A gorgeous new debut fae fantasy. This is an interesting world, spicy love triangle and a strong heroine you root for; but be warned for a CLIFFHANGER!

Thank you for the ARC!

Love the BIPOC representation in a fantasy setting. I wanted more world building but I feel like this will be great for a YA audience. Spicy scenes were spicy! You really can’t go wrong with fantasy with me.

Lore of the Wilds had a lot of promise. A magic library, fae and humans, BIPOC representation - all things that should've made this a hit. Unfortunately the narrative was oddly paced with plot twists that felt unearned.

Book Review
Lore of the Wilds by Analeigh Sbrana

Thoughts and Tropes
📚New to me debut author
📚Romantasy - the book is marketed as YA - our MC has 2 potential love interests and while the intimate scenes were a bit spicy (maybe more New Adult??) her character development still felt a bit juvenile (to me anyway)- think girl crush/lust- Lore tends to act immediately on her feelings whereas her would be suitors felt more mature
📚Fae, magic, castles and curses
📚Grumpy / sunshine
📚Amazing side characters - the younglings in the castle, grumpy maid, bar owner, friends, and friends of friends
📚I think I wanted more- more background, more character backstory, more history of this magical realm- the book could have been a bit longer and a bit more detailed- this is probably just me- I like my fantasy to have in depth world building - more pages are better

Overall a solid read and Debut. It ends on a cliffhanger so I am thinking at least a Duology and possibly a series in the making! I look forward to seeing what comes next!

Thanks to @netgalley and Avon And Harper Voyager for my digital ARC in return for an honest review. Opinions expressed are my own.

I'd first heard about Lore of the Wilds on social media. The cover, then the premise, drew me in. I am so glad I picked up this book! Lore of the Wilds is a richly imaginative story with memorable characters and a plot that kept me hooked from start to finish. I personally liked how well-rounded each character was and how intricate their relationships were to each other, especially in the context of how each one's arc influenced the other. Lore is by far my favorite character and I couldn't help but to relate to her. The magic system, too, was well-developed and I liked the undertone of humans reclaiming their magic. While I'm not usually a fan of love triangles, I hope to see more of both Asher and Finn in the sequel. Perhaps my only critique is that the pacing, at times, was uneven. Sometimes, the plot inched forward at a snail's pace while other times we jumped ahead in time so fast that it almost drew me out of the story. As for other people's critiques that this story is written in too much of a "YA voice," the tone didn't at all bother me. Lore is young, this is what I'd classify as a New Adult romantasy, and despite its tone, it took on serious themes while crafting a marvelous narrative. I can't wait for the sequel!

Thanks to the publisher for the electronic advance reader's copy. I was a bit nervous starting this because I heard this was YA, and I'm no longer interested in that genre. Everyone, this is not YA lol, believe me. I really loved the magic in this story and Lore's beautiful spirit. After that ending, I needed to know what's going to happen next because, wow, I didn't see that coming.

I firstly want to thank netgalley & the publisher for allowing me this arc in exchange for an honest review. The beginning of this book was action packed, and my attention was grabbed immediately. Some tropes are forced proximity, love triangle??, the guy is only nice to her.. It also has great Bipoc representation and I was really enjoying it, for the first 40% of the book. Then I went from “wow this is going to be the best arc I’ve ever read” to “what am I reading and what’s even the point of this plot….”
We follow Lore, a human, as she’s taken away to the fae land to go through a library that only humans can access. She’s to organize and clean it while giving important collections to the fae. There’s mystery as to why they want what they want. The books turn out to be magical and can talk, and one ends up calling her name. Then she runs away with the book and that’s when the story (to me) begins to have no real point? It’s a YA book but then at 85% we suddenly have a descriptive sex scene that came out of nowhere. The romance fell flat and I didn’t find myself caring about the characters, or believe in the romance, at all.
I will say the ending had a crazy plot twist I didn’t see coming, but overall I feel this book had a lot of potential but it just didn’t make it there. I’m giving this a 3 star just because I loved the beginning so much.

I have been following this authors journey online for a few months and I am so honored to get a arc of her novel. I really liked the worldbuilding and the overall plot of the book. However, it did read a little young adult but with adult themed scenes that were a little confusing. Overall I had a great time reading it and I would recommend it!

When I started this book, I was in love. However, as it went on it started to fall flat for me. It felt very much like any other generic YA fantasy, and nothing was very unique.
I was not a huge fan of the love triangle, either.

Overall, this was an okay read. It wasn’t horrible, but also nothing amazing.

This was a great book I enjoyed it a lot. If you like fantasy you will like this book. There is a lot of world building in this book and I have the feeling the next book is going to be epic! I have a lot of questions that need to be answered. I love the main character and so look forward to hear more of her story.

Lore of the Wilds is a thrilling romantasy debut! Lore makes a deal with the fae after her home is torn apart. Lore begins working in an enchanted library as a bargain to save her home and those she loves. Lore finds her magical destiny and faces dangers along the way with two male fae at her side. But in ruthless world, who can Lore trust?

I needed to read this book twice! There’s so much to love with this author’s debut novel. The characters and the vivid imagery really pulled me into Lore’s world. I found myself at the edge of my seat several times. It’s left me on the worst book hangover. I desperately need to know what happens next in Lore’s journey!

