This story was not the type of story that I was expecting. I felt like this book mainly focused on the romance aspect of Kit and Niamh's relationship, but it lacked the magical elements. Personally, I struggled immensely to get through the book because I was expecting more fantasy to it and I wasn't invested enough in the main characters to care about where their story was going. This book focused so much on just Kit and Niamh that I'm more disappointed than anything about the conclusion. The side characters were more interesting and I would have loved to see more of them throughout the story as well as learn about where they stood at the end of the book. I don't think I saw enough of Kit and Niamh together to care about their relationship so I wasn't too interested in the romance aspect of this book, which was pretty much a majority of it. The characters didn't have much development to them and the plot itself felt very familiar in a regency setting. There was definitely potential, but overall it fell just a bit short; there was just no excitement to the plot or characters and there were some parts of the plot that never really got addressed.

I am becoming a big fan of Alison Saft’s work! I read A Far Wilder Magic last year and had to request this one when it came out. This was a perfect blend of things for me: excellent worldbuilding, an interesting plot, and characters that felt real to me.

I absolutely ADORE the cover of A Fragile Enchantment, and once I read the synopsis, I knew I needed to read it.

I was easily drawn in at the beginning of Niamh and Kit's story, and I loved Saft's writing style.

Right around the 40% mark, things started to fall apart a bit for me. The pacing slowed to a standstill, and nothing relevant seemed to be happening.

I also felt Saft tried to fit too many concepts into the story, and as a result, none of them got the focus they deserved. It was somewhat slap-dash.

Furthermore, all the loose ends tied up too easily and quickly to feel believable to me. I was hoping for better conflict and resolution.

I really would have liked Kit's perspective as well. It's a rare author that can completely satisfy me with a single POV.

***I voluntarily read and reviewed an Advance Reader Copy generously provided by the publisher via NetGalley.***

Thanks to NetGalley & St. Martin's Press for the early copy in exchange for an honest review. DNF'ed at 20% of the way through.

I really don't even know what this book is going for. Enemies to lovers romantasy with political intrigue sounds nice and all but the political intrigue really takes over the entire book and everything else is secondary. It's not really what I was looking for.

It also doesn't help that the main love interest, Prince Kit, is a self-centered idiot who has a vile attitude toward everyone we meet in the book except for his best friend. The main protagonist works herself to death making silly outfits and the royalty, including her love interest, do not care a whit about her. It's just depressing, frankly.

The colonialism/racism/sexism/etc in the book was really shoved in your face which is fine but it made it emotionally harder to read. It also didn't feel like the book was going to have a happy ending where things are solved as best as they could be since even if the one brother died, the other brother (Kit) was still "me, me, me" and wouldn't be of much help in solving the issues in the society.

I think I'm going to avoid the author's work in the future since it doesn't seem to be for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and Allison Saft for an ARC of this book!

A Fragile Enchantment is a cute soft novel with some Bridgerton-esque elements that will appeal to fans of historical romance and fantasy alike. I enjoyed Niamh’s power to imbue her tailored creations with enchantments and memories - something I haven’t seen as a “power” or magical element in any other fantasy book.

I wish there had been a few plot points that were better developed - Niamh’s condition, the world-building, and the future of the kingdom and the world they live in. I think this would have made a really good first novel in a series, with the plot a bit more distributed through a duology or trilogy with more room to develop plot. I still really enjoyed it and thought it was a cute book!

You can expect: fantasy-lite, magic, enemies to lovers, seamstress/tailor FMC, prince MMC, historical romance elements, closed door romance, familial conflict.

A Fragile Enchantment follows Niamh Ó Conchobhair—a young seamstress who can infuse her pieces with magic—as she leaves behind her homeland to design a prince’s wardrobe for his upcoming wedding.

Set against a historical backdrop reminiscent of the Victorian Era, Niamh believes that by agreeing to work for the royal family—a family responsible for the hardships, oppression, and racism her homeland faces—she can provide her family with a better life.

But Niamh’s task becomes complicated when she develops feelings for the recalcitrant groom, Kit Carmine, and for the first time in her life, Niamh is tempted to dream of more.

As Niamh and Kit’s relationship evolves, Niamh’s life as a working-class seamstress drastically changes. A scandal sheet, political and social unrest, and her growing friendships within the castle all challenge her to question both her own beliefs as well as the people she’s growing closer to. Niamh continually tries to snuff out her voice, her wants and desires, all for the benefit of those around her, but Allison Saft weaves the tale in a way that forces Niamh to confront the misbeliefs that she carries.

