I have so many feelings on this book but I think it safely lands itself at a 4.5. I enjoyed the story. I really did - and I even enjoy the way it was written in the journal type format. It worked! I just... wish it hadn't been? I guess I wanted a little more from it but overall I had a delightful time. It was a slow ish start but I enjoyed the ending. Though maybe I just read it too fast but I completely missed where the romance came from. Like I knew it was going to happen and then in the next minute, it HAPPENED and I was a little shocked.

Overall, good! Fun. I might check out book two.

Thanks to NetGalley and DelRey for an advance copy for an honest review!

Emily Wilde's Encyclopedia of Fairies started slow, but by the end, I didn't want to put it down!

Emily is an expert on fairy lore. She works at Cambridge University as a lecturer, and hopes to receive a position as a professor soon. She is set to publish her Encyclopedia soon, as soon as she visits the North and studies the common and high fae there.

Unfortunately for Emily, she is not so good at dealing with people, and manages to alienate the residents of Hrafnsvik almost immediately. They could be helping Emily, but instead, she is slogging along, finding brownies on her own, but also almost starving and freezing.

Then her coworker and rival Wendell Bambleby shows up to "help," which he does admirably. Maybe Emily has misjudged him after all...

Once you get past the academic journal-like beginning of this book, it was really enjoyable. Emily is clueless and socially awkward, but also driven and intelligent, and makes a good protagonist. There is a lesbian relationship that is mentioned in a very matter-of-fact way, and no one bats an eye at two unmarried coworkers living together, which is refreshing.

I look forward to reading the next book in the series! Thanks to Netgalley for the advance copy of this book.

This premise of this was perfect. The setting was stunning. The characters for enjoyable. However, I found the pacing slightly off, especially towards the middle and the end. It almost seemed like too much was happening and issues were resolved too quickly. Overall, though, I really enjoyed this and will definitely be picking up the second book when it's released.

I can not adequately express how much I loved this book. The writing was lyrical and wonderfully descriptive. The characters kept me hooked in the story and I found myself sneaking time throughout my day to read. A wonderful addition to the "cozy fantasy" genre.

Emily Wilde's Encyclopedia of Faeries will delight readers of fantasy, mystery, historical fiction and romance all tied in to one wonderful story. Emily Wilde is a known expert of the faerie world, a scholar and researcher who is working on a paper and the first encyclopedia of faerie folklore. She travels north to try to uncover more information about the Hidden Ones, landing in a very small town where the people all live alongside the Fair Ones and the Hidden Ones, accepting their lives as affected by the fae. I can not begin to describe how much I loved this story, the characters, the wit and the beautifully drawn settings. As Emily is drawn further and further into the lives of the fae she finds herself having to rely on the humans around her to save her from the very real danger of the faerie world she loves and understands so well.

I really enjoyed this book. It was very cozy, with just a little bit of tension from some of the faeries.

Wow what a treat this book was! Fantasy & academia & folktales combined in a cozy, but dark, and yet still humorous package.

I love the writing in the form of journal entries from Emily’s POV. It has a stream of consciousness vibe that makes you feel that you immediately understand her. She is anti-social & odd and I love her.

Wendell. 👏🏻 Bambleby. 👏🏻 What can I say… other than that his personality opposite Emily’s is perfect.

The whole cast of characters from the townsfolk to the folk are amazing. Unique and well developed.

I didn’t know when I started this one that it’s planned as a series, but this first book ends well, no nasty cliffhanger to plague me in the night, just a little nugget to make me excited to keep reading.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for the chance to review an advance copy.

I adored this book. Emily and Wendell are a breath of fresh air! This is a fantasy with a romance subplot and I’ve seen it described as academic rivals. I would argue that this book is more friends to lovers. I loved the banter and seeing their friendship grow. They are selfish and only concerned with their academic goals, but somehow I found myself genuinely rooting for them!

The first half of this book is pretty slow, but it takes off at the 50% mark. I thoroughly enjoyed the second half. Now that the world and relationships are established, I am eager to continue this series!

(I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review)

This was such a fun and delightful read that I thoroughly enjoyed from beginning to end. I enjoyed both the main characters as well as the myriad villagers and Folk that we encounter throughout the story. This is a book that is also full of compassion and acceptance and how a community comes together to protect their own.

Emily is our main narrator, as this is her journal that we are reading. It does start off a bit dry and staid, but as the story unfolds, it becomes a lot more animated and Emily’s feelings begin to shine through. I really liked how curmudgeonly Emily is, more willing to spend time with a shy tree faerie than the villagers. She really is a bit clueless when it comes to dealing with humans, which Wendell is quite right to point out to her. But she does get it eventually and starts to understand how helpful the community can be with her research. I also loved the little story of how she acquired her dog, Shadow. He is a lovely addition to the story as well.

