3.5 stars. It hooked me and then it lost me and then it wavered but it was super cute.

This book had all the pieces that make it a perfect fit for me – light magic, a regency-inspired setting, royal+commoner enemies-to-lovers, politics – with STUNNING prose. By all logic, it should have been a 5-star read for me. And until roughly 50%, it was looking to be. But then the plot just stalled out, suddenly got quite repetitive, and, as much as I loved the main couple together, there was no forward momentum for a solid chunk of book. And then the action of the finale was so fast and everything little thing got resolved so quickly – and so EASILY – without ever feeling truly earned.

But the yearning, YEARNED. I was wholly invested even when questioning some authorial choices. A true YA magical take that should appeal to Austenites in particular. I also really appreciated the politicking involved in this story, and if anything wished that that plot point had been explored further and deeper given how important it is to our characters.

I would still recommend this to most readers. If the synopsis hooks you, absolutely worth a read.

Allison Saft’s A Fragile Enchantment is a visually rich fantasy set in a kingdom struggling with civil unrest, economic inequality, and the burden of royal duty. It had all the ingredients for a powerful, nuanced story—yet it often felt like it barely scratched the surface of the issues it introduced.

The main plot follows Niamh, a magical dressmaker brought to a politically tense court to design the wedding attire for Prince Kit. There’s a brewing workers’ movement due to unpaid wages, and staff—primarily country folk—are slowly disappearing from the palace. But the narrative barely engages with this unrest. It’s present, but never deeply explored. More frustratingly, Niamh herself is strangely passive in the face of it all. She hardly acknowledges the decreasing number of staff or questions the tension simmering around her, which made her feel emotionally detached from the very world she inhabits.

The LGBTQ+ representation is plentiful, which I appreciate. It’s clear the author aimed to create an inclusive cast, and most of the younger characters are queer in some form. But the execution felt off. Despite this broad representation, the main romance is a heteronormative one, which felt at odds with the “everyone is queer” environment. It didn’t help that a character who came out to Niamh never received a romantic subplot of his own, while another character’s sapphic relationship was squeezed into a handful of lines. It felt uneven—like queer identities were acknowledged, but not given the same narrative weight.

One detail I was hopeful about was the portrayal of chronic illness. Niamh lives with a condition that sounds like Raynaud’s syndrome—silver in her hair, aching hands, magical overexertion causing flare-ups. As someone with lupus, I understand how chronic pain becomes a constant part of daily life—something that needs ongoing evaluation and pacing. Unfortunately, the depiction in the book felt shallow. Niamh's condition is mentioned a few times, but it never truly informs her decisions, limitations, or behavior in a consistent way. One minute she’s working endlessly on intricate stitching, the next she’s suddenly in pain—but it's presented more like a plot device than a lived experience. It would’ve been meaningful to see more nuance in how her illness impacted her day-to-day functioning, particularly in a high-pressure, political setting.

In the end, A Fragile Enchantment is lovely to look at, but emotionally light in areas that could have packed a punch. The book flirts with heavy themes—class struggle, queer identity, chronic pain—but ultimately chooses to keep things surface-level in favor of a standard romantic arc. It’s not a bad book, but for me, it didn’t live up to its potential.

Thank you Netgalley, Wednesday Books, and Allison Saft for providing me a copy of A Fragile Enchantment. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I received an early copy of A Fragile Enchantment a bit before its release and, apologetically, I did not read it in time. Nor did I read it last year when I received a Fairyloot copy of the book. I had put it off due to many reading slumps and, while the excitement was still there, I could not and would not force myself to read this book.

Without further a do, here is my review.

Niamh has magical abilities, and she uses her gift of weaving magic into beautiful things for her career as a dressmaker. Niamh receives an invitation from the prince regent to create the outfits for Prince Christopher "Kit" and Princess Rosa's wedding ceremony.

