Adversary to the Villain

Adversary to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer 352 pages Book 4

Synopsis: Evie has always tried to be helpful, loyal, and only mildly involved in treason. But with a dangerous prophecy threatening the very magic of Rennedawn―not to mention the race to claim its necessary artifacts before King Benedict does―things are starting to feel…less like a career path and more like a serious problem.

The prophecy won’t stop pointing in Evie’s direction. The Villain’s magic keeps choosing her. And honestly, if you’re going to be accused of evil anyway, you might as well commit.

Unfortunately, the more Evie leans into her alleged villain era, the more her boss starts acting like the hero of a completely different story. Trystan is getting closer―closer than is wise, advisable, or even remotely professional―and looking at her like she’s already chosen a side. His.

Which is deeply inconvenient, because if Evie can’t save the kingdom’s magic, she might just become its greatest threat.

My Thoughts: I love this series! We are getting to the impending doom of it all and I cannot wait to see how this series concludes! The snark is still snarky, the characters are still beloved and the plot is still interesting. Read this series if you enjoy comedic romantasy!

Emily Wilde's Compendium of Lost Tales

 Emily Wilde's Compendium of Lost Tales by Heather Fawcett 368 pages

Summary: 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.

Along with her former academic rival-now fiancé-the dashing and mercurial Wendell Bambleby, Emily is immediately thrust into the deadly intrigues of Faerie as the two of them seize the throne of Wendell's long-lost kingdom, which Emily finds a beautiful nightmare, filled with scholarly treasures.

Emily has been obsessed with faerie stories her entire life, but at first she feels as ill-suited to Faerie as she did to the mortal world-how could an unassuming scholar like herself pass for a queen? Yet there is little time to settle in-Wendell's murderous stepmother has placed a deadly curse upon the land before vanishing without a trace. It will take all of Wendell's magic-and Emily's knowledge of stories-to unravel the mystery before they lose everything they hold dear.

My Thoughts: Honestly, by the time I got to this book, I just wanted the series to be over. I thought all the issues were over by book 2, but alas we went straight into another problem that just felt like the author was running out of ideas and wanted to do the same old storyline again. I continue to love Wendell's character and Emily and his relationship. I just didn't really like the whole lost tales concept and it was too narrow for my liking. 

Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands

 Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett 370 Pages

Summary: Emily Wilde is a genius scholar of faerie folklore who just wrote the world’s first comprehensive encyclopaedia of faeries. She’s learned many of the secrets of the Hidden Ones on her adventures . . . and also from her fellow scholar and former rival Wendell Bambleby.

Because Bambleby is more than infuriatingly charming. He’s an exiled faerie king on the run from his murderous mother and in search of a door back to his realm. And despite Emily’s feelings for Bambleby, she’s not ready to accept his proposal of marriage: Loving one of the Fair Folk comes with secrets and dangers.

She also has a new project to focus on: a map of the realms of faerie. While she is preparing her research, Bambleby lands her in trouble yet again, when assassins sent by his mother invade Cambridge. Now Bambleby and Emily are on another adventure, this time to the picturesque Austrian Alps, where Emily believes they may find the door to Bambleby’s realm and the key to freeing him from his family’s dark plans.

But with new relationships for the prickly Emily to navigate and dangerous Folk lurking in every forest and hollow, Emily must unravel the mysterious workings of faerie doors and of her own heart.

My Thoughts: In this book we get to delve more into Wendell and his fae side. Emily and Wendell still have amazing banter in this second book and their continued separate character developments. Emily's dog Shadow is wonderful and he's one of my favorite characters. Also the magic in this book becomes much darker than the first book, which I appreciated. 

Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries

 Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett 352 pages

Synapsis:  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 the start of a heartwarming and enchanting new fantasy series.

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, and the Fair Folk.

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.

My Thoughts: I thought this was a cute, cozy Romantasy book. I enjoyed learning about different types of Faeries. I really connected with Emily on how much she struggles with interacting with other humans and small talk being difficult. I love Emily and Wendell's relationship, their ups and downs.