Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries

Een verhaal over wetenschappelijk veldonderzoek naar feeën. Kan een boek nog meer mijn naam schreeuwen?!
En ik ben zo blij dat het voor een keer de hype voor mij waarmaakte, want ik vond dit helemaal geweldig!

“One doesn't need magic if one knows enough stories.”

Ik ben hier aarzelend in beginnen lezen, uit angst voor mijn hoge verwachtingen, en dit heeft misschien wel bijgedragen aan de wat moeizame start, maar eenmaal ik erin slaagde het verhaal gewoon over me te laten komen, was ik compleet gebiologeerd.

“I suppose most children fall in love with faeries at some point, but my fascination was never about magic or the granting of wishes. The Folk were of another world, with its own rules and customs—and to a child who always felt ill-suited to her own world, the lure was irresistible.”

De hoofdoorzaak voor mijn trage start is ongetwijfeld de vertelstijl. Die vroeg wel wat wennen, want we krijgen het verhaal volledig verteld via dagboekaantekeningen van ons hoofdpersonage Emily. Gezien Emily toch wel een beetje een specialeke is, was het in het begin wel wat zoeken, maar ik raakte al snel helemaal dol op haar en hoe ze de wereld en mensen ziet.

“Stories, after all, are so fundamental to their world; one cannot hope to understand the Folk without understanding their stories.”

Het verhaal is uitermate charmant en vertederend, maar ook soms eng en verontrustend.
De feeën in dit boek overspannen het ganse spectrum van schattig folkloristisch tot eng afstandelijk. Ik vond het echt fascinerend om over allemaal te lezen, maar soms werden die bijkomende verhaaltjes op een vreemde plaats in het overkoepelende verhaal geplaatst. Dit deed wel wat afbreuk aan de meeslependheid en het tempo, en zorgde ervoor dat het geheel nogal onsamenhangend overkwam.

“it didn't feel at all like the proper ending to such a story.”

Ook het einde vond ik nogal abrupt en onvoldoende uitgewerkt. Het voelde onvolledig en ik bleef toch wel een beetje op mijn honger zitten, dus ik was blij te ontdekken dat er een vervolg komt. Wat niet wegneemt dat ik in dit verhaal toch wel meer diepgang en consistentie had gewild.

Maar over het algemeen wel een heel gezellig, eigenzinnig en lieftallig verhaal, waar ik heel veel van heb genoten.

Well, it was short. For me, the narrator is the sort of really tiresome, "Oh I just can't relate to people because I love academia so much" trope that just rubs me the wrong way. The setting too is a sort of romanticized version of the turn of the century without any sexism or homophobia which, you know, that would've been nice but using just the aesthetic without any of its challenges just reads weirdly to me.

Essentially, it's a romance book with a loose fantasy dressing which is just never going to be my cuppa.

Initially I found this story readable and pleasant enough; I liked it less towards the end, as the amount of magic in play became excessive.It's set in the winter of 1909/1910, and mostly on a remote Norwegian island. Strangely, the mortal humans in it seem too modern, while the faeries are too old-style for my liking.Most of the text is supposed to be the journal of Professor Emily Wilde, introverted 30-year-old academic and expert on faeries. However, it's written as a normal first-person novel, in modern English, not at all like an academic journal, and with no feel of the period in which it's supposed to be written. Nor do I get any feel of the period from the behaviour of the characters or from the dialogue.The faeries are divided into common fae and courtly fae, of which only the common fae (smaller, less powerful) are normally seen by mortals. The courtly fae seem to have almost unlimited powers, which I'm not comfortable with. Power without limits unbalances a story and also makes it harder to believe.The faeries seem to be based on traditional tales. I don't know whether the author, Heather Fawcett, has read any modern fantasy novels written by her competitors in the field; if she has, they seem to have had little or no influence on her.On reading about Emily Wilde, I soon realized that she reminded me of Amelia Peabody, the heroine of [b:Crocodile on the Sandbank 40881649 Crocodile on the Sandbank (Amelia Peabody, #1) Elizabeth Peters https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1532091568l/40881649.SY75.jpg 2570338] and sequels. Both are British women written about by North American authors; Emily is obsessed with faeries while Amelia is obsessed with Ancient Egypt; Emily starts her adventures at the age of 30, Amelia at 32. Emily was born in about 1879, Amelia in 1852. Both are initially single and have little or no sexual experience. Their personalities are somewhat different: Amelia has more confidence and competence at dealing with people. However, Emily reminds me of Amelia mainly because their ‘voices', writing their first-person accounts of their adventures, seem rather similar to me. As a fictional character, I think I prefer Amelia, although Emily is OK.

This should be classified as cozy fantasy. It has magic, and the fae, but it's also very heartwarming.

