Why did this book have to have such an enticing cover? And the description had me anticipating this as a top read for 2024 but it did not come through for me.

Top selling point that I was really looking forward to was the main character. A tailor who can weave enchantments into the clothes she makes? Love this. While her magic was really interesting, it wasn't good enough to make up for her weak personality. Actually, personality was my issue with the entire book. Every character suffers from just being unable to stand up for themselves and when they do, it's for the wrong reasons and they know it's wrong and that it will come back negatively and then act very upset when it turns out to be the wrong thing to do...even though they knew? This is the worst character type in romance and I seem to run into it a lot in fantasy romance. Frequent dialogue along the lines of "I'm such a coward." "I'm a failure." "I'm undeserving of love." and just a general "Woe, I'm bad and I'm bad at everything." is a part of every single character and by the end of the book it is unbearable.

The story...what can I say. Niamh takes a job to make the clothes for the royal wedding of a Prince and a Princess from different countries. There are a lot of political discussions that could happen from this book, given that each of the fantasy countries are clearly based on real countries and to a degree, the history of those real countries. But...it's just so fluffy that none of that actually ever feels important. Especially when the story comes together in tied in the most perfect HEA-bow I feel like I've ever seen. This has instalove and ends in a marriage that through the whole book is portrayed as impossible and would cause huge conflict in the countries, but actually somehow solves most of the issues that were supposed to be the plot of the book. I feel exhausted by all the love reveals that were so obvious the entire time and by all the times someone tried to explain why they were so terrible and unworthy only to have someone else make grand gestures to prove otherwise. This was a rough book for me, and I would have DNF'd if it hadn't been an ARC.

Even with all my issues, I think readers who enjoy super fluffy, HEA's will have a good time with this book. I've come across other wildly popular books that feel very similar to this and the market is clearly here for this type of story! It just didn't work for me personally.

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me a digital copy of the book in exchange for a review. I'm really sad I didn't like this one!

This book put me straight into a world where Bridgerton meets the fantasy genre!! I really enjoyed this read.

Niamh is a magical dressmaker who is asked to come into the kingdom to design clothes for the youngest prince’s upcoming wedding. Upon arrival she finds a very grumpy client that wants nothing to do with her or her craft. In this novel filled with grumpy vs. sunshine, prince vs. pauper, and enemies to lovers, you are immediately swept into the magic of the story and you never want to leave.

Excellent book!

It’s a no for me. I cannot do 3rd pov and this story just drags on and on. It’s too ya and yet tries to address a lot of issues. The story is messy and boring at the same time.

I kept seeing this cover everywhere and I am a sucker for pretty covers! It’s what really drew me in.

The book is told from one point-of-view and it comes from Niamh. She has a magical gift when it comes to sewing/embroidery. She can weave emotions and memories into the fabric and those who wear it or see it can understand the magic she has weaved into it. I thought that this was a very unique gift and I loved seeing what she created from it. Other characters had gifts as well, but this one was used more.

I wouldn’t say that I fully connected with the characters though. I did understand their plight, especially those fighting for better conditions. I liked how Niamh saw the best in people even when she probably shouldn’t have. Kit had good qualities and the banter between him and Niamh was very well done! The relationship that formed between them was alright but it wasn’t a favorite part of the story for me.

Overall, I thought this was good but it didn’t live to the hype for me.

3/5 Stars

This gives Bridgerton vibes. This was my first thought when reading this book. There is a gossip column that the people get access to and read it in lady whistledown voice. while this book has some magic, it didn't feel like it. I'll be honest and say I felt a little bored while reading. I just found that I wasn't connecting to the characters or this story in any way. The romance just lacked for me in every aspect. Overall it was a pretty average read for me. I liked what the author did and how the story was told, it just wasn't my favorite.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I only gave this book 3 stars because it took me forever to get into the story. The beginning really dragged so it took me over two weeks to get to the point where I was gripped by the story because I just kept putting it down.

Once the story picked up, it was pretty interesting. I liked both Niamh and Kit. I also really enjoyed the magical system in this book. Overall, the story was good, but I wish it wouldn’t have taken so long to get to the interesting part.