A Fragile Enchantment is okay. The story is okay, the pacing is okay, and the characters are okay. It's a solid YA with fantasy elements. I enjoyed the fantastical abilities. I wish there was more of that. The romance is also okay though I couldn't find much of a connection or chemistry between Niamh and Kit. She is instantly smitten with him, even though he's rude and brash at first. He does come out of his shell as time goes on. He and Rosa are entering a forced marriage arrangement. Neither one is excited to be with the other. I did like the friendships she made with Sinclair, Kit's best friend, and Rosa.

After all this time of putting off reading A Fragile Enchantment, I'm left feeling a sense of lackluster and disappointment. I thoroughly enjoyed my experience with A Far Wilder Magic. It's currently my favorite Allison Saft story, and so far I'm unsure if she'll be able to top it. I do have A Dark and Drowning Tide on my radar and her newest release of Wings of Starlight, so we shall see if that changes later.

3 stars

Think Bridgerton with magic.

Read this one if you like:
Forced proximity
enemies to lovers
forbidden royal romance

This one was full of pros and cons for me.

Pros:
*the world it was set in was lovely. This is Bridgerton type high society. Royals and commoners. High Society Wedding and even a gossip columnist. I enjoyed the gowns and decor, culture and society created.
*Saft's writing style matched the setting. It felt cultured and atmospheric, whimsical and romantic.
*The real win was the magic. It was creative and unique. I wanted more! So much potential to make the magic sparkle.
*The romance was cute. The enemies to lovers transition, while predictable, was cute and Kit, our male MC, was equal parts cute and aggravating as one would expect with this trope.

Cons:
*This is definitely a slow burn and has a lot of repetition. It could have been half the length and still accomplished what it did. The first 60 percent or so was a bit of a slog, especially the early plot and character development. It did pick up at the end and turned out to be quite enjoyable but it was a lot to get through the first half and a bit.
* The characters felt young. While this is marketed as a YA book, the characters, particularly the supporting cast, lacked the depth and maturity I would hope for in a YA romance novel.

I quoted some reviews in goodreads "The fantasy world created by Allison Saft is both magical and believable, beautifully blending enchanting elements with the harsh realities of the political landscape"

Yes. It was Bridgerton with touch of magic. Something I like and I don't like. The political intrigues were tense and suspenseful to me. It gave me headache. But the romance was warm and cozy.

I wanted to love this book solely because a Bumble BFF match recommended it to me. But my god was this boring. None of the characters held my interest and the "plot twist" anonymous character seemed very obvious to me. Not for me.

Niamh is a seamstress and has magic in her blood that lets her stitch emotions into fabric. She is hired to make outfits for the prince of Avaland and his fiancé. Kit is rude and does not make it easy to get to know him. Over time, Niamh and Kit's friendship blossoms. A gossip columnist starts to pick up on their chemistry. The columnist promises not to tell the public if Niamh helps expose the royal family's secrets.

This is a cute romantic fantasy story. It gives Bridgerton vibes with the mysterious gossip columnist edge. It has forbidden love and society lines crossing. If you like fantasy and Bridgerton, this is the book that has the perfect combination.

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for a copy of this book in exchange for my review.

Alison Saft’s writing is so beautiful and she wrote another book for sensitive people, for the chronic caregivers, and I loved it. This story truly tugged at my heart strings and made me feel so seen. I cannot recommend it enough!

I enjoyed reading about the beautiful garments Niamh made with her powers to stitch emotions or memories into clothing and Kit’s plant magic was wonderful as well! The relationship between Kit and Niamh grew so much, but so did her relationship with the other characters in the story. The highlight of anticolonialism, I felt, was handled with care.

A Fragile Enchantment by Allison Saft is a whimsical blend of Regency-era charm and magical intrigue. The story follows Niamh, a talented dressmaker with a magical gift, as she navigates the complexities of royal court life and forbidden romance. The dynamic between Niamh and Prince Kit is filled with tension and slow-burning chemistry, making their evolving relationship a highlight of the narrative. The supporting cast, including the enigmatic Rosa and the ever-loyal Sinclair, adds depth and warmth to the story. While some readers have noted that the pacing can be uneven and the world-building occasionally lacks clarity, the novel's enchanting prose and heartfelt moments make it a delightful read for fans of romantic fantasy.

