Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries: the Sunday Times Bestseller

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I'm the author of books for adults and children, including Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries, Even the Darkest Stars, Ember and the Ice Dragons, The School Between Winter and Fairyland, and more. Hrafnsvik has the feel of a mysterious place from the moment we arrive there, and the people also have their own unique culture about them, seen especially in the way they react when Emily rejects their offers of help. Bambleby is entertaining too, with a charismatic swagger about him, and his fondness for Emily’s quirk. Something about this book reminded me of the feel of A Discovery of Witches which coming from me is very much not a compliment. I recommend this book to anyone who loves light fantasy, great characters, great world building and very good writing.

Impeccable Tam Lin vibes…The world-building here is exquisite, a weather-beaten village in an incredible Arctic landscape — and fortunately, the characters are just as textured and richly drawn…Emily herself is delightful, brilliant but flawed, and often darkly funny. There are kelpies, brownies, and whimsical common cottage-dwelling Folk but there are also dangerously elegant high faerie lords, who love stealing the local villagers from their warm cottages. The first 20% is decent as a standoffish Emily settles into a remote village with prickly locals, but then the book gets AMAZING when Wendell shows up. There is precisely zero acknowledgement at any point in the text that there might, maybe, just slightly, be some Anglo-Irish tensions in 1909. Perhaps it is always restful to be around someone who does not expect anything from you beyond what is in your nature.All in all, I really enjoyed Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries, and I’ll most definitely be picking up the next story to see what’s next for Emily, Wendell and Shadow! Not only does she get a wild adventure in freezing temperatures but finds friendships, potential love, and an understanding that there’s more to life than just books and faeries.

When I first started reading Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries I was expecting an imaginative and adventure-filled story. I feel like I was really mislead by the descriptions I have seen for this book and the comparisons to some other books that happen to be some of my favorites.

The writing lends itself really well and the two central characters, both respected scholars, have a somewhat elaborate way of talking and writing that I just loved. Unfailingly whimsical and with a kind of sardonic playfulness at every turn that brings many a smile to your face, it also gets a bit caught up in its rather elaborate example of a first person narrative, which while endearing, sometimes makes the plot hard to follow. The full cast of characters, well-developed faerie lore, and pervasive sense of cold add depth to the delightful proceedings…Emily is an Amelia Peabody in snowshoes, and readers will be utterly charmed. Everything seems to come so easily for him and if you're struggling, as Emily is with some of the villagers, that can definitely be frustrating.