(4/5) Beware of the mysting and beware of the Deep.

Enna is considered an outcast by her village because of her papa. Few remember that he was called upon for the war when an army of mystings—monsters—threatened the human realm. Fewer still know that Enna’s mother died at the hands of gobblers, monsters from the Deep, and that her father had to cut her from her mother’s belly. To keep Enna safe—so that she would never suffer like her mother—Enna’s father found a way into the monster realm where he rescues a Telling stone that will allow Enna to sense the presence of mystings and avoid them to stay safe.

When monsters from the realm of the Deep begin appearing in the wildwood beside Enna’s home, each in search of Enna’s precious Telling Stone, she uses magic from her grandmother’s journal and summons a mysting of her own to protect her. Maekallus is different than what Enna suspected as a mysting. He’s more human, with a sense of humor and a trickster personality. Soon they are tied together, and the fate of Enna’s soul rests within Maekallus—literally. With each fragment of Enna’s soul that Maekallus is forced to consume to stay alive, he becomes more human, more like Enna. With each kiss, she breaks off a part of her. And so blossoms a budding romance. But Enna and Maekallus are in danger, and if they do not free Maekallus from the human realm that binds him, they will both parish.

“The mortal realm will devour a mysting body. The monster realm will destroy a human’s mind.”

This is a beautiful story of change, new love, and sacrifice. It has all the right fairy tale vibes and moves quickly enough to keep you turning pages. I found myself crying by the end. Overall, I’m quite happy with how it ended.

In terms of technicality, this was an easy read—a plus for me. However, I think this story would have been more enjoyable had it been presented in past tense. I find present tense awkward to read, but that’s just me. The majority of The Will and the Wilds was presented in first person present, while the point of view of Mikallus was always presented in third person present. It took some time getting used to switching from present first to present third. However, after I got past that, I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. I also felt some of the world building could have been hashed out in greater detail. It is for those reasons that I have given it four instead of five stars.

The Will and the Wilds is a definite must-read if you like fairy tales, monster inspired creatures, portals to another realm, magic, and fantasy inspired love stories.

I would like to thank NetGally and 47North for the opportunity to read an advanced review copy, and have offered this as my honest review in exchange.

Truthfully, I have seen her previous work, The Paper Magician, all over the internet but I have not read it yet. But, after reading The Will and the Wilds, I really think I am going to have to check it out. I mainly picked this book because I thought the summary sounded interesting, and, I will not lie to you all, I really liked the cover. I am not ashamed to admit that I may have been influenced by the beautiful illustration.

All that aside, I want to jump right into what this book is about and my thoughts.

Truthfully, when I started reading this book, I was a bit taken aback by the writing. I have never read anything written like this, the way the author tells her story is dated, but from a time you can’t quite recall. The writing in and of itself feels like world-building and I am not sure that makes much sense until you read it but I found it amazing. Essentially, it feels like otherworldly historical fiction in a sense but isn’t written like historical fiction in the way that the author forces clunky words, instead it just gives off the vibe of a different era.

I think the world-building of this novel is absolutely fantastic and I really loved it. I have nothing but good things to say about this novel and it was another one of those that when you get really into it, you binge it incredibly quickly.

This book is unlike a lot of things I’ve read. The author mentions that this book idea came from a dream and it’s just wild enough that I believe her. Truly, I can’t wait to check out more of this author’s works because I feel that her writing style is incredibly unique.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an advanced copy of “The Will and the Wilds” by Charlie N. Holmberg. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

I will definitely be purchasing a physical copy of this book when it releases. I inhaled this book! It reminded me of “An Enchantment of Ravens” by Margaret Rogerson and I adore that book.

Enna lives near a wildwood filled with mystings which are somewhat fae-like creatures varying in form but all lethal to humans. Despite the mystings brings responsible for Enna’s mother’s untimely death, Enna studies the variety of creatures and keeps meticulous notes about her findings in the hopes of being taken serious as a scholar. Enna’s father, a former warrior, once braved the mysting realm and returned with a stone for Enna that allows her to sense the presence of mystings.

After mystings attack Enna and her father in their own home, Enna summons a more powerful mysting named Maekallus to protect them. The two strike a bargain, but all isn’t what it seems with their deal. Prolonged exposure to the human realm is fatal for mystings and the terms of the bargain chip away at Enna’s soul as Maekallus consumes it to heal himself.