Also— as a BIPOC reader, seeing this type of representation in the world of fantasy was a breath of fresh air. Thank you to Harper Voyager and NetGalley for this cozy romantasy!

this was such a fun YA fantasy to read, but it just didn't vibe with me. the premise was so intriguing and having a new fae centered romance fantasy is amazing to see! it was VERY much a YA read, so I wasn't expecting anything too grand or monumental so this was fun to pick up and see where this new fantasy series is starting off at!

Lore of the Wilds was one of my most anticipated reads for 2024 and i'm so incredibly happy for Analeigh Sbrana on her debut and publishing deal - as I've followed her on bookstagram for many years now. I think the vibes of this book definitely deliver as promised. I do wish we spent more time building connections between the characters especially since so much occured in this book (the destruction of Duskmere, the library search, the bar, saving grey and the ending as well). It would have been really lovely to know more about Lore and her powers (it's such a cool concept), more about "Archer", Finn, their dynamics etc. Diving deeper into the characters is something that helps me become more invested in the story. But since this is more plot focused and so much happened (and there was lack of answers about Archer until the very end) I felt like I was along for the ride instead of a part of the journey.

It's also marketed as YA(according to what I see on Goodreads) and it did read YA, all for the scene between Archer and Lore (when they reunite). I'm good with spice - minimal or not - but i'm not sure how to describe this to readers. Where does it fall?

I was heavily questioning Archer since he seemed all over the place to me, (he left his post as guard, he hated Lore and then was really into her) but the ending does explain this away, I just worry this confusion will lose readers along the way.

That aside, even though sadly this wasn't a new fave for me, aspects of this story really shine and i'll definitely read book 2 to learn more after that ending!

2.75/5

Thank you Net Galley and the Publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What I liked:

- The MFC was likeable to me. I enjoyed her throughout the story. She wasn't giving the annoying main female character vibes. She comes off driven and passionate.

- The world building was really interesting to me!

What I didn't like:

- The writing style was confusing- it read like YA, but there were scenes that were not very YA. So this could be problematic. It also was reading just very all over the place - some more organization would be good for the story.

- The romance was physical and no real emotional connection, which for YA I am really looking for that romance feel over the physical.

- I am sorry the pacing was really tough for me. I didn't get engaged much throughout the story. The story dragged alot during the middle.

This book captured my attention from the start with the cover and premise, but as I started reading the story immediately sucked me in as well. The world building and magic were so well done and interesting, but throw in a magical Fae library and I'm going to read it. There were quite a few twists and turns as well, with quite a few surprises thrown in - especially at the end!

There were moments in the first half of the book when I thought the story dragged a bit, (there wasn't a lot of dialogue and lengthy descriptions of some of the books in the library) but overall that didn't detract from the story or my investment in Lore's purpose. For some reason I didn't realize this was NA vs YA so anyone expecting YA level cleanliness should keep that in mind, but thankfully the plot was so fleshed out it was the main focus and driving factor in the story.

I feel like this was an amazing debut and am definitely interested to see what happens in the next book! Fans of Isabel Ibanez and Adrienne Young should check this one out!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for my e-ARC! All opinions are my own.

The vibes are impeccable. This is everything you want in a fantasy book. It’s fresh and fun. I loved the mystery that looms over the story and slowly unravels as it unfolds. Our heroine, Lore is brave and smart and kind. The love interests are dark and broody and badass. I cannot wait for the next book!

I do love this romantasy and the way it insists on Black centrality in its fantasy world, though I found the pacing slightly uneven from time to time. I think much of this is a me issue, as I'm increasingly having issues with longer books. However, the ending was great and I can't wait for the sequel.

Absolutely loved this fantasy novel, I was very excited about it when I found I got approved for the arc. I look forward to reading more from this author.

This book was a very fast read. There are a lot of things that I loved about Lore of the Wilds:

The fae, the cottage core vibes, Lore herself is a good main character. The writing is whimsical and when describing the world around Lore you really feel like you're there and magic is all around you and I loved that.

Now let's talk about the romance. - I just thought it wasn't developed to its full potential and it had so much potential but it fell a little flat. I don't think Lore and Ash spent enough time together before getting involved so it felt a bit off, a bit superficial. When the third character comes into play for the so called love triangle again, we don't get much depth. The book overall felt a little on the young side of YA but then you got the spicy scene and I feel like it lost its footing.

That being said, I ate it in one sitting so I do think it was a nice and easy read, maybe for people just getting into romantasy. Overall I enjoyed my time in Lore's world and I will FOR SURE be buying the second book when it comes out! I ned to know what happens next.

Thank you to #NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the eArc. My opinions are my own. #LoreoftheWilds is out 2/27/24

This book had a lot of potential but I feel it missed the mark in quite a few ways. I loved the strong start and was in love with Lore as a character, but by the 25% felt like I was in an entirely different story. The middle slowed to almost a stop. I credit the author trying to push for a second love interest. This would have been fine had the plot also kept moving. Then the end seemed to be rushed through. I would have liked to see more prior thought and strategic planning by the characters for such a challenging task.

This book gave heavy focus to the romance at the expense of the plot or reasonable outcomes. Lore and her friends were able to pull off incredibly difficult tasks (escaping the fae, saving Grey, rescuing the humans) without any prior planning. The grimoire was such an untapped source of magic that I wished more time had been spent exploring its abilities and how to use it, as well as why Lore was becoming stained by it. This is a detail that is just brushed off by everyone around her.

I did like the characters, who strove to fight injustice and for their people. This is one of the reasons I did still enjoy the book. The characters were courageous and cared so much about their communities. I also liked the strong start and felt the end plot twist gave a good end for book 2.