"What connects everything in this world is story. Stories hold the universe together."

Magical, moving, and deeply thoughtful, this was such a beautiful story of healing and second chances. There were raw, aching wounds that needed to be healed, and the growth and intention these characters worked toward, to bridge the gaps caused by past trauma, left me with a story whose complexity, compassion, and wisdom will stay with me for a long time.

Thank you Berkley and NetGalley for the review copy—all opinions are my own!

I loved this book! I devoured the entire thing in a few days and now I'm hoping the other two sisters will get books based on them too. This is the perfect fall read that feels a little Practical Magic but with a new twist.

The sisters characters are interesting. Their love lives and the drama between them keeps the book going with magic sprinkled in. I highly suggest this book if you are a fan of good witchy fiction.

Here’s another witchy read to get you in the mood for #spookyseason , also I am into this cover! Sage has been avoiding her family since her sister Sky died, plus she has a rocky relationship with her sister Teal. When she returns home she falls right into her old life, including a second chance romance. This one is a cozy romance with witchy vibes.
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Huge thank you to @berkleypub @berittalksbooks @thephdivabooks @dg_reads @prhaudio and @netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Witch of Wild Things by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland is the story of a dysfunctional family with gifts and what happens when Sage Flores comes home. Magical Realism, an “enemies to lovers” romance, fantasy and paranormal woo-woo await you. Grab a pumpkin spice latte and curl up with this addictive tale.

Sage Flores left her home after her sister Sky died and things became heated between her and her sister Teal. When Sage loses her job teaching a jewelry class, it forces her to return to her Appalachian home. Sage and her sisters have gifts. Sage is a plant whisperer and Teal’s mood can affect the weather. Sage also has a secret. She can see and communicate with Sky her dead sister, who leaves her coffee.

This was an interesting tale about healing with character growth and some neat twists. Cranberry Rose Company, her previous employer, offers her a job. The job involves scouting for plants they can reproduce and sell. They partnered her with Tennessee Reyes, the boy, now man who broke her heart in high school.

The tale offers a romance filled with secrets and passion. Sage has a lot of growing up to do and we see her do just that. I wasn’t always happy with her behavior and actions, but in the end, I was happy.

I loved the magical realism from the plants to lightning. The story involving Sky was unique and kept me curious. A strong thread involving their dysfunctional family held me captive. The story, despite the heated romance, felt like we should shelve it in the women’s fiction section.

Witch of Wild Things delivered a heartfelt story, and I would certainly try this author again.

In the mood for perfect autumn book? Look no further- Witch of Wild Things is a moody, romantic, cozy read. Sage Flores is the best type of leading lady. She is flawed, layered and utterly relatable. Which truly shows the skills of Gilliland as an author as Sage is also a witch.

As a plant loving lady- the fact that Sage’s magical powers gives her control and communication with plants was fascinating. Tennessee and Sage’s adventures to find new species of unusual heritage specimens was a fun setting for their growing affection.

I also enjoyed the spin of a second chance romance with the use of AIM. As someone who spent most of middle school chatting online, this felt particularly nostalgic and unique. My only issue: I selfishly wanted more of Tennessee and Sage as a couple. So much wasted time on miscommunication. Sigh. Maybe we could see more of them if this became a series?! PUHLEASE!

I highly recommend grabbing a copy of Witch of Wild Things!

An engaging second chance romance with the just the right amount of magic. While of course this was a romance, it felt more like a love story combined with some family drama. The romance almost took a back burner to the rest of the story, and that was okay with me. The female characters were interesting and I look forward to reading about them in future books, though I felt like the male love interest could've been more multidimensional. The botanical aspect of this book made it stand out amongst other witchy romances, being rooted (pun-intended) in some fact so the magic didn't feel too over-the-top.

Very fun, great fall vibes! I love second chance romances, I love witchy things, I love sisters who bicker. It all works for me. Something super compulsively readable about this one.

This was a cute little witchy rom-com. Not gonna lie the personalities of some of the characters were a little annoying, but it concluded well and ended up being a good read. Super cute!

