A review by kathleenfairchild
Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful reflective tense 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

3.75

It was fun reading this story from the viewpoint of Emily’s journal entries. She’s a great main character, so smart, take-charge, very focused on her work, but also struggling with reading people and socialising. Bambleby is more charming, chaotic and laid-back. I like that we get a few journal entries from his POV too. Loved, loved, loved the banter between these two not-really-rivals but sort-of friends that slowly turn into something more … sort of. The romance is not the main focus though.

I also enjoyed the exploration of fairies they are more of the folklore kind of variety. I adored the little brownie Poe. He’s so cute.

I must say that I liked the first half of the book much more than the second one. Especially the events in the last third felt a bit rushed due to the journal-type of presenting the story. It also felt far less cosy and quite a bit darker than the first half.

The relationships between Emily and the people in the town are done really well and were a joy to read because of the complexity.