Having read A Far Wilder Magic and fallen in love with Allison Saft's way with words, I was ecstatic to get my hands on a copy of her newest release, A Fragile Enchantment. And while her prose continues to touch me, this story did not grab my attention the way her previous two novels did. Granted, I'm not a huge fan of historical fiction, and this is a regency-era based fantasy, but I also just wanted a bit 'more' generally from this book. I loved the magic system in this novel, but I wish there was a bit more fantasy elements to it. And while I love Kit and Niamh, I wished they had a few more scenes of romantic development. All that being said, this is still a really strong story. I'm tough on the author because I know what she is capable of. Overall, I would recommend this to any "romantasy" reader.

I found this book to be ok. I felt the plot moved to slowly for my liking. The main characters never had the chemistry I was looking for. I did like he world building though.

Review redacted until such time that Wednesday Books and Saint Martin's Press issues a public statement regarding the pro-genocide sentiments that was shared by their Associate Marketing Manager immediately upon their promotion into this role. As an imprint that "is committed to a diverse readership hungry for stories that speak to them." I find it curious that you have a staunch racist elevated to one of the highest marketing positions in your brand.

I have very mixed emotions about this book because while there were a few elements I really enjoyed, there are also a few things I cannot overlook in this rating/review.

Let's start with the good: This book has great queer rep, I loved most of the characters, and the writing, setting, and magic system were all lovely. I found myself enchanted by the story and sucked into the world. I think this could have easily been a 4 star read if not for the following.

<b>"Enemies" to Lovers based on prejudice, colonization, and oppression. (Note: The author uses the term colonize to describe what Avaland did to the Macklish people, so this not just my interpretation.)

Naimh is a young Macklish woman who carries the burden of her family's well-being and legacy on her shoulders. Her family has been struggling ever since Avaland colonized Machland. Our love interest, Kit, is a prince of Avaland. The king, his father, was one of the biggest perpetrations when it came to the crimes committed against her people.

When I realized this was the set up, I was already skeptical. I really don't like it when authors use prejudice where one group is in a very clear position of power over the other as the set up for the enemies element of of an ETL romance. To be clear, I think prejudice can be used as the set up if both groups are on equal footing, but not when one group has colonized the other.

However, I decided to keep reading because I wanted to see where the author took this conflict, and whether it was dealt with appropriately. Unfortunately, I do not feel like it was. I have two primary issues with the way this topic was handled.

First, the author spends a lot of time showing how both Naimh and Kit have their own troubles - which is fine because, yes, none of us have a perfect life. However, I felt very uncomfortable with the "poor rich, white boy has it just as bad as the victim of oppression/colonization." There is a scene where we learn <spoiler> that the king was abusive towards the prince as a child </spoiler> and our FMC relates this to her own generational trauma and relationship with her family. At which point, she mentions that she can't compare traumas.

Now, I absolutely agree: you should never compare your experiences with those of another's. What is hard for one person may not be hard for another and that's okay. What matters is how your circumstances impact you.

Additionally, I am not trying to minimize his experiences in anyway. This is a big deal, and it is awful that he experienced this. However, I do not think it was appropriate to even put these next to one another. I'm sure this is not the intention, but the way I interpreted this scene was that, despite saying she shouldn't compare, she believed her own experiences to be less important because of his. Aka: "Well, it could have been worse." And sure, maybe she didn't experience the <spoiler> abuse that he did</spoiler>, but again, that's not how trauma works. Simply by placing these items together, the author placed this equivalency into the mind of the reader and at the end of the day, I don't think this was an acceptable way to address these topics.

My other primary complaint was the way Naimh was treated by the Prince Regent. Initially, Jack brought her to court SPOILERS AHEAD: as a pawn to show the world that he cares about the Macklish people without having to actually offer real support to those impacted by the bigotry of the rulers who came before him. In fact, at the end, we learn he refuses to back the Macklish people because he cannot afford to lose the support of the wealthy. END SPOILER.

