I always have such a good time in this world! I didn't love this second installment as much as book one, but it was still well worth a read.

Emily and Wendell are back and at it again, this time researching to create maps of the Otherlands, aka Faerie, in the Swiss Alps. This book picks up several months after book one ends, but things are pretty much in the same spot with all the characters. There's a new cast of side characters here (and a lot more of them) that I didn't care for one way or the other. Emily's seriousness and Wendell's laissez-faire attitude play off each other hilariously.

I love the whimsy and magic of these books, but definitely felt it more in book one when the world was being established, and I appreciated all the "outside resources" cited in both (but more often in the first), and research Emily was doing (again, in both, but more often in the first). This one has a bit more action than book one, so if you're still iffy on the idea of cozy fantasy this might be more your speed. I'll happily read all the books in this series, but truly think book one would've been perfect as a standalone. Both books wrap up nicely, though, so you won't be left on a cliffhanger or unsatisfied between installments.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers, and the author for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review.