I had a hard time getting used to the writing and the pace of the story. I felt that the book was way too long without a reason and the whole religion/spirituality part of it didn't sit well with me.

The Ravishing Riptides of Time is a very unique book. I had not previously read anything like this book before, so initially, I did struggle with the pacing slightly, however, after reading a few chapters I was fully immersed in the world-building.
This book is filled with religion and immortality, so it definitely makes you think for a while after reading it. There is definitely the element of magical and spiritual realism to this book, so if fans of that would enjoy this book.

After reading “A Word from the Author,” I was ready to dive into this book. I am a fan of Allende and all I was fully prepared to read magical or spiritual realism. There are three stories woven together in this to create one novel. There are two main characters who live in different time periods, but we can infer they are destined to be lovers. The story of Valentina begins in the late 1800s and she has the power of wind. Soto spends a significant amount of time on her childhood and teenage years, so as readers we get a good sense of what is happening. Like some of the other reviews, I had a hard time connecting with Alex, her destined lover. I thought he rushed through Alex’s character giving too much detail about events and not enough about him. I felt like the book was rushed after Valentina returns and the drama with the ex-wife could have been kept out so more time could have been spent on fleshing out Valentina and Alex’s characters. .

New Mexico is the perfect setting for this book to take place, particularly Taos and Santa Fe, and I love that Alex De La Vega was born and raised in El Paso. Soto could have spent more time developing Alex here since it is also a very enchanting place full of art and culture. All in all, this is worth time to lose yourself as a vacation read!

I thought the premise of the book was interesting overall, but I did have some qualms. The writing was interesting, but at times I found the pacing to be a bit slow for my tastes. I wished the author had expanded more on Valentina's powers and story. The first third or so of the story was definitely my favorite (pre-time jump), and I didn't find Alex to be as captivating of a character as Valentina and the rest of her "family". I really enjoyed the setting of the book, though I wish in a way it had taken place in warmer months so I could have imagined New Mexico in sun instead of snow, but I almost appreciated the colder weather more since it was such a change of pace from typical southwest USA settings. I felt like I still had some unanswered questions when I finished the book, but overall it was enjoyable and I appreciated the cultural setting behind the story. Soto created an interesting story, but I wished it had been fleshed out more and that the character’s relationship could have been further explored.