In Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands, Heather Fawcett has created an enchanting sequel to her first book. She has taken the dynamics from the original story and turned them on their head, letting Emily do what she does best but also allowing a scenario where Wendell must now be saved much as Emily needed assistance in the first novel. 

What makes this such a fun read are the copious amount of research into faerie lore that has gone into creating the world and the style of the book. The way it is written as though from Emily’s own notes makes it enchanting and engaging. I also love the language choices, the notes sprinkled throughout the story and the narrative itself that leads Emily to have to unravel mystery after mystery to save Wendell’s life.

I also like the addition of her niece Ariadne and Professor Rose. They make intriguing and dynamic foils for Emily and allow the character to grow, even as Emily struggles with her emotions and her relationships with all three. Emily is vivid, capable and a wonderful character. I love the ending that is in truth, a potential beginning to yet more tales of Wendell and Emily. 

If you love stories about fairies, written with style, mysteries, and bright characters, this is the book for you. I would highly suggest reading the first book but you can begin with this one without losing too much of the narrative to backstory. It is a fun and enchanting sequel but also a wonderful story in and of itself, a well crafted world and characters that make you root for them.

What more can you ask for?

"Map of the Otherlands" by Heather Fawcett a sequel that continues the enchanting adventures of Emily Wilde and Wendell in the realm of faeries. This book has captivating storytelling, lovable characters, and the magical world it explores. Shockingly I loved this second installment even more than the first.
This story picks up shortly after the events of the first book, with Emily embarking on a new project to create a map of the realms of faerie. The journey takes her and her companion, Bambleby, to the Austrian Alps, where they hope to find the door to Bambleby's stolen realm. The plot is filled with fairy shenanigans, royal assassination attempts, an enthusiastic niece, and a fellow scholar, all woven together with a touch of academia and passion. The magic in the book is truly beautiful, and the fae are so mysterious and tricky.
Fawcett did a fantastic job describing the scenery in a way that immersed me in the story. The exploration of various faerie artifacts, faerie doors, and faerie court complexities adds depth to the narrative was very interesting and fun to read.

Heather Fawcett has found a way to combine fictional scholarly information with fairy fantasy in a way that keeps you yearning for more. This story is filled with constant banter and slow burn love between Emily and Wendell, the infectious energy of Ariadne, and the sobering, often big brother type scholarly knowledge from Rose. I was happy to see the incorporation of past characters from book 1, like Poe, who has become one of my favorites of the fae. This novel calls to the adventurer who seeks danger, love, and most importantly, found family. Thank you, Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley, for the opportunity to read an advanced copy...out on 1/16/24.

*Note: This is the second in the series and it definitely isn't a standalone so treat yourself and read Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries.

I can't tell you how excited I was to delve back into the world of Emily Wilde! The diary entry delivery gives this series a distinctly cozy fantasy feel as the urgency isn't as sharp as in other stories. This just shows me that cozy fantasy is absolutely my jam because I am in love with this series and Emily is at the top of my favorite FMCs of all time. Somehow, this second installment flew by even faster than the first. Emily redoubles efforts to find the door to Wendell's kingdom and we are introduced to even more fae and it gets unnerving to say the least.

We are treated to more Emily and Wendell but be forewarned this is a slow burn. A delightful, agonizing slow burn that simmer beautifully in the background while Emily barrels her academic self through obstacles and Wendell remains dramatic and hysterical.

I was a little miffed that the wrap up felt so quick but I suspect I'd be irritated no matter what because I never want my time to end with these two. Even still, I adore Emily and Wendell and I'm excited to see where Fawcett takes us next!

*I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Emily Wilde is such a delight. It’s lovely to be back in her world, reading her notes and sharing in her adventures. The writing style, being that of Emily’s notebook, (and thorough appendices)really allows us to dive into her academic world, and piece together the story as it unfolds. Much like a mystery novel, we’re given the thrill of the chase. We have a slew of new characters, and more fairy world building, and thankfully, more romance. (I know this is a fantasy first and foremost, but I’m a romance reader and gahhhh I want moreeeee)
I also really enjoy the anecdotal stories and information we learn along the way. It’s just such a unique experience, and I can’t wait for more!
When I was a teen in the late 90s, there was a really popular book called Lady Cottington’s Pressed Fairies. Mostly an art book of fantastical illustrations, there were short notes and stories about the fairies pictured. The Emily Wilde series is so reminiscent of the awe and wonder this old book brought me. It gives me so much nostalgia, like a warm hug.
I know this reference is very niche, but if you happen to remember, you may just love Emily Wilde all the more! 4 ⭐️

Thank you NetGalley, and to the publisher for this advanced copy, in exchange for my review.

