What an imaginative story! I’ll be honest, fantasy is not my favorite genre, but I do love a good fantasy on occasion and Heather Fawcett certainly delivers. This newest book is the second in a series about Emily Wilde.

In the story, Emily discovers her good friend and love interest, Wendell Bambleby, has been poisoned by his wicked stepmother. She wants him out of the way because he has a claim to the fairy kingdom that he has been cast out from.

They set out on a quest to find the door to Wendell’s kingdom in order to heal Wendell and put a stop to his stepmother’s evildoings. Traveling with them is Emily’s niece, Ariadne and Dr. Rose, the head of the department at the University where Wendell and Emily work.

I thought this moved a bit slow at first, but once the foursome gets to the location they have targeted, things really get interesting and there is never a dull moment for the rest of the story.

I don’t think readers have seen the last of Emily Wilde just yet, and I feel like Fawcett left things wide open for another book in the series.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Del Ray Publishing for allowing me to read and advance copy. I am happy to give my honest review.

I think I may have liked this one a little bit better than the first one! Although I think that's because I wasn't a fan of the narration of the characters in the audiobook for Encyclopedia of Faeries, and this one I read as an e-book. I did find at times both Emily and Wendell to be really frustrating when it came to their interactions and how they handled situations, but overall I liked them much better in this book. This time Emily and Wendell are in Austria looking for the door to his kingdom, while also trying to solve the mystery of the disappearance of a Cambridge professor well before their time. For me these are light and fluffy reads, and it definitely accomplishes that!

Finally the second book of the Emily Wilde series has arrived! It took the book world over by storm last year and for good reason. But is the second book just as good? I say yes.

In this installment Emily is back at the university with Wendell. She is trying to find a way back for Wendell and work on her new project: a map of the Otherlands. After an assasination attempt on Wendell's life and having a good enough lead on a door to his realm, they head off to the Austrian Alps. This time followed by Emily's cousin and another staff member of the academy.

While the plot itself didn't quite stand out in any special way, the characters do. What I love about these books is the tone that Emily writes in. These books are diary entries by Emily and it is a joy to follow her around. Even more so it is great fun to read about her interactions with Wendell. Emily is a very focused woman and isn't always very in tune with her surroundings or the people around her. 

That makes the relationships she has complicated. She struggles with how she feels about Bambleby and with how he feels about her. He is fairly obvious. The relationships with her co-worker and family member both weren't very deep at the start of this book. It was good to see her have more relationships and interactions with people that aren't Wendell or faeries to be honest. Though it was a joy to see a faerie from book 1 return.

Mostly this book is heartwarming and funny, taking you along a rollercoaster among all things faerie.

“And why is it that my enemies always come at me when I am tired and hungry? Assassins are a monstrous breed. Either they attack when you are at your worst, or they are having a go at you on your birthday. I have never known a more dishonourable profession.”

I was unexpectedly delighted by the first book in this series, with its wit and whimsical nature, and I wasn’t sure whether the follow-up book would be able to continue the story with the same. While I felt like the beginning of this installment was a bit on the slow side, I truly enjoyed this book about as much as I did the first one!

The second book retains the witty banter, the academic journals and footnotes, the charming village, and the mischievous fae. We also are introduced to delightfully quirky secondary characters, new quests and adventures, deeper insights into the Folk and their lands, and opportunities for Emily to grow as a dryadologist and as a person.

I liked that the stakes were a bit higher in this novel, but that it still felt as simultaneously cozy and academic like the first one did. I’m definitely excited about Emily and Wendell’s next quest!

Thanks so much to Netgalley and Random House/Ballantine for the digital advanced copy!

Thank you to Random House/Ballantine, NetGalley, and Heather Fawcett for the amazing sequel Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands. This book was, if anything, an even better book than the first I’m truly impressed. The writing is tight and we learn even more about how Wendell is no longer in king of his Faerie Kingdom. But we also learn more about Emily and how she teaches. When Emily and Wendell travel together to learn about his kingdom they are forced to bring her department. Fantastic read for everyone and definitely a 5 star read.

The slow burn is still in full effect between Emily and Wendell in this second installment in the Emily Wilde series! It did not disappoint and that was something that I feared following the first book which was amazing as well. We were able to venture more into this world and the setting of the Alps fit perfectly with the aesthetic that the book already provides. I hope there will be a third installment in this series because I NEED MORE!

Plot: 8/10

Purely based on the synopsis of this book, I got what I expected from the plot of this book. However, there is so much more included in the story. There are some interesting new characters, such as Dr. Rose, Emily's superior and colleague, and Ariadne, her niece, both of whom seem specifically engineered to bring out Emily's flaws, be it her impulsiveness or difficulties interacting with people. On top of that, there are two separate subplots, one concerning Wendell, who is going through it this book, and one concerning another set of academics who were brought up regularly in Encylopaedia of Faeries; de Gray and Eichorn.

