Challenge Corner discussion

A curmudgeonly professor journeys to a small town in the far north to study faerie folklore and discovers dark fae magic, friendship, and love, in this heartwarming and enchanting fantasy.

Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world's first encyclopaedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. She could never make small talk at a party--or even get invited to one. And she prefers the company of her books, her dog, Shadow, and the Fair Folk to other people.

So when she arrives in the hardscrabble village of Hrafnsvik, Emily has no intention of befriending the gruff townsfolk. Nor does she care to spend time with another new arrival: her dashing and insufferably handsome academic rival Wendell Bambleby, who manages to charm the townsfolk, get in the middle of Emily's research, and utterly confound and frustrate her.

But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones--the most elusive of all faeries--lurking in the shadowy forest outside the town, she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she'll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all--her own heart.

Surprisingly-- since I'm often very behind with my BRs-- I managed to start this early! I'll be posting my comments later. I'm about halfway done

Ehy! I'm behind with buddy reads, sorry! I plan to start this as some point during the week! ;)

I'll post my comments this week too!

I actually started last night!
Only 38 pages in, but really enjoying it so far! I just wish Emily was a bit more social! Finn seems to try very hard to make her feel welcome!

29th October - Evening: (view spoiler)[Ah! She cares about the family with the changeling! And Wendell IS a fae! So interesting! :)

I really like Poe! (hide spoiler)]

12th November: (view spoiler)[She almost chopped off his arm! Poor Wendell! (hide spoiler)]

26th November: (view spoiler)[Awww! He is so cute! :P (hide spoiler)]

Finished: (view spoiler)[I loved this so much! I loved the found family theme, I loved Bambleby, I loved their bickering, it was all so good!

Though Emily judgement in going to free the Faery king was questionable at best...

I just wished she had said yes to marrying Bambleby and we had seen the reaction of the audience to their discoveries! :) (hide spoiler)]

I haven't felt well these last few days but still posting the comments tomorrow

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RESTARTING FEBRUARY 23RD, 2024


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a bit late but should be starting tomorrow!

I had to catch up on some other reads but I plan on starting this one tonight.

Ooo I have the physical of this - might join!

How is it going with this one? I started the first chapter yesterday but didn't really get into it. thinking it's because of my mood

Started!

Through 23 October (view spoiler)[ Kind of a slow start, I'm not sure what the plot is besides her researching fae, but I guess we'll see.

The people of the town seem pretty mean to her, maybe they don't want her there looking into things? (hide spoiler)]

Haley wrote: "How is it going with this one? I started the first chapter yesterday but didn't really get into it. thinking it's because of my mood"

It's a slow start for sure. By the chapter '29 October Evening', it's picked up a little bit

Through 19th November (view spoiler)[ So Bambleby is a fae king, very interesting. But really, other than that revelation, I don't really understand what the plot is. Will they be overthrowing his stepmother so he can take the throne again? (hide spoiler)]

Aly wrote: "Haley wrote: "How is it going with this one? I started the first chapter yesterday but didn't really get into it. thinking it's because of my mood"

It's a slow start for sure. By the chapter '29 O..."

good to hear! I have it on my bed waiting for me to start. Hoping to get into it this week

Through 26th November - late (view spoiler)[ Bambleby loves her?? Where did that come from? He's been sleeping with other women this whole time, but now he wants to marry her? No thanks (hide spoiler)]

Finished (view spoiler)[ I don't really understand why they didn't kill the king and instead left him to wreak havoc. He was imprisoned for a reason but okay.

This wasn't really for me. The slow pace and romance I wasn't excited about brought it down (hide spoiler)]

I just started this book (I'm 30% through, at 30th October), so I thought I'd share my thoughts here!

I’m loving the writing: such beautiful descriptions and metaphors that purposefully feel impossible to imagine, which makes things seem otherworldly and magical. It all feels incredibly immersive and engaging. The advanced words chosen lend themselves to the whimsical atmosphere.

(view spoiler)[The interpersonal interactions are so odd and intriguing. Emily herself is something of an oddball (and I love her for it!). She strikes me as either socially awkward or autistic (I find myself armchair diagnosing her, lol); I find her so relatable! Emily's interactions with Bambleby are hilarious. She's such a tsundere and pretends to hate on Bambleby or see him as competition despite finding him attractive, and Bambleby’s straightforward endearment in the face of her annoyance is so refreshing and never fails to make me laugh.

Emily treats the faeries with respect and dignity, just as she would talk to anyone else. She isn’t afraid or repulsed by them even though other people are, and I think this comes from her being able to relate to the faeries more than other real humans, since, like them, she doesn’t fit in. I like this!

I have so many questions!! Emily seems to be super logical and in researcher mode, and these occurrences that should be wildly frightening don’t seem to scare her at all! Is it just that she has experience and is so used to it? Or maybe she is scared underneath? And Bambleby’s a faerie prince?! Although the little brownie fae basically confirmed it, I’m still left wondering. I guess until Emily and Bambleby don’t broach the subject themselves, I won’t feel satisfied. Also, how did Emily meet Shadow? She says she “invented” a story of how they met. Curious!!

The way Auður and the changeling at the farmhouse are described instilled a heart-stopping sense of dread. The eeriness is so wonderfully horrific. And I’m so curious about what the deal with Auður is because we aren’t immediately told what happened to cause this affliction.

I love how mysteries are repeatedly set up at every turn. And it’s not confusing at all; I have all the information I need to understand the story. But rather, I’m left with specific questions that I’m impatient to find answers to. Keeps the pages turning! (hide spoiler)]

I'm excited to read further!!

Pinku wrote: "I just started this book (I'm 30% through, at 30th October), so I thought I'd share my thoughts here!

I’m loving the writing: such beautiful descriptions and metaphors that purposefully feel impos..."

Hey, we've got a series thread going right now, if you add your comments over here we can chat

https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...