I loved Enna so much. She was very relatable in wanting to use her knowledge of mystings to help others even when people don’t take her seriously. She had such heart and fought for what she believed in.

Maekallus was such a cool character. He’s a narval type of mysting which makes him look human but with some interesting features. I have no artistic talent but someone needs to draw him- he deserves it. I enjoyed his journey throughout the story as he interacts with Enna.

All in all such a lovely book. My heart hurts in the best way.

5/5 stars

I love kissing books and this one will make your toes curl!

Maekallus is a Narval, a humanoid yet horned mysting creature who steals human souls with a kiss. Enna is a human who summons him to kill another magical creature who hunts her.

They are bound together by their deal - without her kiss he’ll die, but every time she kisses him she loses a piece of her soul.

A unique love story with wonderful world-building and soul-steaming kisses! Highly recommended for fantasy and romance fans alike.

Every time I see the news that a new Charlie N. Holmberg book is coming soon, my heart does a little leap for joy! Charlie is a storyteller of superior skill and creativity, and not once have I ever walked away from one of her books disappointed. I don't know about you, but I can get tired of seeing the same old fairy tales rewritten over and over again, and sometimes I just crave something new. And that's exactly what Charlie delivers! Fairytales you have never heard before, written in a way that make it feel like it's a tale told throughout the centuries. I entered into reading this book with high expectations, and they were surpassed beyond my wildest imagining.

Enna Rydar knows the woods are dangerous, full of mystings who could kill you easily and without conscience. Mystings arrived into their realm years ago, when the mortal realm and the monster realm collided. Not long after, Enna's mother was killed by one of them while still pregnant, and Enna was saved by her father. Mad with grief, he ventured into the monster realm and returned with a Telling Stone, which enable the bearer to know if a mysting is nearby. So Enna is protected...until a mysting finds them and marks her for death, and the only being she can turn to for help is another mysting. One who looks more humanoid than the rest but whose kiss can steal your soul.

I love, love, love Enna and Maekallus (the soul-stealing mysting). Sure, his intentions are not honorable in the slightest in the beginning. After all, his nature requires the stealing of souls, and when he's hurt, her soul is the only thing that could help him live. They were such a mismatched pair in the beginning, all fear and unknowing and loathing. Enna knew she couldn't trust Maekallus, but as he gained more of her soul, he became more human and less mysting. With that came compassion and kindness and concern for Enna, and they grew closer. Enna was so strong out of necessity, and Maekallus was able to help her let go and rely on someone else on occasion. The way the story flowed felt very natural, and their relationship wasn't forced at all. You could tell as time passed that their close proximity meant they had to get know each other as Enna and Maekallus, not as human and mysting, and with that knowledge came friendship and then love. The ending was just beautiful.

I continue to be amazed at Charlie N. Holmberg's writing and can't wait to see what she writes next!

**I received a free copy via NetGalley and this is my honest review.**

Written by Charlie N. Holmberg, The Wills and the Wilds (coming out Feb 2020) follows Enna, a girl who lives in a world with monsters called Mystlings and is the only person (thanks to a stone) that knows when they are near and what they are. As the mystlings start to seek her out for this stone, she summons one of them to protect her in a bargain. Little does she know what the bargain drags her into.

This is SUCH a good novel. Really, so good. It is well written, and while there ends up being some romance, the novel isn’t about the romance. It’s about learning and doing everything you can to live while still keeping secrets.

Our “helper” Maekallus is an interesting and intense character on his own. This is the mystling who makes the bargain with Enna. All he really wants is to eat her soul.

Enna is the kind of character that I want to see more often. Her main motivation is saving herself and keeping her father safe. How the author reveals information is well paced and kept my attention for the entire novel.

This is a book where none of the characters are without flaws. Sometimes, they just don’t have redeeming qualities. But there are a whole variety of characters and interesting foils throughout.

The only thing I wish, is that we got to interact a bit more with some scholars, well one in particular, that Enna ends up meeting.

If you enjoy fantasy, and if you enjoy romances that are of the Beauty and the Beast variety, this is a great choice for you. If you don’t like either of those, but you enjoy some odd creatures and fight scenes, this might still be worth a shot for you.

I did receive a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

The mortal realm will devour a mysting body. The monster realm will destroy a human’s mind.

Enna takes care of her father, whose mind has deteriorated from a trip to the monster realm. Tolerated outsiders from their village, they largely keep to themselves and only venture to town once a week to sell their mushrooms.

