Rachel Griffin's sophomore novel is a remarkable powerhouse of storytelling, with moments of heartbreak and immense hope.

A beautifully picturesque novel set in the Pacific Northwest, a witch-in-hiding and a magic-hating young man must traverse through nature to find an injured flyaway owl from the animal sanctuary where they both work. What Pike doesn't know, however, is that the owl isn't just hurt-it is also carrying a curse crafted for him, one that Iris must never let out, because at this stage, Pike would only be the beginning of those who would be affected.

Both the external and internal drives for Iris' search are strongly written by Griffin, and I would recommend this book to anyone who has ever felt like they had to hide a big part of themselves to be accepted.

I enjoyed the story and the plot a lot. The characters were lovely. However, there were slow parts but it still flow well.

Absolutely loved this story by Rachel Griffin! Her take on witches living in modern society is something I could picture and it’s fantastic!

I went into Wild is the Witch pretty blind, but expecting a true sequel to The Nature of Witches, and was unfortunately disappointed. The two books, though in the same world, didn't really it together in my mind (this may be a me issue for expecting something the book wasn't meant to be).

I'd recommend this one to many readers, as long as they are clear from the beginning of their expectations.

Enjoyed the connections to nature, and the magic system and I look forward to future books from this author.

This was a very compelling story. I loved the enemies to lovers romance. I also love the fantasy element in this book. The only thing about the book is that it feels very rushed. I think it should have been broken into two books so that the story could take time to develop. Still, I recommend this for fans of The Secret Circle, Witches of East End, and The Bone Witch!

A really fast paced book with a nice magical storyline. Griffin is a fabulous storyteller. Every word that she writes seems to leap off the page and form electrifying imagery and realistically flawed characters. The way that she weaves magic and worldbuilding into the narrative is phenomenal, and I never felt like I was being lectured to, which is a difficult feat for many fantasy writers. The way that magic works in this world is quite unique and fascinating, but never overly complex. I genuinely hope that Griffin writes another book set in this dynamic fantasy world!.

Another wonderful story taking place in the world created by Rachel Griffin. I hope we get many more.

*Thank you to the publisher for this eARC.

This one took me a bit to find my groove but one I did I was flipping pages like crazy. I’ve been very finicky with my books lately. It’s hard to find that keeps me going. But this one did.

There's no doubt that Rachel Griffin can write an atmospheric story. The level of setting details are like a character in of itself. With that said, Wild is the Witch wasn't my favorite. My issues were inconsistencies and the believability of some scenes as well as questionable decision making by the main character.

It saddens me that I did not enjoy Wild is the Witch when I absolutely adored Nature of Witches. Still, I am looking forward to Griffin's upcoming release, Bring Me Your Midnight.

I loved this book so much! Rachel Griffin wrote such a gorgeous story! A love letter to nature and treating our planet right, the casual and unquestioned queer rep, the asthma rep, and such a fun banter filled hate to love romance. Iris and Pike were so fun to watch, and they way their story developed felt so genuine! Not to mention we always love an only one tent situation 👏

Plus the anxiety rep! Rachel did such a freaking incredible job weaving Iris's anxiety through the story in subtle and extremely realistic ways that 53% in was the first time the word was actually used but I recognized her anxiety in my soul from the beginning of the story.

Magic and wishes going wrong...a great premise to work off of. Iris must find the answers after a spell goes bad. Nature, mental health, and relationships are all worked into this story. All these subplots add up to a great read. I enjoyed the descriptive language, the character development, and the story itself making this read one you won't want to put down. Ms. Griffin definitely knows how to spin a tale that you want to belong to and in. It was a great read.

I really liked the interesting view on witches and nature in this book. It was a little slow and repetitive to me in some parts but overall I'm glad I read it. Definitely recommend!

This story was really good! I loved how different it was from Nature of Witches, Rachel really knows how to write an eco-conscious witch story!

3.5 stars. I'm rounding up because it kept me interested through the end, although there are definitely weaknesses that threaten that rating with something more like two or three stars. That said, let's start at the top: girl is a witch, girl pretends not to be a witch because of this thing that happened with her friend that got her in trouble, even though she didn't get in trouble, causing her to move to a new town to start over, where she meets a boy who hates witches. Girl (henceforth Iris) has a method of dealing with her anxiety, which is to cast curses into the earth. She curses boy (Pike) with becoming a witch, the thing he hates, because she's so scared he'll find out her secret. Before she can cast the spell into the earth, an owl comes out of nowhere and essentially steals it. Iris essentially goes nuts, because if she can't find the owl she'll accidentally turn Pike into a witch (which means he'll probably burn to death) and since the owl is an amplifier that means everyone in the region will become witches and probably also burn up.

Okay! Fine! She convinces Pike to help her find the owl. Also fine. They stomp off into the wilderness and begin to get to know each other and fall in love. Fine. The problem comes in with Iris acting like a total twit about the owl. At one point she dashes off into a full-blown storm at night to find it, which only makes sense because the reader knows the stakes, but Pike doesn't at this point. Iris keeps doing these things that on their face make no sense, but Pike keeps going along with it and never asks what is going on until so late in the story that it starts to get difficult to keep up with the characters. Why is Pike falling in love with this girl who is acting not okay about this owl? It is an owl. No one acts this insane about an owl. And it just keeps going and going and going until it is way past redemption time for Iris.

So, I still am rating this highly because I did enjoy the atmosphere and the stakes kept me interested. I'm less impressed with how Pike was handled, and how the narrative leaned on him to let bygones be bygones in order to wrap up the book. The book would have been stronger, in my opinion, had Pike found out about the owl and Iris's true abilities earlier, because as it is I was not convinced by the ending.

Otherwise this goes by quickly. Easy read. Much better than the author's debut.

I loved this story. It’s touching and unlike most typical angsty YA novels. Griffin uses a different approach to magic as part of the storyline, and I loved it.

Wild is the Witch is a truly magically written novel. I did not want it to end and could not put it down.
The author's words are like magic on paper! I love the empathy for nature and all creatures. Thanks to #Netgalley for the ARC and this magical story!!!

What an absolutely beautifully written book! I have never read anything by this author but can't wait to read more. She is an excellent storyteller who immerses you in the world she creates, and what a world this was.

This book focuses on Iris and Pike. They don't enjoy spending time with each other, Pike is an intern at Iris's mother's refuge and he does nothing but irritate Iris. She doesn't know why he is even there, especially considering he doesn't like witches. Iris decides to curse him but that is a mistake that leads them on a hike, albeit one he doesn't realize is all about removing the curse.

As they spend more time together they start to work together and develop feelings. It is really well written and I can't wait to read more by her.

This book was so much better than I ever could have expected.

I don't typically choose to read books with witches. I just think after the paranormal craze of the 2010's, them along with shifters and vampires are tired and overused paranormal creatures at this point, but with Wild is the Witch, Rachel may have just come up with my favorite take on witches and magical powers ever!

This ended up being a much more intense and emotional story than I had expected and one I had a great time reading. I look forward to reading more from Rachel Griffin.

Read my full review on my blog: https://multicoloredbookreviews.home.blog/2022/12/31/book-review-wild-is-the-witch/

It took me a minute to realize that this was not a continuation of Griffin's previous novel, and once I stopped trying to connect the opening memories of this book with her first story, I settled in happily for the ride.

Once again, Griffin has crafted a wonderfully gripping story, with believable characters, magic, and a great enemies to lovers trope (one of my favorites). 10/10 would recommend!

This book was really interesting! I was intrigued by the storyline and that's what initially drew me to this title. I also really love the cover artwork.