Review: Wildwood Whispers

Title: Wildwood Whispers
Author: Willa Reece
Genre: Magical Realism, Fiction
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Redhook
Date Published: August 17, 2021
You can find it here: Bookshop.org

If I could sum up this novel in one word: lush. Lush descriptions, lush setting, and lush prose that elicits a complete smorgasbord of sensory details. If you enjoy a magical tale that is heavily centred in nature, small community, strong female characters & friendships, and an itty bitty romance, you’ll love Wildwood Whispers.

This novel will have you running out to your backyard to plant all kinds of plants, herbs, and fruit trees, in order to pick your bounty and make jams, breads, and all concoctions of canned goodies. It is a quiet and extremely slow moving story, (deliberately slow but maybe too slow to reveal at times?), that centres on some very dark themes: murder, abuse, sexual abuse, and a patriarchal polygamous cult that abuses women. Not to be fooled by the light cover, this story has a dark heart. 

While the wrapping up of the central mystery and conflict felt a little sloppily handled and I wish the romance could have had a stronger pay out for the amount of time invested, I very much enjoyed my time slowing down and absorbing this very arresting, naturalistic story with its beautiful female friendships and tantalizing descriptions of food. Oh, and the most adorable little witch familiar mouse that deserved so many more pages then it was given … 

Any purchases made via retailer links provided in this article may result in this site receiving a share of that sale, which is truly appreciated! As a Bookshop.org Affiliate, this site earns from qualifying purchases.