Member Reviews
I received a temporary digital copy of Emily Wilde's Compendium of Lost Tales by Heather Fawcett from NetGalley, Orbit and the author in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
Emily Wilde and her fiancé, Wendell Bambleby, return to Wendell's home in Faerie to take back his throne and rid the throne of his evil step-mother; however, once Emily and Wendell return, they realize his step-mother has created a sickness that is slowly taking over the land. Will Wendell and Emily be able to stop the destruction or will they destroy themselves in the process.
I love the Emily Wilde series and this book delivered just as the other two have - excellent world building, imaginative Faerie stories and tons of subtle humor. Another enjoyable installment and hopefully more to come from the land of Faerie!
Ahhh I loved this book. Obviously, I've loved ved Emily and Wendell since the first book in this series, but now we get to really explore their characters and Emily gets to nerd out about Faerie.
Emily and Wendell have such a charming relationship and I'm so happy to have been able to read the continuation of their story!!
This is just as whimsical. and beautiful as the firs two - I am not even sure what to do with myself now that this series is over? I really cannot wait for future works of Heather Fawcett, i'll the honest, the first one wasn't my favorite, but my girlfriend absolutely loved it so I kept going and oommgg I am so happy that I did!
Fan's of Heather Fawcett's Emily Wilde's series won't want to miss this epic conclusion to a thrilling series. As Emily is whisked away to the land of Faerie, she has to learn how to become Queen and take her place in the kingdom. She has precious little help aside from her fiancé, and everyone's determined to see her fail. Will she be able to use her knowledge to save the kingdom's magic? As we find ourselves on this epic conclusion, readers will delight and cry along with Emily on this wild epic adventure.
In retrospect, I see it was foolish of me to assume this was a collection of short stories based on the title and a complete lack of any other information. As a result of this assumption, I put off reading it for a time because, well, that isn't always the right head space, is it? Welp, I've been proved very silly indeed. Unrelated: She threw in a little thing at the very end that had me sobbing for almost an entire day, so prepare yourself.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for early access in exchange for my honest review.
If you’ve made it to book three, I think you know what you’re in for. We get more adventure, character growth, and a sprinkle of romance. I love that Emily knows herself and is willing to push her own boundaries. That being said, I did want more internal or emotional conflict as much of the adventure is driven by external forces.
This book made me laugh out loud and tear up and read until my eyes were dry. A great end to the series with enough left open for speculation.
Such a lovely end to this series! Lost Tales picks up right at the end of Otherlands as Wendell and Emily head to Faerie to claim Wendell's throne. His stepmother is missing, presumed dead, and now Wendell is the next king. Their journey to the castle shows that all is not well in the kingdom and the former queen may still be alive and up to nefarious deeds. Emily researches faerie stories in earnest to discover what to do and how to stop the kingdom's destruction.
The story was a little slower in parts than usual but I still really liked this book! Emily and Wendell are adorable together and it was fun seeing characters from the other books again. I really loved Shadow's story arc! I've been afraid he was going to die with the frequent mentions of his slowing down. As an owner of a 15 year old border collie, it made me cry when Wendell found something to prolong Shadow's life and help his body keep up with his spirit, every dog lover's dream :)
Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
*Thank you so much to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the chance to review an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.*
This one starts right where the previous book left off. It was wonderful to see Emily and Wendell together again and to see what they got up to. Written like the previous books, it is unique and engaging. This one however felt a little slower than others, with some spots in the book feeling like a lull. My favorite part was the ending, it wrapped everything up very nicely and was a great way to end the book.
Huge thanks to NetGalley for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I kept telling myself I was only allowed to read one more chapter, but I was utterly powerless to put it down. What a satisfying conclusion to what I consider to be one of the best fantasy series I’ve read in recent years.
As an absolute lover of this series and Heather Fawcett's writing in this series, I was NOT disappointed with this third installment (I cannot accept the fact that this is the end of the series, so I will not refer to this as such).
In this book, we are following Emily and Wendell - who are officially engaged to be married- as they travel to Wendell's home realm that he was cast out of as a boy. In Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands, we watch as Emily defeats Wendell's stepmother, which allows for the two of them to travel to the realm in this story. However, when they begin to settle in to being the monarchs of the realm, they find that Wendell's stepmother has cursed to realm to ruin - can Emily and Wendell save this kingdom before it is too late?
The setting in this book was absolutely just as magical and cozy as the previous books, and I loved how we got to see more of Emily and Wendell's relationship in this book. While their relationship has progressed throughout the series, Fawcett stays true to their natures and creates a relationship built on banter, trust and pure love of one another and who they are. This book took so many turns, but I never wanted it to end! Heather Fawcett has created the ultimate cozy academia fantasy series, and I will forever love these books.
Seriously, the TWISTS, TURNS, and DIPS in this one. Oh my goodness, what a wild ride of a conclusion!
I'm gonna break it down like this:
• Where the Trees Have Eyes
• Lord Taran
• vengeful snails
• Shadow and Orga
• the housekeeper ("he is one of ours" 🥹)
• Poe's mom
• the Veil
• the enterprising brownie who sells nuts and snacks at any and every excuse for a gathering
This is one of my all-time favorite series. I'm sad that it's over but happy with how it wrapped up, and I'm so looking forward to Heather Fawcett's next series
A big big thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me at this one early in exchange for an honest review! I don't think I've been this hype about new entries in a series since I was a child, going to midnight release parties.
I am not sure what emotion I am feeling rn, but I think it's OOOooooOOOUghhh
I cackled! I gasped! I SCREAMED! Reading this felt like reading letters from a very dear, very messy friend. There's nice disability rep also!