I picked up this book because I love the Victorian Era and the tropes of grumpy x sunshine and forbidden love. Allison’s premise is gorgeous and easy to escape into.

What I appreciated:

-A Fragile Enchantment was very much a cozy read. I appreciate the depth that Allison gave to Niamh by showing her insecurities, such as her misbelief that her role in life is to be a caretaker and that she needs to prove her worth.

-Allison also incorporated complex issues such as marginalization, trauma, racism, chronic illness, and addiction, but I felt like most of these didn’t get the time they needed to make them feel real or to help develop the world and characters. If Allison dove deeper into these topics it would have made her already great characters even stronger. These are very much real and prevalent issues in our real world but unfortunately, it wasn’t developed enough so it felt rather shallow.

-Allison could have played the cliche part by pitting the women against one another but she didn’t. Thank you!

What didn’t work (in my opinion)

-Allison’s characters kept me reading but I would have appreciated it if they varied a little more. She could have incorporated more tension between the characters.

-More time could have been spent explaining the magic system (The Fair Ones), and how the political conflicts were going to change at the end of the book.

-The addiction mentioned in the book wasn’t fully explained. Why did this start, how old were they when this started, and despite being in remission how is the character still struggling with this?

-Niamh starts with the sole purpose of helping her family and by the end of her character arc she appears to have a healthier view of this belief but what exactly is her belief? I don’t want to include any spoilers but the decision about her family at the end seems at odds with how she started and it didn’t ring 100% believable because her thoughts weren’t explained.

-I also would have liked to have seen the B-plots wrapped up. Many were left ambiguous at best.

A huge thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A very fun and adorable romance, it does give off Bridgerton vibes in the best way, but what I found I loved the most was the magic that the main characters have and how understated but important they were to the story. Very fun very good.

4.5⭐️ This is my favorite magical, enchanting YA romantasy thus far. I wasn’t sure this specific area of the genre was for me, but this book was so good. I was hooked on the beautiful world from the start and the enemies-to-lovers was fantastic. The only reason I didn’t rate it five stars was I felt it was a little slow at a few parts, but don’t let that deter you from reading this one.

I am also so so happy to have found a great STANDALONE! While I was left wanting to more, I was also satisfied with the ending. I cannot wait to see what Allison has in store for us in future books!

This was a delightful tale of a penniless nobody with the ability to make gorgeous, breathtaking magical garments who falls in love with a prince and changes the fate of a kingdom. It was romantic and fun and heartbreaking and heartwarming in turns.

I loved Niamh's endearingly clumsy charm and the way she befriended everyone she met. All of the characters were compelling and made me love them. I especially enjoyed the trio of Niamh and Kit and Sinclair. I would have loved even more scenes of the three of them getting into mischief. I also loved Rosa and Miriam and Sophie and wish they had had more screen time with Niamh.

I also loved that Niamh has a chronic illness that causes her to sometimes be bedridden for days at a time and has no cure and that she expects will one day kill her. I really identified with her because of this. Chronic illness rep is rare to find in books (though becoming a little more common) and I always love it when I find it.

If I were to choose one word for this book it would be romantic. Kit and Niamh's developing relationship is incredibly romantic. I like the way it all resolved (although there are certainly a lot of questions left at the end about how the kingdom is going to recover and pay its debts). It ends with hope though, which is always my favorite.

The audiobook was performed wonderfully. It was easy to listen to and each character had a unique and recognizable but still easily understandable voice. I was swept away in the story and I think the audiobook aided that (not least in keeping me from getting distracted in questioning how to pronounce Niamh's name).

*Thanks to NetGalley, Wednesday Books, and Macmillan Audio for providing an early copy and early audio copy of this book.

This book...was not what I thought it was going to be. And I'm really disappointed because I was looking forward to it on my TBR for a long time.

What I thought I was getting, even based on the first about ten chapters of the book:

A Regency-tinted fantasy world with a dose of Irish mythology, a fairy-tale, bit of grumpy/sunshine romance, some amazing sewing magic (I am a seamstress myself so the idea of magic sewing/embroidery was a BIG draw for me), and some beautiful royal court action.

What I got was...a bit of a messy hodge-podge with some things that feel like they are shoehorned in because "reasons". First - I quickly realized there was going to be a lot of politics in this book. While I appreciate the references to the Irish-English issues during this period of time (although apparently this "Ireland" achieved their independance at a heavy cost)...with all due respect to the author, if I wanted heavy-handed political commentary, I could read a newspaper or a million other books besides a fantasy romance.