Thank you to NetGalley for giving this ARC, and this doesn't influence my review. This book was like Spin the Dawn, as the FMC had to sew magical dresses. Some tropes include: hate to love, bisexual MMC, enemies to lovers. This was an okay read.

“You're like a pint-sized hurricane of earnestness and good cheer.”

No one writes romance like Allison Saft. The yearning, the pinning and the sweet kindness throughout? Impeccable. When Saft's men fall in love, they fall in love with their entire mind, body and soul. I would die to be loved like a Saft man. A Far Wilder Magic is my Pride & Prejudice so when I found out she was writing a new fantasy book with a dressmaker - I was so excited.

A Fragile Enchantment follows Niamh Ó Conchobhair, a dying dressmaker that wants create a safe future for her family in a world where her people are oppressed, so when an invite comes for her to design and create for the royal wedding, she packed up and went to the city. The groom, Kit Carmine wants nothing to do with the wedding, but knowing that it's his political duty as the younger brother of the king - making him prickly and abrasive to Niamh.

Fighting to keep her job and knowing that her future resides in the palm of someone who wouldn't remember her, she tries her best to make her styles and magic show. Their time together starts to bleed almost into a friendship - until a gossip column sees them together, putting both her job and his marriage and ergo the country's future on the line. But love is not meant to be denied, and these two are drawn to each other regardless of country, status and anyone else. (Side note: I won't spoil it here but there's no cheating involved!)

Unfortunately this one didn't hold up for me as much for 2 reasons. The writing style is still IMPECCABLE and I'll always be the biggest fan of Saft's prose but I didn't like how the country's finances were never really solved. If this was SUCH a big issue, why was it never addressed beyond "eh we'll use investments to fix it".

Additionally,  Jack (the King) is very kind to her throughout the entire book UNTIL he finds out she's involved with his brother and suddenly he becomes this massive villain - berating her status and heritage. This complete switch wasn't something I saw coming and it wasn't addressed enough in the story because after this I only saw him as a villain. Alas, this wasn't my favorite of her books.

rep// side wlw, chronic illness, bi MC

cw// alcoholism, homophobia, microaggressions, colonialism

Thank you to the publisher for sending me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really liked it, it's a book that reads quickly, and hooks you from the beginning!🤍
The plot is not complicated, and it is very entertaining. I also liked the plot twist, it surprised me haha.🙈
I love Kit and Niamh, I loved them since they met and they didn't like each other haha, it's like grumpy/sunshine. They are very cute, I love them.🥹🤍
Also the group of friends that are them, Niamh, Kit, Sinclair, Rosa and Miriam, ARE BEAUTIFUL, even though “they couldn't stand (some of) each other” haha, it was very nice to see how they developed.🥹🤍
In conclusion, I loved it and I HIGHLY recommend it!! I love you Regency Fantasy.🛐

Lgbt rep
Regency/Historical fantasy
Grumpy-Sunshine
Royalty / commoner
Slow burn
Young Adult
Dressmaker / Prince

Thanks netgalley for the arc

This was an enjoyable read, my first of Allison Saft’s, but it had a few ups and downs. Let me explain.

Let’s do bad news first. Cons: this book starts SLOW, and I mean really slow—other reviews echo this sentiment, but it truly did not pick up or get interesting to me until about 50% of the way through, which feels like a long way to read for the book to get good; at times, the whiny self-loathing of all of the protagonists got a bit old. I understand the need to have messy and imperfect characters, but the reader needs to be able to root for them, and there were moments where I was almost praying on the characters’ downfall, because they were so eager to deny and actively hurt themselves. Come onnnnnnn.

Pros: intriguing fantasy and deity worldbuilding, related to Irish and Spanish lore. I don’t know much about either, but loved the way they were both represented through the setting and the characters’ backgrounds. There were also a slew of queer characters, ranging from lesbian to bisexual to potentially pansexual identities—the text never names any of these labels, obviously, but the representation of different romantic interests with such regularity was refreshing and lovely. Lastly, the intriguing twists and turns, including a Lady Whistledown-like character, added some good plot shocks throughout the novel that kept me invested.

