The first book in the Emily Wilde series by Heather Fawcett, Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries, is darkly delightful!
Stuffy Cambridge professor and dryadology expert Emily Wilde travels to an isolated Arctic Nordic island to perform field research on faeries. With her loyal dog, reference books galore, and her trusty journal, she is ready to contend with troublesome but benign common Fae, malevolent and powerful courtly Fae, and any scientific or scholarly challenges that come her way. What she is not prepared to face, however, are the locals and the societal conventions that come with interacting with them.
Emily’s infuriatingly charming colleague Wendell Bambleby invites himself to assist in her research, showing up at her rented cottage unannounced. Might he have any ulterior motives? I was not expecting the gentle ‘opposites attract’ romance aspect of the story that shows up here, but it was one of my favorite parts!
…it is hard not to be entertained by Bambleby. It is one of the things I resent most about him. That and the fact that he considers himself my dearest friend, which is only true in the sense that he is my sole friend.
There are abductions and dismemberment in this book, but also a heartwarming tale of how a socially awkward academic learns to become part of a community. It is presented as Emily’s journal (with a helpful entry or two provided by Bambleby), complete with footnotes, because: stuffy academic.
I cannot wait for book two, for more amusing Emily and Bambleby banter!
“Why don’t we go for a stroll? You can entertain me with a list of your demands. Then I can find a nice place to nap whilst you hunt for some common fae to harass.”
Jessica Crawford 