Emily is an uptight, nerdy scholar with no interest in social conventions or niceties. She just wants to finish her encyclopedia of faeries. In order to do that, she must travel to a remote village and rough it in a cabin lacking all the creature comforts she's used to in the city. It will all be worth it for the last entry of her book.
She finds so much more.

This was fantastic! I loved all the characters, fae and non. The friendships were so heartwarming.
This is definitely a very unique fae story. I look forward to the next book.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for an e-arc.

I absolutely loved this book. It was exactly what I was looking for. It's a really cosy book, I imagine especially in winter, even thought its mysterious and some fuck up shit happens. The characters are amazing, and I loved Wendell with my whole ass heart, what stupid idiots they both are. Magnificent, amazing, I cannot wait to read the next book. 

I wasn't expecting there so be this much romance, and although I didn't mind it there were definitely some cheesy aspects that I didn't love. But in exchange for this story, I don't really care. It was great.

(I do want to say that I was unable to find the UK edition with the pretty cover and I was very disappointed)

This is what you would call a cozy fantasy. It reminded me of Legends & Lattes, although the stakes are higher and personal, and there is an actual story. It is an entertaining read with lovable characters and charming folklore.

All the characters were written very well and their chemistry worked for me - a lot of them also had good character development arcs, which I had not expected. Shadow was, of course, adorable. The easy relationship (based on banter) between Emily and Wendell was also fun to read. All the folklore or “fae” lore added magic to the story and were quite enjoyable to read. The story was somewhat slow paced at times but did not feel boring at any point. A quote that I will remember always - "Perhaps it is always restful to be around someone who does not expect anything from you beyond what is in your nature."

It is narrated as Emily’s diary entries, and romance is not the main focus of the book, so people looking to find a fantasy romance may be disappointed.

To summarize - cute and wholesome fantasy novel with magical creatures.

I think I will try and grab the sequels :-)

I didn't have any cosiness expectations going in, so the cutting and kidnapping stuff didn't really bother me and I was able to just enjoy and appreciate the story.

The first few chapters were a bit of a chore, but the footnotes and general information about the Faeries dumped on me made it interesting to read.

The romance plotline was clear to me after the first “Bloody Bambleby” thought, but it was so nicely done with all the mutual trolling, that I actually enjoyed it and found myself rooting for them by the end. I liked the proposal scene and how these events were involved in the second proposal and Em's kidnapping.

Poe is my favourite character in this book. I do hope his appearance in the second book won't be limited to just one or two short episodes. Curious about the trinket he gave to Emily.

The village and villagers was cool. All this Nordic “we either hate or love you” thing. I liked how both were earned - hate by being ignorant and blind to social norms (which also played a lot into Emily's character) and love by actually saving Lilja, Margret and Ari. But the fact that they were absolutely OK with saving her when she messed up didn't convince me much. I'd expect to see something like “I'm so angry with you right now, but I also love you, so I'm going to help”, rather than this unconditional forgiveness.

And yes, the need to save her. This whole part was my least favourite. It felt too much even for that world. And going to free the King after she chopped off her finger and freed herself from enchantment? Seriously? She's a mad scientist, but she's not stupid. At least she's not supposed to be. And “a seer told me I would one day be locked up by my own people, and only a mousy little scholar could get me out again” part was again too much. Bamleby's explanation that marrying her was the only reasonable way to pay her for freeing him had way more sense.

Is it me or do Faerie royalties in this world have a very deep sleep? The King was trapped while he was sleeping, Bambleby slept through not one, but two times when Emily went to do some crazy shit...

Bottom line, I still enjoyed the book very much. It's definitely in my top 10 this year. Looking forward to discussing it at VBC this Sunday.

This was very enjoyable. It has he falls first and pining so I loved all that. Emily is smart and capable all the way through the novel and learns that she can open up to other people and trust others as well. She does do something I didn't agree with in the last arc of the story, but it was for scholarly insight so I can't be too mad about it. I LIVED Wendell. His banter with Emily is so fun and I think they are so good together ☺️ I desperately wanted a couple things to happen that didn't so it got -1 star off the total.

I want nothing more than to bury myself in the world of this book, I'm so sad this particular adventure is over. I was a little nervous in the beginning, knowing that it was a very hyped up book said to be the perfect cozy fantasy (and also I didn't like Bambleby when he was first introduced), but I'm so relieved and ecstatic to be come out the other end knowing it was absolutely right.

The writing through journaling is so enticing to read, giving it a different voice than many books. I loved the touches of academia throughout it all, and the world of faeries intertwined with ours was so fun to experience. I'm so pleased by how it never felt like there was a lull in the pacing or adventure.

And the romance killed me, I don't know how it was spun so magically to the outcome that it was, but I was internally screaming and sobbing over it at every mention. I'm so excited to read the next book, and just to reread it.

I'm not going to lie, 60% into the book I was bored. I was so bored that the only reason I didn't DNF it was the fact that I never DNF books at all. Somehow though, the last 40% of this book saved it.

