Blog Tour: Wild Swans – Review

April 26, 2016 Heidi ARC, Blog Tour, Book Review, Giveaway 3

I am so excited to be a stop on the blog tour for Jessica Spotswood’s Wild Swans. I am a huge fan of her Cahill Witch Chronicles (which starts with Born Wicked) and couldn’t wait to see what she would do with a contemporary setting. Here’s a bit more about Wild Swans:

About the Book:

The summer before Ivy’s senior year is going to be golden; all bonfires, barbeques, and spending time with her best friends. For once, she will just get to be. No summer classes, none of Granddad’s intense expectations to live up to the family name. For generations, the Milbourn women have lead extraordinary lives—and died young and tragically. Granddad calls it a legacy, but Ivy considers it a curse. Why else would her mother have run off and abandoned her as a child?

But when her mother unexpectedly returns home with two young daughters in tow, all of the stories Ivy wove to protect her heart start to unravel. The very people she once trusted now speak in lies. And all of Ivy’s ambition and determination cannot defend her against the secrets of the Milbourn past….

My Thoughts:

As I mentioned, I’m a fan of Jessica Spotswood’s Cahill Witch Chronicles. Aside from the story itself, I really loved her writing style. It felt very lyrical. I was pleased to find that this was true of Wild Swans as well. This book is a contemporary rather than a paranormal alternate history but I got that same sense of wonder as I was reading.

Ivy is an incredibly interesting character to follow. She has grown up hearing all the history of the exceptional women in her family without ever knowing any of them. As you can imagine, that’s shaped her view of herself and her abilities. It’s a lot to live up to and Ivy feels the pressure. No matter how much she does it always feels like it’s not enough. I could so relate to this. I remember internally freaking out just before I started college and feeling like I had no idea what I was going to do with my life. I felt like it was certain I’d fail. Seeing Ivy deal with similar feelings was so poignant.

There was so much more to this story and I enjoyed all of it. A summer read with heart and soul. I look forward to adding a finished copy to my shelves!

About the Author:

I heart books, board games, tea, the color pink, theatre, twirly dresses, and bells chiming the hour. I live in Washington, DC with my playwright husband and a cuddly cat named Monkey. I work part-time as a children’s library associate for the DC Public Library. I’m frighteningly enthusiastic.

I use GR to keep track of what I read and to recommend books that I really love.

If you’re interested in interviews or guest posts, please contact me at cahillwitch (at) gmail (dot) com. Thanks!

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