I love this book. This book is even better than the first. This time they are looking for a door in the Austrian Alps. It is still told in an academic journal format with footnotes like the first book. The vibes are cozy, academic, and romance. It explores more of the relationships and romance between Emily and Wendell. Emily also builds relations with other characters including a professor from their university and her family. The new characters help challenge and provide a different point of view and remind us of how different and dangerous the world of faerie can be.

I received this ARC for free from Netgalley

Book Review: Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett

Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands is book two in the “Emily Wilde” series by Heather Fawcett. Like the first novel this is an adult historical fantasy about a university professor and dryadoligist and her adventures in faerie.

After their escapades in the first book Emily Wilde and her boyfriend/colleague (and fae prince) Wendell have returned to work at their British university when he is attacked by faerie assassins. Wendell’s stepmother has decided that having the rightful heir to the throne running around in the human world is a bad idea and it’s time to end his life. With only a vague idea of how to get him back to his kingdom to overthrow the queen and with their department head Dr. Farris Rose and Emily’s niece (Ariadne) in tow they head out to the Austrian Alps to find a door that will lead him home. But they are following in the footsteps of a missing researcher (Danielle de Grey) from fifty years prior that disappeared after investigating a species of fae in the same region. The team will encounter deadly common faeries, haunting specters and Wendell’s increasing weakness from the failed assassination attempt while they desperately search for the door.

Like the previous book this one has banter, humor and beautiful world building. I enjoy the dynamic between Emily and Wendell with their devotion and total acceptance of each other’s shortcomings and predilections. Emily is smart and daring and Wendell is charming and funny and they balance each other out well. I love how they endear both humans and fae without even trying and then enlist them into their adventures. This installment is another winner and I can’t wait to read more from the series.

5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for providing the ARC.

While I enjoyed Emily Wilde 1, I loved this book even more than the first one.

Even though Emily is still very much the reclusive professor we saw in the first book, this story brings her more out of her shell, and you have the opportunity to see how truly intelligent, witty, and resourceful she is. And when faced with the prospect of finding a door back to Wendell's kingdom, she was only half lying about it being for her book and not to help out her charming counterpart.

And Wendell is just as endearing as he is in the first book. It is very obvious how much he cares for Emily and how he is willing to do anything and endure anything to just to see her pursue the things that are important to her. His story is the focus of this book, and I loved seeing how his relationship with Emily flourishes.

Fantastic sequel. Captures the spirit of the first one without being a direct copy of the story. The addition of new characters provides some needed levity so that the reader is not continuously bogged down by Emily and Wendell's relationship. Definitely recommend this for a read, especially if you liked the first one.

I am loving the way that this series is developing. This second book has great character and relationship development while exploring a plot of its own... It both wraps up and leaves me wanting the next book. I am thoroughly enjoying this series!

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book.

"Pillows made of stones, Bed of old kings’ bones, Quilt of moss and earth, Deep beneath the turf, Sleeps the faerie child, Dreaming of the wild, Hidden and unknown. —From Now the Faeries Sleep, a nursery rhyme originating in Kent, c.1700."

New adventures in new fae lands. It was great following along with Emily and the gang. There are a lot more fae than previously thought. Bad or good fae is yet to be determined. I very much enjoyed this book. It is just as good as the first one. I hope the author continues her writing and add more books.

* I am not typically fond of cozy fantasies, I need a little more action and high stakes. I feel like this was quite cozy, though, and so lovely. I had a great time with it and can’t wait to explore even more. This definitely feels like a nice pallet cleanse. Emily and Wendell have my heart. The side characters aren’t ever really boring, even if they don’t really have much depth to them. This book, as with the first, is incredibly atmospheric and has a high focus on Emily and Wendell, both together and separately. I really, really enjoyed it and think a lot of others will as well.