If this really is the last book - and it feels like it might be - it is a nice place to wrap things up; the ending is satisfying, yet open enough that there COULD be more. (Please can we have more? ??)
Definitely try to revisit the previous two books, if you can - especially the second one. I shan't elaborate.
I cannot get enough of Emily Wilde and Wendell's adventures throughout the faerie realm. They must work together to make it out alive of the cutthroat world of political intrigue and magical ramifications in Wendell's realm. As always, professor Wilde is wildly intelligent and turns out to be just the kind of faerie queen Wendell needs at his side.
3.7 stars
Thanks to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine/Del Rey for a free digital copy in exchange for an honest review!
I'm still in shock that I managed to get this ARC because the first two were sooo good
Okay so I have super mixed feelings about this book 😭
One one hand, the lore is great. I am a sucker for good worldbuilding that actually makes sense, and by that measure, there was one specific quote that just tied together all of the disparate threads of the magic system in a way that made me set my iPad down and just stare at the wall in dawning understanding.
Also the (imo too few) parts where Wendell is being sweet were adorable, naturally. Also (weird compliment but) the vocabulary was actually so good lol. It just gave the story this sense of whimsy which I loved. Also all the side characters come back so it felt like the story came full circle.
But on the other hand, there were so many random hints strewn in about Emily's "true" feelings about her situation that it lowk made me feel uncomfortable?? Furthermore, there was this underlying tension about different beliefs that was never fully addressed which added to the discomfort. Like the only reason she's staying in it is for Wendell, but we don't get nearly enough enough Wendell scenes to justify why she's putting herself through that. Also, the main plotline felt slightly contrived, like something that shouldn't have been a problem was now the main conflict that they had to spend the entire book dealing with.
Nevertheless, the book was definitely fun and I mostly read for the cute Emily and Wendell scenes which always slapped so overall a nice (if slightly unnecessary) romp
Based on the reviews I’ve seen, I think I might be the only one who prefers the pacing and non-stop action of this book compared to the previous two. In my opinion, Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales is by far the best of the series.
Emily is still as awkward as ever, but you get to see a lot of character growth throughout this book. In previous installments, Emily isolated herself from others because she didn’t know how to interact; she didn’t know how to fit in, so she stopped trying. She got better about allowing people in when they made an effort, but for the most part… she seemed to freeze when someone else wasn’t leading the conversation and she automatically assumed that she was alone in her adventures and problems because she didn’t want to burden (or rely on) others.
In Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales, however, Emily finally realizes that the only way she’s ever going to fit in is if she stops trying; that she is respected (and loved) for her differences, awkwardness and all, and that she will always have people in her corner even if she doesn’t necessarily understand why they choose to be there. Emily learns to lean on the people around her and to trust their intentions, and her self-confidence soars as a result. She makes some decisions that seem fairly reckless, but those decisions are based on what she knows to be fact; Emily saves the day (multiple times, I might add) because she doesn’t wait for others to believe in her ideas… she listens to other’s input and adjusts things based on the points they make, but overall, she trusts her intuition and does what needs to be done, even when it seems impossible.
I loved every moment of this book, from the adventures that took place, to the action and the crises, to the reunion of old friends and the addition of new ones. I normally speed through books, but I found myself purposefully slowing down because I wasn’t ready to reach the end.
I know Heather Fawcett said there would only be 3 books in total, but I truly hope this isn’t the last installment for the series. The way things are left off leaves plenty of room for future tales and adventures, and if you love this book as much as I did, then you’re not going to be ready to say goodbye either.
Thank you NetGalley and Del Ray Publishing Group for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Another 5-star read in the Emily Wilde series!!! I am constantly impressed and obsessed with the story of Emily Wilde and her adventures with the faerie world. This continuation of the series is no different. Our beloved cast of characters, including Emily, Wendell, Shadow, and more, are growing between our very eyes into even more complex versions of themselves if that were possible! The effect serves to make them that much more charming, which is a feat wholly deserving of praise, as they were irrationally charming before.
I am always impressed by Emily's academic prowess and grew even more so during this book. She is so goddamn intelligent and truly an expert in her field of work. We are also lucky enough to meet some familiar faces to join the cast of growing friends. My only complaint, if it can be called that, is that I found myself finally reaching the end and always longing for more.
I can't wait to see what Emily gets up to next, and am always ready and eager to learn more about her adventures and academic discoveries.
I absolutely LOVED this book! I have been following the Emily Wilde series since my friend got me the first book and every book is just hit after hit! This and all of this series truly evoke so much emotion from readers and it is just perfectly amazing!
Emily and Wendall head to his kingdom to take over but his stepmother is still a force to be reckoned with despite being poisoned. Can Emily outwit her again? Is she safe with Wendall if he does become king or will he tire of her? Emily once again takes on Faerie in her latest adventure.
Loved it- thanks Netgalley for the ARC. My opinions are my own.
Approved this morning - immediately sat down and read the whole book by after lunch time that’s how excited I was for this conclusion to one of my favorite series and it did not disappoint! I know it’s not for everyone but I love how it is told through Emily’s journal entries. The romance with Wendell and Emily is fun and full of banter as usual. I think this book what really set it apart for me was seeing more of faerie and also the twists and turns it was more exciting. Will be recommending and adding to our library 100%!
This third installment of the Emily Wilde series is as clever, fun and entertaining as the first two. Fawcett's storytelling skills are on full display and her fearless heroine, Emily Wilde, is forced to rely on her scholarship skills like never before. A romance-adventure-romp with deadly consequences for failure, I read this book way past my bedtime and I will literally buy anything this author writes! A worthy addition to the other two in the series.