WILD IS THE WITCH by Rachel Griffin was a wild and wonderful story about a young witch who can communicate with animals. This YA fantasy is atmospheric and highly emotional. It is a story of dealing with one’s emotions and finding oneself in the process. I loved the enemies to lovers story between Iris and Pike. I also loved their adventure in nature to find the enchanted owl and stop the curse from happening. A truly beautiful and romantic magical book!

The narration was perfect for this story.

Iris is a young witch who has not learned her lesson about the risks of magic. Even though she ran afoul of the witches council before, in a moment of anger and frustration she crafts a curse she never means to cast. Unfortunately for her, an owl becomes the unwitting recipient of the curse. Now she must track down the owl before the annoying, witch-hating, yet handsome boy interning at her family’s animal refuge is hit with said curse. Oh, and the solution is that she go with that boy on an expedition through the woods to find the owl.

This one is an angsty, enemies to lovers (PG-style) witch story where we get a bit of a whiny, entitled girl who is learning the very hard way to be true to herself. I’m not sure if it was how the narrator read it or how it was written how young and immature the MC was. Her choices bothered me a lot. The transition from disliking Pike immensely to drooling over him was too quick for me. That said, the magic, nature and expedition were all fun. The ending was also a bit unexpected based on where I thought the story was going.

Thanks to Sourcebooks Fire via Netgalley for access to this audiobook. All opinions above are my own.

I really wanted to like this but everything about it was just so stupid. The main character was an idiot and deserved a worse ending than what she got. Her mom might have been worse. I don't understand why she didn't take her daughter seriously. Maybe if she could have relied on her mom, she wouldn't have accidentally cursed Pike. And the whole reasoning for why the owl took the curse was stupid too. I'm still interested in reading the author's first book though. I hope it's better than this.

Wow
I was not prepared for the emotional connection.
This story, these words, the bonds kept bring me to the edge and holding me there. Pushing me closer and closer to falling into the joy, the anxiety the devestastion.
My emotions are raw. Wow

#wildisthewitch #netgalley

I ended up really enjoying Wild is the Witch by Rachel Griffin although the book and I got off to a rocky start.. I was confused for the first 10% or so because for some reason I thought it was a sequel to her previous book, The Nature of Witches, and I was totally lost, trying to figure out how it connected. Spoiler: it doesn’t. It’s a standalone. Lol. Oops.

Iris and her mother, both witches and lovers of nature and animals, relocate to the Pacific Northwest after a accident involving magic makes it necessary for them to leave their previous town. They work at a wildlife rescue, alongside Pike, the sarcastic ornithologist intern who makes no secret of his dislike of witches. Scared of how Pike would react if he learned their secret, Iris writes out a curse, like her grandmother taught her, prepared to burn it and give it back to the earth—kind of like writing a letter you’d burn instead of actually sending. But an owl, sacred to the witches and also endangered, swoops down and catches the curse, tying it to itself. The curse? She cursed Pike to become a mage, the very thing he hates. The process is dangerous and has a high likelihood of ending in Pike’s death if the curse is unleashed. Trying to fix things, Iris sets off to find the owl and remove the curse, only she needs Pike’s help to do it and she can’t tell him why without revealing what she is and what she’s done. As they trek through the forest in pursuit of the owl, their antipathy changes into friendship and maybe something more…but can the fragile feelings they’ve forged survive when Iris’s secret is revealed?

I love Rachel Griffin’s writing so much. Her love of the natural world is evident in her descriptions of the forest and the magic it holds. I live in western Washington, near where the story is set, and it’s always so wonderful to read about the area I call home. After I got over my initial confusion, the story sucked me in and I was lost to the magic of the adventure.

I enjoyed the narration by Laura Knight Keating. She did a great job with her performance. She really channeled the angst of young adulthood into her narration and it felt real and alive.

Thank you so much to both Wednesday Books and Netgalley for my advance e-copy and RB Media for my advance listening copy.

Thank you to Netgalley and RB Media for sending me an early copy of this audiobook! All opinions are my own!

