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heathyfox's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
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
3.5
I have many thoughts on this book, which I'll have to come back and write down later.
Right now, though... Reading this book was like listening to a grand symphony of prose, a unique magic system, and charming characters full of potential, and JUST when you think the beautiful, stirring music of all these elements is about to come to an outstanding crescendo... All you're left with is the pathetic, prolonged squeak of a rubber chicken.
I had to seriously adjust my expectations about halfway through the book. This is not the fantasy with Regency romance vibes I was hoping for... This is a Regency romance with fantasy waving in at the window outside, begging to be included in the party.
I still highly enjoyed it, but I am left wishing it was something different.
3.5 stars. ⭐⭐⭐
Right now, though... Reading this book was like listening to a grand symphony of prose, a unique magic system, and charming characters full of potential, and JUST when you think the beautiful, stirring music of all these elements is about to come to an outstanding crescendo... All you're left with is the pathetic, prolonged squeak of a rubber chicken.
I had to seriously adjust my expectations about halfway through the book. This is not the fantasy with Regency romance vibes I was hoping for... This is a Regency romance with fantasy waving in at the window outside, begging to be included in the party.
I still highly enjoyed it, but I am left wishing it was something different.
3.5 stars. ⭐⭐⭐
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Classism, Colonisation, and Cursing
kirstenf's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Colonisation
Moderate: Sexual content, Grief, Classism, Death of parent, Homophobia, Domestic abuse, and Death
Minor: Lesbophobia, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, War, Antisemitism, and Cursing
scarlett_f's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Most unusual, disjointed romance I think I've read. Whiney, repetitive protagonist. Boringly clumsy. Skip this for a better read.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Grief, Homophobia, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Misogyny, Confinement, Death of parent, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Xenophobia, Alcoholism, Classism, Alcohol, and Emotional abuse
becca_w_'s review against another edition
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
slow-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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Classism, Violence, Sexual content, Xenophobia, Chronic illness, Injury/Injury detail, and Alcohol
Moderate: Bullying, Infidelity, Misogyny, Grief, Medical content, Alcoholism, Blood, Sexism, Terminal illness, Addiction, Physical abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Homophobia, War, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Cursing, Confinement, Abandonment, Outing, Mental illness, and Panic attacks/disorders
folkofthebook's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
tense
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
5.0
“Is this a dream?”
“I don’t know,” he said huskily, his eyes aglow. “Let me kiss you until dawn, and I suppose we’ll find out.”
fantasy romance with chronic illness rep, magic, queer MCs & side characters, political unrest subplot, whimsical details, and bridgerton vibes.
after loving my arc for a dark and drowning tide, i was eager to jump into this; what i hadn't expected was to love it even more!
firstly, i love how allison saft takes real history and brings it into her fantasy worlds. i'm pretty sure the setting for this book is inspired by england's (in the book, avaland) occupation of ireland (machland) and the famine (the blight). there is tense political unrest that brews in the backstory, a slow simmering boil of the machlish people, tired of being exploited by avaland and taking a stand. i admittedly have limited knowledge of the real-life events of the famine, the troubles, etc. but i was fascinated by this aspect of the story and was intrigued not only by how it would play out, but how alike it was to its real-life counterparts.
i loved the cover and artwork of the main couple, niamh and kit, even before reading but their romance put me through the gamut of emotions in the best way. from their first stilted, tense meeting to the slow, hard-won moments of vulnerability to the angst of a forbidden romance, i shipped these two so hard. and they're both sexually fluid??? ok bi4bi !!! there are also 3 queer side characters. yas found family vibes.
first of all, kit is always blushing - do you KNOW how much I love a mmc that blushes?? 🥰 i thought kit's earth magic was complementary to niamh's whimsical enchantments. we don't see usually male characters paired with a power that feels softer. from the start i could see that kit's brashness was a defense, someone who doesn't know how to sit with his vulnerability, and it was wonderful to see his defenses slowly go down for niamh. there is also his relationship with his brother jack, the prince regent. the two have issues to work through, but jack isn't an unlikable, flat character. even though we see him making poor choices, we come to see where he's coming from and understand it.