Is this realistic? Absolutely. That's not the issue I have here. The issue is that he never truly learns his lesson. There is not nearly enough messaging to counter these actions. Instead, they SPOILER: blame his father for putting them in this position, and Jack doesn't take any accountability for himself. END SPOILER.

Additionally, when Naimh first comes to court, Jack is very kind to her. Throughout the novel, he is very kind to her. Then, suddenly, <spoiler> a switch flips when he finds out she is involved with his brother. At this point, he complains about her actions at court (despite never having any issues with her before) and refers to her both as a peasant and uses her Mscklish heritage as a weapon against her and a reason why she shouldn't be with the prince. </spoiler> In my opinion, these are the actions and attitude of a villain, which he was not portrayed as. However, I still had hope that he would come around. Instead, SPOILER: he brings up how bad she is for him again AFTER they get married instead of being happy for his brother. END SPOILER.

Finally, at the end of the book, we learn that SPOILER: her grandmother is mad at her for "marrying the enemy," which further reinforces the damage done to her family by his. END SPOILER

I'm disappointed because, as I mentioned, there were some elements I did really enjoy. I think this could have been really good if only the author hadn't used so much prejudice and bigotry from the people in power towards their victims as the primary conflict between the couple. If Naimh had, instead, been from a neighboring kingdom with more resources and power, I don't think I would have had any issues with this set up. By putting her (and her family's) entire well-being into the hands of their oppressors' and turning that into a romance, this novel sends some messages that made me very uncomfortable.

At the end of the day, I don't believe the author had any malicious intent, but she simply bit off more than she could chew by attempting to tackle these topics. With this in mind, I do intend to try more of her work and I am optimistic that I will enjoy others more.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing me a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest opinion.

There’s wonderful world building and but not a lot of action, but a great read for anyone that is a Bridgerton, and Pride and Prejudice fans. Niamh is a magical dress maker that can imbued feelings into the fabric she sews making the wearer affected by whatever emotion that is sewn into the garment. Niamh was hired to make the wedding garments for the prince, hoping that she could make a name for her family takes the jobs and moves.

This is another cozy fantasy that just did not meet the mark for me. The narrator of the audiobook is fantastic, which is what kept me interested for so long, but I ended up DNFing the book around 70%. I was just so incredibly bored. The characters have no real depth, and once the slow burn came to fruition and I did not care what happened, I knew it was time to set it aside.

The premise of the story is incredible. It is advertised as Bridgerton meets fantasy - I honestly thought more Pride and Prejudice with fantasy - which I absolutely adore. I believe it is loosely based off history, as well. Niamh Ó Conchobhair, the FMC, is a Machlish girl from a small town tasked with creating a magical wardrobe for the marriage festivities of the prince - Kit - and his bride - Rosa, the Infanta of Castilla. I believe Niamh is Irish, Kit is English, and Rosa is Spanish - though the story itself does not come out and say this. There is a gossip magazine that begins to report on all of these festivities - very much like Bridgerton - but it is brought up at the beginning of the story and doesn't say any more about it until midway through the book. While the writing is very lyrical and soothing - with the narrator adding to this effect - NOTHING really happens beyond some longing looks and sewing garments. It is just incredibly boring, and the characters are not well-developed.

This is another in a long line of cozy fantasies I just cannot like. Perhaps I will give up on the genre.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a wonderful recommendation for anyone who is a fan of Bridgerton and fantasy. This is a delightful ya fantasy. With that being said, while I found this story to be charming and enjoyable I felt like I wanted more from this novel. I wanted more from the magic system, more from the romance, and more from the characters themselves. It had great potential and if there is to be a sequel I would be excited to see where this story goes.

Thank you to Allison Saft and Wednesday books for a free audio ARC in exchange for my full, honest review.

3.9 stars, what a delight!

