Reviews with content warning for Toxic relationship - Witch of Wild Things

This book was fine. It got better toward the end which bumped it up for me. Also, I know this is marketed as a romance and a love story but for me this was a book about grief and difficult times and how grief manifests differently in people and can cause destruction. The romance felt like a subplot which is fine I actually liked the book better seeing it through this lens.

I loved the idea behind it and the premise but the characters were very frustrating. At times many of them were immature (Sage at least acknowledges it). I think it’s also important to take into consideration that because we think we know best for characters these characters are going through a lot emotionally so their judgement is cloudy. Tennessee was honestly my favorite character. I really loved him.

I really felt for Sage and all the shit she had to go through. She never was allowed to feel or break. Robbed of a childhood to take care of her younger siblings and blamed for everything. Very reminiscent of how many Hispanic eldest daughters feel. I think that was done very well and although frustrating, very real. I was a little surprised by Sky’s return but I think she handled it well. I thought it was interesting they didn’t talk about the mom more but I didn’t mind it so much

.

As I was writing this review I realize I liked this book more than I originally thought. I keep finding more positive things to say and the rating got bumped up again. I really think the ending made up for the beginning.

Content Warnings

starrysteph's review against another edition

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emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.75

Really mixed feelings on this one. I loved the magical realism elements, loved the complex family relationships and exploration of generational trauma through curses, and loved the playful botanical magic and ghosts.

And the trauma of being the eldest daughter was captured really brilliantly. Oof.

I didn’t love the immaturity of the narrator and the overabundance of misunderstandings.

How can you turn away from your sister who is in an abusive relationship? (And then return to impulsively expose the abusive without any consideration of how that could impact your sister?) How can you squarely place the blame of your little sister’s accidental death on your older sister, and treat her with such cruelty (not to mention that the reason for the blame was so nonsensical)? How can you hold a petty grudge against a high school crush so fiercely that 10 years later you can barely even speak to him?

There were some emotionally beautiful moments, and the romance was sweet at times. And look - families can be petty and cruel and complicated. But it felt like this was tonally inconsistent, especially since the writing and dialogue often felt juvenile. The 74 year old great aunt was bickering and throwing around callous remarks like a teenager.

I was more into the relationship between the sisters - and wanted to dive more into the grief & healing arcs - versus the second chance romance. It was also a bit confusing because there were multiple romance options at the start. I think we needed to stick with our main guy and develop that as much as possible over these 300 pages.

There’s also just SO much crammed in: environmental destruction, cheating, misogyny, domestic abuse, grief, messy and destructive family dynamics, racism, etc. I think that’s a lot to try to accomplish eloquently.

But this story had its moments. Some beautiful nature language, some sweetness around love & healing in romance, and some lovely sisterhood.

CW: grief, death, abandonment, toxic relationship, domestic abuse, infidelity, gaslighting, racism, sexual content

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(I received a free copy of this book; this is my honest review.)

Content Warnings

annamay1021's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Content Warnings

sarahsbookstacks's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is easily one of my top romances of the year.

Sisters, magic, grief, humor, heart, plants, and swoonworthy romance that has me believing in soulmates?????

I LOVED IT.

Content Warnings

yourbookishbff's review against another edition

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emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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