A Love Song for Ricki Wilde is a beautiful and unique romantic story. Both of the main characters showed depth and the way Williams writes about their romance and their individual growth was intriguing and engaging. I listened to the audio and read a digital copy and I loved re-experiencing it a 2nd time.

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for an ARC

I’d like to thank Grand Central Publishing for making an eARC of A Love Song for Ricki Wilde by Tia Williams available on NetGalley!

Ms. Williams how dare you make me feel BiG Feelings! And I mean that as a compliment of course 💕 I did not expect to get the ultimate high stakes star crossed lovers romance based on the blurb, but with Tia Williams I knew I could trust the process.

Structurally, the story did start a bit slow for me. However, the character development was so. On. Point. Ricki is truly worth rooting for, and I don’t just say that as a fellow ADHD disaster who can relate to some of the impulsive decisions she made in the past. She is so community-minded and purposeful in her art and relationships, and Ezra proved worthy as her match. Of course, I’m also a sucker for well-drawn side characters, and Tuesday and Ms. Della are simply the best!

I’m so glad as well that I got to learn more about the history of the Harlem Renaissance because of this book. I commend Tia Williams for balancing the scenes in the past with the contemporary story, which is not easy to do based on my experiences with clunkier dual timelines in other books.

A Love Song for Ricki Wilde proved that Tia Williams is at the top of her game. I love this book so much, and hopefully we get Tuesday’s book next 💜

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Ever been the odd-one out in your family? The one dancing to the beat of your own drum? You may enjoy meeting Richard Wilde, Jr. - better known as Ricki - the free-spirited youngest daughter in the Wilde family - the “dandelion” to her sisters’ “roses”, as she’s described.

She wants to be a florist! Her dream is to own her own shop and bring beauty to the world with her floral designs.
When fate introduces her to feisty and fashionable nonagenarian Della Bennett, who just lost her beloved husband and offers Ricki a space in her Harlem brownstone to live and open a flower shop, she jumps at the opportunity! Her family may not believe she’ll succeed, but she does … and that’s all that matters, isn’t it?

Flowers may not be the only thing in Ricki’s future, though, when she encounters a mysterious man in a garden while out walking one night. It’s as if she’s always known him and his reaction to her is equally strange, but there’s no denying their connection. Who is this handsome stranger?

Here’s where the story really gets interesting! There’s more to this man, Ezra Walker, than meets the eye. Ricki’s hilarious no-holds barred friend, Tuesday, isn’t so sure about him, but Ricki? She can’t seem to avoid him even if she wants to!

What will the future hold for her? Let’s just say that she never could imagine in her “Wilde-est” dreams (sorry - I couldn't resist) where the next few weeks will take her and how Della, Ezra and Tuesday will fit into her story! They’re all wonderful characters who were a joy to spend time with.

This is my first read by Tia Williams, who also wrote Seven Days in June, and I’m impressed! Her prose is lovely and peppered with warmth and humor throughout. She’s able to balance the melancholic aspects of the story, evoking just the right mood, without dragging the story into the overly emotional sap that some stories suffer from. There are some spicy open-door scenes, but not too many and nothing you can’t easily skip past!

This does have a strong thread of magical realism - especially in the second half, so if that’s not your thing, you may not enjoy this as much. That IS my thing, so I loved it! It also has chapters that occasionally skip between past and present, showing the reader both modern Harlem and looking back to its Renaissance days, offering a look at important figures and places in Black history - especially major contributors to the music we still enjoy today!

At its heart, this is a charming contemporary romance with two fascinating characters who you can’t help but root for. The only ding to my rating was because I thought the ending wrapped up a little too quickly and neatly, so it lost just a touch of the emotional impact I'd hoped for. It certainly didn’t ruin anything, though. The story is wonderful, and the epilogue was so clever!

This book is a magical masterpiece! I can confidently say that this will be one of my favorites of the year and quite possibly one of my favorite love stories EVER! It’s that good that I won’t shut up about it. I’ve recruited so many of my friends to read it and it’s only been published for a week. I fell in love with every character except those dreadful Wildes (not including Ricki of course.) I was definitely rooting for Ricki and Wilde Things as am I’m totally a flower girlie (if you haven’t noticed yet. I arrange most of my florals and I’m still learning new techniques.) I loved how she dared to follow her dreams. Ricki and Ezra’s palpable chemistry.... Whew! Ms. Della’s sweet feisty soul, Tuesday’s anecdotes, and all of the random shenanigans had me actually laughing out loud several times. I didn’t want to stop reading! I was mad when work got in the way and when NetGalley closed for maintenance when I was trying to listen to the last hour of the audiobook I almost lost it! (Thank goodness for the option to download to Kindle!) I love to combine formats but the narration was top tier. Shout out to Mela Lee and Preston Butler III! The story was already amazing but you added that extra ✨! I had to go looking for their other work! When I finally finished it, I was in tears. Well not only tears, I was sobbing. I didn’t want this enchanted experience to end. It’s one of those books that will sweep you up so fast that you have to voraciously devour it but at the same time you want to savor every single minute! I wanna tell more but I don’t want to ruin it. Just read it now. What are you waiting for?!


