I adamantly hope that there will be more books in this series. As the first two were, this book was an absolute delight to read. I found getting to explore Wendell's realm such an interesting expansion on the series.

I love this world that Heather Fawcett has created so much it was difficult to come to terms with this being the final installment. I really enjoyed getting to see Emily (and Wendell) in a new environment as they take on new foes and explore new lands. This book balances Emily working on her own and accepting help from her growing group of friends and family, which was fun to read! We also get to see some glimpses of Poe and Snowbell, who are delightful as always. I adore Shadow and Orga, who got tons of great (and tearjerking) moments throughout. I adore Emily and thought this book's insight into her fears and motivations was fascinating, if not as deep as I'd have liked. And Bambleby is amazing and delightful and odd as usual. I love their relationship and banter.

This one is definitely a lot more plot-heavy and tense than the previous two books, which takes away a bit of the cozy vibes I've come to expect from Fawcett, as well as the character-focused time I love to have. I finished the book feeling a little unsatisfied - one extra chapter for Em and Bambleby to talk privately about her concerns of him changing and her being a queen as well as just to resolve some more of the tension would have done wonders for me as a reader. Otherwise, I had a great reading experience and wish there were 10 more of these books to wrap myself up in. Thank you for the review copy!! <3

I don't particularly have a strong opinion one way or the other on this book, which is usually a bad thing. I did not connect with it as well as I did with the first two. I think partly because the majority of the book takes place in the fairy world, which is intentionally nonsensical and therefore hard to follow. I also felt like it lacked a big climax. There were multiple small hurdles for the main character to overcome, but I did not feel the same need for fixing problems that Emily clearly did.

Emily and Wendell are back, and this time they're taking on Faerie. Emily has ventured into the realm of faeires numerous times before, but always as a researcher, or, on a few unfortunate occasions, as a captive. This time, Emily will be returning as queen. Well, that's the plan anyway. After defeating Wendell's stepmother, the two plan to take control of his ancestral lands. Nothing in Faerie is ever quite that simple, though, and soon Emily realizes they're living out a story all too similar to several she knows. And none of those stories end in a happily ever after. Emily is nothing if not a dedicated scholar, and she knows all too well the power of stories in Faerie. But will she be able to change the narrative when she's the one living in it?

Another excellent Emily Wilde book! Each Emily Wilde novel is just a cozy confection, perfectly prepared and ready for consumption.

𝗥𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗚: ★ ★ ★ ★
𝗥𝗘𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗦𝗘 𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: February 11, 2025
𝗔𝗥𝗖 𝗥𝗘𝗩𝗜𝗘𝗪:

I loved this world so much. This is book 3 in the Emily Wilde series and it was just as great as the first two. Heather Fawcett knows how to write in such a way you can vividly imagine everything going on in this book, the writing is beautiful and so well done. If you love a cozy magical world and read this series is most certainly for you. I’m so sad that my book friends have to wait a little while to experience book 3 here but it’s well worth the wait. Place this on your TBR right away and in the meantime, snag the first two and start from there :)

A solid addition to the series. I really enjoy the adventures of Emily Wilde. I think it will appeal to readers of cozy fantasy.

I loved seeing Emily and Wendell’s relationship evolve and deepen in the latest (last?) installment of the Emily Wilde series. The exploration of Wendell’s faerie realm and watching Wendell come into his power was delightful. This series is one of my favorite stormy weather reads, and this book is no exception. It’s cozy and gorgeously detailed.

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For me, Emily’s continued study of faerie felt off the more her relationship with Wendell advanced. Somehow, Emily never seems to grapple with the inherent ethical issues of approaching Wendell and his people as subjects of study in a field that considers them inevitably illogical and other. In this book, in particular, that started to break my suspension of disbelief. While I still enjoyed the novel, part of me wishes there’d been more space given to relationship issues than external plot issues.

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Overall, a lovely finale in a lovely series. I’m going to miss Emily, Wendell, and most of all Shadow.

I always enjoy reading about the cozy yet perilous life of Emily Wilde. This book didn’t pull any punches when it comes to tension and suspense. It was great to see some characters from the previous books return & it was a joy to see Emily and Wendell’s relationship grow even more. Definitely recommend!

