Reviews with content warning for Murder - Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries

Reviews tagging 'Murder'

Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

54 reviews

bloomingrose92's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is one of the books I give 5 stars and a sparkle for being one of the books that will stick with me forever. I absolutely adore Emily. While she is not canonized as having autism in the book, due to her difficulty expressing her emotions and communicating with others, I often refer to her as "Our Autistic Queen".

I loved how closely the village becomes with her by the end, and how even when thinking of how they have become her family, she is still lost on what degree of physical affection she should give them when bidding farewell. And after she chops of her finger to avoid the enchantment of the winter fairy king, and then goes to him anyway because she just "has to know how the story ends", I found myself screaming "Emily!" at midnight alone in my house. (Talking to yourself at midnight at book is a sign of a very good book.) I also loved the development of Wendall throughout the book. When he was first introduced, I thought he was going to be a dry, doting scholar. But with the name-dropping of him being fae at the beginning of the book, to the characterization of his combination laziness and obsessive-compulsive cleaning and sewing disorder, I fell in love. His charm and Emily's wit make such a beautiful combination, and his proposal was the chef's kiss. I love how well they balance each other out, especially seen in the scenes when he helps her integrate with the village and when she forces him to do proper fieldwork. And while the footnotes were annoying to being with, I liked how they not only added to the validity of Emily's character, but also set up the second book.

All in all, one of the best books I've ever read. I will mourn this series when it is finished, but love it all the while as I wait for more.

Content Warnings

bcvogel90's review against another edition

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adventurous funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

risten's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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rileydobereading's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

teabrewer's review against another edition

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adventurous funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I cherished the characters and their interactions and felt connected to all of them. I appreciate Emily as character. Her social inadequacy, obsession on certain subjects, dedication to objectivity and fear of rejection all felt truly relatable to me. I loved how the book reminded me of real life field journals I've read before. From the language used in them, to the little details in the footnotes, to her opinions on controversial topics in the scientific community, it just felt real. I can see how the writing style may not be for everyone but it is certainly for me.

I loved how she didn't even consider that insisting on paying for things could the reason why the villagers hated her, because neither did I and I've seen other, more socially skilled people catch on it immediately.

I did think the romantic side of their relationship was a little neglected, it does make sense from the narrator's perspective but it made me a little less on board for that development when it happened. This is not a a negative necessarily since it felt extremely on character for Emily to treat the situation a she did, as it was for Wendell to treat it as he did.

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smolone13's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted mysterious relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

Ratings:

Goodreads: 4/5

Storygraph: 4/5

My Rating: 4/5

Synopsis:

Emily Wilde is a professor who is on her own expedition in Hrafnsvik to find a rare kind of faerie, the Hidden Ones. While on her own expedition her rival/friend joins her, Wendell Bambleby.

My Review:

This was the first bookclub book that I had chosen for my little group and I honestly fell in love with the book quite quickly. It might have just been her charming dog right from the get-go! Besides her dog, however, Emily Wilde is an interesting character. She perceives herself as a lone-wolf. The adventures she goes on is mostly down by herself for the fact her students don’t even want to join her. She doesn’t do well with talking to other people, but she easily gets along with the Fae that she is always getting herself involved with. Her encyclopedia is filled to the brim with information on the Folk and how different they all are including their cultures. When she arrives at Hrafnsvik, the first few questions she asks is what kind of Faeries are around in the area. Although she is the main character, we can’t forget the best side character which is Wendell Bambleby. Wendell is an interesting character in the fact he is overwhelmingly good-looking and charming, even though he is kind of a dick. Besides him being a dick, he is honestly a great side character to Emily Wilde’s timid-ness.

The setting is kind of bland, but it makes a lot of sense considering where they are at. They are basically looking for frost Faeries. So, they are exactly where that is. A land of just snow. There really isn’t much else. They are either in a beat up shack by themselves, because Bambleby’s own students dipped on him when they couldn’t stand the cold conditions anymore, or they are outside in the forests or in the frosty plains. There are a few times where they end up in Faeries circles/lands and end up crossing over into the Fae world from portals.

