Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - Wild and Wicked Things

Beautiful writing. Lyrical. Definitely feels Gatsby inspired. Loved the setting and the magic system. Enjoyed the romance (sapphic). Definitely a dark book so please check the trigger warnings but it was woven together well and not fetishized. Not necessarily a new favorite but one I’d recommend to someone who likes historical fantasy for sure

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lesty_gibbs's review

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dark emotional mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

The writing is really gorgeous, and I adore the premise. 1920's sapphic witchy great gatsby vibes? Phenomenal. It took me a while to connect with the characters, and I was only really enjoying Annie once she was leaning into her own character arc.

I loved the growth in the relationship between Annie and Emeline. They were great, and the way their characters were explored was really interesting. I couldn't stand Bea though, which I felt let the ending down because of how integral her safety, and the characters caring about her safety, was to the final plot. Things would have been far smoother if they just removed Bea from the equation, and I couldn't find myself justifying why she was there. She had a moment towards the end suggesting growth, but it felt too little too late.

I also wished the plot with Annie's dad could have been more fleshed out, I actually found myself forgetting about him and the story surrounding it, which left me scrambling to pick myself back on track for Annie's personal growth. It also made one of the final plot points feel quite shoehorned for me, since it hinges on the dad plot line, yet it's so drawn out that I felt like that part of the story was put on the back burner.

That being said, I really did love how some the themes were handled, and again, the prose itself was so beautiful. Overall, I loved Annie's growth, how her belief system was challenged, and how she was changed by the end. Emmeline was phenomenal, and I loved how it explored her self doubt, her grief, and the continuing impact of her childhood abuse. The magic system was really cool, and I especially loved how it explored the consequences of ones actions, and how it was used as an allegory for other issues, such as sexuality, etc.

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author2223's review

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

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

4.5

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gothbaby's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

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

2.0

I started this book hoping that it would be a 5 star read based on the cover, the blurb, and the writing in the first few chapters. I felt like the story was building on itself quite nicely so I was very disappointed when it fell flat.

I will start with the plot, since that was my biggest source of frustration. I was so happy to pick up a sapphic adult fantasy book. The fact that it was about witches felt like a true lottery win for me. However, the plot was so flat that I kept having to ask myself whether or not I was expecting too much of certain plot points.

The first being the constant allusion to Emmeline’s “darkness.” I put that in quotations because there was nothing indicative of that in the book… she was perfectly kind if not moody. I expected her to literally bathe in blood and perform salacious spells based on the way Annie described her. Instead, the actual magic factor was almost inexistent.

Based on Annie’s visions and the tether, I also expected her to come to great power but there was nothing of the sort. She was meek and showed no interest in actually practicing magic. I found it strange that the author kept referring to all of her senses and the pull of the tether but never had her explore any of it. It felt like a really underdeveloped magic system and plot overall.

Personally, I wanted the crows to have a larger significance. I expected the book to be darker and more intense, more thrilling, but there was none of that. Along with the whole Bea/Arthur blood debt thing (which I found boring and a weak conflict), this was my main source of apathy towards the whole book.

The sapphic subplot was engaging until it wasn’t. I feel like the author relied too much on

Annie’s and Emmeline’s tether to construct a believable relationship between the two.

I wanted Emmeline to be mysterious and for that plot point to feel physically real to me, but instead the book

ended with me feeling like Emmeline would leave Annie because she didn’t love her as much.

The author’s choice to reiterate people’s magic scent was very repetitive. I started to anticipate it any time characters interacted and it seemed like the author had nothing else to use in terms of describing the character’s presence. Again, it felt shallow.

I’m so disappointed by the feeling that this book just wasn’t executed to its fullest potential. That the story wasn’t exciting to me.

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melaniereadsbooks's review

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adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Thank you to Netgalley and Hachette Audio for the ALC of this book.

