One of my all-time favorite romances is 𝘚𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯 𝘋𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘑𝘶𝘯𝘦 by Tia Williams and her follow up also gave me all the feels.

𝗔 𝗟𝗢𝗩𝗘 𝗦𝗢𝗡𝗚 𝗙𝗢𝗥 𝗥𝗜𝗖𝗞𝗜 𝗪𝗜𝗟𝗗𝗘 is primarily set in February 2024 and features a swoony romance, a little leap year magic and a fascinating look back at the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s. With Williams' fabulous pop culture references and poetic writing, a former chid star bestie, a sassy nonagenarian, and a cameo from Seven Days' Eva and Shane and you've got the perfect read this for this month. No one writes a love story quite like Tia Williams.

4.5 stars

Thanks to Grand Central for the copy to review.

Set in Harlem, this is a contemporary romance (literally set in February 2024) with a historical timeline (set in the 1920s), a paranormal twist, and, essentially, “fated mates”.

So, you know. It’s quite a bit, and not for everyone.

Beware: alcoholic parent; 1920s Southern racism (lynching is mentioned); miscarriages; terminal cancer; mental health issues; suicide.

The book alternates between the two timelines, changing in tone and affect to fit each of the two protagonists.

The novel starts in Atlanta, with a brief sketch of a wealthy, and quite dysfunctional, Black family. The Wildes are very much Southern Black royalty, a dynasty built upon funeral homes serving Black communities for a good nine decades.

Ricki, born Richard Wilde III, has been a disappointment to everyone in her family from the moment of her birth. She was supposed to be the long-longed for son and heir. Failing that, she was supposed to follow her three older sisters’ footsteps precisely, starting with being socially adept and academically gifted.

At 28, Ricki has finally had enough of never being enough for her family, and when given the opportunity to realize her own dreams, she takes it, and moves to Harlem to open her own floral shop.

The narrative voice makes the story intriguing, though there’s actually very little happening on page during this first chapter; there is, alas, quite a bit of telling and very little dialogue. The omniscient third person narrator acts a bit like a voiceover in a movie montage, laying down the timeline with little anecdotes showcasing Ricki’s social anxiety and other insecurities, or her sexual escapades, all of which are played for laughs somewhat.

Mind you, this narrative choice fits the story the novel tells, but if you absolutely need dialogue in your fiction, this book won’t work for you.

The historical detail in the 1920s timeline is excellent, and the narrative voice here changes in tone; it takes you from the absolute and open cruel white supremacy of the South to the Harlem Renaissance, and a hope that still couldn’t hide the essential racism of the nation. Ezra’s heartbreak is timeless, and those chapters grabbed me by the throat.

“On the train ride out of town, he stared out the window as the dusty landscape got smaller and smaller, every passing minute putting more distance between himself and the plantation he’d worked and lived on his whole life. The plantation run by the people who’d owned his ancestors. The plantation where Big Ezra, Hazel and Minnie Walker had, despite odds that had nothing to do with them, made a loving home.” (Chapter 3)

“By 1927, twenty-seven-year-old Breeze had learned that the only antidote for grief was to keep moving. He composed more songs that he knew what to do with. Rehearsed deep into the night. Partied to feel nothing, fucked to feel something, and said yes to every gig worthy of him, because he knew that the bottom could fall out anytime.” (Chapter 6)

In contrast, Ricki annoyed me often. There are a few touching passages where her loneliness and social anxiety are mentioned, but the narrative plays then for laughs, as Ricki’s way of coping with them are often shallow if not stupid; and so the heart that’s so present in Ezra’s timeline is lacking in Ricki’s for most of the novel.

And let us agree that everyone’s pain is valid, but the juxtaposition of Ezra’s suffering with Ricki’s ditziness makes the latter seem far too “poor little rich girl”. She’s almost thirty years old, and has never really wanted for anything. At one point she’s blaming “distraction over the Garden Gentleman” for her shop failing, but her business plan for her store was, essentially, “vibes”.

Additionally, on the one hand she is an artist at designing floral arrangements; on the other, she’s a klutz who’s constantly poking herself with scissors and falling off ladders; and look, not everything has to be competence porn, but seriously, she’s flighty enough as it is, so this added handicap feels like overkill.

Tangential personal peeve: once we’ve been told that Ricki dresses in literal secondhand clothes from the 1920s through the 1960s (not vintage or collectibles; the author makes sure we know her clothing looks worn), I really don’t care about much detail beyond “1930s slinky red number” (yes, I’m the crank who doesn’t care that it’s “the color of crushed cranberries, topped off with berry-stained lips”). Of course, this may well be a lovely detail for another reader, so I’m noting it for what it’s word.