Despite Enna's protections to deter mystings, one breaks into their home intent on stealing the protection charm Enna has worn since her father returned home with it. When more mystings start popping up, and her father refusing to leave because of his fractured mind, she decides to do the unthinkable: hire a mysting to deal with the mystings.

Simple enough...until the mysting that helped her, Maekallus, finds himself bound to the mortal realm. Feeling responsible—and tricked into thinking her fate is tied with his—she consents to a kiss that steals a part of her soul. Thus begins Enna and Maekallus' journey to unbind him and return her soul before there's nothing left.

What is a soul if not an extension of the heart?

The thing that I love about Holmberg is that all of her books are unique. When I first found out she was dipping her toe into a fairy tale fantasy I was thrilled with what she would come up with. [book: The Will and the Wilds] did not disappoint.

The Deep (aka: the monster realm) is not like the usual paradise described of the fae realm. IMO, it's actually closer in nature to what I'd think of as a version of hell. Maekallus' beginning is not the usual fae story but equally steeped in magic.

Enna was a surprisingly strong character for how kind and unselfish she was. Generally, I find the truly selfless complete pushovers. I genuinely liked Enna and that was surprising.

Maekallus was also a pleasure. I have a love of bad boys and while softening him up a bit didn't detract from him, I will probably always like his emotionally disconnected state the best.

Time is the best healer, my grandmother used to say, but it is a cruel master that takes pleasure in my torment and withholds its salve.

The love interest was slow burn and tried to take a look at a deeper connection to what fuels your emotions: your heart or your soul? The evolution of their relationship was gradual and well developed.

The main antagonist, however, was like a blip on the radar. The one thing I feel would have improved the novel was including more main villain. The story introduces him early but we don't really get to see much of his character throughout the novel. The end battle was anticlimactic at best.

Despite liking the story, I did end up rating this one 3.5 stars because I had felt a lot of the questions I had were left unanswered. <SPOILER>If the soul is the bed of your emotions, then why does any soul work for Maekallus? While I would have been sad about it, I kinda wished Enna's father could have passed his soul to Maekallus...because that would have definitely made sense as far as transferring love. It felt a little disconnected and a stretch to have the stone gift its soul instead.</SPOILER> That being said, cute read!

Recommended for those that like slow-burn romance with a well-paced read.

Thank you to Netgalley and Holmberg's street crew for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was hooked from the first pages on. I didn’t know what to expect, since the summary was a little vague, but I was not disappointed in the slightest.

We have Enna, human who needs protection from the mystings from the world under that seek her. She ends up allying with Maekallus, one of said mystings to find a solution to her problem. Of course, nothing goes according to plan, and Enna is caught up in a series of events involving magic and Maekallus more than she ever planned for.

Most of the story is set in Enna’s world, so human Earth, and more specifically, is set in the wildwoods near her house. If you don’t like forests, trees and such, there’s a 100% chance you won’t like this book. I didn’t mind that at all, and enjoyed the forest mood a lot, and found it was most fitting for the story. I must admit to be a little disappointed I didn’t get to read more about the big cities around Enna’s house, or about the mysting realm, which, even though it sounds terrifying, seems quite interesting too.

As for the characters, we have two main characters, Enna and Maekallus, who are more than all right, and I really like them. Enna is down to earth, caring for her sick father and trying to be nice to the villagers she encounters even though they don’t always treat her the best. Maekallus was also a good character, but I did not enjoy the small chapters told from his point of view. I didn’t see what it added to the story besides the fact that it showed he was more fragile than he pretends to be. That being said, he’s still from the mysting realm, and even though the events in the story lead to him being a little nicer than usual, he’s still a badass character , and I loved him.

Last character that attracted my attention is Tennith, who has a crush on Enna and receives mixed signals from her. Poor guy gets used by Enna and then left with absolutely no explanation of what is going on. I felt so sorry for him 😂 I really hope that he gets a nice life at the end of the book, because he deserves the world, but the world doesn’t deserve him so far. He’s also a character I would have liked to know more about ! Not much, but just a tiny bit more.

In the end, I was struck by how fast I was sucked in the universe of this book. It’s completely captivating and the magic is always present. I read it in 2-3 days, which is extremely fast for me ! Here’s a book I’m happy to recommend to all YA fantasy fans !

