Witches exist, but they’re not welcome in most places. When Iris, a young witch that protects her secret fiercely, accidentally releases a curse, she has to find a way to stop it before it’s fulfilled. Iris sets off to destroy the curse and she has to take her nemesis, Pike, with her.

The plot was straightforward, but the author is a talented storyteller with beautiful prose that immerses you into her world. Iris is a very likable character and you immediate start rooting for her and believe she’ll fix everything. Pike, the nemesis, is annoyingly cute and his genuineness makes you love him by the end too.

Overall, this story is a great representation of anxiety and grief and healing. It’s the kind of story you snuggle into a fuzzy blanket with, with wool socks on and a nice cuppa. Plus anything witches is usually a great read.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

*Thank you to NetGalley and Rachel Griffin for the ARC.

Okay I did the NetGalley audio for this book, but I liked it so much that I had to get a physical copy too!

TL:DR: This is a short atmospheric witchy read, that is perfect for the start of Fall.

The Story centers around, Iris, a young witch, who despite living in a world that generally accepts witches, chooses to remain under the radar due to a dramatic incident in her past. While witches are accepted they must follow certain rules such as not cursing people…

Except one of her family’s traditions is to create spells or curses, and commit them to the earth as a way of coping with anxieties or frustrations. This is normally within the rules as they are not affecting other people. However when Iris creates a curse of a male co-worker that she is having a lot of friction with an owl swoops in stealing the curse before it can be safely given to the earth.

Now Iris must team up with the boy she loathes to find this owl, before the curse causes mayhem in their lives.

The prose is beautifully written, the characters are flawed and relatable, and the wilderness makes for an fun setting. All and all I highly recommend this if witchy vibes are your thing.

This is my first Rachel Griffin book but it won’t be my last!

Laura Knight Keating provides the narration for the audiobook, and I think she does a great job of immersing you into the world.

https://www.tiktok.com/@kagedbooks/video/7131073031547407659?



Big thanks to Netgalley and Recorded Books for providing me with a chance to get in on this book early. I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

4.5/5
witchy vibes and nature? count me in! i love the atmosphere of Griffith’s books, they always make me want to read them with a giant old lady cardigan on a porch swing with a cup of hot chocolate while leaves dance to the ground in front of me 🍂☕️😅 this book was no different - i loved this fast paced adventure with Iris and Pike. This was a story about learning to be vulnerable and forgiving ourselves—and allowing the same for those around us. I would have loved to see a little more magic use but I still really enjoyed the story, characters, and the interspersed lessons on the fundamentals of magic (i’ve said before, i hate books that don’t explain their world of magic). throw in a little enemies to lovers and forced proximity/one tent drama and you have a recipe for a great fall romance read!

It's been a minute since I have been so invested in a non queer young adult book. Iris is a witch and so is her mom. They run a animal refuge center and their branch of magic is focused on animals. In this world there are three different branches of magic focused towards animals, plants, or humans. Witches are not hidden and the world knows about magic. There are different court systems and all of this great world building that really draws you into the story.

After a tragic encounter that results in Iris and her mom having to move away and start their animal refuge center, Iris is determined that no one know that she is a witch. When the intern at the animal center starts spouting some anti-witch rhetoric, Iris gets concerned and makes a decision that is going to change her life.

This whole story basically is about Iris and the intern, Pike, out in the wilderness searching for this endangered owl who is housing this curse that Iris made. She has to find the owl and get rid of the curse before it can find its intended target and ruin everything. Iris wasn't expecting to develop any sort of feelings towards Pike along the way but being out alone in the woods really gave her an opportunity to see him as more than just a bratty intern and allowed both of them to get to know each other a lot better.

The big issue here is that Pike hates witches and Iris is a witch. There's no getting around that and it all culminates to some big moments that I wasn't sure that I knew the outcome of. I was fully invested in the story and really really enjoyed it.

So our main characters are cishet but there are secondary queer characters so all is not lost 😂

Wild is the Witch is completely out of my comfort zone, and I loved it. Fantasy YA? I can't even remember the last time I've read this genre.

This book is cute, fun, and very fast paced.

Iris is a young witch. Pike hates witches. He doesn't know Iris is a witch, but after saying something mean about witches, Iris accidentally curses him. She didn't mean for the curse to be so bad. Oopsie.
Also, she didn't expect to fall in love with Pike. Oopsie again. The whole book is a journey to reverse the curse.

Lots of nature, animals, and magic. This book is perfect for fall.

4.5

The one thing that bothered me was the owl. I love all animals but owls really freak me out lol

Sometimes, it really is a good thing to give authors a second chance.

Thank you so much to Raincoast Books for the early copy!

I'll be frank: I didn't really enjoy this author's debut novel. It was a bit of a struggle to finish and the romance was everything I did not want to read. So, while the premise of this book sounded fun, I was very hesitant to pick it up. I am now quite glad that I did as I found this to be a far more entertaining story with a fun character dynamic and a better and heartfelt magical connection.