On the other hand, for people who don’t care much about music, those references may be too much; I loved them, including those I had to google. Same for the historical references and facts, the political discussions, and so on.

Back to narrative voice and characterization.

I assume that the severe awfulness of Ezra’s situation is supposed to be leavened by Ricki’s flightiness; with the her sisters being mostly clichés, her mother’s surface perfection and profound addiction, and Ricki’s social anxiety, loneliness and other insecurities added on to build up her character’s empathy so the reader believes that she can relate to Ezra’s pain and heartbreaking isolation. Personally, I struggled to make the transition, though I acknowledge that there may be some internalized misogyny at play, or cultural factors I’m missing entirely.

Only two of the secondary characters are really memorable for me: Tuesday, faded child star and former wild child, and fragile nonagenarian Ms Della, who both become Ricki’s chosen family. Everyone else is fairly one-dimensional and/or makes only brief appearances.

There is a rather bleak bleak moment, and I want to stress that readers should heed the content warnings at the top. I finished this book three days ago, and I’m still not sure how I feel about its treatment of mental health, specifically depression and what more than likely is bipolar disorder. As for suicide, there are two incidents; the first is during a mental health crisis, the second is a rational and loving act by a person suffering the last stages of a painful terminal illness.

It’s a good novel–did I mention I’m still thinking about it?–, and I finished it convinced that the two protagonists will be happy together and as individuals, but if the author generally writes more on the Ricki-vibe than the Ezra style, I’m not sure I’ll seek out her work.

A Love Song for Ricki Wilde gets a 9.00 out of 10

Hauntingly beautiful story about finding love in an unsuspecting way.

The writing of this story was so colorful and poetic. It kept me captivated. Ezra and Ricki were meant to be, nothing could stand between them. The two shared interesting familial backgrounds and have very quirky qualities that made you laugh.

I loved SO much about the Harlem Renaissance history that was weaved into the story. That era is one I’ve always enjoyed learning more about. It was a pivotal moment in African American history. This being released during a leap year (IYKYK) and Black History month was *chefs kiss*

I felt various emotions reading this. I cried, smiled, and said “Ricki, girl what?” Many times lol. I loved the unique cast of characters. Their lives were intertwined in many ways that you would not imagine. Ms. Della and Tuesday are gems!

This isn’t your ordinary contemporary romance. Or rom com.

CW: mentions depression, suicide on page, terminal illness

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC and opportunity. All thoughts are my own.

This book!!!! Oh my gosh. This is why she’s an auto buy author for me!!! I can’t believe this wasn’t a book of the month pick!

A Love Song for Ricki Wilde by Tia Williams is such a beautiful book to behold in both the month of love AND a leap year!

This book introduces us to unconventional Ricki Wilde, the youngest of 4 sisters, and the black sheep of the family. While the other three sisters follow the proverbial rules to a "T" and each contribute to running the family funeral business, Ricki longs to do her own thing. Doing her own thing leads this Georgia Peach to Harlem to open her own florist shop and bask in the rich history of the Harlem Renaissance.

By some twist of fate (and impractical magic), Ricki finds herself familiar with one Ezra "Breeze" Walker, who also left the south for bright lights in the big city of Harlem. Through music, florals, and the mysterious + magical Harlem backdrop. Ricki and Ezra connect in ways that seem impossible at first glance. But with magical realism, colorful characters, and a whimsical setting, A Love Song for Ricki Wilde gives us a love story that truly stands the test of time and mortality.

I absolutely enjoyed experiencing this book. It is one readers will feel, hear, smell, and maybe even taste. I can definitely see it in my mind's eye long after finishing it. Tia Williams did not disappoint in introducing me to characters I won't soon forget, either. Tuesday was the coolest bestie ever and Ms. Della reminded me of my own grandmother. I also appreciated the brief cameo from my favorites, Eva, Audre, and Shane.

If you're reading this, I hope you're able to experience A Love Song for Ricki Wilde soon! Thank you to Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for the eARC.

A Love Song for Ricki Wilde is a breathtakingly magical romance spanning a century. Ricki Wilde, the youngest of four daughters, is never good enough for her family. She has different dreams than following in the family’s business so after a chance encounter she moves to Harlem to open a flower shop. Once she gets there she feels inexplicably drawn to a mysterious man who she keeps running into. 👀

Tia Williams can write romances that I feel with my whole soul, but the real stars here are the side characters and the setting. Ms. Della and Tuesday are so lovable and gave the story that much more depth. Additionally, the setting feels like a character in and of itself. We get to spend time in modern day Harlem and 1920’s Harlem during leap years and both feel suffused with magic. As a bonus there is an Eva and Shane cameo. 💕

Thank you NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for an advanced reader copy.

