Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands

, #2

English language

Published Jan. 16, 2024 by Ballantine.

ISBN:
978-0-593-50019-4
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5 stars (2 reviews)

When mysterious faeries from other realms appear at her university, curmudgeonly professor Emily Wilde must uncover their secrets before it’s too late in this heartwarming, enchanting second installment of the Emily Wilde series.

Emily Wilde is a genius scholar of faerie folklore—she just wrote the world’s first comprehensive of encylopaedia of faeries. She’s learned many of the secrets of the Hidden Folk on her adventures . . . and also from her fellow scholar and former rival, Wendell Bambleby.

Because Bambleby is more than infuriatingly charming. He’s an exiled faerie king on the run from his murderous mother, and in search of a door back to his realm. So despite Emily’s feelings for Bambleby, she’s not ready to accept his proposal of marriage: Loving one of the Fair Folk comes with secrets and danger.

And she also has a new project to focus on: a map of the realms of …

2 editions

Delightful, Dark, Cozy

5 stars

If you liked the first, this is basically more of all that made Encyclopedia wonderful. The pacing is a bit more balanced, the characters are just as lovable, and the new setting is a delight. I almost wish there was more exploration of the Alps like there was in the first, but the trade off was a more focused plot while maintaining the cozy charm of a stuffily academic pursuit of nightmare creatures. It’s probably obvious by now I adored it.

The romance elements remain very mild and sweet, more akin to Austen than Maas. This is much more to my liking, but may be a disappointment for others.

More faerie intrigue, mystery, and romance in what is quickly shaping up to be my favorite series. Read it!

No rating

Got my hands on this book the same day I had an assignment due, so naturally I read the book first. I have no regrets. The first book in the series is one of my top ten, and this one is equally matched, with all the faerie lore, twists, and Emily/Wendell interaction I loved from the first. The amount of fae politics and court intrigue is bumped up from the first, and it is SO juicy! Ugh, the drama of it all is just so good. A handful of teasers dropped in the first book get some satisfying reveals here, and Emily and Wendell's relationship beats are so sweet.

The book does a great job of bringing back all the things I loved about the first installment, while adding new developments to keep the story moving. Two new major characters are added who initially had the potential to be very …