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A review by heyimberbie
Lore of the Wilds by Analeigh Sbrana
adventurous
dark
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I first heard of this book from a reviewer on tiktok (@satrayreads omg she’s an icon) who raved about it and so this became one of my most anticipated reads of 2024.
For a debut novel, I thought it was very well done and I really really enjoyed it. The main character, Lore, is so dedicated and compassionate and such an amazing figure to have as an fmc in a book. I mean the author really took this book and said let’s put in the best fmc that makes your heart all warm and fuzzy and squishy, that’s Lore. Seeing how courageous and determined she is but also getting to see the flaws that she has with her self-sacrificing, risk-taking ways was so cool to see because usually in fantasy novels those attributes are placed on main characters that are portrayed as the ‘sassy badass assassin’ when in reality they’re just stupid and ignore any kind of warning signal. Seeing Lore’s character have those qualities and those flaws but it actually be done well was very refreshing and I loved it so much.
Another thing the author does very well is the writing. The writing alone was beautiful and could easily make someone get lost in the story. The characterization was incredible. I absolutely loved the characters and how they were described and how they acted. Even the evil characters were so so interesting to read about, and it made me hate them even more and wonder why they became evil to begin with. I think this author really succeeds when it comes to their characters and being able to write them well in a unique way while still including elements that are typically found in romantasy novels already.
However, there are some things that I did not like as much. First, I felt as though this book could’ve been run through the editing process one or two more times. There were some minor spelling mistakes and some sentences that, when paired together, didn’t really flow together in a way that made it seem like a story. Things like that tend to seem very clunky, and they in turn pull me out of the story because it’s irritating trying to escape into this world but then the same word is said twice in a sentence and the sentence isn’t even long or detailed enough to support it. (I did read an ARC however, so this may actually be something that is fixed in the published copy.) Secondly, I did not enjoy the pacing of this book. We would get occasional gaps in time and I feel like that didn’t really benefit the growth of these characters and it prevented from being able to clearly see the emotional changes that occur over a period of time. After finishing the book, I can see why we have some of those gaps, but I still wish that the pacing was left to be more of a slow burn. That way we, as readers, can get the full effect/emotion and it will leave readers guessing, theorizing, and wanting more by the time the ending comes along. I feel like this book would definitely benefit from being a longer novel because of the potential to be more of a high fantasy read than romantasy, so I’m hoping hoping hoping that the next book will be longer.
After reading the book, without giving away any spoilers obviously, I get the feeling that the author is trying to take us on this road with the main character where pieces of the story or the world-building aren’t given to us right away because of the fact that Lore’s people aren’t originally from this world, so we’re on this journey with Lore to figure out the secrets of the world alongside her. However, I feel like there was a lack of cohesion. I was disappointed with the lack of history given in regards to the world-building, and some characters or situations left me thinking things like “how is this possible?” or “where did this come from?” or “how did this system get put in place/come to be?” and I feel as though things like that could be fixed if there was maybe a clear scene where Lore finds out more on the history of the world she’s in or even just of her people. I think there were many scenes where something like that could’ve been included, but it wasn’t and that left me a little sad.
Honestly, if you are a person that tends to love characters that are very heart-warming, and especially if you are a fan of the found family trope, I think this would be an amazing book for you. If you’re a fan of romance/romantasy, this too would be a great read, but the pacing and time skips might make you wonder, like I did, why those skips were included and why there wasn’t as much detail put onto the introduction of some characters. If you are also a cottagecore girlie and love everything fantasy, witchy, mushroomy, maybe you hang those fake vines up in your room and wish to live as a little wicked witch in the woods, this would also be a nice book for you too.
Thank you NetGalley & HarperCollins for the gifted copy of this book. This is my honest review ✨