Wild and Wicked Things is a magical Great Gatsby retelling set on Crow Island, where magic is prohibited in the aftermath of World War I, but that doesn't stop Emmeline Dalacroix. When Annie Mason moves to the island to pack up her estranged father's things, she is entranced by the world of magic and the mystery of Emmeline and her best friend Beatrice.

I loved this! I will say I was instantly hooked by the writing style and the mystery of the island. I loved Annie's character and all the growth she showed. I'm gonna be perfectly honest, I did not know this was a Great Gatsby retelling going into it. I guessed it pretty quickly though--almost as soon as Emmeline's pov chapter started. Then I looked it up. Hah.

This was really good! I loved the sapphic pining and the forbidden magic. The main conflict was really interesting and I loved the follow through with the conclusion! The narration was also excellent.

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azrah786's review against another edition

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dark slow-paced

3.25

[This review can also be found on my BLOG]

**I received a proof copy from Orbit Books in exchange for an honest review**

CW: blood, gore, injury, self harm, murder, death, death of parent, domestic abuse, parental neglect, sexual assault/rape, pregnancy, abortion, alcohol/drug use, panic attacks
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I’ve got to start by saying that there were parts of this book that I enjoyed but it sadly didn’t blow me away like I expected it to.

Wild and Wicked Things is an historical fantasy novel that centres on a young woman, called Annie who arrives on Crow Island to claim an inheritance left by her late and estranged father. With a rumoured history of dark magic the island itself has a reputation of being the favoured haunt for those who wish to dabble in illicit magical vices – things that Annie wants to very much steer clear of.

However, when she witnesses an altercation between her childhood friend Bea and her mysterious and infamous neighbour, Emmeline Delacroix who is rumoured to be a witch, Annie finds herself unable to resist the pull she feels towards Emmeline and her world.

“Magic is…a trickster. It draws you in, makes you think you can control it. You get a taste and then you get careless. You can’t control it any more than you can the tide or the rise of the moon.”

Described as a sapphic Great Gatsby meets Practical Magic I came running for the Gatsby side of things.

May’s writing beautifully pairs together the small and mysterious island atmosphere with all the glitz and glamour of the 20’s. The ambiance from the classic was definitely there but more so in the beginning with how there was a brooding figure throwing parties to attract the attention of a certain someone, and in all honesty Emmeline did have a Jay Gatsby air about her and Annie that of Nick Carraway. However, I wouldn’t class this book as an all-out retelling as it definitely leans more towards witchy territory. Particularly the second half of the story that develops more of a gothic thriller storyline.

I personally haven’t read Practical Magic so can’t comment on the likeness to it but I became enthralled with the magic and witchcraft side of the worldbuilding. The titbits of backstory that showed how magic had originally been so imbedded into people’s lives and their work until its usage in the war made it become prohibited really intrigued me. As did getting a glimpse at the differing powers that the various witches we meet in the story have.

Though I also feel like this wasn’t focused on enough and the progression of the plot was favoured instead of the magic ever properly being explained.

“Just a glance from Emmeline and I wasn’t myself. Or maybe I was more myself than I’d ever been.”

However, I think the main reason I didn’t love this one lies with the characters. I am a reader who loves to get caught up in the characters and their relationships and I’ve got to say the supporting characters and their stories seemed more interesting to me than the primary ones. I mean I liked Annie enough and she did have a pretty remarkable character development but I felt like there wasn’t enough of a balance when it came to how many chapters were split between her perspective and Emmeline’s perspective.

Also I wasn’t entirely convinced with their relationship until right near the very end and this has got a lot to do with the back and forth that was going on between Emmeline, Annie and Bea which was going on for most of the book and I found myself getting bored of it early on. I enjoyed the moments when Emmeline was with Nathan and Isobel a lot more – I loved their little found family unit.

I am glad I managed to push through the slow pacing and dragging middle part of the story though because the last 90 or so pages were in my opinion the best part of the book.

Anyways a lot of these points are very much me things so I think if you enjoy gothic witchy stories that border the horror genre then you should definitely give this one a read.
Final Rating 3.25/5 Stars

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