“The Lady Glass" by Anneka Walker is such a sweet Regency romance! If you know me, you know I love a good retelling. This one absolutely delivers! The author does an excellent job of incorporating the elements of the original “Cinderella” fairy tale into the story in a non-magical way. Ms. Walker gives fun nods to the fairy tale, while also making it a unique story of her own. The love story between the main characters is perfection. I could feel the chemistry and sparks fly between the them every time they met. I love their interactions and banter. There is even a moment similar to Darcy’s hand flex from the 2005 “Pride and Prejudice” movie. Swoon!! Rolland, our male protagonist, is a good representation of a character dealing with chronic pain. Rolland is a little gruff on the exterior, due to his previous experience as a naval captain, with a heart of gold. Theresia is spunky, brave, and stubborn. Will Rolland and Theresia be able to each achieve their goals together by solving the murder mystery and finding Theresia’s missing glass vase? These two have a bit of an enemies-to-lovers story, which is a trope many readers love! This story is not just a romance, but also a murder mystery, ripe with spies and intrigue! I enjoyed learning more about female violinists of the time, the Congress of Vienna, and the Czech glassblowers. Ms. Walker even incorporates a bit of faith content into the story, which I always love to see. Although “The Lady Glass” is part of a series, it can be read as a standalone. Ms. Walker gives a quick summary of who characters are from other books, so you will not be confused if you only read this book or start here. I want to now go back and read the rest of the books in this series. Fans of “Bridgerton” will love this romance without having to be worried about explicit content.
Content: I give this story a PG rating. It is clean as far as the romance. Some examples of the content are: a person wants to keep from being seen as a “light skirt”; there’s mention of the prejudice of the English against the Roma people during this time period; some characters go to a fortune teller; there is talk of a woman being mistaken for someone’s mistress; someone curses, but the words aren’t actually spoken; someone was drunk in the past.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley, Anneka Walker, and Covenant Communications and was under no obligation to post a review.
