Title: Emily Wilde's Encyclopedia of Faeries
Series: Emily Wilde #1
Author: Heather Fawcett
Publisher: Del Rey, January 10, 2023
Pages: 320
Genre: Romantic Fantasy / Folklore
Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world’s first encyclopaedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. She could never make small talk at a party—or even get invited to one. And she prefers the company of her books, her dog, Shadow, and the Fair Folk to other people.
So when she arrives in the hardscrabble village of Hrafnsvik, Emily has no intention of befriending the gruff townsfolk. Nor does she care to spend time with another new arrival: her dashing and insufferably handsome academic rival Wendell Bambleby, who manages to charm the townsfolk, muddle Emily’s research, and utterly confound and frustrate her.
But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones—the most elusive of all faeries—lurking in the shadowy forest outside the town, she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she’ll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all—her own heart.
So when she arrives in the hardscrabble village of Hrafnsvik, Emily has no intention of befriending the gruff townsfolk. Nor does she care to spend time with another new arrival: her dashing and insufferably handsome academic rival Wendell Bambleby, who manages to charm the townsfolk, muddle Emily’s research, and utterly confound and frustrate her.
But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones—the most elusive of all faeries—lurking in the shadowy forest outside the town, she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she’ll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all—her own heart.
Emily Wilde is living the dream. Taking a research trip to Scandinavia to finish her book about faeries! Just her and her big, dumb dog in a cottage at the top of the world. Hiking through forests and talking to fae and watching the Northern Lights. I'm pretty sure this was taken directly from my mood board!
It's not precisely Emily's dream. Well, it is, but she sure does dig herself into a hole at first. She has absolutely no survival skills for the ultra north living. It's not entirely surprising, she's an academic. But she offends the townspeople who could help her, and probably would have chopped her leg off with the ax if left alone for much longer. Luckily, her colleague has decided to follow her so that they can work on a paper together. Enter Wendell Bambleby. What a delightful man!!!
I love a grumpy/sunshine trope, and I love it even more when the grump is a woman. Emily is the perfect introverted grump, and Bambleby is a charming dash of sunshine to balance out her pessimism. He helps her save her reputation with the townspeople of Hrafnsvik, and irritates her just as much as he attracts her.
The beautiful imagery, ghost stories, fairy tales, and romance comes together in a perfect smorgasbord of *things I love in a book.* I know that this isn't technically a romance, but the chemistry between Bambleby and Emily is absolutely ADORABLE! I am very much looking forward to see what kind of adventures they get into in book 2!
Ratings
Stars: 5/5
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