Witch of Wild Things:⁣
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Thank you @berkleypub @prhaudio partner for my gifted copies.⁣
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“I don’t know how to make people value wilderness. This, all around me—these trees, this ecosystem, this wise, living web brimming with life is where we come from. We need this, to survive. And no one wants to remember that.”⁣
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Witch of Wild Things may be a title I continuously blunder, but it’s definitely a book I will not forget. Part warm hug, part magical realism, I loved this book. The family dynamics were sometimes hard to face (like you want to shake them for being so mean) but that’s real life isn’t it? Sometimes family just doesn’t get it. ⁣
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The romance is truly swoon worthy. Tennessee Reyes is the definition of tall, dark, and handsome. The candles? I mean c’mon! The squeal I squealed. The great misunderstanding was a long time coming, and I felt the win back was validated. ⁣
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Audio was a treat. Krysta Gonzales did a wonderful job. I found myself listening the audio more than grabbing for the actual book. Out 9/12, it’s definitely a fun witchy book that will have you swoon.⁣
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What are your plans for the weekend?

Thank you to Berkley Publishing and NetGalley for my eArc, and to PRHAudio for my complimentary audiobook. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Witch of Wild Things is a heartwarming story of ghosts, witches, sisters and second chance love.
The thing I loved most though, was all the magical realism. I enjoyed seeing how each sister related to their particular gift day to day. I enjoyed Sage's gift the most and wish everyone was as cognizant of the Earth and the way we treat her. I had a feeling about one of the story lines, as it reminded me of another book, and I was right! This is why I love magical realism, anything can happen.

While there are some heavy themes in this one; death, infidelity and abuse, they are important to the story and are dealt with with the utmost care and concern. Humor is present through flashbacks to the good old days of AOL IM.

I listened to the audio and Krysta Gonzales did a fabulous job with all the characters. Her voice is easy to listen to while reading along with the text. I really enjoy hearing the correct pronunciations of the Spanish words and phrases.


This is a perfect read if you enjoy
Magical Realism
Second Chance Love
Sisters
Personal Journey

Short synopsis: Sage and the women of her family each were given a gift (or curse depending on who you ask), when her youngest sister died suddenly Sage ran. Now 8 years later she returns home and gets a job working with her high school crush Tenn.

My thoughts: Parts of this reminded me a bit of the movie Encanto with the magical gifts given to the women of the Flores family. I liked how each gift was explained, and how Sage in particular learned to navigate her gift and how to best help herself and nature.

I’d definitely say this was more a romance with some magic mixed in, and parts of it seemed a bit YA. I was personally hoping for a bit more magic, but overall enjoyed the storyline, the sisters, and the romantic subplot.

Also, can we talk about how beautiful this cover is! I’m a huge sucker for flowers on a cover already, but I’m loving every thing about this!

Read if you love:
- Magic
- Romance sub plots
- Unique and rare flowers
- Family dysfunction
- Sisters and growing up too fast
- Flashback moments
- Instant messaging

I really enjoyed this one! I loved all the magical/magical realism aspects of the story, and how connected to the land the three sisters were. The slow-burn romance between Sage and Tenn had such a nice build-up. Sage had some things to work through and get over. The story maybe had a touch of the miscommunication trope, but I took it as more of a misunderstanding. And the fact that it happened when they were teenagers, Sage's feelings and subsequent actions following the incident seemed realistic for the situation.

A great witchy, cozy read for the fall season.

Thank you for the advanced readers copy of Witch of Wild Things.

Very intriguing witchy, magical realism love story perfect for spooky season! Sage returns to her home town, to her family and grandmother who she has strained relationships with. She is there to rebuild her life, but in the process is repairing her relationships with family and meets Tenn (MMC).
I really loved the family banter, dialog and enemies to lovers trope. I liked the magical realism woven into the story line. I like the coming-of-age plot.

However, this one was not it for me. The writing felt really choppy and hard to follow. I really did not buy into the enemies to lovers. The instant messages were confusing and felt very YA to me. I just didn't vibe with the storyline in general.

Not for me, but I will still recommend because I think it will be nice for a certain audience.

In general, Witch of Wild Things was pretty cute. The very first chapter had me intrigued, though I will say it lost me about a quarter of the way through. I think I was expecting more witchiness and ghostiness.

Sage, while at the beginning seemed sarcastic and snarky, eventually grew into somewhat of an immature narrator. I personally don't like it when our FMC is a virgin until such a late age. I realize that's a completely subjective opinion, but it changed the vibe of the book.