Readers of Divine Rivals and A Study in Drowning will love A Fragile Enchantment! This is my second Alison Saft book and I look forward to her work in the future. I think her characters and how she depicts romance works very well for me. The queer and chronic-illness rep also hit especially close to home. I'm not a big fan of regency romance usually but it I think it suits the story and general light-heartedness well. I was really blown away by the characters, which I didn't especially connect to in A Far Wilder Magic. Kit and Niamh were lovely, very grumpy-sunshine if you're into that, and Rosa and Sinclair made for great background characters. If you're looking for a really soft, happy romance with just a touch of fantasy elements this will absolutely be your jam.

The issues I have with this book are not really the books fault. If you want something a little angsty with some dark moments, this will not have that. I like my comfort with a healthy dose of hurt, so this wasn't entirely satisfying for me. I also have some trouble with fantasy worlds that very strongly mirror real life history and nations because for me it compromises immersion. Avaland is very much just England, and Machland is very much Ireland, potato famine and all. Not necessarily bad things, just not for me and possibly not for you.

That being said, I absolutely recommend this and look forward to seeing more from Saft in the future (particularly if she writes a series!)

My heart doesn't have words for how beautiful this was. From beginning to end I loved our characters, I was enthralled with the world and the magic and the politics. I loved the flirting and the banter. There were moments of such beautiful prose that I felt myself get all teared up. Amazing amazing amazing.

Thank you, net galley, for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I haven't read a ton of YA historical romance, so I was excited to read and listen to this one. It was such a beautiful story. I really enjoyed all of the deep topics that were covered in this book. I really enjoyed this one, and plan to read more from this author!

4.5/5 but rounded down due to just a few minor issues I had (that I think I wouldn't have noticed if I had read the physical copy rather than listening to the audiobook).

HOW CUTE! I am an Allison Saft STAN - ever since A Far Wilder Magic, I have been on a mission to read absolutely everything she has put out (which luckily, at that time, was only 2 books). So once I saw this pop up on NetGalley, I knew I absolutely HAD to have it.

Niamh (pronounced Neeve - for if you're like me, and didn't this know until listening to the audiobook) is such a sweet girl who is hired to make the garments for the future royal wedding of Kit and Rosa (who is from another land). Obviously... romance ensues, but not between the future wedded couple to be.

Pros:
- I loved this cast. This felt very much like Bridgerton (including our own version of Lady Whistledown), but just for a younger crowd. While there is some mention of sex, none of it is very explicit, so I think this would be considered YA. The side characters were almost as well defined as the main cast. I especially loved Marianne (I believe was her spelling) - I want her to be my best friend.
- The magic, duh. While I do think this could have been a bit more pronounced throughout the book, I still enjoyed the brief glimpses that we got as well.
- The descriptions of Niamh's magic. I loved this plot point so much and it made it feel very cozy.
- Diverse cast of characters!
- Just overall an incredibly cozy book that I didn't want to stop listening to.

My detractors that made me round down from 4.5 to 4:
- We are told constantly that Niamh has this sickness that has spread through her family through the years and doesn't hit every single person. However, she knows that she will die sooner rather than later if she continues to use her magic at the rate she is. However... other than a couple of mentions of her being extremely tired and her hair going a bit whiter... this is never really brought up. You would think it would be a bit more like in Frozen where there is a sense of foreboding every time Anna's white streak gets a little bit bigger.
- More depth to off page family members. We're meant to care about Niamh's grandmother being upset that Niamh would work for the people of Avaland, who caused the Blight to the Machlish people, or Kit/Jack's father and mother, who were apparently a brute and runaway. But there's not enough there to make me think about them at all, which took away from part of the main plot as well (at least the portion that revolves around Jack leading the kingdom)
- I think this third point wouldn't have annoyed me if I read it on paper, but hearing over and over about how Niamh loves Kit even with them only ever being snarky to each other except like one or two moments of sweet tenderness got to be too much at times. I thought the romance was very sweet, but it just annoyed me at a few moments (especially with the ending).

Overall, I think if I wasn't such an Allison Saft stan, it might be more of a full 4 stars (just because I'm now realizing how true my cons list is), but I'm also obsessed with her and her characters so I'd read the entire phone book written by her so idc what you say!! READ THIS!