Thanks to Grand Central Publishing for the eArc and audiobook for my honest review. I definitely went out to purchase a physical copy for myself and two friends!

A little bit of history mixed in with magical realism is the backdrop for Williams’ latest book.
I liked Ricki and her need to get away from her older stifling sisters and the family business.
I loved the location of a Harlem brownstone and Ricki’s determination to succeed.
Ezra’s story and how he fit in was a bit bumpy at first until I sorted through the mechanics to it.
The ending was sweet. Miss Della’s presence permeated throughout the book.

Absolutely enchanting! Ricki Wilde is from a prominent southern family and has always been the outcast. With the help of Ms Della, Ricki moves to Harlem to pursue her dream of owning her own flower shop. It all starts from there…This book is all about self discovery, found family, romance, and a little bit of magic. This story is such a treasure. A must read for 2024!

I don't know what exactly I was expecting from this book, but it wasn't this - and I'm so pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it! Definitely don't expect the same type of book as Seven Days in June - but don't write it off immediately because it's different, either. The first half of this book reminded me a lot of Symphony of Secrets by Brendan Slocumb, which is one of my all-time favorite books. I loved the inclusion of musical elements and the historical Harlem setting and learning about the male MC's past, and I also had a good time rooting for the female MC and her new business venture launching her flower shop, Wilde things. The second half of the book took a sharp turn towards the magical, which is not always my favorite thing to read, but since I was already invested in the main characters and rooting for their romance, I had a lot of fun sticking with where their story went. I know this story and these characters will stick with me for a long time, which is always a testament to a good book in my mind, and I'm glad I took the chance to read a book with elements out of my comfort zone. Highly recommend and can't wait to see/hear/read other readers' thoughts on it!

A Love Song for Ricki Wilde is a magical romance set in Harlem between two free-spirited soul mates. On a whim, Ricki moves from Atlanta to Harlem to live our her dream of owning a decadent floral shop. She is in her late 20s and has always been the black sheep of her wealthy, conservative family. Ricki's new landlord, Della, is a nonagenarian who takes on a grandmotherly role in her life.

Early on in Harlem, Ricki meets Ezra, a mysterious man she is inexplicably drawn to. Interspersed in the novel are depictions of 1920s Harlem, during the Harlem Renaissance. Tia Williams' does such a wonderful job creating likeable characters and fascinating story lines. I absolutely loved Ricki, Ezra, and Della. There are such sumptuous descriptions of flowers, music, and fashion throughout the novel. It was such a treat for the senses. I listened to the audiobook, which was narrated perfectly by Mela Lee and Preston Butler. They breathed so much life into this wonderful novel. This will likely be one of my top reads of 2024.

Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for providing this ebook and audiobook ARC. All thoughts are my own.

YESSSSSS, TIA WILLIAMS I will read anything she writes. She gives us romance that isn't cheesy spice that isn't cringey
female friendship
magical realism
dual timeline
historical fiction
beautiful writing
humor
imagery rich
NYC backdrop
and more. I loved it!! I’ll be thinking about Ricki and Ezra’s romance for a long time. And this book made me want to run out and buy some flowers. And maybe book a trip to NYC 🤩

2.5/5 This was a let down for me. I heard the whisper of time travel so I was immediately intrigued because I love anything that messes with time but this is not sci-fi, it's paranormal. This was more of a book that wants to introduce the reader to history, music and landmarks not really a fully invested story. When Ms. Della's health diagnosis was revealed you knew where the story was going to go from a mile away. I wish I was invested in Ricki and Ezra's love story but I wasn't.

A Love Song for Ricki Wilde is a beautiful romance with a hint of mystery, a touch of magic, a slice of history, and a pinch of spice. Ezra has music in his bones, Ricki marches to the beat of her own drum, and together they make a love song for the ages. Both timely and timeless, I loved this book. A perfect read for this leap year- or really any chance you get.

Thank you Tia Williams, Grand Central Publishing, and NetGalley for providing this ARC for review consideration. All opinions expressed are my own.

I didn’t know what to expect when I went into this, and I can say this was far superior than I expected!!

The entire premise was executed so well, and the intimacy and sensuality of the story just flowed so well.

I will be reading more by this author because her words are something out of this world!!

A love story that I fell in love with. This will be one that I will reread year after year. The story was beautifully written and believable. The characters were relatable. I loved everything about this book!!

Tia Williams pulls off the ultimate genre mash-up with magical realism, mystery, romance, and historical fiction in this dreamy celebration of the Harlem Renaissance. When Ricki Wilde moves into Ms. Della’s NYC brownstone basement to open a flower shop, she finds inspiration in the forgotten corners of her new city. While strolling through a local garden, she bumps into a mysterious man—both familiar and completely strange to her—and she can’t forget his face. Ezra “Breeze” Walker can’t forget about Ricki, either, but he has a secret too dangerous to share. Both the narrative structure and the excellent narrators of this book make it a perfect leap year listen.