I really liked Iris as the main character. She's seen some shit. Seriously. And because of that, she has a hard time opening up to people about who she really is *cough* a witch *cough* and doesn't really trust anyone who isn't one as well. AKA Pike. She feels very strongly towards anything magic related, and it plays well into her hunt for the owl that accidentally high-jacked her curse. As a witch with an affinity towards animals, I love how much that came into play here. With the owl, wolves, cougars, bears—there was no shortage of wildlife encounters that showed off her magic and how well she can handle herself in a high pressure situation, even if she has anxiety that makes things a little difficult in other areas.

The romance was quite cute! I hesitate to call this the true enemies-to-lovers romance it's pitched at because I personally believe only fantasy that involves knives and more can truly claim that trope well, but there is definitely a fun type of animosity between Iris and Pike. Pike is such a sweet counterpart to Iris. They both trash talk the other, but Pike has an extra spice of aggravating that made reading about them camping in the Olympic mountains together really enjoyable. But he also has a side to him that makes it impossible to dislike him. He is overly prepared for camping, considerate, and very passionate about what he does. The development of their relationship was really well done, and who doesn't like a there's-only-one-tent scene?

I think my only problem was the magic itself. It felt very surface level, and I finished the book not really knowing much about the magic that threads throughout this entire story. Like, okay, witches are born, but mages can be made later with a spell. However, they don't always survive because the power is too much to handle. There are some witches that are attuned to animals, others that are attuned to humans. But that's really all I know. Can they do general spells, like levitating or summoning objects? Clean or heal things? That part is very vague and never properly explained.

Also, that cover 100% does not make the story and I'm not sure who signed off on that one.

While I wouldn't call her a favourite author of mine, I can definitely see that this author will grow in her craft over time. I'll happily read more of her work if it comes my way.

Love this book! I love in the PNW and I love seeing it in books! Winding withcery through the evergreens is how it is meant to be! The story is a great tale - love the witchcraft - however casting curses seems a little extreme, esepecially those resultin in death - even if you don't meant it - that part wasa little over the top and I felt like there should be more urgency for the charecters. But otherwise fantastic!

Wild Is The Witch is a very fast-paced and enchanting story about witches, an accidental curse, and a perfect enemies to lovers scenario. I had access to both the kindle and audiobook versions.

Iris Gray was forced to pack up her life and move to Washington after a disastrous accident involving magic. She and her mom are now working at a nature preserve where they hide their powers. When Iris decides to write a curse for her arch nemesis at work, a sly owl intervenes, and now both Iris and Pike need to trek the mountains to find the owl before any deathly consequences occur.

I loved everything about this book. Rachel Griffen’s writing is simple yet enchanting and beautiful. I loved the atmospheric feel and felt like I was there in the forest of the Pacific Northwest. The magic aspect of magic fit perfectly into the story, and it was not overbearing. There was something so comforting knowing that Iris used her magic to talk and heal animals. The chemistry between Iris and Pike felt natural, and I loved that they used logical approaches to find the missing owl before anything happened. I also loved the powerful message about acceptance, loving who you are, and forgiveness. The narrator, Laura Knight Keating, did a great job.

Enemies to lovers romance, witches, magic what more could you want? Was a great story to listen to, I loved how the two mc's chemistry came across and would definitely recommend 👌

Thank you to @netgalley for the audio arc of this book.

I don’t usually listen to fiction audiobooks but I really enjoyed this one. The story was fast paced and the narrator was great. It has one of my favourite tropes, enemies to lovers plus magic, and a curse. What more could you want or need in a book!
I liked that the magic aspect of the story was entwined with nature and how Iris used her magic to connect with and help animals.

If you’re a fan of YA books and like a bit of magic then I’d highly recommend this book. Rachel Griffins writing is a pleasure to read. A bit more of a slow build romance would have made this a 5 star for me.

Iris has had to flee her hometown after an incident her best friend had. She is now living away from her dad and doesn't tell anyone she's a witch anymore.
But she fucked up and to save her own ass, she has to trek around the woods looking for a magical owl with the boy she hates, who hates witches and whom could be cursed if this all goes wrong.

I liked this book but I didn't love it. While I liked the setting, and the atmosphere and the magic system, I just wasn't all that into the romance and I found the plot to be a bit slow.
I did love the main character though and her mother. I really liked the magical side of things, with how the magic worked and the connections to animals and the council thing and the backstory.
The pacing, though, like it was a pretty short book, but I just feel like so little happened and yet, the MC fell for the guy so quickly for me.
But overall, it was enjoyable and I still want to read the author's first book.
I also really liked the narrator. I love an audiobook, can't wait to listen to The Nature of Witches.

This book was filled with magic and nature, spells and curses! An urban fantasy also about friendship and forgiveness. I really enjoyed this one!