“One I heard from a tree, what connects everything in this world is story. Stories hold the universe together.”

Say hello to my new favorite witchy rom-com! I love a story with some romance, magic, ghosts, and characters that you grow to love!

I absolutely love plants but can’t keep them alive to save my life. Sage and her two sisters are born with special gifts and hers is that she is a plant whisperer! She listens to and nurtures plants and I wish I had that gift! Her sisters Teal and Sky also have gifts as well as other women in her family and that was so fun! The sister dynamic reminded me so much of my own sisters.

I also really loved the little town of Cranberry Rose!

This story really explored themes of grief, loss, love, forgiveness, and rooting for yourself and was such a fun read. I stayed up way too late last night finishing it and it was the perfect way to start getting into the fall spirit!

4.5 stars

Thank you @netgalley and @berkleypub for the early copy

Hi and welcome to my blog tour stop for Raquel Vasquez Gilliland's Witch of Wild Things! A big thanks to the publisher & Netgalley for the complimentary e-ARC. All opinions provided are my own.

Summary.
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.


​My review.
Witch of Wild Things is one of those gorgeous witch stories.

In it, family, home, friendship, love, *& the natural world* are celebrated & important to MC Sage’s well-being & happiness.
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They’re not things she’s been actively pursuing in the past though—she’s been running from most of them actually, ever since her sister died, leaving her & her remaining sister estranged & Sage with no desire to stay at home.

When she’s forced to return, she has to eventually deal with all of it, including her past feelings for a teenage crush who left her broken-hearted.

Witch of Wild Things is a lovely story of so many things: finding & choosing your person, being a good friend, taking responsibility, taking care of & respecting the environment & the natural world. I have a new affinity for mushrooms after reading this one.

The writing is lyrical in moments but there’s also a striking romance arc including a moment where the MMC takes up for her with a pissy park ranger. Tennessee Reyes is a great balance of hot, understanding, & sensitive & I approve.

This is one of those well-rounded witchy reads that will satisfy on the physical & emotional fronts. While a couple things with the plot left me with a bit of the “huh” feeling, overall this is such a sweet & wonderful & whimsical & earthy read that satisfied.

4⭐️. Out 09/12.

CWs: Previous loss of sister. Parental abandonment. Loss of mom. A secondary character is outed as victim of abuse. Sage is fired after ending a physical relationship with her boss.

I love witchy books and this one had a perfect combination of heart, strength, and romance. The relationship between Sage and her sisters is complicated, but deep. The bond is unbreaking deep down even through all the ups and downs they encounter. One could say that their roots grow deep and strong. Sage was a great character and I empathized with her greatly. Tenn was a terrific book boyfriend and complimented her and got her motor-revving just by being a nice guy. I loved reading every minute of it that I almost finished it too quickly. I want to bask in a garden of Sage's creation, fed/nurtured with the help of Teal, and populated with help from Sky.

For the women of the Flores family magic has always been both a blessing and a curse. The tragic loss of their youngest sister, Sky, prompted eldest sister, Sage to leave town-a feeble attempt to walk away from her “gifts”.

Eight years later Sage returns home, reluctantly, but quite literally, planting roots and channeling her calling-communicating with plants. But a crush on her boss and being teamed up with her (sort of) first love, Tennessee, only serves to complicate things even further. Then there’s her stormy relationship with her estranged sister, Teal and the ghost of Sky whom only Sage seems to see. Even though Sage’s gift is to speak to nature, even she is too close to some things to see the forest for the trees. But as seeds of hope are planted, can the wilted Flores sisters finally find what they need to flourish?

Witch of Wild Things is adult fiction with magical energy, perfect for a fun fall read. I loved how each sister had their own, unique gift. In fact, I would love for this story to be a series-getting to see things from the other sisters perspectives. While I was a bit frustrated with Sage’s lack of honesty with Tenn, I still feel the story was special enough to bloom.