Well thank you Tia Williams for writing this beautiful book and helping me get out of a book slump!

This book has a mix of historical fiction, magical realism, and a romance. It's unique and really captures you from the start for the journey that takes you through Ricki Wilde's life to ending up with her love song. I adore a book that can include the title within in, so that was chef's kiss perfection.

This isn't a typical romance, but for me it all worked so flawlessly. There was so much depth and emotion to these characters and the intertwining of their stories. The way things weaved and the timelines traveled and the characters connected was truly inventive.

Ricki Wilde wants to break away from her family and when she has the fated offer to move to New York and start her flower shop in the perfect space she takes it. What she doesn't know is that the mysterious stranger named Ezra she keeps running into has a past and history she could never imagine. They can't stop circling one another, and they instantly fall for one another. It's fated, but doomed so how can they move on from one another when they no longer can see a world without one another?

I promise this is a HEA but you definitely will be going on a journey. I highly recommend taking the leap and trying something different. Williams writes a world where you can slip into the present and the past and easily transition between the both riding the waves of history throughout the book.

Thank you to Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for my ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I loved Seven Days of June, so I had a feeling I would love this one. My feeling was right.

In terms of the main female character, I found Ricki to be very relatable in her general anxiety and found her sharing various facts when nervous very endearing. She was a free spirit with a sense of humor I loved. I really rooted for her to be successful in running her flower shop and proving her judgemental family wrong.

Ezra was quite mysterious and old fashioned when he was first introduced, and as more and more is learned about him I loved him too.

As for the side characters, they really added to the story, Ms. Della and Ricki’s friend Tuesday especially.

The setting of Harlem was beautifully described, both in the past chapters and in the present day. The former were rife with historical detail which I really enjoyed.

As for the romance, I loved Ricki and Ezra’s throughout this book. They really understood each other and the chemistry between them was palpable.

Overall I loved this book, and highly recommend it.

Thank you to Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for this ARC

I loved A Love Song For Ricki Wilde! Set in a mix of 2024 and the 1920s in Harlem, this story follows Ricki Wilde, the youngest adult daughter in a powerful Atlanta family, desperate to carve her own path, much to her judgmental family’s dismay. A chance meeting with Ms. Della, a recent widow in her 90s, offers Ricki the opportunity to rent space in Ms. Della’s Harlem brownstone and pursue her dream of opening a floral shop.

As Ricki is settling into her new life in NY, she meets a handsome, mysterious stranger in the community garden. He tries to keep her at bay but their paths keep crossing and as they continue to engage, some of the mystery surrounding him is revealed, for better or worse.

Seven Days in June is one of my all-time favorite romance reads, and it’s a high bar. While this story is different, Tia Williams gives a lot of the same elements I loved here in A Love Song for Ricki Wilde — Strong, believable chemistry between the 2 main characters, smart dialogue, humor, some fun, likable side characters, and a romance, with substance. Highly recommend!

A beautiful love story with stunning prose and vibrant characters. There are some books that stick with you and this will definitely be one of them.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

4.5/5 stars
I really loved this story! i thought it was such a fun and unique romance with a really interesting magical element to it. The setting was so fun to be immersed into. I honestly found myself learning so much about the history of Harlem and what it means in terms of Black History. I also just love Tia Williams' voice in her stories. She tells stories with such a perfect mix of humor and seriousness and she has this incredible way of making your feel so connected to and invested in the stories of her characters! I love when she gives POVs from side characters sprinkled into the stories. It's a fun way to get a richer experience imo.

I did feel like it was a little slow to start and i would've liked to have gotten know what was going on a little sooner and getting more time to see Ricki and Ezra interact more in the days following, but i also just couldn't put it down and found myself saying "one more chapter" several times because i was dying to understand what was happening.

Overall i really really loved this book! I loved the callbacks to Eva and Shane from Seven Days in June as well. This was such a fun read. The epilogue had me in tears and was the absolute perfect way to end it all. I'm so happy I read this!

Tia Williams has just made me like a fated lovers romance. Not like. Love. Lovers who are destined for each other is one of my least favorite tropes, but WIlliams makes this work for me. She throws in the right mix of magic and logic, and gives us achingly human characters. Now is the perfect time to read this. A lot of the action takes place in February 2024. Williams grounds her magic in the leap year, almost making me believe in the magic of February.