i thought the aspect of lovelace was quite fun. the main element that brings in the bridgerton comparison, lovelace is a lady whistledown-esque gossip column writer - though they have a political agenda to their schemes, rather than solely focused on scandals of the romantic sort of the elite class (though those can be involved too). i had fun trying to guess who was behind the pen. it would have been kind of cool to see niamh more involved with them as a spy.
saft's writing never fails to make me want to sit down with a cup of tea while i read to be transported to an otherworldly place. her vivid imagery of picturesque settings, lush florals, descriptions that blend the senses, lavish parties, and, particularly with this because of niamh's enchantment skills, fashionable outfits with meticulous details. the whimsical natures of niamh's embroidery enchantments were delightful - affecting not only the wearer but those close in their presence, the spells were an array of entertainments from calling up beloved summer memories, being invisible, appearing more beautiful, and more.
unfortunately, her own enchantments also take a toll of niamh. having a hereditary chronic illness, overdoing herself with work and magic can cause not only flare-ups for her, but start to steal more time from her life. this is represented with the visual choice of a gray streak in her hair, which grows into more of her hair as more time is stolen. ngl it made me NERVOUS for her! i felt sympathetic but also a frustration with the injustice of life that the thing niamh loves doing can also hurt her (but i guess, isn't that true for all of us?).
besides the classism, elitism, (i think we would call it xenophobia? towards the machlish from the avaland citizens), even anti-semitism has it's place in saft's social commentary in this tale. alcoholism, parent/child abuse, homphobia, and disowning are also heavier topics dealt with in this book, though in minor details.
overall, i LOVED this book. the romance was delightful but i also enjoyed the political subplot.
allison saft has already provided me with two of my favorite reads so far in 2024 and i can't wait to see what else she comes up with!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness
Minor: Cursing, Death, Religious bigotry, Colonisation, Alcoholism, Antisemitism, Addiction, and Death of parent
librarycutie's review against another edition
inspiring
reflective
fast-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
3.5
A Fragile Enchantment is a Bridgerton inspired romantic fantasy set in Regency England about a magical dressmaker commissioned to tailor a royal wedding. This sounded so promising and I was so excited for this book, but it unfortunately disappointed me.
firstly, the characters. to be blunt, I didn't like them. they were so boring and childish and didn't have any favorable qualities. I liked the side characters more, Sofie and Rosa specifically. if Sofie wasn't married to Jack, I would've loved to see their romance, but I could not stand him. Niamh was okay, I wanted to know more about her silver hair and the backstory more, we barely know her. I feel like all we got to know was Kit. Kit was tolerable at most, he was grumpy and had a rough past from the death of his mother and his upbringing with his father and his lack of parental guidance... but the only time I liked him was when he was around Niamh. even then, it was mediocre at best. he barely showed affection and when he did acted as if it was the hardest thing ever. just.... red flag, and not the good kind.
secondly, the story and magic. this is where I was confused a lot. their magic wasn't entirely explained in depth, so It puzzled me but I ended up giving up trying to understand. I just know Niamh can sew emotions or magic into clothes and Kit has flower power basically. the plot was boring and confusing, its all about a scandal sheet bringing down the Royals because of their racism towards Machlish (aka Irish). the author tried to make it political and important but it just didn't play out very well, the instant and boring romance took priority in the story.
"Is this a dream?"
"I don't know. Let me kiss you util dawn, and I suppose we'll find out."
lastly, there is one scene where the romance gets more PG-13 and had me a bit shocked considering this is supposed to be YA, I would be upset if my kids at 12 or 13 were reading this and found out there's a detailed sex scene on page. YA should stay closed door, it for literal kids under 17!
