Lore of the Wilds centers on a world where humans have been mysteriously displaced from their home world and subjugated by Fae. Lore ends up traveling from her human enclave to be assigned the task of organizing an enchanted library that the Fae have been cursed from entering.

There is lots to like about this book. it has a very diverse cast, including racial and sexual diversity. Lore is a typical YA fantasy heroine who impetuously faces danger to save those she cares about. The magic system is interesting. The orders of Fae are novel and the tension between them adds some drama.

I say that Lore is a YA heroine, but I’m not actually sure this is supposed to be a YA book. It is maybe new adult based on Lore‘s age, the hints of SA, and the one spicy scene in the book. But Lore’s impetuousness, and the nature of the relationships between her and other characters lacks maturity.

There are four potential love interests, so it is less of a love triangle than a love pentagon? 😂 The chemistry and tension between these characters is a bit uneven. And sometimes we are told that feelings are developing rather than being shown that they are developing.

The plot takes some interesting twists, and some confusing turns. The pacing is a bit off. Things that feel like they could be the focus of the entire novel are resolved pretty quickly. To give you a sense of this, there is no plot point that results in what I would consider graphic content warnings because they all stay at the surface and are resolved really quickly. 

There’s just a lot crammed in there and while the sequels could take their time unraveling much of this, at the end, there’s an indication that it’s going to take another turn all together. And I was very surprised to see that it is part of a duology and not a longer series. Which suggests that answers and explanations to the many things that are going on may not be forthcoming.

There is some pining in the book. Finndryl does provide one or two almost-swoony moments. The spicy scene is not bad but it feels out of place. 🌶️

In terms of diversity, most of the characters are people of color. There are a few moments that hint that Lore is bi or pan. And one character seems to be definitely aro and possibly ace.

Overall, I was entertained. I will likely read the next book in the series. And I hope that the next one goes through some more extensive developmental editing. ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/🌶️