I have yet to jump on the “romantasy” bandwagon — far too many Courts of Theses and Thats for me to keep track of — but maybe “Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Fairies” by Heather Fawcett is a way to back into the genre, by way of a cozy fantasy involving wicked fairies with a rivals-to-lovers subplot.
Emily Wilde is a Cambridge dryadologist who is working on a comprehensive study of fairies. She travels with her dog Shadow to an ice-bound northern island that has been experiencing problems with an especially troublesome fairy court, and discovers to her chagrin that her colleague and rival, Wendell Bambleby, has followed her. As she becomes enmeshed with the lives of the people of Hrafnsvik, Emily is drawn into the dark and deadly politics of the fairy court as much more of a participant than an academic observer.
I loved the character of Emily — prickly, standoffish, single-minded — and how she plays off Wendell, who is suave and unflappable and a bit of a rake. I also enjoyed the world, which feels like the Edwardian era if fairies were real (and who’s to say they’re not?). The mundane and the magical blend seamlessly, with thoroughly believable characters making their way through unbelievable situations. I look forward to the rest of this series.
