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megbooks02's review
adventurous
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
“That’s one of the worst casualties of being hurt by someone who was never supposed to hurt you: you start to question all the beautiful things that led up to the ugliness, start to wonder if some of the moments you thought were perfect were actually painted with a dirty brush.”
I LOVE Rachel Griffin’s writing and storytelling! Wild is the Witch was such a cute story that’s definitely perfect for fall!
I LOVE Rachel Griffin’s writing and storytelling! Wild is the Witch was such a cute story that’s definitely perfect for fall!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Cancer, Blood, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
bookedandbusy's review
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I absolutely loved this book. It was such a magical story, and the setting was perfect.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fire/Fire injury, Animal death, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Blood
growmealibrary's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
tense
fast-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
4.0
Wow! I loved the audiobook of this new YA novel that releases this Tuesday (8/2). Wild is the Witch is a stand alone YA Fantasy that follows our main character Iris who is a witch but hides her identity from those around her. She loathes her coworker, Pike, and to ease her frustration she attempts makes a curse just for him that she never intends to cast. This is where everything goes wrong.
The result of her actions leads to her and Pike hiking through the woods, looking for an owl that has carried her curse away. The only problem is, Pike hates witches, and doesn't know he's currently with one, looking for a curse that was meant for him.
I really enjoyed the character development throughout this book. I found Iris and Pike to be lovable characters that were written with finesse. The magic system in this story was incredible and believable.
I appreciate that this is a stand alone novel as well. We don't get very many stand alone anymore, and it is refreshing to read a fun and quick witchy romance.
I have two main issues with this book. The first is that it is marketed as a YA novel. This book definitely reads on the older end of YA stretching into NA or adult fantasy territory. The second is that the main conflict of this book centers on our main character lying about who she is and what she has done. I appreciate her character growth throughout the book, but wish that the central conflict wasn't centered around her inability to be open about who she is. However, I don't find this to be a huge downside, when considering who this book is marketed towards. This is a great lesson for teens to learn and a great book to learn it through.
I really enjoyed the audiobook of this as well. The narrator did a wonderful job with the pace and changing up the tone as needed for different scenes.
Overall, I definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes YA, romance, and witches. Rachel Griffin has become an auto-buy author for me at this point!
*I was able to listen to an advanced copy of this audiobook through NetGalley.*
The result of her actions leads to her and Pike hiking through the woods, looking for an owl that has carried her curse away. The only problem is, Pike hates witches, and doesn't know he's currently with one, looking for a curse that was meant for him.
I really enjoyed the character development throughout this book. I found Iris and Pike to be lovable characters that were written with finesse. The magic system in this story was incredible and believable.
I appreciate that this is a stand alone novel as well. We don't get very many stand alone anymore, and it is refreshing to read a fun and quick witchy romance.
I have two main issues with this book. The first is that it is marketed as a YA novel. This book definitely reads on the older end of YA stretching into NA or adult fantasy territory. The second is that the main conflict of this book centers on our main character lying about who she is and what she has done. I appreciate her character growth throughout the book, but wish that the central conflict wasn't centered around her inability to be open about who she is. However, I don't find this to be a huge downside, when considering who this book is marketed towards. This is a great lesson for teens to learn and a great book to learn it through.
I really enjoyed the audiobook of this as well. The narrator did a wonderful job with the pace and changing up the tone as needed for different scenes.
Overall, I definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes YA, romance, and witches. Rachel Griffin has become an auto-buy author for me at this point!
*I was able to listen to an advanced copy of this audiobook through NetGalley.*
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Cursing, and Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Death and Chronic illness
booking_along's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
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.
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.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Animal death, and Injury/Injury detail
oracle_of_madness's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
5.0
Thank you Netgalley and Publisher for this Arc!!
What a beautiful story!!! I am enthralled by this magical and romantic tale!
I loved the connection between magic and nature, especially with the animals. The enemies to lovers romance made this book for me. I really just adored this story and I can't recommend it enough!
Out August 2, 2022!
What a beautiful story!!! I am enthralled by this magical and romantic tale!
I loved the connection between magic and nature, especially with the animals. The enemies to lovers romance made this book for me. I really just adored this story and I can't recommend it enough!
Out August 2, 2022!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death
theespressoedition's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
reflective
tense
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
4.5
This is one of the most atmospheric books I've ever read in my life. Though I've never visited the Pacific Northwest, Wild is the Witch made me feel as though I had. The imagery painted throughout the story was so vivid that I could practically feel the rain on my skin, smell the woodsy scent of the forest in the air, and hear the call of the northern spotted owl in the night. There's something about Rachel's writing that makes me, a person who truly dislikes being outdoors most days, have the strongest desire to be amidst the trees.
While this book is relatively short, it is certainly not lacking in poignancy and incredible storytelling. I wasn't expecting to highlight so many quotes in my ebook, but here I am, scrolling through my notes and seeing one gorgeous passage after another. It honestly makes me want to read it all over again (so, I sure am glad that I pre-ordered a copy)!
I consider myself lucky that I was able to read the ARC of this novel during a really difficult time in my life. While the rest of the world felt as though it was being turned on its head around me, I was able to truly escape into Wild is the Witch. I've struggled with getting into a lot of fantasy books lately, especially low fantasy. However, that was definitely not a problem I faced with this. It wasn't confusing, cyclical, or lacking ingenuity. Instead, it was creative, relatable, and absolutely magical.