Given all of the above, this gets 3.5⭐️, rounded down to 3 on Goodreads. I enjoyed it, and would read another of Saft’s novels, but a preparation for a slower read seems to be a requisite prior to sitting down with one of her texts.

*Thank you again to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.*

Thank you netgalley for the arc! Shut up. I love this. I was so worried we were gonna have a sad ending but I can safely say this is a HEA. I love these characters. GAYS FOR EVERYONE! I loved A Far Wilder Magic but this may be my new favorite of Saft's. I love her worldbuilding. It's not so farfetched that you can't parse it out and you can easily see the parallels to the real world but the way the magic is just makes me happy. It's not overly convoluted. It's just fun and charming and lovely.

Allison Saft delivers yet again. I was captivated by this story from start to finish. I had so many "but wait, what if..." moments throughout this story. The twist had my jaw on the floor. The writing, as usual was beautiful and the romance had me hooked from the very beginning.

Allison Saft truly writes romance like no one else! The intensity of it really leaves me breathless with every book she writes, and this was another BANGER!

A magical spin on "Bridgerton", which is one of my favorite shows. Overall I had a fun time with this book, but there were too many unanswered questions at the end of it for me. I would've loved to see more world-building and background on the different characters. I couldn't quite grasp some of their motivations. While I enjoyed Kit and Niamh's growing relationship, it felt like that was the only thing that had the true Happily Ever After. Nothing else was resolved, and if it was, it was off-page and in some hypothetical future.

3 our of 5 stars. If there's a sequel to this I'd jump right on that. I think Kit and Niamh have so much more to accomplish.

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for the chance to read and review an early copy of this book. A Fragile Enchantment by Allison Saft was released on January 2nd, 2024.

Do you like romance? How about fantasy and history? Do you absolutely love Bridgerton and found yourself thinking nonstop about Divine Rivals while waiting for the sequel? If you said yes to any of these (honestly, even if you said no to all of them) then you need to move this book to the top of your TBR immediately.

Allison Saft crafts a world of magic and romance in the absolute most coziest way. The writing is almost lyrical and while you read you will just feel....content. The story is beautiful and the characters are easy to empathize with. Some parts of the book annoyed me (like the clumsiness of Niamh - it was just a bit too much) and, like with all stories, I did find myself questioning why the characters would make the choices that they did.

All in all, A Fragile Enchantment is a good book. It's comforting and entertaining and I don't think anyone will regret picking this story up.

This book was so good up until the ending. It was so rushed and for what? Just to make it a few pages shorter? I know the third acts of fantasy books are usually kind of rushed, but this one was just, “Omg look at that! Ah, now another 4 things are happening at once! Oh sorry you missed it book's over!” Which frustrated me to no end. Loved the writing style and will probably pick up more books by this author

I absolutely adore this book with everything in my being. As far as I am concerned, regency fantasy is the perfect genre, and this is an absolutely perfect addition. I love how Saft blends whimsy and political and social turmoil so well in every book of hers I have read this far. It's not entirely clear from the brief, but I do love that it feels like almost every character in the book is at least vaguely queer, and I am very much here for that. The characters in this are such adorable traumatized little things, and I really like both the hints of world-building that are here and the amazing magic of the main character (Niamh is absolutely everything and I would do anything for that sweet, stubborn child). I am so incredibly happy with this book and particularly enjoy that it seems to know what and when it is much more so than A Far Wilder Magic, and I am so, so excited to read more of Saft as soon as possible.

I simply just couldn’t keep up with what was going on in this book. I kind of felt like my head was spinning all reading this. I don’t know if it’s the authors fault or it just because of what my head has been up. I tried to pick up this book multiple times, but I just couldn’t get into it.

HOW ROMANTIC! The atmosphere for this book was incredible and the way that Allison writes?! I was hooked to this story. I absolutely loved the idea and how fast the plot went. Once I started, I couldn’t put this down. ALSO the tension!!!! I highly recommend this swoon-worthy light fantasy romance.

Although I did enjoy this I felt it was a little slow moving. It took me a while to get into it. I did love the plot overall and thought it was cute. I do like YA books but felt like maybe it could have had a little more chemistry with the main characters.