Having Nate AND Tenn at the beginning was kind of confusing, and while I didn't love having two love interests at the beginning, I can see how having both helped the story.

I love a good friends to lovers trope, but I'll say the AIM didn't do it for me. I realize they were teenagers, but somehow the immaturity of their conversations was icky to me. And it was hard to understand why either of them was into the other. I guess I didn't love their whole teenage story. How she was almost creepily obsessed with him and he didn't even know who she was.

All and all, it was a cute book. I wish it had leaned a little more into the witchiness of the story, and maybe even more into the sisterhood.

"Things have been cracked for so long, Sage. They needed to break. So now the roots and leaves can come out and everything can bloom again."

Dust off your keyboard and stretch your memory to recall your screenname because WITCH OF WILD THINGS transports readers back to the 2000s when AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) was all the rage. While the majority of the book is told from Sage's first person POV, the past is presented via Sage and Tenn's AIM transcripts.

The dynamics between the Flores sisters were my favorite aspect of the book. I also loved Sage's "messiness", for the lack of a better term. Unlike many female protagonists within a romance/women's fiction novel, Sage was presented in a manner that facilitated a sense of authenticity, which was refreshing. Vasquez Gilliland included several descriptions of food that had my mouth watering. I also appreciated the way magic was presented, soft and straightforward.

That said, I wasn't the biggest fan of Sage and Tenn's romance. The miscommunication trope is tricky, and generally, it doesn't work for me. As mentioned above, I truly appreciated Sage's flaws because they made her real, but it was hard to fathom how everything worked out between her and Tenn in the end.

WITCH OF WILD THINGS is the perfect early fall read, and it hits the shelves next Tuesday, 9/12. Many thanks to the publisher for the complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review. Additionally, a HUGE thank you to Carmen (@tomesandtextiles) and the author for the beautiful, personalized ARC!

Plant Whisperer Sage Flores left home eight years before after a tragedy split her family apart. After losing her instructor’s job at a university, mostly because of a bad personal choice, Sage has returned to live in her family home. The sister that Sage lost, Sky, is a ghost whom only she sees, and the other sister, Teal, can barely stand to look at Sage blaming her for the calamity. The three girls were raised by an aunt after their mother took off when they were very young. The Flores women all have unique gifts connected to the natural world most of which they hide from those in their small town of Cranberry, Virginia.

Sage goes back to her old job at a rose company tasked with finding rare and native plants in the area to help the attract new business. Besides all the old memories and hurts she is dealing with, Sage is assigned to work with the boy, now a man, who broke her heart in high school, Tennessee Reyes, also recently returned to the area. Because they only communicated online, Tenn has no idea who Sage was to him, or why she seems so hostile. Speaking of hostile, Teal is a bit difficult to take as all seems she can do is spew vitriol which in her case, causes wild electrical thunder storms.

As Sage and Tenn work together, she finally starts to let go of some of her teenage angst; however, she is keeping secrets from him about a lot of things to the detriment of their new relationship. Her lack of honesty and personal development makes it hard to root for Sage as a main character. Sage, Teal, the ghostly Sky, their aunt, and grandmother have a lot of emotional issues to work through not just about the lost sister. In some aspects, this book is like a YA version of Women’s Fiction because even though Sage is almost thirty, her maturity level seems much younger. The few men in the book or those referenced are not of much quality including each of the sisters’ different and absent fathers, an abusive boyfriend, and Tenn’s own difficult relationship with his family. The most enjoyable part of this story is the magical realism and botanical/ environmental aspects of the living Earth.

Sage Flores' life has suddenly fallen apart which has led her to return to her hometown and her childhood home. She takes her former job at the Cranberry Rose Company back, where she uses her gift of communicating with plants to find unusual species for the company. Much to her dismay, she's is accompanied by the last person on Earth she wants to see, Tennessee Reyes, the man who unknowingly broke her heart many years ago.

Between dealing with her former crush, a sister who hates her and keeps filling the sky with anger-induced lightning, and another sister whose ghost keeps bringing her coffee, Sage is just trying to survive her new normal.

My thoughts:
I was initially drawn to this book because of the cover, which is beautiful! I'm not usually one to read much magical realism so this was deviating from my usual genres. I found the first 40%(ish) kind of confusing at times, with references to things in the characters' pasts that I didn't remember reading, and found myself backtracking several times to figure out if I skipped a page or there was no other information given about a certain plot point. As the plot progressed, all questions were eventually answered, however, it did make the beginning a bit confusing.

