This was by far my least favorite of the series and felt like something to finish just to get through the end of the set. Em lost most of her usually wittiness, quirks, and sass, and the story was mostly a sort of slow-loping slog to being king and queen without the past queen continuing to screw everything up. The most I ever felt like I was getting the gold of the previous two books was when Emily leaves Wendell on her own to solve some things (without spoilers) and we finally get some creepy new faeries and disturbing and unsettling interactions. I wanted way more of this, but was left bereft. Why couldn't we get some deep dive into the Hagshead Deer? They're right in Wendell's castle gardens, after all! And why not more about the unsettling qualities of the Trees with Eyes. Instead, this felt like a fluff piece with pieces of the good stuff tossed in here and there. A disappointing ending to be sure.

I love this series so much! It is so cozy and I love this world. I will read anything Heather Fawcett writes! :D

This was such a lovely ending to the series, I thought! I don't know what it is about these, but as with the previous 2 titles, they started off a little slowly but then they dove right into the action fairly quickly. The ending to Emily & Wendell's story was perfect, in my opinion. If you're looking for a mostly cozy faerie romance, this series is for you!

I had fun with this series from start to finish! A really nice blend of plot and romance. I love that, from the very beginning, our heroine was unquestionably the smart and useful member of the pairing. As Wendell gained more narrative powers I was worried Emily might start taking a backseat. But no, he’s as useless and devoted as usual, and I, for one, applaud that.

Heather Fawcett has done it again—Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales is a delightful, clever, and magical continuation of a series that has completely enchanted me. In this third installment, Emily Wilde finds herself not just cataloging the Folk, but ruling among them—an academic thrust into a faerie throne room, equal parts dazzling and dangerous.

Thank you Netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Oh my gosh I love this series so much ahhhhh!!! Emily and Wendell have my whole heart. I love them so much and this world is so immersive and fascinating! I love the way these books are written as journal entries. Emily is an amazing main character and of course narrator of the story because it all comes from her perspective. The audiobook narrators of this series blow me away at how talented they are! Ell Potter does such an amazing job I can always tell what characters she is imitating at all times before they even say who it is!! I’m going to miss these characters dearly and I kind of wanted to cry when I finished 😭 This has been such a comfort series for me and I wish I could sit in this world forever. Everyone should go pick this series up!!!

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this title. All thoughts and opinions are my own and were in no way influenced by receiving this copy.

4.5 stars. Since this book is written in a journal style (as all the other books are as well) there is not very much refresh that happens at the beginning to remind you of all that happened in the last book. I wish I had read a synopsis to refresh myself because I had forgotten so much that happened in book 2.

All that being said, this was still an excellent read and I really enjoyed it. I liked that we got to see old characters again and it didn't feel forced either. I really didn't know what this book was going to have happen in it either, since last book really wrapped up at a nice end. And even still every page with every new twist I was always surprised at what happened.

I enjoyed this read and felt this was a good wrap up to our story.

It took me a while to get going with the final Emily Wilde book — it picks up right where the last one left off and since I read it over a year ago, I didn’t really remember much. Even once the book had its own momentum going, I think it lost a lot of the focus on magical academia and was a little more of a straightforward fantasy adventure, which struck me as a bit of a shame since the magical academia was what the first book did so well. I still enjoyed it, just not as much as the earlier installments!

In this final installment in the Emily Wilde series, Emily and Wendell are ready to take the throne as King and Queen of Faerie, but a curse threatens to destroy everything they love. The stakes are slightly higher in this volume, with Wendell's life threatened unless the duo can find a solution to the curse's poisonous clutches. Just as the previous novels succeeded, Compendium of Lost Tales spends plenty of time with our leads navigating various hijinks, back and forth clever banter, and sprinkles of swoon worthy romance. While the plot is somewhat coincidental and wraps up almost too neatly, it is sure to satisfy fans of the romantic duo as they formally commit to their lives as King and Queen. It's a sweet and satisfying ending to the series.

