A review by divo
The Crystal Heart by Sophie Masson

adventurous emotional funny hopeful fast-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Very surprising and enjoyable read. I initially thought this would be a re-telling of Rapunzel and The Princess and the Goblin, but it's not - there are elements from and allusions to those fairytales so you see the inspiration, but since it's not a re-telling the plot was unpredictable and I did not see some of the twists and turns. I also liked the alt-historical fantasy setting - the mix of early 1900s technology (like early motor vehicles, typewriters and trains) with magic was a nice touch. The relationship between Izolda and Kasper was really well developed; it was fantastic to really see their feelings grow over a significant period of time rather than just relying on insta-love. The characters do have an instant connection, but we also see that there is a firm foundation to their romantic relationship that develops over time. There was a surprising amount of angst, but I didn't think that it was over the top or melodramatic, it struck the right balance between sweet, wholesome romance with angst. The story also had a really compelling villain. There were a few plot points that happen in the 2nd half of the novel that prevented me from giving it a higher rating and the way that certain plot lines resolved also felt a little too neat and rushed. Still, I did enjoy the book overall.