Thanks NetGalley for the advanced copy!

Many thanks to Random House & NetGalley for this ARC! ( All opinions are my own)

This conclusion to the trilogy was my favorite! I loved the first two books; they were so fun and heartwarming. This book was, in my opinion, more emotionally mature but still such an adventure! The mystery of the curse plaguing Wendell's kingdom was so captivating to investigate and I loved spending so much time in the faerie realm. As always, the author creates such intriguing characters and intricate stories when teaching us about the faerie lore. I felt like I was completely immersed in her world, completely oblivious to my own mundane mortal environments. Fawcett's prose really makes you feel comforted and like you are a close friend on this adventure with Emily Wilde. And Wendell is ever so charming, and always makes me laugh at his fussy nature even in the most serious or life-threatening moments. I hope one day we see more of these characters! I'll miss them all.

Full review to be posted after publication date

In this third volume of Emily Wilde’s forays into the worlds of the Fae, Emily takes it upon herself to try to solve the mystery of a plague laying waste to Wendell’s kingdom. This story of Emily and Wendell lives up to the expectation set forth in the first two books, cute, quirky and full of adventure.

*A free advanced copy was given by NetGalley in exchange for a review.

Very happy with the latest installment in this series! I'm a lifelong lover of fairy tales and I found myself as enthralled with the stories within this story as the main plot itself. I only wish Emily was becoming warmer toward Wendell. I know she's the self-possessed scholar, but that bit is getting old. If anything, her pursuit of fairy knowledge is only making her stiffer. I really wished that by the third book she would have loosened up a little. I'm starting to get annoyed with her.

This series has slowly turned from something delightfully new into a comfort. That's not a complaint, though at times I found myself yearning for a deeper emotional connection. It feels over time that Wendell's otherness and Emily's briskness have created a bit of a stasis between them, even though we see through events that their relationship is growing. That's a relatively minor quibble though (as is the absence of a new creature who can fill the gap Poe left when they moved). The setting and humor continue to delight, and I'll keep reading as long as Fawcett keeps writing!

I was so excited to receive an advanced copy of this book! I've loved the last two installments, and this one did not disappoint. The first book in the series is still my favorite, but this still found a way to feel fresh and new.
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In addition to the atmosphere these books create, what I really loved was the journey Emily goes on throughout the story. In the past two novels she has been so confident, for good reason as she is a leader in her field, and I've loved her confidence. In this, with her spending so much time away from the human world, of course she would be a little unsure. She gains confidence in herself and her relationship. The way the various characters dress and what that says about them was really great.
The pacing was exactly what I expected for this series. Not very fast-paced, but there was enough tension and high enough stakes to keeps things interesting. I loved all the little character moments.
Overall a great way to wrap up the series, but if there was more I would definitely read it.

Emily Wilde does it again! Heather Fawcett's writing and this series never fails to make me feel cosy, even in the summer season right now.

Though more plot heavy than the previous books, the characters retain their signature traits. Emily's tendency to priortise scholoary discovery over all else, enough to tamp her fear of pretty much anything fairy; and Wendell and his aloofness is every situation (even dire ones). I absolutely love their character dynamic, and Emily actually shows some emotion outside of academica in this book (of course this was provoked by Wendell)!

I enjoyed that we were further able to explore the fairy world, especially of Wendell's realm. There is something about Heather Fawcett's writing that makes everything about fairies so perfectly natural and real. Sometimes I feel like one of those "foolish mortals" as described in the book as I read Emily's Journals.

This series was an experience for me, and a first venture into cosy fantasy, and I could not be more satified. Although I feel bittersweet for the ending of the series, the ending was perfect, and I cannot think of any other way it could have gone. Thank you so much Random House for the ARC of this book, I cannot describe how ecstatic I'd been to get to read this 6 months before release date!

They say all goods things must come to an end...

Currently throwing a hissy fit because this series is over. From the first book Emily captured my heart and it has been a delight to follow her on her adventures.