Their inclusion was a pleasant surprise, and I especially liked how their personality factored into the story. Despite Emily's search for the door largely relying on them, they are, pardon me, extremely unlikable. It was a small twist, but an unexpected and interesting one nonetheless. I appreciate that for most of this book Emily is the one saving Wendell, as it is a reversal of the last book and also a reversal of the fae/human relationship dynamic.

The plot does falter at some points at the beginning, but the connection established to the characters pulls things through. Once Emily starts getting involved in the mystery of de Gray and Eichorn, things pick up significantly, and the last 75 or so pages are quite exciting.

Characters: 9/10

Emily and Wendell are still the stellar characters they were in the first book of this series. I really like that although Emily had good character development in the last book concerning her aversion to human interaction, she still struggles with it in this book. It's realistic that her flaws would not be instantly fixed once she's aware of them, and this book also addresses her impulsivity in a way that strikes a compromise instead of just siding with her or the other side. Wendell is still his whiny, flamboyant self, and I swear he becomes more like Howl the more I read about him. Emily and Wendell's relationship is in a weird middle place since Emily is very hesitant about marrying a faerie monarch, but there's so much casual affection between them in this book; it was adorable.

The two new major characters are Dr. Farris Rose and Ariadne Wilde. Rose is an older, incredibly grumpy academic who is both opposite Emily but also very similar to her. He provides a lot of character conflict, and I think he's a good cautionary tale for where Emily's free interaction with faeries might go sour. Ariadne is nineteen years old, incredibly enthusiastic, and Emily is constantly at a loss for how to interact with her. She ends up with quite a friendly relationship with Wendell while Emily sort of sits on the outskirts. Unfortunately, I do think Ariadne is a bit underutilized and could have sparked much more conflict, plot and character-wise, than she did.

The final character I'd like to discuss is Wendell's stepmother, who is very interesting to me. We don't get much of her at all, mostly just the assassins she sends and Wendell's accounts of her, but she is very intriguing to me for one particular reason. It's unclear whether she'll be more present in the next book, but I hope she is, and I hope we get to hear her story.

Writing Style: 9/10

As usual, the Emily Wilde series is a great example of the epistolary style in speculative fiction. It's a little funny that the other characters (Wendell) poke fun at her for her incessant journaling, even when she is literally on the verge of death. Emily's voice is strong and engaging, and I love that she insists she is being scientific and objective when she waxes poetic about how beautiful Wendell is. Also, I appreciate that we're continuing the trend of Wendell getting an entry; his voice is entirely distinct, and I love how subtly he expresses his love for Emily, despite it being present in almost everything he writes.

Overall: 9/10
This was a lovely continuation to the adventures of Emily Wilde and her smitten, dramatic faerie paramour. Emily is a wonderful main character, and though I suspect the next book will be the last, I would love to keep reading with her as a narrator. We get to see a darker side of Faerie in this account, especially considering Emily's dangerously casual interactions with the inhuman, and I think we will get even more of that in the next book. Emily and Wendell are amazing as usual, and the writing grabs my attention in a way most other series don't. I can't wait for book three!

While this book wasn't for me, it was well written and I did enjoy the fact that the story was written through journal entries. I personally couldn't connect with the language used and the overall story but for people that are fans of this style of writing I know this book is going to be well received.

I was so excited to jump back into this world and man was the wait worth it! In this book Wendell and Emily are back at it again planning an adventure to find Wendell’s door. However, when poison and assassins are brought into the mix the stakes rise dramatically.

One of my favorite parts of these stories are that the magic and the adventure before they even enter Faerie is so interesting and captivating. The fact that we don’t even need all the magic of another world to be so consumed by this fantasy story is amazing. I love the new people we met along the way. I absolutely CANNOT wait to reread this book when the final edition is published nor can I wait to reenter this world in book 3!!!!

Heather Fawcett, I will keep reading these books as long as you write them and I hope you don’t stop writing these any time soon!

This is the second book in the Emily Wilde series, following Professor Wilde in her scholarly pursuit of faerie folklore and adventures with Wendell Bambleby, a fellow academic and a Fae King.

Thank you for the eARC, NetGalley!

I work at a university, so the academic setting was an immediate draw for me. The book is quirky and funny, with great descriptions and well-paced plot. It is written in a journal format with funny footnotes and observations. I think it will satisfy fantasy fans and those who like grumpy/sunshine themes. A great cozy book for the winter. I imagine it is a good follow-up to the first book but I read and enjoyed it fine without reading the first installment of the series.

Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands
Book 2 of the Emily Wilde Series
by Heather Fawcett

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

In this delightful second installment to the Emily Wilde Series, we venture along the Austrian Alps with the brilliant Professor Wilde, her dutiful niece Ariadne, and her charming but feckless Faerie King companion Wendell. Emily is now a tenured professor after having published her Encyclopaedia of Faeries. She is busy obsessing over her most recent research project, when she encounters a mysterious stranger with a pocketful of ribbons who may provide the clues she needs to find a hidden faerie door to the Otherlands. Wendell’s step-mother remains determined to stay on the throne she has taken from Wendell, its rightful king. But Emily is just as determined to help Wendell find the nexus, a doorway leading into all faerie realms, and reclaim his throne. As they caper about, expect to encounter a meddling department chair, dangerous creatures, poison and other tricky magic. Is there romance in store for Emily and Wendell? You’ll just have to read Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands to find out ✨

If you’re looking for a cozy fantasy with quirky characters on a quest, fae folk, clever banter and world building that is imaginative, but not overly complicated, you ought to put the Emily Wilde series on your winter reading list. But do start with Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries. The best part is that this is a trilogy, and there is more magical mayhem ahead!

Absolutely loved this sequel! While nothing could quite live up to the original for me, this book still had all the things I loved: sweet romance and banter, the magical meeting the scholarly, and the strong and unique voice (especially the the unapologetically antisocial female representation)! The plot felt a little meandering at times, but I didn’t mind in and felt it fit the story well.

Heather Fawcett has done it again. I throughly enjoyed Map of the Otherlands because it kept the charm of the first book, the magical cozy vibes, but also expanded on the faerie world. I felt like it was slightly a bit more action packed and with more adventure than the first book that it made it more exciting. I loved seeing Emily (you don’t understand how much I love her, that’s my girl) and Wendell once again with their silly little banter and getting glimpses of previous characters from the first book whom I missed as well because they were just amazing and honestly a small little family to Emily. The addition of new characters like Ariadne and Rose was greatly appreciated, I grew to like them as well, can’t say much because spoilers, but I loved the growth between their relationship with Emily and the respect they had for each other.
I once again loved the journal format, Emily definitely made it more personal this time around instead of only writing her scholarly notes for her research, it was a great balance of both which I loved. And the footnotes live on!! They are just such quirky little addition and it just fits Emily so well.
And we got way more Emily and Wendell!! Like banter aside we really got to see more of their relationship and how they care for each other, honestly willing to risk it all!! God, I loved the first book but it left me starving for them lol and book 2 definitely delivered. ♥️

Can’t wait for book 3!!

Thank you to NetGalley, Del Rey, and Heather Fawcett for the ARC.

EMILY WILDE'S MAP OF THE OTHERLANDS is a perfect sequel! With raised stakes, an expanding cast of characters (plus some visits from old friends), and a continuation of the fantastic slowburn, this book instantly engages readers and keeps them eagerly awaiting the next twist!

Ahoy there me mateys!  I loved the first  Emily Wilde book which ended nicely as a standalone.  That said, I be glad to get more of Emily and Wendell.  In this installment, the fae disturb the duo at Cambridge and cause a lot of ruckus which leads them to needing to leave town for a bit.  They end up in the Austrian Alps doing research on a missing dryadologist (among other things).  Also on board, very begrudgingly, is Emily's chipper niece Ariadne and the grumpy head of the dryadology department, Farris Rose, who is out to prove that Emily and Wendell are frauds.

I really enjoyed that the town in the Alps was used to living with the fae on a more practical and daily level.  I loved the use of ribbons, the foxes, and enchanted pencils.  Emily's regard for Wendell shines through in how much she wants to help him and how she fights for him even when the odds are not good.  Rose ending up being a lovely character even though I hated him at first.  The romance elements are subtle but better for it.  I continue to love the world building and additional insight into the fae.  Who doesn't love Poe?

This book did feel a tiny bit repetitive in plot in terms of how the story progressed.  But I loved the additional insight into Emily and Wendell and hope that there is a third novel.  Arrrr!

The second installment of Emily Wilde does not disappoint!

Emily is as delightfully unhinged as ever. Wendell is still charming and lazy but keeps growing—a wonderful and slow but encouraging change. This adventure had a lot less of Emily’s sincere scholarly approach, which I missed, but was still entertaining and tense.

I can’t wait to read book 3.

Last year I read and adored Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries, so I was thrilled to have the chance to get a peek at the next book in the series. This book picks up shortly after the conclusion of the previous book, with Emily and Wendell back at Cambridge, where Wendell’s stepmother promptly sends assassins to murder him. Emily, Wendell, a colleague Rose, and Emily’s niece Ariadne, and of course Shadow, the grim disguised as Emily’s dog, set out on a quest to find the nexus, so Wendell can enter his rightful kingdom and reclaim the throne.

