Book Review: The Glittering Hour by Iona Grey

Today I am sharing my review for a very special book, The Glittering Hour by Iona Grey. This is the epic and long-awaited new romance from the author of Letters to the Lost, winner of the RNA Award.

Title: The Glittering Hour 

Author: Iona Grey 

Published: May 30th 2019 by Simon & Schuster

Amazon | Amazon UK

Blurb: Selina Lennox is a Bright Young Thing. Her life is a whirl of parties and drinking, pursued by the press and staying just the right side of scandal.

Lawrence Weston is a penniless painter who stumbles into Selina's orbit one night and can never let her go.

Spanning two decades and a seismic shift in British history as World War II approaches, this is an epic novel of passion, heartache and loss.

Review: I have just finished reading this stunning story and I need to put into paper how much I loved The Glittering Hour. I still have tears in my eyes and I cannot believe that Selina and Alice's story is over. I am definitely going to miss them immensely. As you can tell, this book has made me feel many emotions, as I felt really connected to story and its characters. 

Iona Grey already made me fell in love with her writing with her acclaimed debut, Letters to the Lost, but I think that The Glittering Hour is in a whole new level. The writing really transports you back in time and the characters feel like part of your family. 

The story is set in two different decades. We have shy young Alice in the thirties, who has gone to live with her grandparents in the big and cold Blackwood House, while her parents go on a long business trip. And then, thanks to letters sent by her mother, Selina, we discover more about her mother's youth and how Alice herself came to be. 

Together with the letters, Selina sends Alice in a treasure hunt to help her feel better in this new foreign setting but also as a way to share with her her past and talk about the people that were important to her. I loved discovering the glittering twenties through Selina's eyes, Iona Grey painted such a clear image of the colours, the fashion, the cars, the parties... that I felt like I was looking at photos rather than just reading. 

I can only praise this epic story and I highly recommend you pick it up if you are looking for a very special story that will fascinate you and probably steal your heart. It has secrets, it has family drama, it has love, it has glamour but also lots of pain. A book that has found a place in my favorite books ever list, for sure. 

Rating: 5 stars