At least there was a clear plot, in fact, it is right in the synopsis (spoiler, sorry). They literally find the Hidden Ones. Not only find them, but help them with their own problems so that the Hidden Ones stop kidnapping the villagers' children and stop a never-ending winter. Besides that, there are a few twists (if you can call them that) where Emily Wilde has a theory that Wendell Bambleby is a lost Fae king, which turns out to be true. Besides that minute detail, the plot is quite clear from the very beginning, it is just whether you want to stick to it on the journey. Which the actual reading is quite fun considering most of the time it is just Bambleby flirting with Emily but she sees it as bickering.

I would say that I enjoyed this particular book, but it wasn’t my favorite. I have read a lot of fantasy novels and stories from free books on Wattpad, to children’s books, to the books I have read in my own collection. I will say it is more of a cozy fantasy read because you already know what is happening and what to expect. I think the only difference is at the end Emily Wilde agrees to help Wendell Bambleby find his lost portal back to his kingdom so that he can rule again. (Which I believe continues on in the second book which I will have to read!) Overall, if you are looking for a cozy fantasy and something that isn’t too serious, I highly recommend this book!

Content Warnings

katrinarose's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

I’m sad about this one. I think if I had known it was more magical realism than fantasy vibes maybe I wouldn’t have picked it up. I don’t like the magic system which is never logical or consistent, and never even attempts to be. I get that that is kind of a hallmark trait of magical realism, but that’s why I prefer fantasy. In addition, the characters are mostly all dull, often unlikeable, and undergo almost no character development. The main character makes so many stupid decisions I wonder how she’s survived this long researching in the field. The romance was weird and unconvincing with no emotional chemistry. Also, the writing style is so flat and dry, which I understand is because of Emily’s academic, serious character, but it still made the reading experience worse (for me). The few action scenes were poorly described, almost being glossed over as if the readers wouldn’t want to hear all the details. I wish I got the hype but just not for me this time!

Content Warnings

folkofthebook's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.75

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.

this was delighful!

a slow-paced but enchanting tale written as journal entries by ambitious academic emily wilde, who's greatest dream is to be the number one world-renowned leading expert on faeries - specifically, the most elusive known as the "Hidden Ones". she is joined by her colleague (and begrudgingly for her, friend) wendell bambleby, who may not be all who he seems.

if you're looking for something to really settle into with various interwoven tales of faerie folklore, this will be up your alley. i enjoyed the charm of the cold, wintery village of Hrafnsvik and its inhabitants - human and mythical alike. while a more cozy tone, it does not sacrifice the sometimes malevolent, violent nature of fae.

emily and bambleby are a charming grumpy x sunshine pairing; emily being more introverted (and i suspect on the spectrum), while bambleby is a total ham, very gilderoy lockhart. the two balance each other out well, and i do enjoy how clear it is bambleby adores em from the start (before we even met him on page, his drawing of her in his letter "Bambleby had even had the gall to make me pretty" i knew they were endgame). he is superfluous, charismatic, enigmatic, a bit lazy and indulgent - but charmingly so.

some of my honest thoughts (spoilers here):

while i thoroughly enjoyed the budding romance between bambleby and emily, i was a bit put off that he was cavorting w other women under the same roof as her and then suddenly proposing to her about 3/4 through. i had made my peace w his dalliances thinking maybe the series would be a bit of a slow burn between them, but then he suddenly proclaimed his love for her and proposed marriage? i just didn't really understand where that came from, and emily's own reaction felt very tepid. on the other hand, i very much enjoyed getting to see a complete flipside to bambleby as dangerous fae folk when em is attacked.

audiobook narrator did an excellent job, esp w bambleby's irish accent!

overall, i recommend grabbing yourself a warm drink and settling with some treats for this enchanting book.

Content Warnings

pandemonicbaby's review against another edition

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adventurous inspiring mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Never underestimate the power of an autistic bitch with a special interest in faeries

Content Warnings

bexi's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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