If you're looking for a beautiful and haunting tale, this might just be the book for you! To me, it had the vibes of Twilight in the Pacific Northwest, but it had so much more depth and feeling to it. This was a story of grief and forgiveness, set against a backdrop of the most gorgeous nature. It was so easy to get drawn into the story and not want to ever come back out of it. Not only the setting, but the characters were also so relatable and real, their stories so moving that it felt as though you were right there with them the whole time.

I was worried that with them being in the wilderness for the majority of the book that it would feel too slow, but that was definitely not the case. It went by so quickly and every part of the story contributed to it. I adored seeing Iris and Pike grow together even through their own stories of grief. It was really refreshing to watch Iris as she learned more about herself and the ways that she needed to learn and grow.

I also really loved the representation with anxiety and asthma! Iris' journey with her anxiety really hit home with me as someone who has dealt with anxiety for years. It was so nice to see Pike and how gentle and understanding he was. It was touching to see her learn about herself through the way he treated her despite her anxiety. I wish more stories featuring anxiety focused on a narrative of healing in this way!

If you like witches and want vibes of Twilight, this is the book for you!

Wild is the Witch
by Rachel Griffin

A young girl learning that she has misconceptions of her work intern. After a devastating events when her best friend tried to make her boyfriend a witch. She is haunted, and paranoid to the point of never trusting any one. Her adventure to find an lost injured animal makes her face so may of her perspectives, and interpretations.

I loved The Nature of Witches, so I was ecstatic when I heard that Rachel Griffin was writing another books set in the mountains of Washington.

Washington has always felt like the place I belong. After moving, I haven’t had the chance to visit again. This gave me a little of Washington I get to carry with me. My only criticism is that there were some moments when things were being described that I was like, "No, that’s not how that would be described," and I wish there was more mention of the Olympic Mountains; they are truly under appreciated. It is enough that the story takes place there though.

Just like with The Nature of Witches, Wild is the Witch is a very cozy read even with all of the angst and excitement. Griffin has a way with words that just makes me want to curl up in her books and live there.

She also shows a lot of self-awareness in her writing even calling out her own plot devices. I really appreciated that and found great humor in it.

All in all, this story really embodies the love and appreciation I — and a lot of locals — have for the PNW, and I can feel at home reading this book even if I can’t be there myself.

Being unfamiliar with Rachel Griffin’s previous work, I went into this book with very few expectations. Sometimes a story with an interesting sounding plot delivers the goods, and sometimes it doesn’t.

Wild is the Witch delivered, and then some.

I think I loved every single aspect of this story: the writing, the setting (a rainy PNW forest wonderland, just what my parched soul needed!), the magic system… but most of all, I loved the characters. Pike was an absolute dreamboat of a cute nerd, with his ability to switch from sarcasm to tender observation at the drop of a hat. But Iris, our heroine, spoke directly to my heart. As somebody who lives with generalized anxiety disorder, I related so strongly with Iris’s struggles. Anxiety isn’t always panic attacks; it’s often a quiet, constant doubt, making you question every move. This isn’t always well represented in media, but I think Griffin did an incredible job with Iris’s anxiety. It felt very real, in a way I have read only once or twice before. I truly felt myself falling head over heels for these characters the more I read, and I know this story will live with me for a very long time.

When eighteen-year-old witch Iris Gray accidentally enacts a curse that could have dire consequences, she must team up with a boy who hates witches to make sure her magic isn't unleashed on the world.

I loved being back in a world that Rachel Griffin has created and even more so a world in one of my favorite places, the Pacific Northwest.. It is so easy to get lost in Rachel's writing and fully immerse yourself in it. he has become one of my auto buy authors, and I only have a couple of those when it comes to YA books.

This is a wonderful story about getting to know people and putting aside your preconceived notions about them. It is also a story about forgiveness, with the most beautiful ending I could have imagined.

If you want a cozy book this one is defiantly for you.

Thank you NG and RB Media, Recorded Books for an early copy.

I think I would have enjoyed this book a lot more if I could have understood all of it. The audio was bad in a few places, but the premise sounds awesome.