I don't think my love for the books Charlie N. Holmberg writes is any secret. I have really enjoyed all of her previous books. And I really, really wanted to love this one. I tried. But in the end it just wasn't for me.

It had an undertone of Beauty and the Beast - a mortal falling in love with a monster - and I've never been a huge fan of that kind of story. There was also an alternate love interest that I liked SO MUCH MORE, and it frustrated me that the nice guy got jilted. (I don't consider this to be a spoiler, as it's frustratingly obvious from the very beginning that nothing will happen with this relationship.)

So while I will continue to be one of Holmberg's biggest fans and read all of her future books, this one was definitely not my favorite.

I was thrilled to see another standalone fantasy from Holmberg - her novel "Followed by Frost" is one of my all-time favorites. This one is a somewhat darker mix of wildwood, whimsy, mystery, magic, and of course - kissing.

It has an almost nostalgic core of classic fairytale, with some Beauty & the Beast in there. I think the villain could have been stronger, but overall the setting was fascinating and captivating. I really enjoyed all the characters. I wanted more. I was left with some unanswered questions and felt a bit mystified (pun intended) by some of the origin story and magic, but I don't think you need to understand every bit of every world to be enchanted by it. Especially by the end, I didn't want to put it down. It's a quick and satisfying read. I'd recommend it!

This story made me think of "Little Red Riding Hood" and "Beauty and the Beast".

I loved the story and the idea of the Wildwoods and the Deep. The characters were intriguing and the romance was lovely. I thought I might not like the ending, but I was in fact quite happy with it.

I would definitely recommend this book!

As with all the other books I have read by this author I’m not surprised that this story was full of magic and placed us in a new unique world.

The fun for me is not knowing all the little details of the world and so it a wonderful journey to discover what surprises await, and in this story, what kind of monsters we are going to learn about.

Enna’s life has not been easy dealing with a mother who has died, a father who has lost his mind, and a village that sees pair as oddballs. When she makes a deal with one of this fantasies monsters she ends up in over her head. With her never give up spirit and a magical stone she may be able to make it out of the deal alive. Or she may lose her soul to a dark beast.

When I first started reading I kept thinking, “ a true Beauty and the Beast retelling?” But it’s a bit more complicated then that. This time it’s not a cursed prince and a young lady looking for her father. This time it’s a creature from “The Deep” called a narval, "formed from the spilled blood of bastards” and a young lady, Enna, who is just trying to keep care of her father who acts almost like he has a form of dementia. But it’s caused by the fact that he ventured into The Deep in order to collect a Telling Stone, which he turned into a bracelet for his daughter. The Telling Stone warns Enna of any creature from The Deep that is in the area.

So how do these two end up in each other’s company? Well Enna and her father are attacked by a Gobbler from the wildwood and Enna is marked by its touch, alerting to other creatures to her location. She’s basically marked as prey. Enna decides to use the limited knowledge left in a book by her predecessors to summon a misting creature from The Deep to hunt down the remaining creatures. She calls up Maekallus, a naval who answered her call because he was curious who would be stupid enough to summon a creature from the deep.
He and Enna strike a deal, two gold coins for the death of the remaining creature. Problem is, there’s two creatures left. One of them gets the jump on Maekallus and he is gravely injured. He lays dying/being devoured by the mortal realm and Enna begins dying with him because of them deal, which they sealed in blood. So she decides to listen to Maekallus and gives him a kiss to help prolong his life. Problem is, naval’s feed upon souls and steal them via a kiss willingly given. BUT he only gets a chunk of Enna’s soul, thereby tying them together until their deal is finished.
So they are stuck together until they can find the final Gobbler and complete the bargain, allowing Maekallus to return to The Deep before the mortal realm consumes him completely and allowing Enna to keep her soul.

Without giving too much more away, this was an interesting read and the romance had a nice build up to it. The main bad guy could have had more page time, I thought. Instead of feeling like part of the story, he was more like a side quest to the main story, which was Maekallus and Enna. I wasn’t completely sold by a few things, like the stone’s soul thing. But all in all it was a pretty good tale.

Holmberg is one of my favourite authors, there are very few books that can beat The Paper Magician series for me. So I will also read a new Holmberg book when it is out!

The Will and the Wilds was a great book, it been a long time since I have read a standalone fantasy novel so this was a treat. I must admit though, it is incredibly descriptive in the beginning and took a while to get started but I enjoyed it.

