4.5

This was such a fun, romantic and meaningful read. I found myself enjoying the overarching story a lot but what I love the most is the themes and topics Saft discussed in this book. Saft brought up the conversation of sacrifice and selflessness but also the importance of doing things for yourself because your worth also matter upon the grand scheme of things. There were a handful of quotes that touched me so much. The characters are fantastic as well- the romance, the friendship and family dynamics were all wonderful. I've read all of the books Saft has put out so far and her improvement is immense and felt with every new release. I definitely look forward to whatever she plan next and her debut into the adult genre later next year.

Allison Saft's book 'The Fragile Enchantment' feels like I'm reading or watching Bridgerton. The story tells of a designer named Niamh and her friendship with a soon-to-be groom, Kit. Eventually, it turns into something else. They join forces to examine the secrets of the royal family. The book describes Niamh's aspirations as a designer.

Thank you to St Martin Press and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book and give a review.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this digital ARC. This is my honest review.

I was so excited to read this book. I greatly enjoyed Saft's previous books this was an instant request. I'm so glad to have had the chance to read it.

Niamh is a seamstress of great skill but also one who has the ability to weave magic into the clothing she makes. Kit is a prince who is being forced into a royal marriage by his brother, for reasons that slowly come to the surface as the book progresses.

Fate brings them together when Niamh is chosen to be Kit's seamstress for his wedding garments. She comes to the palace, meets Kit and his brother, and sets to work creating clothing for this reluctant groom.

Niamh is a sweet and deeply kind person, who put her family's well-being before her own. She is determined to give them financial security through this contract with the royal family, no matter what the personal cost to herself. She has secrets of her own. I do like the way chronic illness is woven into her narrative.

Kit has a very prickly and off putting personality, which he has cultivated and uses as armor to shield the kind and observant and considerate person he is underneath. His character arc was satisfying and getting to peek beneath the rough exterior was great.

This book was lyrical in the writing. Whimsical, romantic, steeped in political intrigue and drama, with a mostly HEA, or at least HFN ending.

I liked the idea of magic being woven into clothing and that the creator's own mood could seep in and alter the expected result, often in unexpected and troublesome ways.

When I think of a dreamy, cozy, romantic young adult novel, I will forever be turning to this story. Words honestly cannot describe how deeply I fell in love with this book and how excited I was every time I picked it up to read. Sure, the plotting turned a bit predictable at the end, but the characters? The dreamy writing? The world-building? There is so much to appreciate about this novel. It was fun and escapist, but also well-structured and well-written.

I want to open this review discussing the writing style. I’m a sucker for beautiful prose that harkens imagery and emotions from figurative language. And, wow, did this novel deliver when it came to that. Most of my highlights were sentences (or entire paragraphs!) of beautiful writing. What truly enchanted me was the purposefulness of the prose, and how much of the figurative language harkened back to Niamh (our main character) being a dressmaker. That tie-in gave the writing depth, but also gave Niamh an incredibly strong character voice. Truly, the writing style was the pillar of this story.

The characters! The representation! The romance! The transformation! Honestly, if Allison Saft wanted to write more books in this world with this cast of characters, I would be unbelievably down. There was not a single character I didn’t root for (okay, Rosa’s father is an exception to this), which shows how strong Niamh’s character voice was. Our main character was, simply put, a cinnamon roll. She wasn’t afraid to be herself and protect her goals, but she was also able to see the best in people and did so without judgement but with empathy. I cannot imagine any of the other characters leading this story as well as Niamh did. Plus, she had an incredibly important theme to explore: that being a people pleaser will only bring more harm than good to one’s life. As a people pleaser myself, it was so interesting to see that theme/psychological element explored in a fantasy world. And it was portrayed with honesty and empathy through Niamh’s experiences.

Of course, our cast of minor characters added everything to this story. There was Sinclair, the prince’s best friend and our gay side character. There was Infanta Rosa and Miriam, our closeted lesbians (I was rooting for them the entire time!). And we can’t forget about Prince Kit and Niamh, our bisexual love interests! (Sidebar: There were world-building mentions of homophobia in the world as well, but that wasn’t challenged much, considering the other subplots unfolding on page.) These five made the most adorable found family, but they also each had their own personal journeys they were on. While the focus was on Niamh’s personal development—of which every single side character reminded her to develop away from her people pleaser ways—the side characters weren’t neglected either. The stronger developmental arcs were for Kit (Prince Christopher) and Infanta Rosa, who had to learn to somewhat abandon their prickly exteriors, allow themselves to be challenged, and to stand up to the royal leaders dictating their futures (Prince Regent John [Jack] and the King of Castilla). Overall, though, I have nothing but love for these characters and honestly would read an entire series about these characters.

