Seven Wherewithal Way: Into the Faerie Realm by Samantha-Ellen Bound

Title: Seven Wherewithal Way: Into the Faerie Realm

Author: Samantha-Ellen Bound

Genre: Fantasy

Publisher: Affirm Press

Published: 25^th March 2025

Format: Paperback

Pages: 416

Price: $18.99

Synopsis: Wherewithal has fallen

When their beloved home comes under siege, the Wherewithal crew flee through the portal to the Realm of Fae. Behind the walls of the Faerie Market, they search for ways to stop the increasingly powerful Red Cap from achieving Realms-wide domination.??

But Red Cap’s army is growing stronger. Old and new enemies are rising, the Realms are in disarray, and Celeste’s powers are gone – maybe for good. With a battle on the horizon, and the lives of all those she loves at risk, Celeste will require every bit of cleverness and cunning she has picked up from the Realms for this last fight.

Journey to the Realms of Seven Wherewithal Way one final time in this heart-stopping conclusion to Samantha-Ellen Bound’s epic portal fantasy series.

~*~

Wherewithal has fallen. And with those ominous words, the third book in this series ended and led us into the fourth and final book in the epic Wherewithal series. Celeste, Ferd and Esme and the rest of their friends have fled into the Realm of Fae, and into the Faerie market to find a way to stop Red Cap dominating the realms. But there are still obstacles to overcome. They need to rescue Celeste and Esme’s parents from the ningyo queen, and convince Pan to stop being annoying – not that he ever will be, because he’s chaotic and doesn’t really take sides. Of course, there’s so much going on in this book. Everything is used cleverly to create the story, where every character or magical creature is drawn from a different mythological source.

Things seem dire at first – because at every turn, things seem to go wrong. Everything wants them to fail, and deals may need to be made to ensure the safety of Celeste, her friends and her family. Not only that, the answers to Logan’s past are also at stake – what really happened to him and why is he trapped in the realms? He was one of my favourite characters, and he’s been a mysterious figure throughout the series. His fate is intertwined with everything going on. Because things have changed. Earth doesn’t seem like home anymore, but where is home? How can Celeste save everyone and ensure the fate of the Realms doesn’t fall into the wrong hands?

We’ve come to the pointy end of the series, where everything Celeste has been through comes together. And where everything is going to come to a head. All the pieces of the puzzle are coming together now as we find out who can be trusted, and where deals need to be made. Bubbling along there are things that are familiar from older myths. Never give fae your real name. Never eat food in the fae realm – aspects that thread in and out, that show the dangers the characters are facing. Trust has been a big thing throughout the series – because at times, I did feel that I could only really trust Celeste, Esme and Ferd, and Logan, because they came across as the most honest, and the most willing to learn and help. Having the fate of the entirety of Wherewithal on her shoulders is nothing too hard to cope with, right?

At times, it feels like some people are giving up – that they have resigned themselves to their fate. But there is a fight, a determination within the main characters that pushes the story forwards towards its tumultuous conclusion. They may finally see peace in Wherewithal, and finally see the family reunited. As a finale, this book carried it off wonderfully. It pulled everything together very well, and ensured that there were smooth, or rough transitions that pulled everything from the first three books together to ensure the resolution Celeste and Esme deserve and seek. It’s filled with joy and sadness, and has a hopeful thread that touches everything, despite the moments of anxiety. It’s reassuring, because the emotions the characters feel are real-world emotions in a fantasy world. It pulls all this together nicely, and I found it a wonderful finale to the series.