A million thanks to Netgalley for giving me the privilege to read and review this absolute gem of a book. Here I was thinking that Heather Fawcett couldn’t make me fall even more in love with her characters. Well. I was wrong. This books is the perfect example of a cozy fantasy, with just enough intrigue and excitement to keep me coming back, staying up late to finish. I cannot even begin to describe how wonderful these characters and world are, and love every single new addition to this silly little group. This is such an amazing book.

Emily Wilde is still a super grump. And this time she's got the added irritation of Wendell being chased by various and sundry assassins from his, one of the most violent and dangerous, realm. Wendell's spirits are as high as ever. When he's not being nearly killed that is.

Emily is also still living a dream. They travel to the Austrian Alps in search of a door to Wendell's realm. Of course, Emily is embarking on a fairy quest to save her, maybe soon to be betrothed. But she's not going to let this opportunity pass her by. She's going to take this opportunity to research for her map of the realms of faerie. Because of this, she needs assistance in her research in the form of her niece, Ariadne, and her fellow scholar, Dr. Farris Rose. Shadow also travels with them. How could she leave him behind?

We see some old friends, and some new in this adventure. Poe is as helpful as ever, and Emily finds a friend in Snowbell. Wendell gets an answer to the proposal that we saw at the end of Book 1. There are beautiful faerie doors and terrifying faerie forests. We learn a bit more about the Borderlands that seem just as dangerous as any other part of Faerie, even if they're not fully in Faerie.

Emily is just as popular with the townspeople of St. Liesl as she was in Hrafnsvik. Luckily, Ariadne is actually popular with them. And of course, Wendell is delightful in their eyes. Emily's true genius lies in her ability to surround herself with people who actually can help her with the crazy things she wants to do. I don't know that she would even admit that it's her real talent, but it sure is!

I did receive this ARC from NetGalley. Thank you so so much! I loved every second of it.

I have missed Emily and Wendell, and love the new additions to their team, Ariadne and Dr. Rose. The sequel to Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries continues their courtship while on field study in Germany, seeking out the door to Wendell's kingdom. The two face many threats, including one to Emily's newly granted tenure!! If you know about academia, you know this is maybe even more stressful than all the faerie assassins on their trail.

Wendell's stepmother, after years of ignoring the stepson she dethroned, starts sending assassins to eliminate her competition. One of them poisons him, so it hurts every time he uses his magic. Emily must find a way back into Wendell's kingdom to save him, and also gain some valuable research material in the process. Emily's social skills have improved slightly since the last book, and she slowly learns to connect to her niece Ariadne. The townsfolk in St. Liesl, and the description of the terrain is stunning. I would love to live in this idyllic village, except maybe for the murderous fae who live in the area.

As an ex-academic, I find this world delightful. The mixture of mundane elements, like needing to write conference papers, plus supernatural elements, like Faerie kings and bogles, make my wish I could study dryadology. If you are also a current or former academic, I strongly suggest this series. I would also recommend it to fans of Holly Black's Folk of the Air series. It has a similar prickly protagonist and golden retriever faerie king. The fae are both terrifying and ridiculous, as they should be.

With just as much excitement and research, Emily and Wendell are off to find his missing door! They are so cute and both do a great job in keeping each other alive despite all the assassins and mischievous and sometimes murderous and bad tempered fae ( those fauns are vicious) that are out to get them. Shadow of course is also along for the ride ( absolutely love him even if he has death breath) and Ariadne, Emily’s niece and future dryadologist ( so peppy and helpful) joins the gang. There are missing scholars to find and a nexus to locate and a cure for the poisoning which is having some very strange effects on Wendell ( and how rude that it happened on his birthday!). Plus Emily’s new project, a map book of the Otherlands. A very fun read and so cool to learn more about Wendell. I can’t wait to see what further adventures they have! Go king Wendell! And Emily!

In Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett, professor Emily Wilde is off on another fieldwork adventure, this time to the Austrian Alps in search of a door to Wendell’s realm. There are more stakes to this trip, though, as she works on her new Map book of the Otherlands and tries to protect Wendell from faerie assassins sent by his stepmother.

