Legend goes that long ago a Flores woman offended the old gods, and their family was cursed as a result. Now, every woman born to the family has a touch of magic.
Sage Flores has been running from her family—and their “gifts”—ever since her younger sister Sky died. Eight years later, Sage reluctantly returns to her hometown. Like slipping into an old, comforting sweater, Sage takes back her job at Cranberry Rose Company and uses her ability to communicate with plants to discover unusual heritage specimens in the surrounding lands.
What should be a simple task is complicated by her partner in botany sleuthing: Tennessee Reyes. He broke her heart in high school, and she never fully recovered. Working together is reminding her of all their past tender, genuine moments—and new feelings for this mature sexy man are starting to take root in her heart.
With rare plants to find, a dead sister who keeps bringing her coffee, and another sister whose anger fills the sky with lightning, Sage doesn’t have time for romance. But being with Tenn is like standing in the middle of a field on the cusp of a summer thunderstorm—supercharged and inevitable.
Thank you, Berkley Publishers, for the free digital book!
🌻Witch of Wild Things by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland 🌻
- One-word review: Emotional
- Emojis: 🌱🌹💘🪄
- Rating: 4.5🌟s
My thoughts:
What an authentically messy story! But then, when aren’t family issues messy? I loved that messiness even more than the magic, and I enjoyed the nature magic very much.
Sage has to return home to her aunt and sister but doesn’t want to because that means opening up old wounds that have never thoroughly healed. She tells the tale in first-person perspective, and I loved her as a narrator. She explains the magic as well as the family issues in time. There are so many layers of pain in each family member and the support characters that I couldn’t help but shed a tear or two or maybe more.
The romance is so full of layers and past pain that needs to be resolved, but it also develops so authentically that I couldn’t help but cheer for them. I loved the little trips back to Sage and Tenn’s high school AOL messages to each other. It shows so much about them as individuals and their connection as a couple.
This is such a fascinating read that I flew through it. The plotline’s pacing and development are perfect, and the character development is exemplary. Each character holds so much pain that it drips off the page and immerses the reader. How the magic develops and is expressed is also fascinating and the perfect touch to this story.
17 responses to “Witch of Wild Things by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland #BookReview #Paranormal #FamilyThemes #Multicultural”
My s/o and I first met as freshmen in hs. We remember our ICQ and AOL messages fondly. I love how multi-layered this story is and I love the cover. Fantastic review, Tessa!
The layers are wonderful. They are all so full of meaning and have an important depth to them.
I love messy (don’t know what that says about me!) so that’s a plus for this story. Excellent review, Tessa💜
It reads so authentic. That’s what I loved about it.
Brilliant, sounds like a good read.
It really was. It’s very different than other witchy reads but in all great ways.
I love messy family relationships. They always make for great fiction regardless of genre!
I agree. They read so authentic.
Messy family dynamics are a favorite of mine. I’ve read a couple books about nature witches this year and really enjoyed them.
It was so authentic. I loved it. And nature witches are interesting – almost more believable than other types.
I do like messy family storylines, sounds great, wonderful review 😊
Me too! It so authentic ❤️
This sounds amazing family drama. Great review!
Plenty of family drama and some interesting witchy solutions.
This sounds like a really good book! And messy is right up alley lol! It’s just shows the complexity of the book I suppose. Great review!
I just saw this book arrive at my library. I may pick it up to read.
Hope you enjoy it! It’s a very good story.