Every once in a while, a book comes along and reminds me that I'm naive and then hurts me in ways I forgot were possible.

The Wild Huntress has been at the top of my TBR for a while because I really enjoyed The Drowned Woods (I haven't got around to reading The Bone Houses yet, but now I feel obligated to) and also I've been in my unhinged forest era. I read this in two sittings and less than 24 hours, and I already want to reread it.

Drawing from the mythology of the Wild Hunt, the story follows three characters as they band together to try to win the hunt. Branwen is a human huntress who can see magic and wishes to save her mother; Gwydion is a young man with power over plants and a mission to save his kingdom; and Pryderi is a prince raised by a monster who aims to discover his true nature. Found family, magic tournaments, sketchy forests - this book had so many of my favorite tropes and concepts, which is probably why I enjoyed it so much. I absolutely adored the vibes, and while I've seen a few other reviews say that the beginning was slow, I didn't really feel that because I was so engrossed in the world and attached to the characters. The Hunt itself was a bit less action-packed than I was expecting, but I didn't mind because I enjoyed the character development and the slowly building sense of dread. I kind of predicted the ending plot twist, but only right before it occurred, and because I read The Drowned Woods (and I was therefore already acquainted with the author's plotting style in some sense). I have mixed feelings about the ending because, on one hand, I think it makes sense given the world of the story and the mythology it is based on. However, I also think it would have benefited from a bit more foreshadowing and a bit more detail in the resolution. I know this is a standalone, but because the author tends to write in the same world, I'm hoping that we get a bit more closure (even if only mentioned briefly) in future books.

What really drew me into the story were the characters. Admittedly, I struggled to love Branwen initially because she felt a bit generic (how many young huntresses that get embroiled in fantasy matters can we have in books?), but she quickly distinguished herself with her love for her cat and her cunning mind. I also just love her character design. Pryderi reminded me a bit of Isaak from King of Scars for some reason, and at first, I was also hesitant toward liking him, but I quickly grew to love him and his moral conflict. I think we spend the least amount of time in his POV, but I cherished those moments because he's so intriguing, and he's also just super sweet. Gwydion was initially my favorite, although I think he balanced out with the other characters later on. Plant magic is something I've been really into lately, so I thought he was cool from the get-go, and when you throw in that trickster/prince but not heir personality, it just made me love him more. The dynamics between these three are impeccable, though again, I have some thoughts on the ending. I (for some reason) wasn't expecting the level of found family that I got, and I already miss these characters.

The Wild Huntress is a YA fantasy novel featuring Welsh mythology regarding the Wild Hunt, a found family of cat-lovers and maybe-monsters, and immaculate magical forest vibes.

4.75/5