What I Liked
- To begin, I absolutely adored the premise! It’s no secret that I’m a sucker for contemporary novels with a sprinkling of magical realism & fantasy (see: Percy Jackson & The Ugly Stepsister in my blog header). I especially loved how the ways in which it touched upon real fairy lore from various world mythologies (especially the references to Morgan le Fay, who, contrary to what Magic Tree House taught you, wasn’t exactly a sweet and caring motherly figure ).
- Also, not that this is important or relevant in any way, but I really loved the fact that Charity’s name is a direct reference to her job as a fairy godmother (you know, charity being synonymous with goodwill and all that). I know, it’s silly for me to pick up and point out such a tiny detail, but I really think it made for a really cute semi-Easter egg
- In addition, I think the characters were written and crafted extraordinarily well, especially Noah. Speaking as someone who has a Trekkie as a father, I was able to pick up on a lot of the trivia (like, for example, the fact that the appearance for modern cell phones were directly inspired by the communicators used on the show) which was really cool!! I also really liked the development of Charity and her complex family relationships (particularly between her mother and sister), as I think it added a nice dash of realism to this semi-fantasy world.
- Finally, I can’t end this review without discussing the romantic side-element to this novel! I won’t spoil who it’s with (even though it was pretty easy for me to figure it out from the cover & synopsis), but lemme just say, it was freakin’ adorable. I came out of this book with a huge smile on my face, and I couldn’t possibly ship Charity and View Spoiler » more
Overall
If you’re looking for the best book to fill the longing in your heart for more magical realism stories that Godmothered on Disney+ recently left you with, I couldn’t possibly recommend Glimpsed to you more. Perfect for fans of The Best Kind of Magic and Geekerella, G.F. Miller’s debut YA novel truly sparkles and will leave you dreaming of magic, fairy tales, and having a “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo” moment of your very own.