers and Netgalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Eleanor “Ella” Rose Hartley was once a little girl going on a young lady of society. However, this all came crumbling down, when her charge Mrs Pembroke suddenly died. Now Ella is forced to work for the House in which she once held higher standing; working long and hard days whilst freezing, starving and aching. But one night changes everything. A woman appears to Ella and offers her seven wishes that’ll enable her to change her life. The problem is, all magic comes with a price, and it’ll cost Ella’s soul.
To describe The Shadow in the Glass as a dark retelling of Cinderella is an understatement. It’s a story brimming with cruelty, vengeance and desire. To liken it to Laura Purcell’s work is a good starting point as I imagine other Purcell fans will notice the similarities to The Corset.
The Shadow in the Glass embodied such an ominous essence in a multitude of ways to easily describe it as harrowing. To put it bluntly, especially when Goodreads classifies this as YA, I felt this book’s nature was unnerving. There is physical abuse of the household maids, multiple references to past rape and potential future rape of maids, and also a graphic description of abortion and miscarriage. All of this left me feeling suffocated because of how gut churning and worried I was for the characters, and so, it certainly isn’t a light read.
By the book’s end, it’s easy to understand Ella’s decisions and actions even if one does not agree with them. She envisioned a particular life for herself, one she feels was robbed from her, and from where the story picks up, Ella imagines bitterly what life would’ve - should’ve - been like. It’s this bitterness in her heart that underpins everything and prevents her from seeing herself as anything but prey and a victim. She was ambitious, conceited and devious, punishingly so, often making her a rather off putting protagonist. However, in the same vein, she’s good hearted, rounding out her more questionable traits. Because of this, I found her a strong founded and well developed morally grey character.
I really enjoyed the novel’s predominant theme of power; through the power imbalance of employer and employee, societal social standing and also the magical elements of the power the wishes offered. The historical time period permitted such illustrious portrayals of Ella and her fellow maids being subject to the House’s hierarchy and the judgement and gossip of better off ladies in wider society.
The power the wishes held over the whole story, and not just Ella’s options, provided such a foreboding feeling about how things would turn out. It was impossible not to worry that things wouldn’t spell well for Ella. However, it became hard to accept that Ella wouldn’t use her wishes when she faced particular challenges, especially when it was clear how conniving Ella could be yet acted holier than thou with respect to the wishes - this issue, I felt, was primarily because of the novel’s weakest link: leaden prose. It wasn’t merely descriptive, it was excessive at times and subsequently sluggish. The book really would have benefited from its length being refined to not feel so overloaded. That’s ultimately what’s knocking my rating from 4 stars to 3 stars to an otherwise enjoyable debut.
This was a real pageturner for me - I’m talking laying awake at night itching to pick up my kindle and continue reading. I couldn’t get my mind off it. I stayed up into the wee hours to finish it. Other than some repetition and drawn out parts, this was an excellent debut. It’s not the first of its kind but it offers a grimly exhilarating spin on a classic fairytale and insight to the potential this author has going forward. Definitely worth picking up, especially if you love Laura Purcell.
Thank you kindly to the publishers and Netgalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
February 8, 2025
Eleanor, our Cinderella in this dark retelling, has the worst, most depressing life ever. You think you’ve read about hardship? Just wait until you’ve read 300 pages of the most depressing, grueling, agonizing life story EVER. Like GEEZ. Her life SUCKS unlike any way I can even describe and it is DEPRESSING TO READ. It’s funny because I absolutely adore regency, but all of ones I’ve read have been about the wealthy, high society in historical fiction. Seeing the other side with this book helps me realize how I really was seeing regency through tinted glasses and it honestly turns me off from the genre now, knowing that a significant amount of people back then lived the way Ella did in this book. Honestly, I needed this reality check. I’ve told so many people how I wish I lived in regency eta, but this book helped me realize that I really romanticized that time period. It really only was great if you were born rich.
Ella was an extremely morally gray character, but at the same time you sympathize with her. It’s easy to understand why she is the way she is, because her life is horrible. That doesn’t excuse her actions at all, but like, it does make more sense why she acts this way.
The ending felt unsatisfactory to me and I prefer more of a solid conclusion. Also, this book was the most dark and horribly depressing thing I’ve ever read. Yikes. This was just too dark and depressing and was not enjoyable at all. Ella just made tons of horrible decisions and this was just painful to read. I didn’t enjoy this whatsoever.
Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Voyager for sending me an advanced copy in return for a review.
Ella was an extremely morally gray character, but at the same time you sympathize with her. It’s easy to understand why she is the way she is, because her life is horrible. That doesn’t excuse her actions at all, but like, it does make more sense why she acts this way.
