Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries: the Sunday Times Bestseller

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This book is very weird to review because the humor is sly and biting (even when Emily is anti-social and oblivious), but it's definitely not a fantasy rom-com. A lot happens in the final part of the book as they delve deeper into the realms of the faeries, but the way it is told is at times indecipherable and hard to make sense of. The characters are wonderfully good-humoured and forgiving, even when things aren’t going their way, and the dialogue is peppered with a wittiness that sets a smile upon your face that refuses to budge.

There’s plenty of fae shenanigans and in fact the story takes a very dramatic turn which I certainly didn’t foresee. And while this is certainly an approach one might take, it's not one that sits entirely well with me, not only here, but in many other historical works, as well as steampunk and adjacent genres.I had a hard time remembering who was who because none of them felt like fully realized people with personalities and histories. Combining fantasy, mystery, history, and romance elements, this is a one-of-a-kind story, unlike anything I've read concerning faerie so far. I still find myself in need of books with kindness and care, even when they run under the surface of snark (as long as they aren’t buried too deeply).

I loved this so much and now I'm mad that I can't find another academia-centric faerie fantasy set in early 1900s Scandinavia. R. Melling’s Chronicles of Faerie, the fantasy genre is populated by thrilling and enchanting tales of fae folk.

The author succeeds in creating an atmospheric world of eccentricity, and clearly puts a lot of thought into magical systems and fairy lore, using a range of ideas and inspirations. The next time that I’m walking in the woods, I’ll be glancing sideways to see if the air is shimmering and wavering near the old tree covered in moss. Follow the lights into the woods and dance with the fae under Emily’s careful guidance—just be sure not to get carried away. Enchanting in every sense of the word, Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries is a delight of snow-laden forests and changelings, folklore and fairy kings, meticulous footnotes and academic rivalry, and adventure.

It really stopped me from being able to engage with the story, because it just constantly felt like the other characters were taking advantage of Emily’s ignorance (and because she was so book smart, being a professor and all, that definitely felt like her lack of social skills was played for laughs).Together, they investigate the mysterious local faeries, as well as getting drawn into the faery-related problems experienced by the villagers. The prose style also strays very quickly away from even vaguely plausibly her writing a diary to something that feels much closer to a more normal 1st person narration voice. And it’s trying to do the sort of cosy, romantic fantasy that is currently enjoying a surge of popularity, so it’s not even as though it deserves points for originality. This has led her to visiting the small village of Hrafnsvik and, subsequently, Wendell ends up following her in a similar vein as to a lost puppy. Impeccable Tam Lin vibes…The world-building here is exquisite, a weather-beaten village in an incredible Arctic landscape — and fortunately, the characters are just as textured and richly drawn…Emily herself is delightful, brilliant but flawed, and often darkly funny.

Academic grumps they may be, but these two have a friendship that makes me wish for someone that would battle faerie assassins for me. I don’t think it was the writing’s fault that the plot was a bit lackluster, though – I just don’t think the plot itself was ever fully developed. The Writing- For starters, it's painfully overwritten, it's pretentious and feels exceedingly obnoxious.With the impossibly disarming Wendell by her side, they make a formidable duo – part amusing double act, part old married couple, part young lovers yet to declare their true feelings for each other. Norrell, the critique of academia found in Babel, or the sheer atmosphere of Naomi Novik’s Spinning Silver or Katherine Arden’s Winternight trilogy. That last point may seem trivial, and in fact it took me a while to notice when reading, beyond a vague sense of something being deeply off, but once I did realise, it was impossible to ignore. I told her early into reading that I was having trouble with this book and she so sweetly volunteered to read it with me and I am so grateful to have had someone to rant with! I recommend this book to anyone who loves light fantasy, great characters, great world building and very good writing.