All That Shimmers
In a world plagued by war and sickness, can magic still be found? It’s 1918, and Vanessa works as a nanny for a wealthy Boston family spending the summer at Twin Birch House. There she meets an aristocrat named Ned and the local doctor’s son, Avery. Vanessa is drawn to both young men, but when a fairy gives her a prophecy about her true love, “a man of sterling and gold,” she challenges the social hierarchy and pursues a relationship with wealthy Ned. However, at summer’s end, she’s left behind in scandal. As she’s been raised in an orphanage, Vanessa has nowhere to go if she can’t secure a new job before the hotel closes for the season. Meanwhile, Avery spends his days painting in an enchanted grove, one that he can see but his twin, who has lost her belief in magic, cannot visit anymore. When Vanessa stumbles into the grove, she wonders if the magical creatures there can guide her on what she should do.
Ambrose does a wonderful job balancing the magical elements in contrast to the unfolding events of 1918. The setting is gorgeously brought to life. Amidst the lovely weather and idyllic scenery, emotional challenges will unapologetically unfold which will shake Vanessa’s bright-eyed innocence and confidence to its core. As she’s trying to find her footing after her romantic hopes are dashed, her friends will lose loved ones to both the war and the Spanish flu. The pace slows a bit in the middle portion, but when Vanessa’s troubles and all she’d hoped to leave behind unexpectedly return to Twin Birch House, the pace ramps up and drives the novel steadily forward until its final pages. All That Shimmers is a coming-of-age story about holding onto wonder in the face of arduous adversity.