Tia Williams ripped my heart out, stomped on it a couple of times, lovingly, and then placed it back inside my chest with care. This book. I have had to take some time to compose my thoughts to be able to find the words to put into this review.

The magical realism aspect of this story was lovely and sad. When we learn the magical aspects (no spoilers here) we can only love the story and characters that much more.

This story jumps back and forth between two different aspects of time, where we follow a variety of main characters in each timeframe. We follow them along through all of the sadness and happy times, and find how they all merge together somewhere along the lines. Williams welded the times and the characters together perfectly, and beautifully, and I couldn't ask for better storytelling. I couldn't stop reading until the end, and had to sob quietly so I didn't wake up my family. I cannot say enough good things about this amazing story.

This is definitely a million star read for me, however, for the sake of reality, I'll say this was definitely a 5 star read and I highly, highly recommend this read! You won't regret it!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for the opportunity to read this arc in return for an honest review.

I will read anything that Tia Williams writes! I went into "A Love Song for Ricki Wilde" without reading the description. All I knew was that it was by Tia Williams (who wrote another book I loved, Seven Days in June) and that it was a romance. I loved how this book had historical elements in it without being completely set in the past. Ricki and Breeze's love story is such a beautiful on that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very end.

I didn’t plan it this way, but between Black History Month, Valentine’s Day, and a leap year, A Love Song for Ricki Wild is a must-read for February!

I went into this book blind after enjoying Seven Days in June last year, and I’m so glad I did. The story took me by surprise in the best way since I’m not usually into paranormal romance. I learned a lot about the Harlem Renaissance and flowers! I loved seeing a little glimpse of Eva and Shane in this book. Most of all I loved Ricki; her determination, passion, and courage to march to the beat of her own drum even if it meant going against her family.

Thank you NetGalley and Grand Central for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Today is a good day for Black Women Authors and I’m bringing two of my favorite authors and people writing books to your attention. Tia Williams literally thrust me into my writing career. I am here because of many people and especially THE TIA WILLIAMS.

The love I have for @tiawilliamswrites truly goes beyond words. If you follow me and my work, I am here because of Tia. In 2006, at a writer event in Washington, D.C., Tia asked about my skincare while signing one of her books for me. I replied “I buy my skincare and get all my facials in Paris” and she immediately replied, “you need a blog.” From writing about my then beauty blog and now she has always celebrated my work. Today we celebrate Tia and her latest release, “A Love Song for Ricki Wilde.”

Can I tell you this book gave me the best book hangover. When it ended I did a deep sigh because I need more of Ricki and Ezra. I was lucky enough to get an advanced copy, but don’t think I haven’t purchased a hardback and Kindle version.

There is one line from the beginning of the book when I knew the hangover would happen.

~“That’s how Dr. Bennett and I loved each other. He was music I could listen to forever.” ~

Her book is available today, wherever books are sold. Link in profile to buy her book.

This one is purely an old two New York City, and particularly Harlem. It was definitely one of my most anticipated romance releases, and it turned out to be absolutely unique. I don’t know how I felt initially about fated love stories, and I was not sure if it would even work for me, but with the author adding an element of magic into this one, it truly is a commendable, unique, slow-burn romance that I’m sure many will enjoy reading. I enjoyed how the author describes Harlem in the 1920s versus the newer Harlem right now. This was something I have hardly read about and it was a very good introduction to a lot of aspects of Harlem for me. I would have liked to see more chemistry between Ricki and Ezra and also I would have preferred Ricki to be a bit more mature because sometimes she felt like a new adult or teenager, but that could have been what the author intended. I do feel this is going to be a hit or miss for some readers because there is a magical element and also because it is an instant love trope.

For those who like their romance on the enchanting side...

A Love Song for Ricki Wilde was a journey. I especially liked the side characters, Ms. Della and Tuesday - their scenes tended to steal the show for me. And the Eva Mercy cameo! (Please can we get her some Botox or other effective migraine treatment between now and the next book? Don't tell me she has to live like this forever.)

I'm not a historical fiction superfan, so I was a bit leery when we jumped back in time, but the flashbacks are much less frequent as the story develops. Ultimately I did like them for fleshing out Ezra's character and the plot, as well as shining a light on Harlem.

I do wish the pacing had been faster at the outset, and that in turn we got to see more of Ezra and Ricki together. The reader has to believe that they have this undeniable, uncomparable connection without seeing enough of that on the page. But ultimately I think this one will work well for those drawn in by the synopsis (admittedly, magic isn't my bag, but I wasn't going to not get excited about a book by Tia Williams).

The audio is narrated by Mela Lee and Preston Butler. I liked this casting and their narration - though I also enjoyed reading the text at times.