This audiobook was very good. I loved this narrator and I finished this in a day. The romance was perfect and I absolutely loved this book.

This was such a fun read. I am not usually a fan of fantasy (I don’t have the imagination for it) so this took me a little to get into but everything was explained in a way to make it easy for me to follow. I loved Niamh, Sinclair, and Kit; their chemistry and banter kept the story moving and kept me entertained throughout. The Infanta was another well-developed and fascinating character. There was so much going on with palace intrigue and alliances between houses that took me a while to get straight but was so intriguing. I enjoyed all everything about this. It was so well written that I felt like a palace insider at times, privy to all the goings on and gossip. Highly recommended for an engrossing story that will draw you in and you won’t want to let go.

A Fragile Enchantment by Allison Saft
Publication Date- January 2nd
Publisher- Macmillan Audio
Overall Rating- 3 out of 5 stars

Review: Review copy given to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Let’s start this review off with what went well. A Fragile Enchantment is a YA novel that is described as a romantasy, though I would say this is more romance than fantasy. More on that later. You can read the synopsis so I’ll save you from explaining that again. My rating of 3 stars mostly comes from the fact that for a YA novel it is a solid and well written story. I think Saft does a good job of knowing her audience and writing to appeal to them. The worldbuilding is not too complicated, there is nothing super triggering or heavy to read (not that the target audience can’t handle some of that) and it feels like it sits squarely in it’s wheelhouse. Our main character is a dressmaker and has the magical ability to enchant items of clothing to make people appear or feel a certain way, in a way it feels like an art. I think for someone just starting out in YA fantasy may enjoy the simplistic elements of the magic system. There’s not a lot of distractions in the world and not too many characters to keep track of, in a good way. As for tropes, I would say this is an enemies to lovers, grumpy sunshine and difference in class story. So, all in all, a solid, fun YA romantasy. This is a great book for the audience to start out on especially if they continue to read more romantasy.

I also really enjoyed the narrator!

Now to the things I didn’t like as much. Again, I am an adult so I am not the target audience for this novel. For this part of the review I am going to attempt to place myself back at the target audience age and remember what it was like to read a lot of YA fantasy. Which I read a lot of, way into my adulthood. With that being said, I will add that there are still some YA books that I have thoroughly enjoyed and felt the story had something for adults in it too. This was not one of those.

Throughout the story there is the backdrop of a “columnist,” very similar to the one in Bridgerton, their identity is hidden, they talk about gossip and in this story, political unrest. I enjoyed this element but felt that it wasn’t used to it’s full potential. I guess this was one of the things I was really looking forward to and though there are consequences for the columnist, I never felt that there was anything really meaningful happening. This is a theme that I felt throughout the book. Now I could argue that that's fairly age appropriate. I just wish the author would have gone a little further with this element.

About 40 percent through the story I started to feel that the main themes of the book were repeating. Girl goes to foreign city, makes a dress, feels out of place, gets to know the other characters, is curious about the political system, has a crush and repeat the conversation. There didn’t feel like there was anything meaningful at stake for the main character.

Speaking of characters, on the audio, I was getting confused between who was who and what role they had in the story as well as within the society. The worldbuilding wasn’t always clear but going back to my earlier point, it was simple and that’s not always a bad thing. I just think in some ways the simplicity somehow got muddled and confusing. The magic system was basically nonexistent, the story leaned way more into the romance side. 10 percent magic, 90 percent romance.

The last thing I will say is that this is a very predictable story. Now, I don’t see this as a good or a bad thing, because authors only have some much to work with. Popular storylines exist for a reason. This story at times was very similar to Bridgerton, to say more about this would enter into spoiler territory. I just wish there would have been more unpredictability throughout the story, throw me a curveball every once in a while.

All in all, a good story, fun time, would recommend for the age group. I would say this is a good book for those of you who liked The Cruel Prince by Holly Black.