5.0 stars
I loved every aspect of this book!

"Iris Gray is forced to leave her home, and her father because of some witchy curses. Now in Washington, Iris spends her time casting "fake" curses, and volunteering her time at a wildlife refuge, when she meets Pike a aspiring ornithologist . The catch is, he hates witches, and that only makes Iris want to curse him to become a witch even more.
Once that curse was cast, a bird comes down and steals the curse before flying away. If the bird dies, the curse will be done. an
Because Iris has already been on thin ice with the witches, she is desperate to find the Owl that can undo Pikes curse.
She convinces Pike to camp out with her and talk trek into the Mountains to find the Owl, however Pikes doesnt know not only is she a witch but she also cursed him to become one as well
Love enemies to lovers was so cute and I enjoyed Pikes humor about everything that came there way.
I also loved how the book ended and can not wait to read more from Rachel Griffin.

While the writing for this book was rather lovely, I really can’t say I enjoyed this at all.

It has everything to do with this so-called “romance”.

The synopsis calls this “enemies to lovers” but it didn’t feel like that to me. I can’t get behind this trope of if a boy is mean to you, makes fun of you and endlessly teases and makes you feel genuinely scared, it means he likes you. That’s just so messed up.

What’s even more messed up is the main character Iris has let it be known to her mother how uncomfortable the boy makes her. How scared she feels around him at times. The mother just shrugs it off and tells her daughter to “relax”. Just no. HARD no.

The mother then makes the daughter take said boy on a trip into the woods to find a lost owl. You read that right. This girl who has said she doesn’t like this boy and is uncomfortable around him has to trek into the woods with him ALONE. Can we just collectively say NO again.

I truly hate that this is a narrative that is still being pushed. It has big “boys will be boys” energy and it’s beyond unnecessary.

Just as good as Rachel Griffins first Book. Thank you for letting me listen to this audiobook early. I very much enjoyed that the protagonist has such a close connection to animals.

What an INCREDIBLE book. I really enjoyed Rachel's debut book last year but Wild is the witch is the nre favorite. The magical realism was absolutely perfection and the enemies to lovers was amazing i loved the owl part and will absolutely be preordering the book before its released nect week!!!

I was so excited to get approved for this audiobook ARC from NetGalley/Recorded Books. I loved The Nature of Witches and couldn't wait to get started on this one.

I read The Nature of Witches, so wasn't familiar with this audiobook narrator. It took me a minute to get used to her rhythms, but she did a great job differentiating between characters and projecting their emotions. She did that job almost too well - to the point that I was annoyed with Iris and how upset she was with this boy! It made her come across as younger than stated. That annoyance faded as we moved into the main part of the book and the characters got to know each other.

While their relationship changed gears quickly, especially on Iris' part, I enjoyed how they got there. They had some hard conversations (which Rachel Griffin handled very well), and they sat with the discomfort/information. It was refreshing to have their thoughts communicated so clearly, in relation to each other and their misconceptions.

Iris still kept a secret and it came back to bite her, but she stepped up in the end and that conclusion had me in tears. Who knew I would get so attached to an owl!?

Epilogue:

This was a solid 4⭐read for me. It was a bit angsty at the beginning, but it is YA, so I can't knock it too much for that. The character growth and the depth of their conversations were a breath of fresh air. The magic system was cool and organic, it made me wish I could use magic like that. If you enjoyed The Nature of Witches, cool magic systems, animal, and camping - you should check this one out!

It is a beautiful book. I highly recommend it! If you want animals and nature, an adventure hike through the wildness and a different kind of magic system? Go for it!

Lets start with the format - the audio book and how that was done:
I enjoyed listening to the book. The Narrator was good. She read in a nice pace, she slightly changed her voice -but not into the extremes that it felt overdone - when other people spoke, and made them easily to identify.
Honestly the only thing that i didn't love about the Narrators narration was that sometimes she overdid a few moments when a character would speak. For example if the book stated that a character would calmly answer, the Narrator instead narrated the character speaking almost panicked - too loud, almost too shrill in some aspects. BUT that only happened at the most a handful of times. So its not really a negative thing, just something that i noticed and found a bit of a strange choice to go so directly against what the book directly stated.

