Emily Wilde's Encylopaedia of Faeries

 Emily Wilde's Encylopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett, 354 pages.

Emily Wilde is much better with faeries than people. The curmudgeonly Cambridge professor much prefers study to socializing, which means field work alone in remote Ljosland is a perfect last research trip before the publication of the encylopaedia she has dedicated her life to. Unfortunately, her carefree coworker (and sadly only friend), Wendell Bambleby, joins her without notice or permission. Nevertheless, he will be a useful co-author on her current paper, and as the weeks wear on she comes to appreciate his company more and more (despite herself).

This was a very cozy book, although I'm sure it's absolutely not for everyone. I always like an epistolary novel, and I like fiction with footnotes, so those were points in its favor for me, but I know that isn't the case for everyone. While I didn't particularly love either of the protagonists individually, I found their contrast interesting, and their relationship compelling. I also thought that the world-building in this novel was both thorough and fascinating, which is in my experience a bit of a rarity in fantasy romance books. The weirdest thing about this novel is that the prose feels like it would be off-putting to anyone who doesn't enjoy historical fiction, while the book itself (despite technically being in a historical setting) feels like it has very little that would satisfy historical fiction readers. However, if you enjoy historical fiction but are currently looking for more of a cozy fantasy novel, this could be a great choice!