Otherwise, I enjoyed the character development and the tension/conflict between the characters. I thought the premise of the different family gifts was fun and added to the plot. While not my usual genre, I did end up enjoying this one.

Rating: 3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Thank you to NetGalley for the digital copy. My review is honest and voluntary.

A magical second chance romance from start to finish. A lot of family drama but it all ties in so seamlessly.

i’m always a sucker for eldest daughter stories, and the sister relationship with teal reminded me too much of my sister (basically the same person it was scary)

this story was about the complicated relationships of sisters, grief, eldest sister trauma, some magic sprinkled in and a cute love story. like her previous book, moon fuentes, is beautifully written and atmospherical. the ending was a bit anti climactic, seeing that i already guessed it early on. but i still enjoyed reading it.

The Flores sisters come from a family of women with magical powers. Sage command plants, her sisters Teal - the weather and Sky - animals. Their grandmother can see ghosts. After a tragic accident tears their family apart, Sage returns years later hoping to reconcile with her sisters. There's a little bit of magic, a little bit of romance, and a lot of drama in this family saga.

This was an entertaining witchy read. There’s a sweet second chance-ish romance and a mystery that will break and then heal your heart. The laughs are balanced well with the more serious topics, but please check CW’s prior to reading.

Things to expect:
- Complex family dynamics, specifically the relationships between sisters. This is such a central part of the story that I think the book falls into more of the women’s fiction genre than romance.
- Magic. I loved the mix of the every day and the supernatural. Each of the Flores women had such interesting and varied “gifts”.
- Romance. Even though the story focuses on Sage’s journey with her family, there’s also a second chance-ish romance that’s both sweet and sexy. I loved that readers got snippets of how things developed (and ultimately fell apart) in the past via messages and small flashbacks. I thought the forced proximity trope was used well, but I wish the author would have established a deeper relationship between them as adults. Their connection as teens wasn't rooted in physical appearance the way it was in the present. I also didn’t love the lying by omission and miscommunication trope. I’m more forgiving about parts of the drama since they were teens, but there really was no excuse for Sage to withhold the truth later for so long.
- Mystery. The mystery was heartbreaking, but it was pretty clear where things were headed early on. When all was revealed, it felt almost anticlimactic after so much buildup. I still don’t fully understand how it all worked and it seemed like the author just wanted to tie that loose end up. I was happy with the outcome though, so I was willing to overlook the confusing/lack of explanation.
- Wonderful narration if you choose to listen to the audiobook. Krysta Gonzales was fantastic! She gave such an enthusiastic and emotional performance. I thought the casting was really well done.

Audiobook Review
Overall 4.5 stars
Performance 5 stars
Story 4 stars

CW: domestic abuse (past), parental abandonment (past), loss of sibling (past) grief, fighting, threat of revenge porn, death of parent (past), uncomfortable/unfulfilling sexual relationship with advisor (past)

*I voluntarily read and listened to a review copy of this book*

Witch of Wild Things by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland is a fun, interesting and romantic stand-alone novel, about a family of female witches, with a paranormal element. Sage Flores, our heroine, left home 8 years ago, after her youngest sister died in an accident. She has recently lost her job, and now returns to Cranberry Rose to live with her aunt Nadia and estranged sister, Teal. Each of the family women have different magic abilities, as they are witches; Sage is a plant whisperer; able to communicate with the plant’s souls; Teal, when angry, can create havoc on the weather/storms; Aunt Nadia has the ability to know things. Both Sage and Teal do not get along, mostly due to the sister’s death.

Sage gets a job working where she used to work, at the Cranberry Rose Company to help find new plants and help increase the farm's sales. She is shocked to find her high school crush (who broke her heart), Tennessee (Ten) Reyes is also going to work there, and now they have been teamed up to search for elite special plants. At first, Sage was a bit sarcastic with Ten, but in a short time, the sparks between them sizzle, as they are both extremely attracted to one another. Ten went out of his way to work closely with Sage, also learning more about her plant whisperer abilities. Working side by side, brought back memories of the past, and strong new feelings bringing them closer together.

Sage tries hard to solve her family issues, especially the past when Sky died. Sage, also has another secret, that she has not revealed to her family. Seems her dead sister, Sky, appears quite often (she is a ghost), giving her advice or coffee. When she and Sky (who no one sees) visit another witch older witch, to find out why Sky cannot move on, which will bring them back to Aunt Nadia to use her knowledge to find an amazing and magical discovery.