A Love Song for Ricki Wilde is a luxurious read. It is beautiful at every level. Williams gives us wonderful characters and then shows us the world they live in. She explores love in so many variations – friendship, romance, the love for community and culture, and love that defies time.

Ricki, the family screw-up, is stifled by the way her family defines success, so she jumps at the chance to strike out on her own. Before Ricki meets Ezra in the present, she forms bonds with her delightful landlady, Della, and her new best friend, Tuesday.

I know my true crime podcasts—what if it’s an elaborate ruse for some sick fuck to lure me out there to my death? Honestly, none of this matters anyway. We’re all just specks stuck to a floating rock hurtling through space.”

“Mysterious Benefactor might, in fact, kill you. But we all die of something.”

Incredulous, Ricki stared at her friend. “See, what I really need right now is a sane person to discourage me from these antics.”

“Your vibe attracts your tribe, babe.” Tuesday shrugged. “I didn’t invent science.”

I even enjoyed Ali, Ricki’s “King of Clowns” ex who provided moments of great entertainment.

Williams sets the story in Harlem, both during the Harlem Renaissance and in contemporary Harlem. Gentrification and many forms of racialized violence are woven into the story. A Love Song for Ricki Wilde is gorgeous, lyrical, layered with meaning, and will make you grateful to bleed for it.

Content warnings: racial violence, racism, violent death of family off page, family estrangement.

I received this as an advance reader copy from Forever Grand Publishing and NetGalley. My opinions are my own, freely and honestly given.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC. What a beautiful love story. Ricki is a free-spirited woman who breaks free from her families expectations and opens up a flower shop in Harlem. The apartment above the flower shop has a very interesting history that she knows nothing about, One day comes across a mysterious, handsome stranger in a garden of the building. And nothing is the same after that.

Many thanks to Grand Central Publishing for early access to this title via NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion. The book is available everywhere now, and I think fans of Rebecca Serle will enjoy this one.
Ricki Wilde is the youngest of four daughters and while her older sisters are successful in the family business and nearly interchangeable (she refers to them as Rashidaginarae - collapsing their names together to represent one entity), Ricki hasn’t been able to figure out her place in life in Atlanta. When she meets nonagenarian Ms. Della, who has recently bought a Harlem brownstone, Ricki leaps at the chance to move to NYC and open a flower shop in Ms. Della’s ground floor apartment. While her family is not supportive of the move, Ricki is taken under Ms. Della’s wing, and she establishes Wilde Things while also exploring Harlem.
A love letter to Harlem and its Black history, A Love Song for Ricki Wilde mixes contemporary issues with magical realism. It took a little while for me to become invested in the storyline, but the last 40% were so engaging that it was hard to put the book down. The ending of this one killed me - all the sobs.

The magic of a leap year... time and music...

Ricki is criminally unappreciated by her wealthy funeral business family so nobody believes it’s a good idea when she says she’s going to open her own flower shop... one would think that flowers and funerals go hand in hand and I don’t know could have been a wise investment but her family sucks and makes no sense.. they are all about being the same and living their socialite lives and never actually thinking for themselves. So after a chance meeting with an older woman on one of her last days working for her family Ricki leaves Atlanta behind for Harlem and a fresh start. Ricki’s a bit chaotic at times and a little awkward but she gets her business going and even finds a bestie in Tuesday. The woman who helped to make her dream come true Ms Della has become her adopted grandma. Everything is progressing until Ricki meets Ezra. A man who fate has positioned to knock her world off its axis. Why does she feel so connected to this strange man? And what is he hiding? Despite their best efforts to avoid each other it seems rather impossible so they give in to the inevitable. Then the truth comes out. And the truth is far stranger than fiction and only serves to throw Ricki’s life into complete chaos. Because if this is all true destiny brought her here and there’s no avoiding it.

I really liked Ricki and Ezra and Ms Della and even crazy Tuesday. Ricki’s family really sucked so it was nice that she found her own family and her own way in life. Great story and great characters and though I knew what would likely happen it still broke my heart that it did. Um did I mention that Ricki’s family sucked? It bears repeating. Ezra was great though his backstory was a lot. Still as a whole it was an intriguing and magical story that I loved.

A LOVE SONG FOR RICKI WILDE is a breathtaking romance full of magical realism, depth, and heart. Tia Williams’ writing is whimsical, captivating and everything that is good about love stories. 

"Ricki felt a punch of emotion in her chest, almost knocking her off her feet. This moment was important. She didn’t know why, but it was. She didn’t know him, but she did.”