This is the third installment in this series. I had a bit of a difficult time getting into this one in the beginning, but once I did, I read it straight through. I enjoy Emily's character so much. The way these are written in such an academic way makes me happy. It is different and fun than most fantasy writers. This story drags a little compared to the other two in the series, but when things start happening, it is a quick read. Loved how previous characters were included in this book, but they weren't necessarily the main focus. The main characters had some sweet moments, which was nice.

First, a big thank you to NetGalley and Alcove Press for the ARC of Heather Fawcett's novel "Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries" – “Emily Wilde has spent her life studying faeries. A renowned dryadologist, she has documented hundreds of species of Folk in her Encyclopaedia of Faeries. Now she is about to embark on her most dangerous academic project studying the inner workings of a faerie realm-as its queen.”

I'm still in shock that I managed to get this ARC because the first two were so good. Overall I did enjoy the book but found myself a little disappointed in the end because I was really hoping to love it wholeheartedly. This series has always meant a lot to me, and as I dove into this final installment of the trilogy, I was so excited for it to be the highlight of my reading year. However, it just didn't meet the high expectations I had set. In theory I loved this series but in reality they just slightly missed the mark for me.

There was something about this book/series that felt a bit off. The pacing of this book was just slow at times. And I did find myself putting down this book to read something else. When things finally started to pick up, the action would wrap up leaving me wanting more. The central plot didn't feel as strong as I hoped, and I have to admit I chuckled at some of the resolutions, but not always for the right reasons. I was looking forward to more intricate and engaging political maneuvers, but it felt a bit mundane overall.

As for the characters, I didn’t click with many of the side characters; they just didn’t resonate with me. Orga, Shadow, and Snowbell were the standouts, but the other characters were a bit forgettable. I struggled to remember any distinctive traits or memorable moments involving them.

Wendell was compelling and really shone through. He was the standout character for me, and I loved his journey by the end. Emily however didn’t quite live up to my expectations. I wanted more from her, I felt like she lost some of the charm and depth from earlier books. I think it was because she was trying too hard to fit a certain image, or perhaps she just didn’t seem as confident. Which felt like the exact opposite from her in early books. I struggled to connect with her and found myself a bit frustrated most of the time. Although the story positioned her as the heroine, I felt like she didn’t make quite the impact needed from this role. While she is responsible for saving the day, to me, it felt like she didn't do all that much.

While Wendell’s love for Emily was clear and consistent, it felt like Emily wasn’t quite matching his intensity, making their whole relationship feel awkward and one sided.

Overall, I wished Emily would have shone more in her role, whether it was as a queen or in solving the problems in this book. It’s a bit sad for me to say that this book didn’t end up being the grand finale I imagined; it was a fine read but I don't know how often I will revisit this series.

This book is a perfect, cozy wrap-up to one of my favorite fantasy series. Heather Fawcett absolutely nails the balance of whimsy, folklore, and heart. Emily and Wendell are such a fun, lovable duo, and their relationship continues to be sweet, awkward, and full of charm. The faerie world is just as magical and mysterious as ever, and the writing is full of warmth and wit. If you’ve been enjoying this series, this final book won’t let you down. I’m genuinely sad it’s over, but so glad we got such a satisfying ending.

Emily Wilde's Compendium of Lost Tales is the third book in this delightful historical cozy fantasy by Heather Fawcett. Released 16th Jan 2024 by Penguin Random House on their Ballantine imprint, it's 368 pages and is available in hardcover, paperback, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout.

This is a historical academic fantasy with light romance elements set in Edwardian England and is so beautifully written that the descriptive prose is occasionally breathtaking. The titular protagonist, Dr. Emily Wilde, is a prickly strong-willed academic who is performing field studies to categorize and understand the fae (dryadology). This often lands her and her colleagues in dangerous situations, though she usually manages to extricate herself using her prodigious knowledge and sheer will (and cleverness). She finds it easier to confine herself to codifying the unspoken rules which govern the fair folk than to understand the same with her fellow humans.