Wendell is the complete opposite of Emily, being charming and flirtatious with everyone he meets. You can tell from the start what his feelings for Emily are, even when she is being totally clueless to them. You can also tell pretty early on that there is more to Wendell than Emily knows and it was great fun to watch her figure all of these things out.

I really enjoyed the Fae that we meet in this story, from common folk, to a changeling, to court Fae. All of them were more reminiscent of old folktales rather than the more modern Fae we find in stories today. It fit with the historical setting of the story, very nicely. I also liked the folktales that were woven into the story. I’m not sure if these were based on Scandinavian tales, but they certainly sounded like they were.

The plot is slowly paced for the most part, but I kind of liked that in this case. It fit with the plot and setting and the fact that this was a scientific journal, not a novel. There are a lot of exciting moments, especially the times when Emily decides to take some matters into her own hands and always seems to get herself into trouble. Even with the slow pace, I had a hard time putting this book down and read it pretty quickly.

If you are looking for a cozy fantasy with a lot of heart this is one you should give a chance. It has a great set of characters, a great winter setting and in the end it will warm your heart. I can’t wait for the next adventure that Emily and Wendell go on.

This is a complex story of fairy lore told by a professor who is the thick of it. I loved that the professor is a woman who has no time for romance or flights of fancy but is obsessed with all things fairy. Her character is very matter of fact and at odds with her subject matter and is one point that keeps you interested in the plot. Wendell her frenemy that may be more is the brighter more charming character in the book that adds levity to Emily’s serious nature. This is great for holly black fans and has dozens of stories within stories. Also is a great winter read with its icy descriptions and setting

I had requested this book a while ago and for some reason put off reading it. I picked it up last week knowing that it would be published soon and I'm glad that I did. This is another book that when it was over, I really hoped that there would be a sequel.
Emily Wilde was a Cambridge scholar/researcher of the fae in the early 1900's. (In this book, the fae are established to be real, albeit they are not understood well). Emily was a very strong female character with ethical and defined research skills. She travels to a country that resembles Finland to research '"the Tall Ones" ie, fae that are human sized as not much is known about that kind of fae. With this research, she hopes to complete her encyclopaedia of fairies and then publish her findings.
Emily manages okay for herself in a small village but manages to offend the local wisewoman, Aud. Enter Wendell Brambleby her colleague and frenemy who joins her and manages to upend everything that she's doing. He offers to help her research/social skills on the condition that they can publish together. I was enjoying the story before Wendell showed up but the pace of the plot picked up once he had entered it. Their dialogue was very smart-loved the two of them together. Would they fall in love? I won't spoil the story except to say that their relationship was very unusual. As a scientist, I appreciated how the story felt like real research written as a fairy story.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in return for my honest review.

I loved this book. There are so many things that made this book so great:

...The back story/Diary of a fairy researcher as she is completing the last leg of her research into the world of fairie.

...A strong, Independent woman who is not afraid to take on the male-led academic setting

...A quaint little town, in the middle of nowhere an outsider stands out and eventually becomes part of their "tribe"

...A touch of a romance, but not enough to be considered a romance novel

...And so much more that would spoil the book, so I won't list it out.

If any of this sounds good to you, you should definitely pick this one up.

Thank you so much for an advanced copy of this book! It was such a unique read.

Star Rating: 4⭐️
Genre: Fantasy
Pub Date: January 10, 2023

I was really excited to dive into Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries, and it did not disappoint.

EWEOF is such unique story told (mostly) from a unique perspective: an open diary. I found the narrative a fresh take on a familiar topic (faeries), and I loved the academic approach to the story. This book combined elements of fantasy, romance, and lore into one well-weaved story. I was really impressed!

The story is a slow burn, but I highly recommend sticking with it! The story has a lot of layers, and enjoyed the way those layers were unveiled slowly. The characters and their struggles are reflective of struggles we might all face if only you use a little imagination!

Overall, I found this book to be a breath of fresh air!

I really enjoyed this book. It was a slow/medium paced cozy historical fantasy. There were times in this novel I felt the pacing was a little inconsistent, but I think that is due to the fact I typically read high stakes high paced fantasy. This book we follow a professor observing an undiscovered region of faeries. We immediately learn that she is a social awkward scholar with a mind for science and little else. But as she spends time in this small town she learns to receive kindness from the locals. I do wish that we got more relationship development (romantic and friendship) within the story, but the lack on on page evolution of feeling makes since because we are following through Emily’s academic journals. That being said one of my favorite parts about this book was the ending. It showed the quiet ways that people can show their love. The friends she makes and the love that she forms with Wendell show themselves in a deep understanding of one another. Although they are vastly different understanding those differences, accepting and love them is a beautiful thing. I would highly recommend this book to friends and patrons. I am eager for book two!

