• Booklist Reviews : Booklist Reviews 2023 January #1
  *Starred Review* Dr. Emily Wilde is a scholar visiting the remote Scandinavian nation of Ljosland to study the Hidden Ones, a species of faerie. She is joined by her faithful dog, Shadow, but otherwise is on her own to focus on her work until her Oxford colleague, the affable and too-handsome Dr. Wendell Bambleby, shows up. He is hoping she will coauthor a paper with him; her superior scholarship will guide the research, while his stellar reputation in the field will add gravitas. But she prefers to work alone. Still, Bambleby remains, doing annoying things like making their shared cabin more homey and making friends with the locals, who warn Emily to let the Hidden Ones stay hidden, despite the havoc they wreak on the town. Told entirely through entries in Emily's research journal, Fawcett's first novel for adults is propelled by the voice of curmudgeonly Emily, whose hard outer shell slowly melts in the face of friendship. The full cast of characters, well-developed faerie lore, and pervasive sense of cold add depth to the delightful proceedings, which include scholarship, yes, but also danger and a hint of romance. Emily is an Amelia Peabody in snowshoes, and readers will be utterly charmed. Copyright 2023 Booklist Reviews.

Heather Fawcett is the author of the middle-grade novels Ember and the Ice Dragons, The Language of Ghosts, and The School Between Winter and Fairyland, as well as the young adult series Even the Darkest Stars. She has a master’s degree in English literature and has worked as an archaeologist, photographer, technical writer, and backstage assistant for a Shakespearean theater festival. She lives on Vancouver Island.