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perusewithjess's Reviews > Lore of the Wilds

Lore of the Wilds by Analeigh Sbrana
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it was ok
bookshelves: 2023-goal-1-own-voices

Believe me, no one is more disappointed that I didn't fall in love with this book than me. It's a diverse fantasy, it's cottagecore, it features an enchanted library - on the surface, it ticked all the boxes and it's the most excited I've been for a fantasy romance in a long time. I had 3 main issues which really impacted my enjoyment of and engagement with the story:

1. Maturity of writing - this was a conflation of several sub-issues, and collectively they significantly impacted my enjoyment of the book. Issues included:
- Over-repeated (and occasionally cliche) descriptions e.g., the MC constantly describing the love interest as "tasting like blackberries and honey" or "smelling like cedarwood"
- Trope for trope's sake e.g., stopping at an inn and immediately being told the room has only one bed, introducing a half-day training sequence (master/apprentice style) with no follow-up
- Unrealistic character development e.g., the MC having no experience wielding weapons, being trained in using a dagger for a few hours, and then being able to hold her own in a fight against trained opponents
- Unrealistic plot development e.g., encountering a very challenging situation and being able to resolve it literally overnight

2. Pacing issues - the pacing was extremely inconsistent throughout the book e.g., very fast-paced at the start, very slow in the middle. I don't mind changes in pace during a book, but the high volume of changes combined with the slow paced sections feeling like they dragged did not make for the best reading experience.

3. Romance - I can't quite put my finger on the exact issue, but the romance between the MC and main male love interest simply didn't feel believable to me - the development of their feelings felt inauthentic, and their chemistry was lacking.

All that being said, I also think I perhaps wasn't the right audience for this book - I was expecting it to share more similarities with books like Legendborn or The Final Strife (both of which I absolutely loved), but I think in reality this is closer to books like These Hollow Vows (which I found a more generic and less engaging read). I think fans of more commercial fantasy romance may enjoy this book, and again, it's wonderful to see more diverse representation in the sub-genre - I hope this paves the way for more traditionally-published BIPOC romantasy in 2024 and beyond.
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Reading Progress

June 10, 2023 – Shelved
June 10, 2023 – Shelved as: to-read
December 12, 2023 – Started Reading
December 12, 2023 –
page 20
6.41% "The vibes are good but why is the opening sequence almost identical to acotar?? am I dreaming? or did I miss that this was also a beauty & the beast retelling?"
December 13, 2023 –
page 40
12.82% "MC now has to spend time relatively isolated in a magical library. Beauty and the beast comparison continues 👀"
December 17, 2023 – Shelved as: 2023-goal-1-own-voices
December 17, 2023 – Finished Reading

Comments Showing 1-8 of 8 (8 new)

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lover of forests thank you for this review! the summary sounds like a book for me but the issues you described would definitely be my issues with a book too.


Kate Toney Maturity of writing for sure. When I finished the book I thought “I wish this was like her third or fourth book and I think it’d be really really good.”


perusewithjess lover of forests wrote: "thank you for this review! the summary sounds like a book for me but the issues you described would definitely be my issues with a book too."

was definitely disappointing after being such an anticipated read! I've seen other positive reviews though so it seems to resonate very differently with different people.


perusewithjess Kate wrote: "Maturity of writing for sure. When I finished the book I thought “I wish this was like her third or fourth book and I think it’d be really really good.”"

It had the bones of a great story and some really lovely cottagecore elements - I'm not planning to continue the series but would potentially be interested in checking out the author's other work a bit later down the track


Fernanda Azevedo This should've been a middle grade or ya at most, but trying to squeeze adult in it was a bad idea :/


perusewithjess Fernanda wrote: "This should've been a middle grade or ya at most, but trying to squeeze adult in it was a bad idea :/" Totally agree, YA would have been a better fit


Zury Z Am feeling the same about your review. This book is under Scify at my local library. I thought it would be more Scify.


perusewithjess Zury wrote: "Am feeling the same about your review. This book is under Scify at my local library. I thought it would be more Scify."

It is definitely not a sci-fi! New Adult/Adult fantasy romance would be a much better categorisation.


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