Witch of Wild Things was a very good story that many things, such as dysfunctional family, romance, sisterhood, friendship, trauma and magical witches. I loved Sage and Tenn together, as they were a great couple. By the end, I loved all of the family and female witches, with their individual magical ability. Most of all, I loved the wonderful happy ever after ending. Witch of Wild Things was very well written by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland. I suggest you read this book.

this is a personal thing but for some reason i really like the name tennessee for a guy and i can’t explain it. speaking of he was literally so sweet and cool and caring and also dominican so you already know he earned extra points from me …

i don’t have a sister, so i don’t like stories about sisterly relationships whatsoever, but this one was fine. i thought teal was irritating and it’s a miracle that the main character didn’t sock her for all the messed up stuff she says throughout the book but i also don’t understand (and don’t want to understand) how sisterly relationships work so whatever.

the cover totally catfished me into thinking this was a mainstream romance book and it’s NAWT it’s very much adult. im begging book publishers to stick to their shirtless men book covers for adult romances. anwyayanywayanyway this was really enjoyable if you want a book with romance and some hurt.

Full of magic and second chance romance, I enjoyed this story from start to end! I’ve really been liking the magical realism romances lately, and this one goes high on the list of ones to recommend.

This story grabbed me, and would not let go until I finished it. Sage Flores has the gift of connecting to pant life. All the women in her family have gifts that they use but keep hidden. After years of fleeing, Sage is back home and forced to confront the fractured family relationships left after the death of her younger sister. She is also forced into proximity to the man who broke her heart when they were teenagers.

While there is a central romance story here, the family relationships are really the heart of the story. Everyone is hurt, and they all really do need therapy and a long conversation about love and pain. Throughout the story, they refuse to give that to each other until circumstances force them to.

Tenn is such a good hero. He doesn't hide his attraction to Sage or try to hide it. He is direct, kind, and warm. Sage is stuck in the hurt feelings of teenagehood, holding on to her secrets. It is only a recipe for disaster. Some of this melodrama might be too much for some readers. For me, it was just enough. Even though her actions are childish, I think I understand Sage. Holding on to pain can be so comforting, and Sage is holding on to so much. She was forced to take on adult responsibilities as a child, so she never learned to process big feelings. I connected with her, though I am also very grateful that I don't have her same traumas.

If you want a family drama with magical realism and a love story. You will enjoy this one.

The women in the Flores family are born with gifts that manifest in different ways for each woman. Sage is the witch of wild things- she can understand plants, knows them intimately, hears their consciousness. Her gift has led to her being called The Plant Whisperer, and when she moves home after an incident in her workplace, she begins working for a nursery, foraging for wild plants with her old crush, Tenn. Moving home is complicated for Sage- her mother ran years ago, and her aunt left her to be the de facto parent to her younger sisters, giving them a roof over their heads but not much support. One of her sisters died years ago, and the other hates her and blames her for the death.

This story was beautifully written, with the complicated emotions of the sisters and their family at center stage. Teal’s magic shows by her mood controlling the weather, leading to plenty of thunder and lightning in such a great manifestation of a terrible mood. The relationships take time and effort to begin healing, which felt authentic and also heartwarming.

We get a glimpse of the past via old IM chats between Sage and Tenn from their high school days, which was a fantastic way to reveal their past and show why Sage’s feelings towards Tenn in the present day are so complex. I loved Tenn as a love interest, with his caring nature and the way he sees Sage for who she is.

Sage is written as a complex character with plenty of messy behavior, making her realistic and making you root for her to get things right in the end.

I loved the unique witchy powers from this book, and also loved the message about the importance of preserving our wilderness and keeping wild things wild.

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

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.

This book is the PERFECT witchy romance to kick off this spooky season. I loved the magic, the romance, the family dynamics, all of it!

Let's start with the Flores family. All Flores women have a magical gift, and Sage has long used her gift of plant magic to connect to the natural world. But when her sister dies in a tragic accident, Sage turns away from her magic and her family and tries to carve herself a new life. When she is forced to return home, she begins the work of mending her relationships with her family and reconnecting with the earth around her.

And then we have the romance. Sage dislikes Tenn based on some stuff that happened in high school, but as they are forced to work together, their relationship blossoms into one full of trust and support.

There was definitely some miscommunication/lies by omission happening in this story, but I honestly would have made the same decision in these characters shoes, so I didn't mind it too much. All in all, this was a beautiful story, and I'd love to read more about the characters in this world.