I loved Nature of Witches, but i loved this one more. I'm hoping the author keeps releasing these cool witch books. I will but every single one and devour it.

onemorepagebookstagram Book review: Wild is the
Witch by Rachel Griffin
Having very much enjoyed Rachel Griffin's debut, The
Nature of Witches, I'd had Wild is the Witch on pre-
order for a while and was even more excited when I
saw that the first print run had this beautiful
hardcover under the dust jacket.
I had wondered if this story would be set in the same
magic system as the previous book but this is a
completely stand alone novel and has a different
magic system in it. I really enjoyed the link in this
book between being a witch and the natural world.
The descriptions of Iris's connection with nature and
particularly with wild animals are beautiful and I
thoroughly enjoyed being transported to the Pacific
Northwest during the story.
The story swept me up and is well paced with an
excellent 'enemies to lovers' premise as with Iris is
thrown together with her nemesis Pike, an intern at
her mum's wildlife sanctuary, to rescue a rare owl.
The complicating factor is that Iris has accidentally
enacted a curse that could have dire consequences if
she doesn't act quickly! The setting, romance and
magic of this novel are all excellent and Rachel Griffin
has now firmly established herself as a 'go to' author
for me
#witchyreads #bookstagramuk #bookstagram
#bookreview #lovereading #bookcollector
#beautifulbooks #magicalreads #rachelgriffin
#wildisthewitch #capturethecurse
#contemporaryfantasy #fantasyreads

4.5 I love these vibes and these characters. I love the wildlife so much and Iris’ connection to not only animals but nature and the universe. The magic system is so cleaver, it just makes sense. I enjoy these characters growth throughout their adventure from unknown hatred to such wonder. I nearly cried.

Leaving this review in exchange for the audio book, I was not paid for this review. The thoughts are my own.
This one is so great! Love the narration, the angst between Iris and Pike, hard to stop listening to after about 30% in.
Iris is a witch, a secret she’s kept from everyone since 2 years ago when her best friend cursed a boy and he died. Her and her mother fled to work in a wildlife reserve while her father stayed behind, Magic being too much for him to handle.
Now she meets Pike, an aspiring ornithologist who works at the wild life reserves and also seemingly a hatred for witches.
In attempt to rid herself of I’ll feelings about Pike and his underhand comments about her kind, she decides to curse him and burn the curse which should burn into the earth and never hurt anyone. Instead, an owl swoops in and catches the curse instead.
They spend the rest of the book looking for him through the wilderness, learning about each other along the way building a bond that has Iris really regretting this curse that could get out of the owl were to die.

This is a book that will stick with me for a while and I really enjoyed listening to

On a side note, there was a lot of reverberated feedback on 1.5 speed with this audio book. Not sure if it was the NetGalley app, but it happened on all my devices.

4.5 stars. I loved this story. It was both sad and hopeful. Rachel Griffins words have a way of making me feel so deeply connected to the story and characters. I feel like I'm actually in the forest with Iris and Pike, trying to stop something horrible from happening. I feel Iris's fear and I feel Pikes hurt and longing. This was a beautiful story about how someone can believe something is bad but maybe they've only seen or known one aspect of that thing. I knew how the story would end but that didn't make me any less excited to reach the end and see exactly how things played out.

I was pleasntly surpirsed with how much I enjoyed this book. And I can safely say I actually liked this one a lot more than The Natures of Witches; I simply enjoyed the tropes more in this second book--with enemies to lovers, close proximity, only one bed etc.

I also felt Pike and Iris had tons of chemsitry and the enemeis to lovers was justified. Though I will say I wasn't Pike's biggest fan; he got on my nerves quite a few times, but he grew on me by the end.
Also side note, I loved the queer representation we got in this--with Iris' mom being in a relationship with a woman--like it didn't play huge role in the plot, but it was still nice to have the rep.

Last thing I'll say, was that the world was easily understood and the explanation of it wasn't overly complicated. I feel like it's the perfect book to read if you want a simple, but entertaining urban fantasy (or if you really like witches).

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ALC in exchange for an honest reivew.

I was first drawn in to this book via Instagram when someone had posted that the first round of published books would have this gorgeous purple feather designed case. I don't have any purple books or books by local to me authors so i had to preorder it. Then I saw that it was available on net galley via audiobook. I may be biased being from the PNW and understanding how beautifully magical it is here, but the way Rachel Griffin describes the setting has me at such a peaceful state. I love the way that she describes feeling like an outsider because of a secret you have to keep in order to fit in, that's such a universal feeling (unfortunately) that I feel like myself and a lot of others can relate to and its so beautiful to watch this character grow into herself. I also loved how family centric the book was despite one parent being a dead beat. Family is everything to these characters and the bonds displayed were strong and loving. This book was fun, sassy, had an eccentric amount of kind bars, and it felt like home. I cannot wait to read Rachel Griffins books in the future.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed Wild is the Witch. I liked the magic system in the book. The story came to life quickly and I enjoyed getting to know the characters and I felt like I was hiking with the characters. I will be recommending this to our students.