Witch of Wild Things is here to celebrate the witchy season. It's whimsical magic, a second-chance romance, family saga and the love of all plants dominate this tale.

Sage hasn't overcome the loss of her sister, Sky. Her aunt has been helping her, and she's taken a job at the Cranberry Rose Co., tapping her special plant powers. Tennessee Reyes broke her heart in high school, and now he's back in town. They reconnect at work, and romance blooms.

A good witchy, cozy read for fall. Rating 3.5

Thank you Berkley for the complimentary copy.

This is the perfect witchy romance to curl up with as summer moves into fall.


This is a magical book: filled with a lot of emotions, grief, second chances and extraordinary discoveries. If you liked The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna (which was one of my favourite reads last year) then you must devour this book at once. They have similar vibes.

Sage Flores has been through a lot: abandoned by her mother, blamed for her sister’s death and then dumped and fired by the same man. Oh yeah, and her dead sister is haunting her. So Sage does what every 20 something woman does, and returns home, to her old house and her old bed and her old family strife. Witch of WIld Things had this very small town feel that I adored. Sage isn’t a perfect character: she makes mistakes, she lies and she hides things. It’s partially a defense mechanism and partly from the heavy trauma she’s carrying. I thought it suited her story and made her really raw and vulnerable.

The story is told from Sage’s perspective, and we get to meet a whole cast of characters including her grandmother, great aunt and two sisters (one alive and hates her and one dead who seems to just want to spend time with her) - all who have a gift. Sage’s are talking to plants, which is a pretty cool gift to have, in my opinion. The magical system here is very soft and not the main focus of the book, which I liked. I adore books about life that happen to have magic in them. With a lot of Practical Magic vibes, this is a story about women and all of the fights and food and fellowships that happen between sisters, best friends and in between. I loved the focus on Sage’s relationships - including her romantic one (which we’ll get to soon). Due to some past issues she has a lot of relationships to strengthen, and we see her putting the work in. The sister dynamic in the book was one of my favourite elements.

There is, also, a fabulous romance, that’s kind of a second chance. You see, Sage was on instant messenger many years ago in high school, and was absolutely in love with a boy at school: Tennessee Reyes. She was too shy to go talk to the cool and popular boy in real life, but through an instant messenger name, they developed a relationship, which we see through recorded chats. Tennessee breaks Sage’s heart in the past. Fast forward to the present day and they are working together, but Tennessee obviously doesn’t know who Sage is, or that she’s still in love with him. He wants her to help him find his mystery girl, for a whole bunch of reasons, and he promises to help her solve some issues with her sisters. It has a sweet You’ve Got Mail feeling to it as they figure out their dynamic. Tennessee is a top notch guy who any woman would swoon to be with. He’s caring, emotionally present, has fabulous arm tats, and is constantly feeding Sage. She isn’t used to having someone nurture and take care of her, and let me tell you, watching a man cook for a woman is one of the hottest things out there, to me. And when Tennessee and Sage give into their blossoming feelings, well, there’s a lot of steam and chemistry. They are a couple that I was rooting for from their first meet cute.

This booked scratched my magically witchy yearning. I desperately hope this isn’t the last we see of the Flores women.

Thank you Berkley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Magic Realism, whimsy and romance! Such a fun read. Such a great transition book from the summer to fall months and a great read if you’re anything like ‘em and just came off an epic fantasy series.

This game the the fantasy elements I love but was also light at easy to read! The magic is so fun, I mean being able to speak to plants?! I loved the family dynamics in the book along with the cultural representation is so wonderful.

Only reason I didn’t give this 5 stars is that I don’t love flashback scenes and it made it read a bit more YA to me. I love Ya but didnt expect that vibe….

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishing team for the opportunity to rest this book!

Comes out on this week! Enjoy!

Raquel Vasquez Gilliand’s writing is pure poetry. I felt like I was in Cranberry, Virginia seeing, touching, and smelling everything Sage did. I loved the characters and the growth. The story took me on a literary adventure beyond ‘just a romance’ book. There was so much depth to the plot.