Upon receiving this book, I decided to go into it blind and I'm so eternally grateful that I did. Reading this story with fresh eyes was such a wonderful experience. The confusion Ricki felt translated so well into confusion I felt, simultaneously, the magnetism that Ezra and Ricki experienced was like watching a dance between soulmates. 

I found both Ricki and Ezra to be so endearing and likable. Ricki going out on her own to escape the future her family had mapped out for her in order to follow her passions was so admirable. I love a strong FMC and Tia Williams writes them so well. Additionally, Ezra was a force: Intelligent, humble, lost and searching. I love a tortured artist and Ezra fully encompassed that. I adored their dynamic and the ease in which they loved each other.

The conflict in this story was gripping. The moment details were revealed and the pieces were falling into place, I knew I wasn't putting the book down until the very last page!! Overall, I truly enjoyed this book and cannot wait to read more of Tia Williams' work!

Thank you NetGalley, Grand Central, and Hatchett Books for my eARC!

Highlights:

Leap year magic
Voodoo magic
Black Love
Fated lovers
Harlem history
Found family

I loved the setting of A Love Song for Ricki Wilde. Two people from different centuries magically meet in Harlem and fall in love. But the same magic that allowed them to meet threatens to tear them apart. I enjoyed the book but didn't love it as much as Seven Days in June. I liked reading about the history of Harlem and the Renaissance glamour. But the pacing was slow, and I wasn't very invested in the love story. My favorite character was Ricki's eccentric landlady, Ms. Della. My rating is 3.5 stars, rounded to 4 stars.

This boom was sheer perfection. I loved Ricki, she is so unapologetically herself and I related to her on so many levels: being the odd one out in her family, doing social media, being a dreamer, a romantic, and SO quirky. This book was just SO cute and I'd recommend going into it blind because I think it added an element of magic for me. Perfect (minimally spicy) romance!!

Tia Williams’ "Seven Days in June" was such a delight that I was eager to see where the author would go next, and "A Love Song for Ricki Wilde" lived up to my high hopes. It takes place in the same universe as her previous novel, since "Seven Days"’ protagonist Eva Mercy pops up in a cameo. There is also a central love story, but Ricki Wilde spins off in some very different directions. Call it an adult fairy tale, or magical realism, but in any event, I was charmed and entertained throughout.

Ricki Wilde is the fourth daughter of a prosperous Atlanta couple, and the black sheep of the family. (Her father was so convinced Ricki would be a boy that he and her mom didn’t even come up with any girls’ names, ultimately opting to name her Richard Wilde Jr.) Expected to follow in her older sisters’ footsteps and go into the family funeral home business, Ricki instead is determined to become a florist. Her Instagram account, Botany Flowers Lately, is a hit. When a serendipitous encounter with an elderly woman from Harlem provides Ricki with an opportunity to move to New York and open a shop on the ground floor of a brownstone, she jumps at the chance.

Ricki loves Harlem, and she’s willing to work hard to make her store a success. But she’s distracted by the handsome man she keeps running into all over town—she is strangely drawn to him, but he warns her that she must stay away. It takes a while before we find out what his whole deal is, but I had my suspicions after a few flashback chapters that take us back to the Harlem Renaissance, when a wildly talented young piano player from rural South Carolina arrives in town, hoping to make it in the “cosmopolitan land of plenty.”

The pages are alive with the wonder of Harlem in the 1920s and the 2020s; it made me wish I could take a walk through the neighborhood with Ricki and see it through her eyes. “[B]eneath the 2024 version of the city was an enchanted universe—characters, places and faces suspended in time like Pompeii.” In the chapters set in the earlier era, Bessie Smith, Louis Armstrong and Fats Waller make appearances.

I didn’t want the book to end, but I couldn’t put it down, either, and finished it in a single sitting. If you allow yourself to get swept up in the magic, as I did, you’ll fall in love with "A Love Song for Ricki Wilde."

Not going to lie, because of the magical realism coponent, as well as the way my brain works, I wasn't sure if I was going to enjoy this book as much as i have with the author's other books. Once I got to a certain point in the story, I was able to enjoy it better. It was different in many ways from her previous works. And i eventually understood why people kept saying keep going. My absolute favorite parts were the history from the 1920's Harlem Renissance Area. This was a beautiful love story between Ezra and Ricki. And the addition of Ms. Della and Tuesday ( and If my friend doesn't ride for me like Tuesday, then I'll need a new friend) made the story that much more enjoyable. I'm glad I kept going.