A solid cute, heartwarming romance with a happily ever after that is so clearly coming, but that you'll love every second of it.

This was such a nice read to pop between war and politic heavy fantasy romances. I really enjoyed how the relationship between the two mains progressed, and yes having everything work out perfectly for them in the end is insanely convenient, but that's just what I wanted and needed ☺️

DNF

While the book started off strongly and had an incredible premise, it fell flat somewhere around the middle. The magic system was well-crafted, but the scenes felt too repetitive and I lost the motivation to continue.

I really enjoyed this one! It had the feeling of a beloved historical romance, but it delivered so much more. The characters themselves were delightful, as was the fantasy element of a magical dressmaker.

The romance was sweet, the banter was witty, and I really loved Niamh’s and Kit’s journey to find happiness together. There were plenty of obstacles in their way to get there, but get there they did.

My favorite aspect, though, was Niamh’s struggle to take up space in a world where she feels like she has to be invisible to please others. So many of us (especially women) go out of our way to make others comfortable at the expense of our own comfort, and I really loved how that was explored in this story.

I switched to the audiobook about 1/4 of the way through the book because I was curious about the pronunciation of certain words and names. The narrator was phenomenal with bringing this story and these characters to life and I absolutely recommend it for audio lovers.


*eARC received via NetGalley.

I loved this book so much! It was just what I wanted to read. I loved the aesthetic of the world and magic we are introduced to. The romance! So swoon worthy! They communicated so well with each other which was so refreshing to read. I would love to see more from this world from Allison Saft.
A perfect read for the spring time.

This book was a Bridgerton meets Fantasy and a great entertaining read! If you're into monarchy, political intrigue, and a cast of fascinating characters, this is one I would definitely recommend!

Overall, I enjoyed this, but I would have liked to see more depth in the magic system and world-building. It just felt like they weren’t explained enough.

The first half of this was set up to be an interesting magical take on The Troubles and Irish independence, with some compelling characters and beautiful descriptions. By the latter half, it was mostly focused on the cheesy, trope-heavy, distinctly YA romance of the two main characters. It was still fun, and will appeal to Bridgerton fans, but some of the more unique storylines drifted into the background. It seemed like there was going to be some chronic illness rep but it was extremely vague and then I think the author perhaps got bored with that element because after a certain point it was never mentioned again.

There's some thematic overlap between this and Catherine Bakewell's "Flowerheart." There's a lot of pining and professing of emotions and people taking big swings. If you're looking for a swoony, low-heat, historical-adjacent romance, this one fits the bill.

[Note for NetGalley only: I ended up reading this book in physical copy long after its publication date due to the Wednesday Books boycott. I hope the publisher is following through on promises made in the interim.]

Allison Saft creates a magical fantasy world, blending elements of the political world and the wide span between the lower working class and the monarchy in A FRAGILE ENCHANTMENT. It's a forbidden love story between a lower-class labor girl and a noble prince. I find the concept intriguing; however, I found it difficult to connect with the characters leaving me needing more. However, this is the perfect book for fans of fantasy romance - a Cinderella style story that tackles real life issues.

This was a magical installment and a brilliant idea from shafts head, I enjoyed so much the story of romance, the chemistry of the characters and honestly the world building, I live for a good story where the magic is explained and also where is dying. 10/10

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC. I genuinely wanted to love this book and was so excited to dive in! Allison Saft is undeniably a talented writer, and her prose is beautiful, but unfortunately, the story fell flat for me. I struggled to stay engaged and found myself putting it down multiple times, unsure if it was the wrong book at the wrong time or simply not the right fit for me. While Niamh was a well-crafted character with a strong backstory, I never truly connected with her internal dialogue. As for Kit—I just couldn’t bring myself to care about him or his storyline, which made it difficult to stay invested. Ultimately, this one may not have been for me!

I LOVE ALLISON SAFT WITH THE BURNING PASSION OF A THOUSAND SUNS AND EVERY ONE OF HER BOOKS HITS. THIS STORY IN PARTICULAR WAS SO CHARMING. COZY AND BRILLIANT.