This novel picks up close to where the first installment left off, as if the reader has opened up Emily’s field journal again and flipped to a new page. I continue to love the narration style, as we get so much of Emily’s internal world in addition to details about the previous day’s events. I also continue to be blown away by the care that Fawcett has taken with the world building. The use of footnotes and references to stories and folklore make dryadology seem so real, as if I too could go to the library and check out one of these books.

In terms of pacing, this book is fast and action packed. I picked it up and nearly finished it in one sitting (I would have finished it in one go if only I hadn’t needed to sleep). It’s so easy to drop into the world again and be amongst these characters, and the additions of Ariadne and Professor Rose to the expedition added so much to the story. I loved watching Emily come to terms with her feelings for Wendell, and show us glimpses of how much she cares for him even when she doesn’t always admit it to herself.

There were a couple of threads that I thought would be more important to the plot, and I was a little bit surprised when they weren’t relevant in wrapping up the main quest. (Possible spoiler: I thought that the cryptic directions from the man with the ribbons would be more important, and was a little disappointed when they turned out to be nonsense.) However, overall I think this was a remarkable sequel, and I can’t wait to read the third book!

Thank you to Netgalley and Del Rey/Ballantine for sending me this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

In the second book, we start to learn more about the different families and the world they come from. The first book slow builds the characters and world and this one develops more of the adventure of the story as a whole. We also learn more about Wendell and his family.

The atmosphere is enchanting and really a well developed adventure into the fantasy. The banter between Emily and Wendell is still there and makes them just as enjoyable as the first story.

All I all, I enjoyed this story a little bit more than the first and I can’t wait to see where the third book takes us.

The world of "Emily Wilde" continues to enchant in the second installment, which was just as cozy, fun, and heartwarming as the first. I adore the narrative style of the book and how it's written through Emily's journalistic observations. There were also new characters in this book that I came to love.

I've always said that the first book in this series was marketed a little incorrectly. It was marketed as a fantasy romance when it was in reality a cozy fantasy with some romance in it. While I still wouldn't classify the second book as a romance, I think it was heavier on the romantic subplot than the first. I loved seeing how Emily and Wendell's relationship developed in this book and I can't wait to see more of them in future books.

I love the world that the books take place in and the evocative descriptions of the locations. I normally really struggle with historical novels of this period, but these books are very readable to me.

My one critique is that I had trouble remembering what had happened in the first book, and only vague reminders were given throughout the sequel. I didn't have any trouble understanding the plot of the book, however.

4 stars.

Thank you NetGalley and Ballantine for the eARC. All opinions are my own.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review.

while i did enjoy the first book more, this one did not dissappoint. the writing continues to be just as delightful and fantastical with the introduction of new characters and old. from start to finish, the story captivates you with its whimsical and enthralling atmosphere. i enjoyed being back in this world and i will definitely be tuning in for the third book!

This second book in the Emily Wilde series doesn't suffer from the so called sophomore slump. From the beginning to the end, this book comes charged with an energy not seen in the first novel.
Emily is off on another adventure. This time she seeks the passage to Wendell Brambleby's Faerie Realm.
Brambleby's murderous step-mother is now sending assassins into the human world to kill him in the hope that she will hold on to her reign.

Emily's first book an Encyclopedia on the Fae was wildly popular and now she wants to record the locations of their different realms.

By an act of fate, Emily has her niece, Adriadne, and the head of the dryadology department, Professor Rose, in tow. It goes without saying, Brambleby and Shadow are along too.

Emily, shy, stoic, and a woman of few words in the first book, is drawn out of her shell and heads up this important and clandestine expedition and even ventures into Faerie with only her niece to accompany her. Their mission is of the utmost importance and failure is not to be accepted.

I love the "new" Emily. She has a vengeful side not seen previously. I like it.
Emily, Brambleby, and her faithful dog, Shadow, start a new chapter in their lives, and I can't wait for the next novel. Heather Fawcett has a great way of developing her characters and I am fan.

All opinions are strictly my own. Thank you to Netgalley and Del Ray Publishing for this ARC.