Read this book if you like:
-magical realism
-folklore
-diverse characters/ cultures
-small towns
-swoon-worthy romance (sexy and he feeds her tacos)
-beautiful cover art

I received a free eARC copy courtesy of netgalley.com, but this review is all mine and an honest opinion of what I thought of the book.

This is my cozy book of the fall!! I felt transported to a cozy, autumnal world when reading this book and I need it to be colder so I can thoroughly enjoy the fall now. I loved this book - the vibes were on point and the main character Sage, reminded me a lot like myself: the older sister who just wants to make everything okay before making sure she's okay first. I loved that there was the family drama in this one, the hopeless romantic feeling, and the gifts each of the Flores sisters has - it was fun to see Sage use her plant powers! Also Ten. We love Ten. This is going to be a fav of mine for the fall for sure.

A very cozy witchy romance. I enjoyed to dynamic of all the relationships, from the sisters to the romance between Sage and Tenn. Sage definitely has not had an easy ride and takes a hit at every turn, literally at one point, but when she returns home she has to deal with her past and open up old wounds. Very therapeutic in a way to read this and if this becomes a series I would enjoy reading the secondary characters' stories. There were a lot of elements in this one novel and I’d be happy to explore more!

“Witch of Wild Things” by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland is a fascinating, addictive story that is full of wild and wonderful magic, like believing in yourself and embracing what makes you magical. Reminiscent of a Hispanic Practical Magic, but with imperfect characters and a family at odds, this romance is one to thoroughly enjoy. 

In Witch of Wild Things, the main character Sage has walked away from her family but can’t outrun her gift or her dead sister. Returning home, she finds herself using her gift to bring beauty and unusual plants to share with others. She also has to figure out a way to mend her issues with her family. Dealing with Tenn, we quickly learn that Sage’s complications with him are completely due to how much she actually does care about her childhood crush. I love that she is awkward, full of doubts, and struggles to figure out what to do, about her family and Tenn. But by embracing her gifts, she finds her way. 

I love that each woman in Sage’s family has a gift, something rare and unique, that can help others. The story is visceral and from the very beginning, the narrative crawls under your skin. The ghost of Sky is especially unique as a character and I love that in helping Sky, Sage ends up helping herself and her sister Teal. The power of sisterhood is strong and powerful in this novel. 

If you love stories about sisters and magic, if you love romances that are powerful and loving, this novel is one that you will want to read. The story is full of wild and wonderful magic, the power of women and sisters, and ultimately is about love in all forms.

Idk how to review this book with out crying legit. It is stunning. Left me wanting more. Made me excited for *hopefully* Teal's book. Raquel has a winner here - something that will transport you to a beautiful, magical, complicated and messy world.

I loved a few things about this book:

1) How complex, messy, and real Sage is. She is a wonderful character who makes mistakes and has childish decisions but all of those feel valid because of the trauma and negative experiences she has had. She is a quintessential older sister. Add in heaps of abandonment, having to grow up too young, losing a sister, fighting with another, and being assaulted and you understand where she is coming from. I rooted for her. I wanted her to succeed in breaking down her walls and opening herself up to love. I wanted her to understand that people could hold her with care.

2) I loved Tenn. He was hot and swoony and grumpy and I loved him. Cocky and flirty and fab. I also think this speaks to the larger secondary characters that Raquel created: the anger of Teal, the passivity of their aunt, the sister and familial relationships with their grandma. All of it just felt so well-rounded and robust.

3) The language and prose. It's obvious that Raquel is a poet. Her words are absolutely gorgeou.s

4) lastly I absolutely loved the way she wove in environmentalism. Sage is the witch of wild things - she can speak to plants and hear them. She knows they have feelings, wants, desires, stories. And she wants to protect them, love them, nurture them. She talks about the impacts of deforestation on the land, earth, and us. Idk how people won't come out of this book feeling more connected to the land they walk on everyday.

I absolutely loved this book. Like so much. I will hold it close to my heart.