This book was such a fun read. It was swoony, delightfully yearning, and laugh out loud hilarious at points. Think Bridgerton and Downton Abby and toss in a little magic. You follow Niamh a young seamstress who is hired to outfit the upcoming wedding of the prince and princess of a neighboring kingdom. You get to watch as the characters fall in love with people they aren't "supposed to" and the drama it creates. With a charming resolution and more than one steamy scene, this book was one heck of a good time. You also have an earnest political side plot that is very recognizable. Top it all off with thoughtful and considerate LGBT representation. This is not a book to miss. It is most definitely YA, so if you start this book expecting Dostoevsky, I assure you, you will not get that. It was however one of the most enjoyable YA books I've read in awhile.

I Loved Loved Loved this Book! How exciting that my first 2024 book is a five star read. A Fragile Enchantment by Alison Saft is a romantic fantasy for all the people p[easing girlies that never thought they were good enough to make the ones they love happy; and thus, everything is their fault! Our heroine is that girl, but it felt like Saft wrote parts of this book directly at me.

This is the perfect mash up of a regency romance with fantasy vibes. It is indeed reminiscent of Atwater's Regency Fairy tales, but less fae and more socially awkward humans. Niamh is a seamstress who is summoned to the royal palace to make the wedding outfits for the prince and his fiancee. She has the power to enchant the clothes she makes with feelings, emotions and memories as she sews, and it is beautiful. The catch of course is that she is falling for the Prince (Kit) when he isn't getting on her last nerve.

This has just about everything I love. Banter, magic, self discovery and a such a great resolution! Saft's plotting finesses politics and intrigue while developing some great side characters and making you care about everyone's happiness. I highly recommend you ring in the new year with this wonderful story!

The audiobook really added to the humor and personality of the main character. I loved Fran Burgoyne's interpretation of Naihm. Her voice has a perfect British accent to enhance the cozy feel of the book and bring the characters and their banter to life.

Thank you to MacMillian Audio and Netgalley for allowing me access to ALC in exchange for a fair review.

Made it about 25% into the audio and had to stop. The narrator was putting me to sleep and the accent is way too heavy that I had to reduce the speed to understand.

I am interested in this story, and will read the book when it is released, but the audio/narrator was not for me.

Will not be rating/posting on social media since I did not complete.

Thank you so much to Netgalley and Macmillan audio who let me take a second chance at A Fragile Enchantment and listen to it. I was lucky to receive the arc about a month ago, and ultimately decided it either wasn’t for me or I just needed to listen to it. Well… I’ve listened to it, and I still have the same experience. This book is just not for me. The audiobook was hard to listen to because of the narrator, and I couldn’t get into the love between Niamh and Kit. I love shows like Bridgerton and Gossip Girl, but I guess it didn't translate to the book space for me. I love seeing all the positive reviews over this book, and I hope to see it grow!

I both did and didn’t enjoy this book.
It was fairly well written and I liked the Bridgerton vibes, but the story didn’t hold my attention.
I felt like I was forcing myself to listen to it or simply have something in my ear for the sake of it.
I would probably rate this 4.5 stars because it’s also very possible I simply wasn’t in the mood for this specific type of story, through no fault of the author.

A Fragile Enchantment by Allison Saft

Niamh is a seamstress with the magical ability to thread emotions and memories into fabric. Hired to create the wedding wardrobe of a prince and princess, she moves to Avaland with the hopes of finding a better life for her family. She is quickly swept into the royal family drama and the political unrest in the country.

This was a lovely romance, with the right amount of magic and drama. I really liked the style of writing which was whimsical and romantic. However the storyline itself could have been better. It was a bit repetitive and all the twists and dramatic events didn’t seem all that unique or surprising so overall I ended up feeling like it was too long of a story.

I listened to and read this one and the audio was my preferred choice (especially to speed up those repetitive parts). Thank you to @macmillan.audio and @stmartinspress for my copies! This one is out January 2nd!

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