This book was AMAZING. Definitely one of my favorite reads this year. I loved the forest aesthetic and the mystery and romance. It felt like the perfect read to settle in with on a cold winter day, or cozy rainy day. It gave me fae vibes, which I'm so here for. Kristen's writing is amazing, too, it's both gorgeous and fast-paced. I couldn't put it down.

Emeline Lark has been running from the forest all of her life, and finally, she answers its call and wakes up to what she should have realized all of this time about herself.
This was an interesting one for me. I wanted to be invested in the characters and story more than I was. It was an interesting read, and I enjoyed it-- but it was too easy to put down.

I received an e-arc of Edgewood by Kristen Ciccarelli from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Unfortunately, I am DNFing at 33%, but I might revisit later when the audiobook is available.
The main character, Emeline says that she's 19, but I don't think she acted like she was, and I just did not care about her singing career. I was only really interested once she got to Edgewood and met Hawthorne who I'm assuming will be her love interest. I was also confused as to where Edgewood actually is, Emeline says repeatedly that she has to drive 7 hours from Montreal to get there but that doesn't narrow it down.
I was getting vibes from Miss Peregrine's, An Enchantment of Ravens and A Curse So Dark and Lonely, so if you're looking for a standalone urban fantasy similar in vibes with a creepy forest, a dragon creature and some fey magic this might be the book for you.

First I want to thank St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for this ARC edition of Edgewood.

What attracted my first to this book was the gorgeous cover, and then the synopsis sounded completely intriguing. Emeline is a girl who is desperately trying to make a go of a music career. However, when she sings strange things happen such as moss creeping across the stage. This brings her back to the mysterious woods of her childhood. Woods, that everyone back home says is inhabited by the fae. One day her grandpa goes missing and she must return to her childhood home, and to the woods to find out what’s happened to him, once there she meets the tithe collector of the Wood King who rules the woods. Hawthorne, the tithe collector does not want her in the woods. Yet, she makes her way to the court if the Wood King where she makes a bargain hr voice for her grandpa’s freedom.

Once I read about mysterious, enchanted woods I knew I had to read this book. I wasn’t sure how much I was going to like it since part of the book featured Emeline trying to break into the music industry. That type of story never really interests me. However, I soon realized how wrong I was. This book took me on a wild ride of emotions and I loved every second of it, there where times I thought I knew where the story was going but it would twist again in the best way possible.

The book was very atmospheric and it moved quickly. I really enjoyed the writing, the general storytelling, and folklore. For the most part I also liked all the characters.

I had a few issues with the MC, I felt like she was a bit slow to catch on to things, however, I’m a bit impatient and it can drive me crazy when characters take a long time to put together the pieces. Once she did get the picture though, she kept up with the everything very well.

I also felt that the main love interest was a little bland, but, when it comes to standalone books it can be tough to get everything in without making the book super long. But, I would have liked a little more time delving into the personalities of the main love interest and some of the other side characters. We really get to know Emeline and I would have liked to know more of the other characters because I really liked what we did get of them.

Overall, this is a solid standalone ya urban fantasy, something we do not have enough of. I would recommend this to anyone who’s looking for a fun fantasy that is full of eerie yet enchanting vibes. I think it’s more of a 4.5 star than a 4 star. It’s definitely worth the read.

I'm torn, because I did really like the plot of this book, but the writing was so clunky -- long-winded without really conveying much, flat and emotionless. The characters never felt like much more than cutouts -- however I did really like how none of them are quite who they seem to be at first. I think this could have been a great book but it needed another draft. Overall it feels like a tepid version of War for the Oaks.

Edgewood, by Kristen Ciccarelli, is a lyrical novel about family, romance and a fantasy world.

Emeline Lark is an aspiring singer on the cusp of having a breakthrough in her career, when she gets word that her grandfather, who raised her, is missing from his nursing home. Going back to her hometown is not something she wants to do, but her concern for her grandfather outweighs her reluctance. She has grown up hearing tales about the Woods and the tithe that all inhabitants give to the Wood King. Emeline meets Hawthorne, a henchman to the King, who may or may not be trustworthy.

I'm not a huge fan of Fairy fiction or the Fae Court, so I couldn't get into it as much as I wanted to. I can see why people would like it though.

I'm struggling to finish this. Unfortunate considering how much I love the author's The Last Namsara.

I've finally decided to DNF after four months because seeing it on my currently reading shelf is not doing anything but stress me out. And I don't need that on top of everything else going on.

