A fae-inflected Robin Hood retelling that leans into romance and emotional tension, with a strong focus on character dynamics over folklore atmosphere.
Pre-Reading Thoughts
I went into this expecting something more overtly mystical and folklore-driven, with a heavier emphasis on fae magic and the atmosphere of Sherwood Forest as an enchanted space. That was my reading assumption rather than anything the book explicitly promised, but it did shape my expectations going in.
Post-Reading
As I thought…
This is a well-executed and character-focused retelling, with Marian at the centre of a story built around shifting loyalties, perception, and emotional unravelling. The dynamic between Marian and Robin is handled with care and clear intent, and the gradual reshaping of Marian’s understanding of the fae and her upbringing is thoughtfully developed.
The narrative is confident in what it wants to prioritise: relationships, attraction, and internal conflict, all set against a backdrop that supports rather than overshadows the character work.
It surprised me by…
How strongly the romantic and emotional pull sits at the centre of the story. Once I recalibrated my expectations, I could see the book’s focus much more clearly - it’s less about expansive fae-world exploration and more about Marian’s shifting sense of self within a controlled and unfamiliar environment.
That initial mismatch came from my own assumption about tone rather than anything misleading in the book itself, and once I adjusted for that, the story made much more sense in its intentions.
Overall impression
A solid, well-crafted retelling that prioritises character, emotional tension, and romantic development over folkloric immersion. My reading experience was shaped by my initial expectation of a more mythic tone, but the book itself is consistent and intentional in what it sets out to do.
🌈 Vibe Check
Colour Palette: deep forest green, muted gold, shadowed bark brown, fae-glint silver
Soundtrack: rustling leaves, distant hoofbeats, low lute strings, birds suddenly going quiet
Season: high summer under dense canopy
Mood: alluring, uneasy, magnetic, slightly disorienting
Scent: crushed greenery, damp earth, something sweet just out of reach (honey? wildflowers? trouble?)
This is very much “the forest is beautiful but it has opinions about you” energy.
🔮 Tarot Pull
🃏 The Devil
This is the clearest match for the book’s central dynamic.
Not in a purely “darkness” sense, but in the pull of attraction vs conditioning vs control.
Marian has been taught fear - of fae, of the forest, of what lies outside her assigned life. And yet she’s drawn into something that feels magnetic, consuming, and hard to rationalise.
The Devil here represents:
- conditioned fear vs desire
- attraction that feels like losing control
- stepping into something taboo or forbidden
- the tension between freedom and emotional entanglement
It also fits the Robin dynamic well: not evil, but compelling in a way that destabilises certainty.
This is less “pure villain energy” and more:
“What if what I’ve been taught is keeping me contained?”
Wench publishes on the 16th of July, 2026. I received a free copy and am giving an honest answer.
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