Now unto the book itself.
The story was beautiful -for the most parts.
I loved how nature and animal loving this book was.
The Book was filled up with love for nature and animals in a way that the reader can almost feel it around them while reading. How everything is described -from the feel of animals feathers or the look in their eyes or how the nature is talked about, how trees sound in the wind, or how the earth smells or feel... it all is very beautiful if you as the reader also enjoys nature/animals a lot.

I also loved the relationship between the mother and daughter in this book.
It was so nice to see a parent and a child just be happy to have each other and be there for each other.

Also the way the LGBT+ relationships where woven into the story was also exactly as i want to see it. Like any other romantic relationship. Just happiness for the couple, happy people found each other and are happy together, want to spend their time and lives together, and other people around them happy for them for having found that love.
Sadly that is still something that has to be pointed out and isn't the norm, as it should be, but the author did such a great job in normalizing any and all formats of love that its fantastic to see and i want to see it like this everywhere please.

I really loved how magic was written in this book. How it worked and how Iris used it and how it was described. How it worked for her to form a deeper connection to animals or how magic was found in nature. How it worked with the nonmagical world, how it could help or amplify what we know, or shift some things, but just like anything else could not just be pulled from nothing to perform complete miracles... it was really well done and i enjoyed those elements a lot.

I enjoyed the main characters - for the most part.

Both Pike and Iris had good and bad factors. But it made them better characters for the most part. I personally dislike Iris for some things -i will get into those in a second- but for the most parts, they were good characters to follow.
Their relationship was interesting, having to learn how to get along and deal with each other because how different they are to each other.
That Pike is very much logic, being prepared and learning ahead to know the facts and details so that any situation can be approached in a way that he things is the best way.
Iris on the other hand is very much more in the way of lettings things just come and flow along as they come. She is very much someone that is constantly looking for negative options, but she can also find beauty in the smallest things. Thats an interesting combination, but somehow it works for her character.

For me personally i think that Pike and Iris relationship evolved a bit too fast, especially with how they start out, what we learn about them throughout the book and how the story goes along.
I just found it a bit strange that it ended the way it did, and i think i would have liked it better if they would have just learned to accept each other and enjoy each others company with the option for more at the end, instead of how the book ended with them.
I do understand why the author did it how she did it. But i think it was a bit too much of a whiplash relationship for me.


Okay and now on to what i really didn't enjoy about this book:
Iris was sometimes a hard character to like. She focuses so much of this book on her and how she would have to deal with consequences of something that she was responsible for. Very few thoughts actually really were spared to think about everyone else. Sure it was mentioned that she didn't want it to happen like that, but she never picked the options that could make it easier for others if she could choose to make it easier for herself.
For example once her curse is boned to the owl, she should have gone to her mother. Or to her mothers girlfriend. Right away. She should have called some other witch. Somebody who knew more, understood it all better and made it easier fix the situation with help of people that understand that kind of magic and how to resolve it better.
Its constantly mentioned how afraid Iris is that the curse will the unleashed and what horrible consequences it can have not only on Pike but also on the entire area and the people, animals and nature in it and that she is so afraid of what the curse could to do it all. BUT she never actually does anything about it in a way that makes sense, because her next thought is not to try to find a solution but rather to think about herself and how she can't talk to someone about it because she -Iris- can't be punished for this, she can't lose her magic, that would be horrible.
Excuse me? You just cursed someone and the curse was bonded to something that makes the entire situation escalate into something that you feel like you can't handle and might hurt a lot of people and even kill them horrible. Your thoughts should not be "poor me if this gets out, i will lose what i love!" your thoughts should be "i have to help everyone because its too late and do everything i can and bring everyone i know that might be able to help into this to help me find a solution before bad things happen, no matter the consequences to me!"