I don't know. I was just bored. I can't even remember the MC's name. I had high expectations because the cover blinded me with its perfection. I should have seen it coming. It was too good to be true.

DNF @52%

I received an ARC via Netgalley to read and review.

A large thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for allowing me access to this ARC in exchange for an open and honest review!

When reading the synopsis for this story, it sounds amazing. There is a showcase of fantasy, romance, and adventure through the forest (honestly, how can it get better than that?) Thankfully, the read itself was also pretty damn great. Our main character lives near the forest known to host strange magics, and where else would she turn to look when her beloved grandfather goes missing?

The writing style was enough to captivate me without losing interest at the slow or monologue moments, and there are so many plot-twists with heartbreak, loss, and more. Also, it is an enemies-to-lovers. How can we not like this story?

I definitely enjoyed reading this one.

this is a urban fantasy story about a beautiful magical realm with the fae in it, I liked how the author incorporated the fae world with the regular world around us. The authors writing was so beautiful and gripping. Almost lyrical in a sense. I loved the world building and how much detail the author put in as well. I didn’t love our main character at times so during that I felt the story dragged a bit but even then it kept such a good pace that gripped me enough to finish this book. Overall 4/5. Thank you for netgalley and the publishers for letting me read this for the exchange of an honest review!

Emeline Lark wants nothing more than to become a famous singer. The only problem is that when she sings, the magic woods near her home town comes to listen. Emeline has always dismissed the old stories about the Edgewood as superstition, but with the wood invading her performances, it’s becomes harder and harder to dismiss. When Emeline is suddenly called home to find her missing Grandfather, she will have to face the woods and her past.

I enjoyed this ya fantasy! I’m always a fan of enchanted forests and this one was no exception. I found the mystery of the book really interesting and I liked the characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I enjoyed this story and the world building but I believe several scenes should have been cut and the story condensed. Having Emeline leave the woods and go back so many times got old very quickly and I just lost interest.

I received a copy of this book via NetGalley; I’m reviewing it voluntarily.

When it comes to faerie and fey related stories, I feel like I have written everything and seen everything.

Edgewood is a book that entices you with a interesting prose, with darkness and music. Instead you get a story that feels like a juvenile attempt at dark and lyrical.

You are introduced to a 19 year old girl who is performing with her 'band' (who I guess doesn't really seem to share the stage with her) and she feels someone is watching her, and the 'forest' is starting to come after her. She also discovers her father has been taken by faeries.

Instead of playing dumb with us and having the main character not know of the fey and faerie world, this time she is aware of them... but her knowledge is superficial and doesn't really go beyond the surface meetings. A couple reviews have pointed out that the 'faerie court' is full of creatures or changelings. Yet these creatures and changelings choose to remain in their human forms. THEN, the King isn't all that menacing or threatening. He is hung up on this 'court singer' that upped and left him, and wants our lead to replace them.

Oh. The love interest. The love interest is boring and mostly there to teach our lead to 'unlock her singing' and sing better, but really get a chance to have sexy moments of heavy breathing and or lingering looks.

There is a mystery involved, as to why her grandfather was taken ; the strange tithe / curse on her family, and finally, some weight blight that is coming for their world. There is a lot going on, but again. its so superficial and lacks any sort of urgency and depth.

Give me darkness, give me something NOT done before. All this book has going for it is a pretty cover, but without it, it would not chart high.

I absolutely loved Edgewood. I read it in a day and was completely immersed in the world. Edgewood is one of those books that reminds me why I love reading. I thoroughly enjoyed every bit of it.
The writing was well done and the story flowed nicely. It was a bit slow to start but quickly picked up pace and I didn't find the slow start to distract from the story at all. I loved the characters and wished I could have read more about Sable and Rooke, as I thought their characters were extremely engaging. I loved Emeline and Hawthorne; and Pa just made my heart glow. The setting was lush and well fleshed out. I was able to picture it perfectly and felt like I was alongside for the ride. I was able to guess the twists and turns fairly easily but again, I was enjoying myself so much that it didn't bother me all that badly.
I had to give this book 5 stars simply for the way it made me feel.

I enjoyed the story and I think the author had a unique view and storyline. I found the book to be slow at some points and I wasn’t crazy about the writing style.