**thank you Netgalley for an arc
firstly, the characters. to be blunt, I didn't like them. they were so boring and childish and didn't have any favorable qualities. I liked the side characters more, Sofie and Rosa specifically. if Sofie wasn't married to Jack, I would've loved to see their romance, but I could not stand him. Niamh was okay, I wanted to know more about her silver hair and the backstory more, we barely know her. I feel like all we got to know was Kit. Kit was tolerable at most, he was grumpy and had a rough past from the death of his mother and his upbringing with his father and his lack of parental guidance... but the only time I liked him was when he was around Niamh. even then, it was mediocre at best. he barely showed affection and when he did acted as if it was the hardest thing ever. just.... red flag, and not the good kind.
secondly, the story and magic. this is where I was confused a lot. their magic wasn't entirely explained in depth, so It puzzled me but I ended up giving up trying to understand. I just know Niamh can sew emotions or magic into clothes and Kit has flower power basically. the plot was boring and confusing, its all about a scandal sheet bringing down the Royals because of their racism towards Machlish (aka Irish). the author tried to make it political and important but it just didn't play out very well, the instant and boring romance took priority in the story.
"Is this a dream?"
"I don't know. Let me kiss you util dawn, and I suppose we'll find out."
lastly, there is one scene where the romance gets more PG-13 and had me a bit shocked considering this is supposed to be YA, I would be upset if my kids at 12 or 13 were reading this and found out there's a detailed sex scene on page. YA should stay closed door, it for literal kids under 17!
**thank you Netgalley for an arc
Content Warnings
Minor: Cursing, Alcohol, and Sexual content
hdabru's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
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? No
4.0
This was really cute. I didn’t find it as atmospheric as A Far Wilder Magic or as riveting as Down Comes the Night but it was a fun romp, with interesting characters and sweet romance. I liked Neamh and the complexity of all the characters. But there were details I found lacking and plot points that seemed to meander. My favorite thing about the book, though, was the undercurrent running through multiple characters about how prior generations can really mess us up and we alter our lives based on their expectations. Neamh’s tendency toward people pleasing and shrinking herself to not inconvenience others was particularly relatable. But all of them needed in some way to grow beyond their parents, and that’s a fantastic message for readers of any age.
Thank you Netgalley and Wednesday books for the ARC.
Thank you Netgalley and Wednesday books for the ARC.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness, Cursing, and Alcoholism
Minor: Sexual content
krisalexcole's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Xenophobia, Classism, Chronic illness, and Alcoholism
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Genocide, Colonisation, Grief, Homophobia, Blood, Cursing, Child abuse, Death of parent, Alcohol, Infidelity, and War
immovabletype's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
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
Graphic: Chronic illness, Classism, Homophobia, Colonisation, Xenophobia, and Sexual content
Moderate: Alcoholism, Misogyny, Alcohol, Outing, Genocide, and Terminal illness
Minor: Cursing, Child abuse, Confinement, and War
booksthatburn's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-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? Yes
5.0
A FRAGILE ENCHANTMENT is an emotional story of complicated paths to happiness, featuring a seamstress who falls in love with the prince whose wedding clothes she's designing. With much to prove and everything to lose, Niamh tries to hide her feelings in order to not make a volatile political situation even worse by upending the upcoming wedding. But, as they spend more and more time together, her feelings become impossible to hide, and his protectiveness is starting to include her wellbeing.
The worldbuilding is excellent, working with the characterization to set up a fantasy version of regency England (Avaland), complete with a magic-fueled but no less terrible history with fantasy Ireland (Machland), including calling out this fictional version of the potato blight and contributing policies as genocide. One of the core tensions in the book is that Kit's brother and current regent, Jack, is ignoring the frustrated calls for better treatment and redress of concerns from the Machlish. Niamh is a Machlishwoman, invited to Avaland for her magic and skills as a seamstress. She finds herself falling in love with Kit when she's supposed to be making the clothes for his wedding and the formal appearances leading up to the bit event. Rosa, his betrothed (from what I'm pretty sure is fantasy Catalan or perhaps Spain), is as personally uninterested in the wedding as Kit is, but they are both going through with the political union for the sake of others. This leads to a very fun narrative space where Niamh is trying to navigate her feelings for Kit, but isn't automatically breaking someone else's heart in pursuing her own happiness. The mysterious gossip columnist, on the other hand, keeps having something to say about it, driving the threats of scandal even if the parties directly involved don't see it that way.