And i actually think the entire book and how it is written could still have worked very well with that slight change. Everything could have happened basically identically, but less overly dramatic and with a huge amount of less lying from Iris's part. But i guess it would have been a bit less dramatic if people around Iris would have actually known what was going on and would have been able to help.


The other think i absolutely hated was how Iris lied to Pike. Look i get it, she had a huge trauma happening to her. I can not imagine what it must be like to see someone you know well burn to death in front of you. That must have given her some very deep psychological scares -and this book does not even once mentioned that she might have gotten help for that so that was a bit of a different question mark for me, but okay, not the point of this story, i get it.

But its different if you dislike a person and don't tell them about you - thats fine!
But before you get into something more with a person that you literary cursed either into death or into a completely different life? You tell that person whats going on, especially if they asked you at least three times if something is going on they should know about.

I just have issues if a relationship is build on lies from one person, while the other one shares a lot of their struggles.
Again i understand that every person has their own timing and needs to be the one to decide when and how to share their histories and issues. BUT that does not include something that directly involve someone else.

What i am trying to say is that i think that Iris was not the best character in the sense how she handled her situation.


And that might sound like i disliked the book. I clearly didn't. I really enjoyed a lot about it.

It was a great book sharing that sometimes its really hard to overcome the past, especially if something bad happened. That sometimes you behave irrationally because of fear or frustration. And that can have consequences.
It was all done well in those aspects.

I just think to fit into those themes, Iris should have behaved more trusting in people she knew would be willing to help her -for example her mother and later one Pike - and not wait until she had absolutely no other choice but to finally confess.


All in all i think its a beautiful book. It could have been a bit better in some aspects, but seen as a whole, it was well done.
I will reread this book and enjoy all the animal and nature aspects all over again, and i am sure i will love the magical aspects of it just as much the next times reading it as this i did this time around.

I think the most important thing to know about Wild is the Witch is that it's a Romance story with Witches, not a Witch story with romance. If you're expecting the latter then try and readjust your expectations, otherwise you will be leaving room for disappointment.

Iris Grey exists in a world where Witches are part of the known world. Unfortunately, after a tragic accident, she chooses to hide who she really is. While running a wildlife rehabilitation center with her mother and arrogant intern, Pike, Iris gets her self into a bit of magical trouble. Trouble that can only be undone by trekking into the wilderness with the hated Pike in tow. Can Iris undo the curse she has set in motion while hiding her true identity from Pike? You'll have to read to find out!

When I reviewed Griffin's first novel I called it easy reading. I think I have found a better word to describe it, Her style is effortless. She creates simple stories with just enough depth. If fantasy had a beach read sub genre I think Griffin would be the queen! I think though, like most beach read style books, you need to be in the mood and Wild is the Witch came to me at a time I was craving a bit more. The Characters felt overly angst ridden and the themes felt a little to on the nose. The Characters dialog veered on the younger side of the YA genre and what I think was meant to be light banter eventual felt grating and overdone.

Overall I think Wild is the Witch will truly be a "right book at the right time" read for many. Perhaps pick it up when you are craving something light and easy.

I listened to this offering and I must say the narrator was a highlight for me. Her inflection and character voices kept me engaged the entire time.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

There were some moments in this one where I felt like it got a bit repetitive, but I know that my readers will love it. This is a definite purchase for my library. The narrator was also really great. I enjoyed the enemies to lovers plot and the addition of magic. This was a great mix of romance, magic, and adventure in the wild. Definitely a solid read for fans of YA romance and magic.

This story starts off with Iris Grey, a witch, having to move out of her home town with her mother after a tragic accident. After that day, she hid her true identity of being a witch in fear she would one day have to move from the new place she loved, Foggy Mountain Wildlife Range. She loves this place and is fearful of someone coming in and taking it from her. She is fearful of the intern her mother has hired, Pike, who hates witches. When an owl becomes injured, she and pike have to put their differences aside in order to hunt down this owl.


This was a good YA Romance book, enemy to lovers. I do wish there was more focus around how the magic worked with the universe like in the previous book. I do believe this will be a hit with the younger generation. Overall, great read and fast paced.