I knew an ending for these characters was going to be tough because I genuinely did not wish to part from them, though Fawcett did an excellent job. She not only managed to wrap up the plot but threw in lots of characters from the first two novels that I appreciated revisiting (my sweet little Poe).

I felt as though Emily and Wendell's relationship only deepened throughout this novel and I appreciated getting to know Wendell and his personality more as he opened up in his home realm.

I will forever be yearning for a series like this to sweep me away again. I really can't recall loving a series more than this one. Bittersweet to see it end.

Fingers still crossed that we might get editions of the Encyclopedia, Map and a Compendium!!! 🙏

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC. All views are my own.

I'm having trouble deciding if I took longer to read this third installment because I found it less interesting or because I just had too much going on in life to put mental energy into reading. Who knows. Maybe it's just my mental state right now. The more I think back on what happened the more warm and fuzzy I feel, so I still say 5 stars.

We had all the classic elements of an Emily Wilde book: sweet friendships, creative world-building, creepy faeries, and lots of time with our favorite scholar, Emily. Bonus points for the starring role of our dear Shadow, especially at the end. I also enjoyed the introduction of the mortal characters in Faerie. The author did a great job of seamlessly reminding the readers what happened in previous books without rehashing too much. The "journal entries" in this one got a little more personal and less academic, which I enjoyed. It's necessary for the story being told in this book, and I think it shows some growth for Emily as well, to allow a softer side in her writings.
My only complaint is that I'm still not totally convinced that Emily and Wendell love each other. I think maybe that stems from Emily's nature to be less romantic, and since we spend almost all of our time in Emily's POV the natural consequence is that the romance takes a backseat. On the occasions that she lets her feelings show, she says all the right things, but love feels more like an afterthought than a key touchstone of Emily's life. The story still works, and the lesser role of the romance may actually work well for a lot of readers.

This book was one of my most anticipated reads for next year, so I was ecstatic to be able to read the ARC!

This book started right where book two left off, so we were plunged headfirst into adventures in Faerie, where Emily is now ready to assume her role as queen. The world that Heather Fawcett has created is so charming and fascinating that whenever I sat down to read the book I felt warm and cozy.

I love the way that these books are formatted, in that all of the fantastical going-ons are presented from a very academic and matter-of-fact viewpoint. It is very different than other fantasy books I have read, but in a way that I love! Emily makes such an entertaining narrator, and I loved seeing her growth in this book, especially regarding her relationship with Wendell. She has a fantastic arch from book one to book three.

This book felt like a long fairytale you would find in a storybook. I thought the plot was very cleverly executed, and the pacing was good. None of the books in this series have been page-turners for me, but not in a bad way. They are beautifully written and very intentional.

I am sad the series is at an end, but perhaps there will be more to come from Faerie at some point in the future!

Thank you to Random House Publishing and Netgalley for the e-ARC!

Why do I feel like this story is not over? I have been immersed into Emily Wilde's world for three books now. The second book is still my favorite by far. The ending of this book left me unfulfilled. Heather perfectly continued the creation of this world and into a new fairy realm that we only had glimpse of in the second book. I am assuming the book only ended like this because Heather plans to continue the story line through Ariadna? Or one can at least hope.

Big thanks to the publishers for allowing me access to the ARC version to finish the story line!

It's such a delight when a book you expect to be wonderful lives up to those lofty expectations! Reading the third Emily Wilde book felt like coming home after a long trip. The continued evolution of Emily and Wendell's relationship continues to be a joy to witness, and the main 'adventure' of this book -- saving Wendell's realm from a curse/his stepmother -- was equal parts fascinating (more faerie lore! yes, please!) and thrilling (there absolutely was a point when I flung my phone across the bed in disbelief). The unexpected star of this book, though, was Shadow. Oh, my heart -- loyal, trusting, protective, Shadow! Anyone who's had a dog (or any pet, really) will have their heartstrings tugged upon most mightily.

In any case -- Heather Fawcett has done it again. A brilliant story, brilliantly told, full of warmth and wonder.

My favorite cozy fall cottagecore series. The pacing to me moved along much faster in this one and I was not mad. I love wendell.