What I loved about this book: The characters are well drawn and interesting. I especially liked cantankerous Rose, and Ariadne played a huge role while being an interesting side character. Emily herself is the same obstinate researcher we’ve grown to love. I enjoyed learning more about all the characters families and backgrounds. The setting in the Alps was spectacular, with lots more information given about how Faerie works. The villagers in this book were much more accommodating of the research team, and the whole vibe was very cozy despite the very real horrors encountered by the characters and their interactions with Faerie. The action was chaotic while remaining charming, and I appreciated getting a peek into new kinds of Fae, while returning characters also played a part. Emily and Wendell’s witty banter continued to amuse.

The only quibbles I had were that this book did not feature the relationships between the villagers and the team that the previous book did, it was much more focused on the research team and their relationships. Which wasn’t bad, but it was such a charming part of the first book for me. The book did seem to drag a bit in the middle, after being thrust right into the action from the beginning. The ending definitely picked up the pace, though.

Overall, a lot of fun from this much-anticipated book. If you read and loved the first book, you’ll be happy to see this story continue with a strong entry. If you haven’t read the first and are looking for cozy fantasy vibes with a bit of teeth, this series will do it for you.

It is a fact well-known that an exiled Faerie prince on the run from his homicidal mother must be in want of... a cat. Okay, maybe not, but that's the goal in Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands. Wendell Bambleby is on the hunt for a door back to his own kingdom of Faerie, and Emily is determined to write another book about it. So determined, in fact, that she alienates her own niece, ignores a marriage proposal from said Faerie prince, and decides to carry a backpack containing severed limbs into the Alps on the hunt for the correct door.

So where does the cat come in? Well, the cat belongs to? Is a friend of? Wendell and was left behind in the Faerie palace where aforementioned homicidal Faerie Queen now resides. Wendell's magic is on the fritz and he needs the cat and can't go to retrieve it even if he could find the right door. So what's a world-renowned Faerie scholar to do? Find the door, break a Faerie time loop, traverse a particularly murderous piece of Faerie, find the cat, survive the Queen, return to the present realm -- and, importantly, the present time -- save the day, and live happily ever after...

Well, that's how it would happen in a fairy tale anyway. That isn't quite what happens here.

This volume is an elegant mystery. What happened to the previous scholars who came to this part of the Alps and were never seen again? Why is Wendell's magic acting up? How is Emily going to deal with her new Faerie friends when she can barely even make a human one? Like Emily in a social interaction, I feel like things are going on in this book under the surface that I can't quite put together. It left me feeling vaguely frustrated, but I believe that's a failing of the way I engage with the story and not a fault of the author. This is a very charming tale, in an old-fashioned Pride & Prejudice kind of way. If that sounds interesting to you, this book releases on Tuesday, I suggest you give it a try.

2nd in the series, Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands is every bit as great as the first. Heather Fawcett pulled me in from the beginning and this fairy world has stayed with me long after I finished both books. Clever and witty, and faithful to fairy-lore, I recommend this to anyone who loves fantasy, lore and myth, faeries, and adventure.

I felt like I was transformed to all the lands i love and was such a great get away for me. The story line captured my heart, I love the scholarly angle and research that Emily does, and her ensuing adventure into the "real" world of faeries and Bambleby is one of my favorite characters in all the books i have recently read. . If you haven't picked up this series, what are you waiting for? Any time is a good time to get away and this charming series is the perfect break from reality. Reminds me of stories I read as a child, but yet perfectly engaging for me as an adult. My inner child is full of glee!!!!

Thank you to NetGalley, Del Ray, and Heather Fawcett for the opportunity to read in advance of publication. All opinions are my own.

Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands is the second installment in the Emily Wilde series and one my most anticipated reads of the year, after absolutely loving Encyclopaedia of Faeries.

Here we join Emily and Wendell on a journey to the Austrian Alps as they search for a way back into Wendell’s Faerie Kingdom. They are accompanied by Emily’s niece and the head of the Dryadology department, and encounter both the townsfolk and all manner of dangerous fae on their adventure.

I enjoyed this second book but readers should know it has a different tone than the first. Any hopes that this second book would be as cozy as the last should be corrected. While Fawcett’s writing style and beautiful language and descriptions are still here, this story has real, unpleasant conflict with the fae throughout and generally higher stakes. I must admit I missed the innocent discovery and found family aspects from the first book, and although I appreciated the fellow dryadologist’s role in the story, I’m not sure Emily’s niece added much to the book.

Though still satisfying, this didn’t quite capture the same magic as the first book in the series but I still plan to continue on with the next.

Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands releases January 16, 2024.

Thank you to NetGalley and Del Rey publishing for the advanced reader copy.