Enemies-to-lovers isn't my preferred trope. In fact, I tend to avoid it, if possible. I've been scarred by my own past and this particular theme can often come across as toxic. Rather than that being the case in this book, the rivals-to-lovers element was not only understandable (due to Pike's distaste for witches and Iris wanting to defend herself and her loved ones), but it was playful (the banter reminded me of an old married couple) and dare I even say meaningful (the breakthrough and communication these two have is really wonderfully written)? It made me appreciate the trope rather than resent it.
I loved the way the magic was written. From the start, it was very well-explained. I never found myself confused by how Iris's abilities worked. This reminded me a lot of The Nature of Witches and how easy it was to understand the elemental powers in that book. Huge props to Rachel for creating systems that make sense! In fact, the magic was so beautiful that the quotes about it were the ones I highlighted the most. It definitely solidified my love for the beautifully witchy. I don't prefer spooky books, but I could read stories like Wild is the Witch forever.
While the romance is a massive part of the plot, it didn't take front-and-center for me. Obviously, I already raved about the magic, which is what stood out the most. But I also loved the focus on the animals and Iris's huge heart for taking care of all wild things. There was also a subtle-yet-meaningful undercurrent regarding justice and not lumping people together in stereotypical categories unnecessarily. In addition to all of that, there was a beautiful spotlight on finding yourself - for both Iris and Pike. Despite the majority of the story only taking place over a couple of days, the growth was really beautiful.
I truly can't recommend this book enough. You won't want to miss out on it.
While this book is relatively short, it is certainly not lacking in poignancy and incredible storytelling. I wasn't expecting to highlight so many quotes in my ebook, but here I am, scrolling through my notes and seeing one gorgeous passage after another. It honestly makes me want to read it all over again (so, I sure am glad that I pre-ordered a copy)!
I consider myself lucky that I was able to read the ARC of this novel during a really difficult time in my life. While the rest of the world felt as though it was being turned on its head around me, I was able to truly escape into Wild is the Witch. I've struggled with getting into a lot of fantasy books lately, especially low fantasy. However, that was definitely not a problem I faced with this. It wasn't confusing, cyclical, or lacking ingenuity. Instead, it was creative, relatable, and absolutely magical.
Enemies-to-lovers isn't my preferred trope. In fact, I tend to avoid it, if possible. I've been scarred by my own past and this particular theme can often come across as toxic. Rather than that being the case in this book, the rivals-to-lovers element was not only understandable (due to Pike's distaste for witches and Iris wanting to defend herself and her loved ones), but it was playful (the banter reminded me of an old married couple) and dare I even say meaningful (the breakthrough and communication these two have is really wonderfully written)? It made me appreciate the trope rather than resent it.
I loved the way the magic was written. From the start, it was very well-explained. I never found myself confused by how Iris's abilities worked. This reminded me a lot of The Nature of Witches and how easy it was to understand the elemental powers in that book. Huge props to Rachel for creating systems that make sense! In fact, the magic was so beautiful that the quotes about it were the ones I highlighted the most. It definitely solidified my love for the beautifully witchy. I don't prefer spooky books, but I could read stories like Wild is the Witch forever.
While the romance is a massive part of the plot, it didn't take front-and-center for me. Obviously, I already raved about the magic, which is what stood out the most. But I also loved the focus on the animals and Iris's huge heart for taking care of all wild things. There was also a subtle-yet-meaningful undercurrent regarding justice and not lumping people together in stereotypical categories unnecessarily. In addition to all of that, there was a beautiful spotlight on finding yourself - for both Iris and Pike. Despite the majority of the story only taking place over a couple of days, the growth was really beautiful.
I truly can't recommend this book enough. You won't want to miss out on it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Animal death
Moderate: Cancer, Child death, Grief, and Terminal illness
Minor: Cursing
kari_f's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
“Magic is an innate part of the world, an extension of it. It works in tandem with things like medicine and expertise and experience. It honors the natural world by working with it.”
Sometimes you’re in the mood something that will just bring you some cozy vibes and happiness, and I feel like this is what Rachel Griffin’s writing does for me.
Wild Is The Witch has gorgeous, atmospheric writing that made me feel like I was hiking through my favorite woods. There is adventure, but not in a loud way, if that makes sense. It’s almost an introspective sort of adventure where you learn a bit about human nature and yourself in the process.
Griffin also makes me feel things; for a book that mostly felt light and quiet, there were parts that overwrought me with emotion (in an excellent way). I loved peeling away the layers of the two main characters, seeing them learn how to be vulnerable and open with each other as they process new feelings and old traumas. The characters are mature in a way most older teenagers probably aren’t; however they’ve both had things happen that have made them grow up more quickly than they should have had to, and there’s a lot of emotional depth and maturity because of it.
The magic, of course, was also lovely. I really enjoy that each of her books has a unique take on the rules and uses of magic, typically having something to do with nature. The ties between nature and humans make animals (and even weather patterns) feel like characters in their own right.
While I felt like most of the book took on a predictable pattern, I didn’t feel like it detracted from the story. It was almost like knowing what to expect helped me to slow down and enjoy it even more.
One big bonus is the anxiety representation. I’m not sure if the author deals with anxiety or if she has known/worked with people who do, but her depictions of it were spot on and incredibly relatable.
“But that’s the thing about anxiety. It doesn’t care if something is rational or not. It takes hold of your mind and squeezes, tighter and tighter until it can’t be ignored, demanding your undivided attention. It turns from insignificant to all-consuming in the span of a breath, a fog so thick it’s impossible to see through, and no amount of breathing or counting or visualizations undoes it.”
Overall I found this to be an enjoyable book that I’m sure I’ll revisit in the future!
Thanks so much to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for the e-arc!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death
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