The ending felt unsatisfactory to me and I prefer more of a solid conclusion. Also, this book was the most dark and horribly depressing thing I’ve ever read. Yikes. This was just too dark and depressing and was not enjoyable at all. Ella just made tons of horrible decisions and this was just painful to read. I didn’t enjoy this whatsoever.
Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Voyager for sending me an advanced copy in return for a review.
September 8, 2023
~1.5 stars~
Such a dissapointment for a cinderella retelling. I swear to god the female mc was stupid.
Such a dissapointment for a cinderella retelling. I swear to god the female mc was stupid.
April 25, 2021
Imagine a lady with black pits for eyes appears and offers to grant you 7 wishes... in exchange for your soul...would you make the bargain?
This book was so weird but FUN! I went into this knowing only that it was a Cinderella retelling with a dark twist. Here's my thoughts:
- I really liked the writing, it was beautiful but could be repetitive at times, which didn't annoy me that much
- Ella is a morally grey character who spirals into this villain role as the story progresses, and I liked reading about how her morals become hazy
- The pacing was a little slow at the start, but I was hooked and really wanted to find out the outcome of all her wishes.
- middle of the book was a bit unnecessary, the book could've been shorter and I think this would've been 5 stars!
- The 'fairy godmother' is the scariest being I have read about in a while- she has black pits for eyes and appears in the corner of Ella's vision from time to time- it was literally like a horror film my dudes...
- the ending did leave me with some unanswered questions about Ella's past, so an insight into that would've been really good
- the ending was FANTASTIC- it is a n acquired taste as Ella's story finishes on an unconventional event. I liked how all the events led up to that point
- I guessed the twist halfway into the book, but only when the author wanted me to and began dropping obvious hints, so I really LOVED that ^-^
Overall, a fun read that discusses many of the social issues back in the day that faced women. It was a pretty strange story that had me hooked. I can't wait to see what this author does next!
Highly recommend!
This book was so weird but FUN! I went into this knowing only that it was a Cinderella retelling with a dark twist. Here's my thoughts:
- I really liked the writing, it was beautiful but could be repetitive at times, which didn't annoy me that much
- Ella is a morally grey character who spirals into this villain role as the story progresses, and I liked reading about how her morals become hazy
- The pacing was a little slow at the start, but I was hooked and really wanted to find out the outcome of all her wishes.
- middle of the book was a bit unnecessary, the book could've been shorter and I think this would've been 5 stars!
- The 'fairy godmother' is the scariest being I have read about in a while- she has black pits for eyes and appears in the corner of Ella's vision from time to time- it was literally like a horror film my dudes...
- the ending did leave me with some unanswered questions about Ella's past, so an insight into that would've been really good
- the ending was FANTASTIC- it is a n acquired taste as Ella's story finishes on an unconventional event. I liked how all the events led up to that point
- I guessed the twist halfway into the book, but only when the author wanted me to and began dropping obvious hints, so I really LOVED that ^-^
Overall, a fun read that discusses many of the social issues back in the day that faced women. It was a pretty strange story that had me hooked. I can't wait to see what this author does next!
Highly recommend!
May 22, 2022
Yeah, three stars but it's on my 2022 faves shelf. Go figure.
The thing about this book is that the concept absolutely seized my attention. It's a cross between Cinderella and Faust - what if the fairy godmother was actually the Devil? - which specifically asks, what if Cinderella weren't defined by being good and kind?
This is an absolutely blockbuster idea. There are so many interesting directions to go from a start this promising, and by and large I felt the book made good on this early promise, right up to the very end, and then didn't quite meet expectations.
Part of the problem is that its two source components, Cinderella and Faust, have opposite inevitable endings. Both are endings driven by key qualities of their protagonists, but Cinderella's goodness leads her to a happy finale, whereas Faust's fallibility leads him to tragedy. Readers know how each of these parts is supposed to go, but combining them makes competing promises. Ultimately, two stock narratives enter but only one leaves, and that was probably doomed from the start to disappoint many readers.
(There's also an element of an unreliable narrator here which, I fully admit, I didn't pick up on until I read some other reviews of this book who laid the evidence out. That's a whole OTHER thing.)
The strongest element of this story is Eleanor herself, who is from the start a dubious protagonist. She's got a lot of anger, a lot of wanting, and much of it is sympathetic. She has been unjustly treated, and no small part of her anger is on behalf of friends who have been exploited, abused, and raped. And yet, Eleanor's wanting is focused on the life she feels she deserves: that of a noblewoman, elevated above all the grime of below-stairs life, and there is no sympathy or solidarity for servants in her imaginings of what she deserves. She is convinced that she doesn't belong in poverty, but doesn't really extend that empathy to others. Even as, through the course of the story, she seems poised to get what she wants, the most she is willing to extend to her 'friends' is a better variety of servitude.