I love Kit and Niamh's chemistry. I'm a sucker for most variants of grumpy/sunshine, and especially for brooding (masc) characters who get pulled out of their shell, and this one is excellent. As the story unfolds, Kit's initial combativeness and disdain makes much more sense. I laughed and laughed when I got to the part with the very first item Niamh made for Kit. It's such a fantastic bit of characterization and plot, just the idea of that coat as his first real introduction to her skill in a public-facing setting. They've both become used to putting aside their own wants and needs in order to sacrifice for others, but each of them has been going about it in different ways. Kit has been floundering and frustrated because none of his direct attempts make it through to his brother and he's oscillating between desperately trying and abandoning all hope. Niamh is using up her time and body by being reckless with her energy when she has a hereditary chronic illness which will eventually turn terminal. They've both been trading pieces of themselves to help other people, and their relationship is the first positive and selfish thing either of them has attempted in a long while.
I'm very pleased with the ending, it's even better than I could have hoped for and more than any of the characters dared to dream. I'm looking forward to what this author does next.
The worldbuilding is excellent, working with the characterization to set up a fantasy version of regency England (Avaland), complete with a magic-fueled but no less terrible history with fantasy Ireland (Machland), including calling out this fictional version of the potato blight and contributing policies as genocide. One of the core tensions in the book is that Kit's brother and current regent, Jack, is ignoring the frustrated calls for better treatment and redress of concerns from the Machlish. Niamh is a Machlishwoman, invited to Avaland for her magic and skills as a seamstress. She finds herself falling in love with Kit when she's supposed to be making the clothes for his wedding and the formal appearances leading up to the bit event. Rosa, his betrothed (from what I'm pretty sure is fantasy Catalan or perhaps Spain), is as personally uninterested in the wedding as Kit is, but they are both going through with the political union for the sake of others. This leads to a very fun narrative space where Niamh is trying to navigate her feelings for Kit, but isn't automatically breaking someone else's heart in pursuing her own happiness. The mysterious gossip columnist, on the other hand, keeps having something to say about it, driving the threats of scandal even if the parties directly involved don't see it that way.
I love Kit and Niamh's chemistry. I'm a sucker for most variants of grumpy/sunshine, and especially for brooding (masc) characters who get pulled out of their shell, and this one is excellent. As the story unfolds, Kit's initial combativeness and disdain makes much more sense. I laughed and laughed when I got to the part with the very first item Niamh made for Kit. It's such a fantastic bit of characterization and plot, just the idea of that coat as his first real introduction to her skill in a public-facing setting. They've both become used to putting aside their own wants and needs in order to sacrifice for others, but each of them has been going about it in different ways. Kit has been floundering and frustrated because none of his direct attempts make it through to his brother and he's oscillating between desperately trying and abandoning all hope. Niamh is using up her time and body by being reckless with her energy when she has a hereditary chronic illness which will eventually turn terminal. They've both been trading pieces of themselves to help other people, and their relationship is the first positive and selfish thing either of them has attempted in a long while.
I'm very pleased with the ending, it's even better than I could have hoped for and more than any of the characters dared to dream. I'm looking forward to what this author does next.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Homophobia, Bullying, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Drug use, Chronic illness, Alcohol, Colonisation, Sexual content, and Xenophobia
Minor: Antisemitism, Drug abuse, Vomit, Death, Grief, Lesbophobia, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Infidelity, Genocide, War, and Death of parent