My only issue was I could see I was about 75% through the book and could see no way that Holmberg would finish it without rushing through it. Good news, I was wrong!

I would wholeheartedly recommend this book for someone looking to read a lovely little fantasy novel between big series, a lovely reset, well done Charlie!

Why is Charlie N Holmberg one of my favorite authors of all time? Well, she excels at creating unique worlds, cultures and customs for each book or series, in a way that feels totally natural. That’s a talent that just blows my mind because there are authors that really struggle with that, or just take a lot of time explaining themselves when she does it seemingly effortlessly as shown in this book.
The story is that of a girl Enna, who has been tasked with keeping her small family going after the death of her mother, grandparents and father’s reduced mental capacity. She lives in a world plagued by mystings which are other-worldly creatures that are known to attack villagers. She gets by because she has something the other villagers do not, a stone as well as an intense curiosity passed down by her grandmother. When trying to rid herself of a mysting that has targeted her, Enna inadvertently begins an adventure and gets much more than she bargained for.
This book had so many twists and turns, I couldn’t put it down. It is another great stand-alone novel but could easily be re-visited and become a series.

The Will and the Wilds is about a young woman named Enna, who is a bit of a social outcast because of her ability to sense mystings, or creatures from the monster realm. When mystings take interest in Enna's home and her enchanted stone, she employs the help of a humanoid mysting named Maekallus. Maekallus agrees to help Enna, but at a cost. When their bargain goes awry and their fates are tied, Enna must find a way to save herself, and Maekallus before it's too late.

I'm new to Holmberg's work but I was hooked right away. Enna is resourceful and quick witted character who will do anything to protect her home and her father, who sacrificed everything to keep her safe, even though it cost him dearly. I loved the supernatural aspect to the story and the romance was believable and didn't take over the whole story. It was slow building and sweet. I hope to read more from this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending an e-ARC for an honest review.

I always get emerged in Holmberg works where love is never easy and work is tedious. The characters are consistent and never do the smart thing.

“You and I, we’ll always be different. There will always be something wild in us. Others will see what they want. It’s always been that way.”

I noticed this book on Netgalley a few times before I just had to cave and request it. I was afraid that I would struggle to get through it like several of the others that I requested on a whim, but luckily this one wasn’t like that. It’s a beautiful feminine story full of romance and monsters, warmth and heartbreak.

I loved this book top to bottom, and the ending did not disappoint. I absolutely had my cake and ate it too. I worry anytime I read a villain/monster romance story that the heroine will end the story without integrating her shadow because I’ve been burned so many times before... It does feel like I’m entering a new era of storytelling now, and It’s never felt more satisfying.

Read this book, please! It’s great for fans of Naomi Novik’s works, it’s got that same delicious, pastoral feel that soothes my introverted soul. It also doesn’t shy away from the ugliness of life. I absolutely recommend!!

Charlie N. Holmberg is a magician with words. She has the rare ability to build lush worlds and characters, without making things feel ridiculous or forced. Many authors, when trying to create new languages and creatures, make a garbled mess out of things, and you can't suspend your disbelief long enough to enjoy what you're reading. This is not the case with this book. I felt Enna's joy and sorrow, and my heart broke for her and with her.
I will never miss out on any of Miss Holmberg's work again.
This book was generously provided by Netgalley for review purposes, but all my opinions are my own.

**4.5 stars**
CH is always one of my go-to authors. I know that if she had a book out, I will love it She always had such a creative and unique twist with her plots and dynamic world-building. Every story is thought-provoking with concepts meant to drive the reader to take a deeper look into themselves. Characters are complex with emotions and feelings that grip you and pull you into the story and into their lives. She has a beautiful mind comes up with wonderful world full of mysticism and magic, good and evil, love and hate; but at the same time she shows that each is two sides of the same coin and should be treated with care and looked on with eyes of compassion.
This story is no different. Enna lives all alone with her father and at the edge of the wildwood. Her father risked his sanity to travel into the Deep to retrieve a talisman against the mystings that killed her mother. It should protect her, but now the monsters that go bump in the night after hunting her and she needs a champion. She decides to go into the dark wildwood and summon a monster to hunt a monster. But things go horribly wrong when her life gets tied with that of his. Now they must work together before it's too late for both of them, but can a human and a mysting trust each other? With her soul on the line, Enna must decide to what lengths she will fight to safe her enemy.

** I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review. **