Second - there were a lot of convenient contrivances and the world-building felt subpar due to the author's constant attempt to shove in so many subplots. We have the subplot of the anonymous gossip columnist, the subplot of the Machlish (Irish) people and their grievances, the romance subplot, the convenient illness that's never explained subplot...etc. Also...the author spent a long time in the book with the characters behaving like normal English regency characters only to suddenly and literally proclaim that all the main characters and side characters are gay. She doesn't leave any wiggle room, having Niamh proclaim that she "fancies girls" a side character say that he doesn't want to "court women," the prince say that Niamh is "like him" when he finds out she's gay, and the intended betrothed of the prince be in love with her ladies' maid.

After all this doubling down on everyone being queer, it then feels weird to have Kit and Niamh fall for each other and by then, the romance had completely fallen flat for me. If the only people they've been attracted to up until this point were of the same sex, why would they suddenly find someone of the opposite sex attractive? It makes very little sense.

On top of all this, the language is far too modern, the prince curses like he's a modern teenager, there's a VERY explicit sex scene at one point, and the abundunce of subplots mean nothing gets fleshed out thoroughly. I feel like a well-written fantasy romance would have been fine without everything else. Or perhaps if the author wanted the English/Irish commentary, she could have had the lead female character be the prince's guide into the suffering of her people, annd help him adjust his point of view. Instead everything feels confusing and flat, despite the author's writing talent.

I just feel so disappointed and let down by this book. I'm sure judging on the multiple 5-star reviews here on Goodreads that I'm in the minority, but I wasn't a fan of this book, and it will make me cautious of this same author in future.

I found A fragile Entanglement to be an absolutely lovely read. The author’s writing style draws you in and makes it hard to put the book down. I do wish there had been more concerning the world itself rather than just the romance but I could see it being a nice side story or jumping off point for more in depth storylines. I found the emotional turmoil to be beautifully written.

This book was pure magic! This book hit the spot itching for some whimsy.
This story did have some Spin the Dawn vibes, which I also really enjoyed. So, if you did too, then here’s a new one for you. Niamh can imbue thread - she threads her creations with enchantments. She is summoned to the kingdom of Avaland to make the wedding gown and cloak for the upcoming wedding. Neither bride nor groom is particularly keen on their upcoming nuptials, but they are going through the motions. Kit is the very reluctant prince, but bound by duty. There is much chemistry between him and Niamh, their forbidden relationship grows in secret. Not only is he royalty and she a commoner, but she is from a neighbouring kingdom where the people are considered lesser people. There is a good amount of political intrigue here, with one kingdom trying to forge an alliance through marriage and the other kingdom trying to get reconciliation for its people for current and past wrongs. The reluctant bride, Rosa, has aspirations and secrets of her own as well.
This is an enjoyable grumpy/sunshine, forbidden romance - I could also throw in that it probably falls under forced proximity, since they can’t really avoid each other either. I hope this book can provide your reading experience with the magic that this book gave mine.
Many thanks to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for a digital arc of the book. The opinions expressed are honest and my own.

This was such a cozy, warm and intricate historical YA romantasy. The story follows Niamh, a seamstress who can enchant clothing as she makes them & Prince Kit, who’s following his duty to follow through on a marriage his brother has arranged for politics and status. Niamh is hired to design the clothing for the wedding between Kit and Rosa, but Niamh is immediately annoyed by Kit’s grumpy attitude towards her. However, as the time passes they are continuously thrown together, and a connection begins to grow and bloom into feelings.

Niamh and Kit give off vibes of Anthony and Kate in Bridgerton and I was so here for it. They have a rough start with arguing, witty banter, and animosity but slowly begin to catch feelings and fall in love and everyone can obviously see it except them. And one of them is gonna go through with an arranged marriage even though they don’t want to because they feel they have a duty to do so. Now add in a gossip column, magic, loveable side characters, lgbtq rep, and chronic illness rep and you get A Fragile Enchantment.

I wish there had been a little more world building as some parts felt like they lacked the required explanation. I also would have loved to see more moments of Kit being gentle and soft with Niamh but that’s just selfish of me because I loved those moments between them.

This is my first Allison Saft book, and I was enchanted by her vivid and whimsical writing. It felt hopeful and like springtime personified. And the cover is by far one of the prettiest I’ve ever seen.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for providing me with an eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

If you like:
⟡ bridgerton like setting
⟡ grumpy x sunshine
⟡ hates everyone but her
⟡ forbidden love (royal x commoner)
⟡ anonymous gossip in a column in the paper
⟡ enemies to lovers-ish
⟡ magic in a regency inspired world

This book, simply put is delightfully wonderful.