An enchanting, atmospheric read with a charming female heroine. It reads like a retelling of "The Little Mermaid" and "Beauty and the Beast" combined with it's use it familiar tropes. The descriptive, ethereal writing seizes control of the reader and doesn't let go until the final page. A truly stunning adventure.

I really wanted to love this story. The concept was gorgeous, the cover is phenomenal, and as someone with a family member with dementia, I loved the care that Ciccarelli put into creating Pa and how realistic his dementia was. Unfortunately, I ended up skim reading the large majority of this book because I just couldn't connect to Emeline. I really did not love the mash-up of country singer and lush forest, and Edgewood just didn't come alive to me in the way that so many other magical forest-y books have. I found the creatures just a little too odd (except the Ember houses. They were epic), I felt the Wood King was too merciful to Emeline too many times despite her constantly disobeying and disrespecting him, and I just wasn't feeling the romance between Emeline and Hawthorne.
I'm really sad I didn't like this book, but those are definitely my opinions and it may be the perfect book for someone else!

The concept of this story was so intriguing. I really enjoyed the originality of it. Conceptually, I found this to be a beautiful fantasy love story. In all honesty, it’s a great concept and world for a television series.

What has me stuck however was the age of the main character. This tale had more of a Middle grade to high school character feel. Her being 19 felt a little arbitrary and that part of the storyline really didn’t have as much bearing for me as a reader. Without the mild sex scenes and if the age of the main character were younger, I really feel this would have hit right for me personally.

Lovely concept.

Thank you netgalley for the advance copy.

I have voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this title given to me via NetGalley. Wow what can I say about this title it was just an awesome read. This book was just something so wonderfully different I’ve never quite read anything like this. You should read to find out you won’t be disappointed. I’m definitely going to read more by this author.

This book deserves one (and only one) award and that is for being the single WORST depiction of the faerie court I have ever read in my life. Seriously. I don’t think there are any worse than this. So buckle up for my review because boy oh boy am I upsetti spaghetti.

If you wanna enjoy this book, you better forget everything you know about the Fae Court. The Goblin King? Don’t know him. Magic, dancing, feasts, glamour, enchantments and revels beyond the scope of imagination? Never heard of that. Wings and tails and goblins and beauty beyond belief? Doesn’t exist.

As told by this book, the court of the Wood King is quite possibly the blandest town imaginable. The most interesting place in it is the tavern. And the people? HUMANS. That’s right, this faerie court is made up of completely ordinary human beings. There’s a few that are told to be shapeshifters, and yet not a single one of them has any amount of time spent in their nonhuman forms. This is not a faerie court, this is a small town of teenagers spending their free time at the tavern drinking beer because there’s literally nothing better to be done.

The Wood King himself is laughably disappointing. When a few teenagers stand up to him, defying a royal command, he just sort of falls back in surprise and lets them all go. He does nothing beyond just sit there in his lame little throne and pout about how weak he is.

Also, let’s talk about the curse. The ancient, terrible curse, plaguing the forest and killing everything in it. The curse creating monsters from shadows and making the woods rot and fester. The curse that is, in actuality, only about twenty years old and that !spoiler alert! the main character destroys simply by? Deciding she doesn’t want it there anymore? Because suddenly she’s so powerful that she just? Wishes it away? That was one of the most anticlimactic resolutions I’ve ever read, and I’ve read a lot.

The romance in this was laughably bad, and I’m mad about it. I have absolutely no respect for a book that claims to be a romance, in which the romance is simply just two characters meeting, fighting nonstop, and then promptly having sex. It’s like if enemies to lovers had an “enemies with benefits” setting. Ew.

Final point, the plot of this book made no sense? It was confusing and full of cliches that didn’t have any relevance to the story. There were random side quests thrown in there that didn’t fit with the story at all. In her first week in the Fae World the main character faces down not one, but two Eldritch beasts that are famed all over the Wood King’s land for being undefeatable, and both times escapes totally unscathed. You later learn that neither of those creatures are more than twenty years old, though when she faced them it was made to sound like they’re centuries old. The plot holes would’ve been unbearable if I wasn’t so profoundly bored with everything by that point.

In conclusion, I have a strong suspicion that at some point in the writing/editing/publishing process someone sat down with this book and said “how can we make the maximum amount of money from this book?” and sacrificed another soul from the YA genre to make that happen. 0/10. I wish I could go back to a time before reading this book.

I like the story. I enjoyed some parts of the story. The story feels like finding a way to have a voice and finding a loved one. Thanks NetGalley for allowing me to read this book.