This selfishness is the first indication that the story is going to be more Faust than Cinderella. Still, I admit I held out hope that she would, in fact, somehow get out of her bargain. I'm a sucker for a Cinderella/underdog narrative, and for a little over half the book I was really rooting for her relationship with Charles.
I'm not dissatisfied with the path the story took, except in that I think the ending was a little simpler than I was hoping for. For a concept which is rooted in two competing narratives, I wish the scales had been a little more evenly weighted, and that the conflict between these archetypal stories had been drawn out more. Still, I found the ideas that went into this book fascinating, and - as someone who loves and collects Cinderella retellings - this was an angle that caught my attention and got me thinking. As such, despite not being the most satisfying read, I think it's earned a spot on my favorites shelf for 2022.
The thing about this book is that the concept absolutely seized my attention. It's a cross between Cinderella and Faust - what if the fairy godmother was actually the Devil? - which specifically asks, what if Cinderella weren't defined by being good and kind?
Eleanor tried to be good, she tried to be kind, but she wanted so many things that she could feel them gnawing at her from the inside.
This is an absolutely blockbuster idea. There are so many interesting directions to go from a start this promising, and by and large I felt the book made good on this early promise, right up to the very end, and then didn't quite meet expectations.
Part of the problem is that its two source components, Cinderella and Faust, have opposite inevitable endings. Both are endings driven by key qualities of their protagonists, but Cinderella's goodness leads her to a happy finale, whereas Faust's fallibility leads him to tragedy. Readers know how each of these parts is supposed to go, but combining them makes competing promises. Ultimately, two stock narratives enter but only one leaves, and that was probably doomed from the start to disappoint many readers.
(There's also an element of an unreliable narrator here which, I fully admit, I didn't pick up on until I read some other reviews of this book who laid the evidence out. That's a whole OTHER thing.)
The strongest element of this story is Eleanor herself, who is from the start a dubious protagonist. She's got a lot of anger, a lot of wanting, and much of it is sympathetic. She has been unjustly treated, and no small part of her anger is on behalf of friends who have been exploited, abused, and raped. And yet, Eleanor's wanting is focused on the life she feels she deserves: that of a noblewoman, elevated above all the grime of below-stairs life, and there is no sympathy or solidarity for servants in her imaginings of what she deserves. She is convinced that she doesn't belong in poverty, but doesn't really extend that empathy to others. Even as, through the course of the story, she seems poised to get what she wants, the most she is willing to extend to her 'friends' is a better variety of servitude.
This selfishness is the first indication that the story is going to be more Faust than Cinderella. Still, I admit I held out hope that she would, in fact, somehow get out of her bargain. I'm a sucker for a Cinderella/underdog narrative, and for a little over half the book I was really rooting for her relationship with Charles.
I'm not dissatisfied with the path the story took, except in that I think the ending was a little simpler than I was hoping for. For a concept which is rooted in two competing narratives, I wish the scales had been a little more evenly weighted, and that the conflict between these archetypal stories had been drawn out more. Still, I found the ideas that went into this book fascinating, and - as someone who loves and collects Cinderella retellings - this was an angle that caught my attention and got me thinking. As such, despite not being the most satisfying read, I think it's earned a spot on my favorites shelf for 2022.
September 3, 2021
What is the point of this book?
What am I to glean or learn from it?
Is it imparting any wisdom?
Is it supposed to be beautiful prose?
Is it supposed to have a narrative which is powerful?
I honestly never felt so livid without even finishing something completely. I always give benefit of doubt to the narrative even if it’s not my cup of tea. But this is just not acceptable tale in these times.
What are your basic needs as a human? We crave for safe environment, safety from lecherous people, freedom to pursue what we think makes us happy, we dream of making money, expect that our hard work will bear fruits which in turn can be used to feed our soul and nourish our body.
That’s what exactly Eleanor seeks as wishes from her “fairy god mother”. But all she gets along with her wishes is severe punishment for even seeking bare minimum. It chips away her personality, her kindness, her joy and finally her soul.
The issue I have with this text is, yes it’s a gothic tale, it’s also a fairy tale, but is it even relevant in today’s times? Everyday, Women struggle to succeed in today’s society, trying to strike a balance between pursing dreams versus fulfilling societal expectations. In this age, where I believe we are making progress to erase these lines and owning our right to pursue dreams, is this a story we need? A story which tells that women expecting bare minimum must be punished? Story which says that pursuing dreams comes at price? Where only way to achieve success and riches is by selling your soul?
Yes older fairy tales stereotypes the kind of women society expected us to conform to, playing to damsel in distress trope who can never save themselves. But this is equally bad. While Eleanor is not by anyways damsel in distress and takes her fate to her hands, she ultimately has to pay heavy price for her dreams to turn into reality.
