Wild Is The Witch by Rachel Griffin Book Review!

 

Title: Wild is the Witch
Author: Rachel Griffin
Publish Date: August 2nd, 2022
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Source: Huge thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a review copy!

When eighteen-year-old witch Iris Gray accidentally enacts a curse that could have dire consequences, she must team up with a boy who hates witches to make sure her magic isn't unleashed on the world.

Iris Gray knows witches aren't welcome in most towns. When she was forced to leave her last home, she left behind a father who was no longer willing to start over. And while the Witches' Council was lenient in their punishment, Iris knows they're keeping tabs on her. Now settled in Washington, Iris never lets anyone see who she really is; instead, she vents her frustrations by writing curses she never intends to cast. Otherwise, she spends her days at the wildlife refuge which would be the perfect job if not for Pike Alder, the witch-hating aspiring ornithologist who interns with them.

Iris concocts the perfect curse for Pike: one that will turn him into a witch. But just as she's about to dispel it, a bird swoops down and steals the curse before flying away. If the bird dies, the curse will be unleashed―and the bird is a powerful amplifier, and unleashing the curse would turn not just Pike, but everyone in the region, into a witch.

New witches have no idea how to control their magic and the consequences would be dire. And the Witches' Council does not look kindly on multiple offenses; if they found out, Iris could be stripped of her magic for good. Iris begs Pike to help her track the bird, and they set out on a trek through the Pacific Northwest looking for a single bird that could destroy everything.

Penelope's Review

Another witchy standalone by Rachel Griffin! Who could resist that?! This book was surprisingly touching, and had me feeling all sorts of emotions throughout. Any book that brings a tear to my eye is a great one in my books. 

Wild is the Witch follows Iris, a young witch who was forced to leave her old town with her mom due to an unfortunate event. Now the two run an animal refuge together, and Iris keeps her identity as a witch a secret, especially given that the intern working with her happens to hate witches. When a harmless ritual goes wrong, Iris finds herself trekking through the wilderness with witch-hating Pike by her side as she tries to find the curse-stealing owl before it's too late. 

This book has so many fantastic elements to it - the writing style is fantastic as usual, the raw emotion bleeding through the pages is so real, and we get deep moments of vulnerability lightened up with just enough humor to make it feel real. The beginning of this book sets the stage well, and the story flows from there pretty well. We have a few slower spots in the middle there, but everything picks right up as we get to the end. 

Overall, it's a really great YA contemporary story, with such a beautiful take on magic and witches. The romance is slow and sweet, and the book ends exactly as it should have. It will definitely leave you with a smile on your face.

Rating: 4/5 Devils!

Omens Bite by P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast Review!

 

Title: Omens Bite (Sisters of Salem #2)
Author: P.C. Cast & Kristin Cast
Publish Date: April 5th, 2022
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Source: Huge thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a review copy!

Twin sisters, Mercy and Hunter are witches, descendants of the Goode family of witches. After the murder of their mother at the hands of a foul demon, they have become the protectors of the Gates to different underworlds--ancient portals between their world and realms where mythology rules and the darkest of creatures exist.

The problem is that the Goode sisters have split from each other. Grief and anger have torn them apart, driving Mercy to save the cursed Gates on her own and Hunter into the arms of a dangerous goddess. And when Mercy shifts her focus to the Egyptian Gate and Khenti, the guardian of its Underworld, little does she know that her connection to him will land her in the kind of trouble that only Hunter can save her from.

When it comes to breaking the curse, Mercy and Hunter's bonds are put to the ultimate test.

Penelope's Review

This is the second book in The Sisters of Salem series and follows witch twins Hunter and Mercy as they recover from losing their mom and trying to save the gates. These twins were super close in book one, but grief and trauma have driven a wedge between the sisters that sees them apart for the majority of this book.

Hunter is pretty well-written as a character in this book - she's angry and hurt, determined to stand on her own, rather than in Mercy's shadow, for the first time and I loved it. Her emotions and reactions felt so genuine, even when they weren't exactly the most healthy. It made her seem so relatable, as obviously everyone grieves differently. While Hunter was unfortunately making some arguably terrible decisions in her anger, I am confident that everything happens for a reason and she will find her way back to herself and her twin. 

Mercy, on the other hand, was very selfish and kind of annoying. Like I said, everyone grieves differently, but with Mercy I just kept thinking she needed to get off her high horse and try to be a little more empathetic. I'm curious to see where things go with her, I feel like she may be a bit of a different person in the next book so we'll see.

In terms of plot itself, I liked the storyline here. There was a lot going on with the sisters, the gates, Kirk, etc. We get some hints of romance, but nothing definitive - I have a feeling that might go somewhere in the next book. We ended on a cliff hanger, so I'm interested to see what happens with all of that as well. 

In terms of writing style.... I do agree with some people's reviews saying it's got a bit of a younger feel. It definitely does, but if you read their House of Night series and liked it, then I don't think that will be an issue for you. It's the same sort of feel.

Overall, I'm interested to see where this story takes us. I'm not sure if this is a trilogy or more, but let's see where these witchy twins take us!

Rating: 4/5 Devils!