I wanted a little more from the ending, but I liked the discussion about Emma figuring out she identifies as aro/ace. I liked the direction of Emma dealing with being ignored and not taken seriously, but I wish that had culminated in more of an emotional climax along with the climax of the plot.

This took forever for me to finish, but I really liked it once I started seeing it as a fairy tale with a specific message instead of expecting the kind of complicated nuance of a fantasy that is not based on a fairy tale.

3.5 stars

I really enjoyed being in this world and seeing how Bilbo develops by the end of the story. I did find the writing style a little hard to connect with sometimes. I just don't read many classics for pleasure but my issues with the writing could also be related to the pacing within some scenes.