Even if I want to read this with a lens of just pure reading pleasure, I am not sure the prose does that justice. It is just just barely adequate to make up for the narrative. I’m sure author has talent which can be honed to tell better tales. The only reason I picked this book is that they compared the author to likes to the work of Erin Morgenstern - which is definitely not the case.
Will it appeal to people who have different tastes than mine. Maybe. I don’t know. Cannot speak for everyone. But not my cup of tea. Overall, in my opinion, I had absolutely zero reading experience with the book. Nothing to take away.
What am I to glean or learn from it?
Is it imparting any wisdom?
Is it supposed to be beautiful prose?
Is it supposed to have a narrative which is powerful?
I honestly never felt so livid without even finishing something completely. I always give benefit of doubt to the narrative even if it’s not my cup of tea. But this is just not acceptable tale in these times.
What are your basic needs as a human? We crave for safe environment, safety from lecherous people, freedom to pursue what we think makes us happy, we dream of making money, expect that our hard work will bear fruits which in turn can be used to feed our soul and nourish our body.
That’s what exactly Eleanor seeks as wishes from her “fairy god mother”. But all she gets along with her wishes is severe punishment for even seeking bare minimum. It chips away her personality, her kindness, her joy and finally her soul.
The issue I have with this text is, yes it’s a gothic tale, it’s also a fairy tale, but is it even relevant in today’s times? Everyday, Women struggle to succeed in today’s society, trying to strike a balance between pursing dreams versus fulfilling societal expectations. In this age, where I believe we are making progress to erase these lines and owning our right to pursue dreams, is this a story we need? A story which tells that women expecting bare minimum must be punished? Story which says that pursuing dreams comes at price? Where only way to achieve success and riches is by selling your soul?
Yes older fairy tales stereotypes the kind of women society expected us to conform to, playing to damsel in distress trope who can never save themselves. But this is equally bad. While Eleanor is not by anyways damsel in distress and takes her fate to her hands, she ultimately has to pay heavy price for her dreams to turn into reality.
Even if I want to read this with a lens of just pure reading pleasure, I am not sure the prose does that justice. It is just just barely adequate to make up for the narrative. I’m sure author has talent which can be honed to tell better tales. The only reason I picked this book is that they compared the author to likes to the work of Erin Morgenstern - which is definitely not the case.
Will it appeal to people who have different tastes than mine. Maybe. I don’t know. Cannot speak for everyone. But not my cup of tea. Overall, in my opinion, I had absolutely zero reading experience with the book. Nothing to take away.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 18, 2022
Pretty disappointing read - Eleanor was selfish, the entire book she goes on and on about wanting to find Leah / make sure she’s okay, stop Mr. Pembroke from assaulting staff, and make a better life for Aoife (forget about Daisy, Aiofe’s secret lover I guess..?). What I found most disappointing is Eleanor never aspires for Aoife to have a profession, Aoife’s brother’s health to improve so she can go home, or for Aiofe to be able to live openly lesbian… instead Eleanor only ever wants Aoife to be a servant without being assaulted… AND that has to be through Eleanor becoming rich / having power. Throughout the book, Eleanor does not really has a meaningful conversation with Aoife to learn about her life, other than reading and writing for Aoife and learning about her life through those means.
While reading through the lens of Eleanor, it was my understanding that Leah could only ever get off the streets with her baby if Eleanor was rich enough to get it done.
She eventually wishes for Mr. Pembroke’s death… when convenient for her own selfish needs. Not a wish for a change of heat for how he treats Charles throughout the book or for him to stop assaulting maids, just when she needed to get married to her adopted brother and gain access to the money she inherited from scamming a friend…
The open ended subplots where meh. The secret lesbian love that never got explored and then they run off in the middle of the night. Eleanor’s supposed mental state and the hints that she was carrying out the murders in a trance (but then there was the consequence of the street bloodbath that she had no way of causing…????!?!?). Why did they chase her at the end of the book instead of arresting her… why let her stay at the ball if they thought she was guilty!?
While reading through the lens of Eleanor, it was my understanding that Leah could only ever get off the streets with her baby if Eleanor was rich enough to get it done.
She eventually wishes for Mr. Pembroke’s death… when convenient for her own selfish needs. Not a wish for a change of heat for how he treats Charles throughout the book or for him to stop assaulting maids, just when she needed to get married to her adopted brother and gain access to the money she inherited from scamming a friend…
The open ended subplots where meh. The secret lesbian love that never got explored and then they run off in the middle of the night. Eleanor’s supposed mental state and the hints that she was carrying out the murders in a trance (but then there was the consequence of the street bloodbath that she had no way of causing…????!?!?). Why did they chase her at the end of the book instead of arresting her… why let her stay at the ball if they thought she was guilty!?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,085 reviews