Of course, there is so much to say about the plot too! I would say the plot was solid in the beginning but began to unravel into predictability around the 70% mark. The opening sections drenched the reader in a rich, Regency era inspired world with a sprinkle of magic on top. But I was impressed with the slow-burn of both the plot and the romance. Usually, I expect young adult novels to be a little speedier with their plots and that was not the case here, but that ended up being an advantage for the novel. The novel balanced a fair number of subplots, too. But none of them were overwhelming or forgotten about. They each take their turn on the page and nudge the characters in the direction they need to go. With that being said, around the 70% mark, it was easy to predict the trajectory of the plot. I had already figured out Lovelace’s identity and knew the story would wrap up cleanly. That didn’t mean the remainder of the conflicts were any less fun to read about—it just took a little bit of sparkle out of the novel.

If I had to make a minor critique, it has to do with Lovelace’s column. Obviously, the gossip column (ala Bridgerton and Lady Whistledown) must have a level of anonymity to it. But I found myself having to slow down at those passages and really take a minute to figure out who Lovelace was discussing. The codenames weren’t always clear (mainly, thinking of Jack’s codename here) and it took some thinking to determine who Lovelace was referring to.

I hadn’t read an Allison Saft novel before this, and it goes without saying that I’ll be picking up her other novels as soon as I can. I fell in love with her unbelievably tight plotting, character work, and world-building. I was enchanted by her writing style, and that’s truly what made me fall for this novel. I hope every reader that loves romantasy will grab a copy of this book—it’s worth it. Trust me.

TW: alcoholism (mentioned, off-page), homophobia (mentioned, off-page)

Thank you to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

This was a lovely, if not super groundbreaking reading experience. There were so many things I loved about this: Allison Saft’s descriptions were so magical and lush, which lent to the story well. I absolutely loved reading the moments of our main character weaving enchantments into her tailoring, it made the magic of the story feel special. If you like Stephanie Garber’s writing, you’ll definitely enjoy Saft’s. I also really loved how she was able to make the grumpy-sunshine trope feel authentic and not super trope-y, which I feel can often happen with books now. My main issue with the book is that the political aspect of the story felt like it was weighing it down, and I often felt my mind drifting during those moments. It felt like this was happening more often around the halfway point of the book. This was still a fun, magical reading experience and I will definitely continue to read Allison Saft’s work.

A Fragile Enchantment is what I needed in my life right now. I loved the writing, the characters, and the plot! It reminded me of Howl’s Moving Castle and with that comes the feeling of nostalgia. I absolutely recommend this novel to anyone! I will be buying copies for friends!

The best way to describe this book would be a fantasy version of Bridgerton. There was a lot of court politics but with added magical elements. And while I didn't love the main love interest, I still enjoyed the story and the overall plot of the book, especially because of the extremely strong supporting characters. The writing was as I expected for a regency era fantasy novel, I cannot say it blew me away but it also didn't leave me desiring more. This book will be perfect for fans of ACOTAR, Bridgerton, From Blood and Ash, and Fourthwing

This gave fantasy romance and Bridgerton vibes! It sort of reminded me of the Selection as well. The world building was a little hard to follow along with but I loved the English/Scottish elements.

This book had me so completely frustrated and so annoyed with the way men do things. I swear if people just had normal adult conversations and learned to communicate, things would work out in everyone's favor.
That being said, I did love this book, I loved Niamhs character so much, I loved the use of magic, I loved the details. And I loved that her and Kit ended up together. Truly black cat and golden retriever couple. His soft spot for her was so perfect.
This book gave me Outlander mixed with Bridgerton vibes.
I loved the casual queer representation, the protests, and the people finally being heard in the end. Truly a good read. Would definitely recommend. My only wish is that there was a pronounciation page for the names, but other than that this book was so adorable and i loved every ssecond of it.

This regency inspired romantic fantasy was an interesting read that took me a little while to get into, but once I did, I was entertained for the most part.

The very obvious English and Irish dynamic that had names changed for the interest of the story helped me understand a little more than I think I would've otherwise if I had no knowledge of historical tensions between the two. I had hoped for a little more originality with the setting, class struggle, and prejudice, but for the story's sake it did help me follow along. As for the main characters, I saw a lot of myself in Niamh and her constant need to live her life for others. It's an all too familiar wormhole that I find myself in often and the way that the lesson was presented in this story really struck a chord with me and I found myself connecting to that part of the story. As for Kit, his cynical and rude personality hides an inner softie for only those he truly loves and trusts and I liked him well enough. I did think the rate at which he allowed Niamh in and how insta-lovey it was kind of threw me off but perhaps it's because I don't find myself a fan of the trope and even more so when one of the characters hates the other one so much at the beginning. I did really appreciate the queer and chronic illness representation we get, especially since we get a lot of that with a main character. I also really liked the political intrigue, the interesting magical aspect, and forbidden romance.