There is (naturally) an element of slow-burn romance in the form of an former frenemy (now firmly in the romantic lead role, and her betrothed), the exasperating (but devilishly handsome) Dr. Wendell Brambleby, well-born (he's royalty in exile), charming, and infuriatingly indolent. It's marketed as a YA selection, so there are some smouldering kisses, but nothing outré or explicit.

For fans of Katherine Arden, Natasha Pulley, Cat Rambo, and Catherynne Valente, this book will recall the wonderful feelings from those authors' books. It's not derivative in any way, but it *is* magical. Dr. Wilde is refreshingly forward thinking and the book more or less simply ignores the inconvenient proscriptions against women being unchaperoned and engaging in academic careers on a somewhat level playing field with their male colleagues. It's delightfully peppered throughout with academic notations, referencing (and lampooning) non-existent literature. The footnotes elevate the whole to a *chef's kiss* other level.

The unabridged audiobook format has a run time of 11 hours 43 minutes and is expertly narrated by series narrators Ell Potter, and Michael Dodds. They both have eminently listenable voices and make a nice contrast to one another; Ms. Potter's cut glass RP accent contrasting nicely with Mr. Dodds' lower tenor Irish lilt. Sound and production quality are high throughout the read.

Five stars. Gorgeous. It's a continuing series, and would make a great binge/buddy read.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

What a wonderful ending to the Emily Wilde Trilogy! I couldn't pinpoint my favorite character or scene, but loved every bit of it. It took me only a couple of days to devour this installment. (Actually I lied, Orga is my favorite.)

Of the three Emily Wilde books, this one is by far the most faerie-centric—it mostly takes place in Silva Lupi! I have to be honest and say missed the academic/real-world focus the previous two books had, but I still loved spending time with Emily, Wendell, Shadow (as always, Shadow is a major hero in the story 🥹🥹🥹🥹🥹) and more.

Dnf at 30%

I was super bored and nothing was happening. I loved the first two but this one was not holding my attention at all.

This was wonderful! I loved the writing style, the characters, the world-building…everything about it was top-notch. I will definitely be recommending this book!

This copy was kindly given to me by the publisher and Netgalley for review. All opinions are my own:)

Emily Wilde gets all the stars!! Shadow is my spirit animal, he is just the goodest boy that ever lived and I would defend him with my life, much like our dear Emily would. I have absolutely fallen in love with this series and am satisfied with the ending; its open enough for more books but wrapped up enough that the story feels concluded. This series has catapulted me out of my reading slump and I couldn't be happier for it. It might go down as one of my favorite series of the year... or ever...

I feel like a better title would be Emily Wilde's Compendium of Diminishing Returns.

Or, Emily Wilde's Version of Holly Black's The Queen of Nothing.

This book was a disappointment, from its uneven pacing to its lackluster characters to...well, a lot of everything. The stakes were literally through the roof bad, but it was all just treated as "meh." The only person who had any agency or personality in the book was Emily herself; everyone else was merely set dressing.

I was talking with a friend who'd read this as well and had the same issues, and I think the problem is that when you pair an Amy Santiago with a Jake Peralta (to use a B99 analogy), then you can't just have them remain the same and not really interact. They play best off each other, and they grow best together. There is...not a whole lot of growth in this book, either with Emily or with Wendell. The time spent together feels so disconnected, lurching from one episode to another, with Emily low-key freaking out and Wendell just ambling about on his throne and going "oh thanks for the solve, Em, I knew you could do it" before he, ya know, bleeds out over the forest to try to heal the kingdom.

I think, in my head canon, I'll have this trilogy end at book one, which remains in my mind, absolute perfection.

I received an ARC from the publisher

This was very well done! I didn't realize at first that it was part of a series, so I had to read the others first, but I loved the entire series! This third book especially grabbed my heart - the characters are amazing, the setting is immersive, and the story was just perfect!