21 magical science fiction and fantasy books to read in summer 2021
By Lacy Baugher
Summer 2021 release: Wildwood Whispers – Willa Reece
A heartwarming and quietly moving novel of hope, fate, and folk magic unfolds when a young woman travels to a sleepy southern town in the Appalachian Mountains to bury her best friend.
A surprisingly timely story of magic and found family, Wildwood Whispers is also a tale of corporatism and corruption. The Wildwood is a haven that offers abundance and sanctuary, but it is stalked by environmental destruction, greed, and fanaticism. And this story about it is a sweet tale of self-discovery, but it’s also a story of the way women and marginalized communities have always been underestimated by those with power.
To fulfill a final promise to her best friend from childhood, Mel Smith travels to Morgan’s Gap, an idyllic spot in the Appalachian Mountains. But though the mists and shadows soothe her broken heart, Mel senses something is not quite right in the woods.
The official synopsis describes the story in greater detail.
"At the age of eleven, Mel Smith’s life found its purpose when she met Sarah Ross. Ten years later, Sarah’s sudden death threatens to break her. To fulfill a final promise to her best friend, Mel travels to an idyllic small town nestled in the shadows of the Appalachian Mountains. Yet Morgan’s Gap is more than a land of morning mists and deep forest shadows. There are secrets that call to Mel, in the gaze of the gnarled and knowing woman everyone calls Granny, in a salvaged remedy book filled with the magic of simple mountain traditions, and in the connection she feels to the Ross homestead and the wilderness around it. With every taste of sweet honey and tart blackberries, the wildwood twines further into Mel’s broken heart. But a threat lingers in the woods—one that may have something to do with Sarah’s untimely death and that has now set its sight on Mel."
Wildwood Whispers is available on August 17.