Overall I liked this story and the whole cast of characters. It has that fun regency feel in a fantasy world where magic and romance and political tensions reign supreme while also teaching you to live your life for yourself and no one else.

Niamh is a dressmaker with the magical ability of stitching emotions and memories into the fabric as she sews. She has grown up with a family who relies on her to be the breadwinner and hope for their future. She has never thought solely of herself and puts the needs of others even before her health. Her magic is extraordinary, but it is slowly deteriorating her health. But she knows that a commission from the King with help solve her financial woes and heads to Avaland to secure her family’s future. What she doesn’t expect is the Prince.

Kit is not gentlemanly. He is surly. He is rude. Kit is not prince material. And he cannot control his magic. Kit has been sent away from the Kingdom these past four years, and has only returned in order to wed a woman he has never met. He cares little for anything around him, so why does the tailor draw his attention?

A wonderful fantasy world with a cast of characters that are well written and draw you into the story. I hope there might be another book with these characters because I truly want more of Niamh and Kit.

4.5 stars
Thank you to NetGalley & Wednesday Books for the ARC! This was very Cute with a capital C. Bridgerton with magic, Grumpy vs. Sunshine with a light side of enemies to lovers- this pleasantly surprised me. I wish the countries were just called England and Ireland though- I didn’t get the name change. Will definitely look up this authors other work now!

4.25 stars
I adored this book, my goodness! I LOVED the magic system and how the main character could weave feelings and memories into the clothes she made. Seriously such an amazing idea and it was something that I haven't really seen before.
My real only gripe was that the complication between Kit and Rosa's father was solved in one page. It felt too easy. That seriously is my only complaint and even still, I think this book is INCREDIBLE. I'm hoping there is another book to come. I will definitely be picking up some of this authors other works!
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

I've been on an historical fantasy kick this summer, and this story was amazing!

This was my first time reading this author and I loved her writing and world-building.

Niamh leaves her village and her family to design a royal wedding in the palace, as she is a seamstress with great magical abilities.

When she arrives at the court, things are different from what she expected and political intrigue abounds. Everything gets more complicated when Kit, the prince, and Niamh form an unlikely friendship.

A gripping story with well-developed characters. Highly recommend!

I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.

This is a really sweet, historical, fantasy romance story. It is really well written. Allison Saft has such a way of creating beautiful images in words (I felt like I could see some of the dresses Niamh was making). There were some good tropes that I enjoy (grumpy/sunshine, forbidden romance, slow burn). It definitely has Bridgerton vibes with the Lovelace gossip column. But I did not feel the chemistry between the two main characters, so the romance fell flat for me.

Bonus points for lots of LGBTQIA+ representation.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press, Wednesday Books for providing an eARC of this book!

A Regency romance inspired fantasy .. think Bridgerton vibes, but add magic!
The story was whimsical, the forbidden romance was filled with just the right amount of banter and swoon worthy moments.
This was such a fun read, and exactly what I needed in the moment. I’ll definitely be looking for this authors books in the future.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the published for graciously providing me the opportunity to read this eARC!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!
Really lovely writing and story, love this author!
The magic element was super neat, and the romance was sweet and heart warming.
A perfect cozy little read.

This book is so precious and dear to my heart. I fell in love with Allison’s writing in a far wilder magic, and this regency fantasy romance was just as good. I think her writing is so beautiful and she makes characters that I legitimately wanna be friends with. The bisexual panic from our woman main character here is so relatable. I truly think that all of you who are not fans of Sara J mass fantasy romance type books would really enjoy fantasy romance the way that Allison writes it. There’s some thing so tender about the way she writes romance.

this was absolutely *enchanting* and i had the best time reading it. when i tell you i was kicking my feet, giggling nonstop, there’s no exaggeration.

i do think there were a few plot points that were unresolved, which was a bit of a letdown. plus, niamh got on my nerves a lil. i know nothing will beat a far wilder magic by the same author tho. i love that book <3

thank you netgalley for the arc, i feel so lucky :)

The idea of weaving memories into clothing is a really unique form of magic and I thought it was well written. I love regency era romances so I was excited to read one with a magical twist. However, I had trouble believing the storyline and connecting with the characters. It felt like Niamh felt entitled to everyone’s time even though she was new to court and didn’t know anybody. The characters also did not seem to mature throughout the book. This book just wasn’t for me. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!