This is perfect for fans of The Memoirs of Lady Trent series and Howl's Moving Castle. While not your typical main heroine, Emily Wilde is no harder to root for, and I found her journey of discovery (academic, romantic, and of herself) to be enriching and wonderful. I cannot wait to read the second book!

DNF @ 65%

At first I was liking this book just fine. But then I took a break, read a few other books, and after a little while the idea of returning grew less and less appealing.

The story follows the faerie scholar Emily and her trip to a remote Scandinavian village to study faeries. Her academic colleague soon arrives and together they set about trekking through the snow to investigate the local fae.

I don’t normally read faerie books, but from what Emily was saying, I expected real danger. At one point (VERY MILD SPOILER TO END OF PARAGRAPH) they go out at night on a rescue mission and have to infiltrate this faerie fair and she says it’s dangerous and they might be too late and…it’s fine. No risk. No worry. Everyone’s fine and things continue as normal. What a waste of promised peril.

Emily is supposed to be a curmudgeonly book worm and that’s all well and good, but she isn’t the likable form of that archetype. You can be brusque, standoffish, and useless at smalltalk while still having an alluring spark. But Emily is bad at talking to people, tries to course-correct, makes it worse, doesn’t have any dry humor (that I recall), and yet people still try to interact with her? And why would someone who spends time in nature not know how to make fires or have basic survival skills? You can’t be a boring, useless block of an interloper and still somehow garner the inhabitants' affection. Unless you’re the protagonist of a book and the plot demands it.

Wendell should be the type of character I like and the one that makes me stick around, but I don’t care about him. He’s not that interesting, funny, romantic or charismatic. I hate it when books say a character is such-and-such but nothing they do proves that statement.

All the other characters are forgettable placeholders.

There’s nothing to say about the prose; it’s fine and gets the images into my brain, which is the base level I expect from all fiction. I don’t remember the dialogue being good or bad. I think the inclusion of footnotes is unnecessary.

If this is what other readers think of as the best, most unique faerie book, I’m not missing much.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

You know those stories you finish and immediately and desperately wish you had a magical tool to scrub your brain so you can read it again for the first time? Yeah…

This unique, cozy book kept me on my toes, giggling to myself, and severely wishing I lived in Emily’s world. There is really, truly nothing I love more than a story that sticks closely to actual faerie lore and Fawcett fully delivered. I loved reading this style of writing and being inside of Emily’s head during her adventure in Iceland. One of my favorite Booktokers suggested this in her “Howl-coded characters” videos and I knew I had to read it ASAP. I was not disappointed! I would love for even some bonus chapters or a novella to see what Emily and Wendell are up to after we leave them in this story...

A massive thank you to Netgalley and Random House for the opportunity to read this amazing story and give my honest opinion ✨

Not quite what I was expecting, but still an enjoyable ride.

First of all, I liked that the fairies in this story were scary assholes instead of mystical bringers of light and joy. These fairies are not the be trifled with, which really does better match the fairy lore handed down in stories of old, (the idea of changelings IS terrifying) So, in that respect, (like the main character's own book) this story felt meticulously researched and strangely "accurate." And I think I hadn't been expecting that.

I thought the author also did a great job of describing the setting. I really felt like I was in this village (and later, in these fairy worlds). I also really enjoyed the interplay (and growing relationship) between Emily and Wendell. His presence added some much needed mystery and drama to the whole investigation. But Emily still remained a super bad ass hero, that was easy to root for. (Cept I'm not quite sure why she did what she did toward the end of the book, but that's just me)

However, do I think this book needs a sequel? No, I do not. I was very satisfied at the conclusion of the book and was quite frankly surprised to read about a forthcoming book 2. Maybe that would be cool? Because yes, there are LOTS of fairy realms and types to explore.

However, for me personally, the actual fairies in this book are not what made the journey worthwhile. The humans did. And I felt like these particularly humans went on a lovely journey within this book that ended satisfactorily. I'm not sure that them on an expedition as say a married couple would have the same appeal. But maybe if they had a baby...or a changeling!

Thanks to the author and NetGalley for granting me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

While this might not have been for me, I believe fantasy fans and those who enjoy faeries will enjoy this tale of a woman who finds more than she expects when she travels along with her dog to the North. Emily is an expert on faeries if not on life, which comes through in the journal entries which comprise this novel. There's a village a mysterious wood, an even more mysterious man, and intriguing encounters. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. While I DNF, others will definitely find it a good addition to the genre.

I absolutely LOVED this book. No complaints whatsoever. Emily is such an interesting character. I love her intelligence that balances out her flaws. The romance is sweet and I love the adventures she has. The writing style is great too and suits the book perfectly. I will be recommending this book to anyone who loves fantasy and even those who don't.