I am a character driven reader and I didn't like Emily. I thought that she was very competent and hardworking but boring without a hint of humour in her. HOWEVER, her reluctant romance with Wendell was really really cute. They remind me so much of Sophie and Howl (though, unlike Emily, I have loved Sophie from the start).

That last part of the book and their romance somehow pushed the book up from the 2.5 rating I was sure I was going to give it to a solid 4 stars. I do want to read more about them and might pick up the second book :)

Se nota mucho cuando un libro se ha escrito con mimo y atención en cada página.

Seguimos a Emily, una investigadora que está redactando la primera enciclopedia de hadas del mundo y actualmente está trabajando en una entrada sobre un tipo de hadas ocultas en Ljosland, una villa de Escandinavia.

El libro está escrito como si fuera el diario de Emily. Relata cómo pasa los días en la villa, sus encuentros con los lugareños, las hadas y las cosas que le pasan.

Los personajes están muy bien escritos. Tanto Emily como Wendell son bastante complejos y además son super bonitos. Me recuerdan en algunos aspectos a Sophie y Howl del Castillo Ambulante aunque Emily tiene muchísima más personalidad.

La autora ha hecho un muy buen trabajo de investigación sobre el folklore de las hadas ya que explica muy bien las costumbres y características de todas las hadas que aparecen y esto lo hace a través de Emily que es quién nos cuenta todo esto, incluso crea bibliografía que a lo largo del libro va utilizando en su diario en los pie de página.

Es ideal para leer en otoño-invierno o cuando hace frío, la ambientación te envuelve por completo desde las primeras páginas.

“Puede que siempre sea relajante estar cerca de alguien que no espera de ti nada que no esté dentro de tu naturaleza.”

Es un libro muy acogedor que se siente como un cálido abrazo

This was way cuter than I was anticipating. I absolutely love Wendell, and Poe, and Shadow, and Aud, and Lilja. I loved that Emily was able to find a community that wasn't Fae. I'm so excited to see what will happen in the next book. I want more of Emily and Wendell being adorable, I want to know where Poe's key leads, and I want Wendell to find his way home and to bring Emily.

 This book feelt like discovering a hidden gem in the fantasy genre—one that is quietly magical and richly detailed.I love how the charm and the academic research blends together so neatly.
The novel is set in 1909 and follows Emily Wilde, a socially awkward yet brilliant professor at Cambridge, who is working on what she hopes will be the definitive encyclopaedia of faeries. Emily's journey takes her to the remote village of Hrafnsvik in Scandinavia.
What drew me in was the way the story is presented as Emily's journal, I honestly loved this aspect so incredibly much. This narrative style makes it feel incredibly personal, as if you're peering into the thoughts of a woman who is much more comfortable with her books and faerie folklore than with people. Which to be fair is kinda exactly what the case is. Example, when she arrives in Hrafnsvik, Emily's interactions with the villagers are painfully awkward, leading to some amusing yet relatable moments. Her initial attempts to gather information from the villagers are met with suspicion and confusion, and her discomfort is palpable.
One of my favorite aspects of the book is the relationship between Emily and Wendell Bambleby, her charming and infuriating colleague. When Wendell unexpectedly shows up in Hrafnsvik, Emily is both annoyed and relieved. Wendell is everything Emily is not—effortlessly sociable, charismatic, and, as we later discover, deeply connected to the faerie world in ways that Emily hadn't anticipated. Their banter is delightful, and the slow development of their friendship (with a hint of romance) is one of the highlights of the story. Have to add that the romance not being too in my face is one of the things I also highly like about this book. Heather Fawcett's writing is beautifully descriptive, particularly when it comes to the faeries and the wintry landscape of Hrafnsvik. The village feels isolated and otherworldly, the perfect backdrop for a story steeped in folklore. The faeries themselves are portrayed as both enchanting and dangerous, with their own complex rules and hierarchies. Emily's meticulous notes on the different types of faeries add depth to the world-building, making it feel as though you're reading a real scholar's work on these mythical creatures.
However, the book's pace is quite measured, which might not appeal to readers looking for fast-paced action. The focus is more on the slow unraveling of mysteries, both in the faerie world and in Emily's personal growth. While this slower pace allows for a deep immersion in the world and characters, it could feel a bit dragging at times, especially in the middle of the book. 

Aw, this is fun.

Emily Wilde is a Cambridge professor trying to make her name by creating the first encyclopaedia of faeries. Off she goes to a village in the far north to do research, and she is not there long when who should arrive but her handsome academic rival, Wendell Bambleby.

Emily is devoted to her work in an obsessive way, while Wendell seems to get by on charm alone. The setting is a frozen and isolated land, in the middle of winter. And there are faeries and they are just as I have pictured them for all these years—selfish, sure of their own worth, yet oddly compelling.

This is the perfect setup for a delightful story.