I fell in love with Allison Saft's writing in Down Comes The Night so it's no surprise that I ADORED A Fragile Enchantment.
I find it hard nowadays to find auto-buy authors (at least for me) and yet, I have found just that.
The world building is whimsical, the enemies to lovers is incredibly well done, and the side characters are just as interesting as our main characters. The dialogue, the chemistry it was all just so perfect, If a Fragile Enchantment doesn't become the new Divine Rivals of 2024 then just lock me up and throw away the key!
An all around 5 stars from me! I cannot wait for her next book. Because yes I checked and she has another one coming next year as well.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books for the ARC. My opinions are my own.
A Fragile Enchantment comes out on Jan 2 2024 so go pre-order a copy RIGHT NOW! I know I have!

A Fragile Enchantment is a YA romantasy that is as sweet and enchanting as this cover. 😍
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I enjoyed the magic system. I love Niamh’s magic, she is able to stitch emotions and feelings into fabric. It also has a gossip column, much like Bridgerton.
This book has all the favorite tropes.
🧵regency-era romance
🧵grumpy x sunshine
🧵royalty
🧵forbidden love
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I think this book will appeal to YA romance fans.
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Thank you netgalley and Wednesday books for the opportunity to read this book!
3.5 stars

I was so excited to receive an advanced copy of this book. However, I am participating in the review boycott of St. Martin's Press (and their imprints) due to the remarks made by their employee in regards to the genocide of Palestinian people currently taking place. Therefore, I will not be posting my review of A Fragile Enchantment at this time.

This story was absolutely wonderful. I was hooked from the very beginning to the very end. I found myself loving all the characters, and even the side characters had depth to them. The pacing was perfect, tense at times but overall relaxing and fun to follow. Easily a five-star read for me.

I'd recommend this book to anyone who loves regency stories with a touch of magic and watching characters overcome challenges. The romance is grumpy-sunshine vibes, which is always a fun read.

Allison Saft’s A Fragile Enchantment wasn’t quite what I expected. Thank you NetGalley and Wednesday Books for the chance to read and review this book via gifted eARC.

I really wanted to love this book so much. It has my favorite tropes, royalty and forbidden love, but unfortunately it didn’t live up to my high expectations.

Let’s start with what I enjoyed. I did enjoy the romance. Kit and Niamh are such loyal and caring people. I felt their passion and vulnerability were well-balanced.

I also enjoyed the magic system. It felt very seamless and believable.

Now for what I didn’t like. I found the beginning very slow and boring. I actually skimmed most of the beginning, I was that bored. However, this did pick up and I found myself getting into around 55%.

Overall, this was a 3.5 star read. Did I like this book? Yes. Did I love it? No.

A Fragile Enchantment is a very lovely regency-like era romance with a hint of magic woven in. If you like stories like the Bridgerton tales this will be right up your alley with forbidden romance and beautiful imagery in both scenery and clothing. The writing style is very reminiscent of Garber's in the way they paint pictures and I mean that as a compliment as both Saft and Garber have a unique way of making the beauty in their books stand out.

This book has a lot of your usual romance tropes in it and can be easily predictable at times but it doesnt take away from the enjoyment of the story at all. It was soft, romantic, magical and pretty all in one and very nice to read! I enjoyed the characters and will look forward to Saft's next story!

A sweet fantasy romance with overtones of the best kind of fairy tales.

Niamh, a magical dressmaker, who can fill her creations with memories, feelings and emotions, is delighted that she has been commissioned to create the wedding outfit for a royal wedding, creating clothing for Prince Kit Carmine. Coming from an impoverished family, she is hopeful this will be her ticket to a better life, not only for herself but also her family. Whisked away to the royal castle in Avaland, however, she finds that all is not light and grace within the royal household. Dark times loom for the prince and his brother, as their country sits on the edge of war and the nation's coffers sit empty. Add to that, Kit has no desire to wed the bride his brother has selected for him, and despite his best efforts, he and Niamh find each other falling in love.

An entertaining and fun read, with different types of creative magics sprinkled throughout. I loved that this felt like an old-story fairy tale with enough updates to make it feel contemporary. The slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers romance between Kit and Niamh unfolded with a nice tempo, and I appreciated the addition of good supporting characters like the Infanta and Kit's boyhood friend. The vibe for me on this was kind of a Bridgerton with magic, and I thoroughly enjoyed that!

If I had a criticism, I felt that the inclusion of some mentions of diverse sexual orientation was kind of forced. I liked that the author included that, but it didn't feel organically integrated into the story and was felt more like an afterthought.

Other than that, a very entertaining read and a perfect way to close out my reading year.