Reviews tagging 'Death'

Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

68 reviews

emilymhb's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous funny mysterious fast-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

5.0

Goofy little academic who learns to love and care about people while also falling for her obnoxiously handsome companion? How could I rate it anything other than 5 stars?
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

chelbelle122's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark funny lighthearted tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

The writing is as flowery as the cover but still enjoyable
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

gillian_aftanas's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional funny lighthearted mysterious 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

5.0

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

martafernandes's review against another edition

Go to review page

lighthearted relaxing slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Really liked this one. A bit slow at the beginning, stayed mainly for the cozy vibes and the FMC's personality and dark humour. Started to pick up the pace around the 25% mark, but still remained a simple read, without major action scenes or complicated worldbuilding, which I enjoyed. I was kind of thrown off a bit by some gory details that showed up in random places, specially because the rest of the book was very "light" on that aspect. I wish the romance was a little more developed, Bambleby's actions
a.k.a. proposal
fell kind of flat. Definitely will be reading the second one.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

bxnny's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

risten's review against another edition

Go to review page

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

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

theycallmebookish's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This book was equally charming and creepy in a Brothers Grimm sort of way. Emily is an independent explorer/researcher looking to uncover the mysteries or the Fairies. But on her adventure in the cold of a small town in the middle of nowhere where she uncovers more than she planned. This was part Brothers Grimm part Pride and Prejudice to me. I love the banter but wish there had been more romance. Hoping the second book develops that relationship a bit more. But it was a great read and a bit of a historic one as well. Perfect winter book.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

bree_h_reads's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous funny lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was so fun and delightful and casual. It was just such a pleasant read, the more relaxed tone emphasising that.

The plot was consistent and largely casual. Things were happening, but not wild displays of action. The characters would learn things, do things, advance the plot, but in more casual feeling ways. It suited the story’s feel very well.

The character also all felt very dynamic and real. Each one felt unique and different. This variety of character also leant to interesting relationships. I especially appreciated the variety of women in the book and how unique each one felt. Though my favourite character was Shadow, easily the best character and goodest boy. The interest of the characters and their dynamics also really leant to the book’s subtle romance. It snuck up on me and when it did, I was delighted.

I especially liked the world building and how fey lore was handled in the book. Everything drew me in and kept me fascinated. It was also delightful when I recognised some of the lore and I liked learning more. The faerie lore was just so interesting and I’m looking forward to read more of the series.

I only have a few more notes for what I enjoyed. Which are the amazing performance of the narrators, the framing device of the story being told in Emily’s journal, and the casual approach to queerness. Overall a great read, I definitely recommend it.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

smolone13's review against another edition

Go to review page

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!
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

umrah's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous lighthearted mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.5

this is the first time i've used the c.a.w.p.i.l.e rating system to rate a book, and i think it's pretty accurate. this book was a lovely read, and my expectations were very much fulfilled.
⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⊰✦⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅⋅

cawpile -> 9.2

sub-ratings -> characters (9), atmosphere (10), writing style (9), plot (9), intrigue (10), logic/relationships (8.5), enjoyment (9)

my first 5 star of the year! i'm also going to read the next book, so excited for that!

⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⊰✦⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅⋅

full review below, may contain spoilers

when i read a book, i don't look for romance, but if it is done well and in my tastes, boy i devour it. and this is exactly that! the chemistry that emily and wendell has is refreshing, and quite hilarious sometimes. can't wait to see how it turns out in the next book, to be honest! but that isn't the only thing that made me fall in love with this book. the writing is exceptional! love the descriptions so much, it made me feel like i'm really in ljosland with them, stomping in knee-high snow with furry boots and looking for faes. wendell is a great character, and i don't know if it's just me or i see shane madej from watcher (or ex-buzzfeed unsolved) in him. like the descriptions? him being a king of a fantastical species? opposed to the demon king shane? i see a lot of similarities. i love wendell's playful nature and his goofiness. also, one of my friends (hi kana if you're reading this), remarked that wendell bambleby was seriously trying to pretend being a human with a name like wendell bambleby? that's so true. anyways, i think the characters in here were extremely well-written too. i loved reading the sub-plots, like the thing with ari, the changeling and poe. the villagers were lovely too. the plot was also very interesting, really drew me in! never got boring all the way through. all in all, fantastic read!


happy reading! :)

Expand filter menu Content Warnings