THE PLOT: ‘A Love Song for Ricki Wilde’ by Tia Williams is a contemporary romance with speculative elements. As the impulsive, artistic daughter of a powerful Atlanta dynasty, Ricki Wilde is the opposite of her socialite sisters. So, when she gets the chance to rent a Harlem brownstone, she fulfils her dream of opening a flower shop in New York City. In another timeline it’s the 1920’s Harlem Renaissance and the city is heaving with jazz, love and laughter, taking us back to the history of Ricki’s Harlem residence. But, one evening on a leap year February in 2024, Ricki encounters a handsome stranger who blows her away. She is inexplicably drawn to him, but he’s hiding a secret and refuses to let their love story blossom.

SUMMARY: I’m the problem. It’s me. So, romance readers, don’t come at me in the comments. I know I need to stop poorly reviewing the genre. However, I adored the author’s previous book, ‘Seven Days in June’, and wanted to give this a shot, thinking I’d finally found the perfect romance author for me. But, unfortunately, this book did not hit the way I wanted it too. It felt like Ezra was pushing Ricki away for no reason, and his “I love you, but we can’t be together” attitude was extremely frustrating. If I’m honest, I skim read all the “will they, won’t they” and the sex scenes. This is completely subjective and I have to hand it to the author for re-capturing my attention. There are several structural plot devices which kept me going with this one (detailed below). So, it’s three and a half stars for brilliant writing and an excellent example of its genre, but one I didn’t enjoy as much as I wanted. Don’t worry, I will round up to four stars on Goodreads etc.

GOOD BITS:  Even though I didn’t love this book, it taught me about plotting my own novel. For example, there were three clever plot devices that sustained my interest in the story. Williams reintroduces Ricki’s sisters to show character growth in a funny scene, gives Ezra and Ricki a clear external goal once they’re in love, and uses Mrs Della as a mentor while ultimately including a twist that ties her to the core plot. I also loved the world-building and characters overall. I just would’ve preferred these characters in a suspense novel about shady Atlanta socialites rather than a romance for the ages.

NOT SO GOOD BITS: Sorry but I got bored… The whole magical-fated-soulmates thing might be some people’s jam but it feels like instalove to me. I didn’t understand or care about the relationship between Ricki and Ezra until they were firmly together, and Ezra’s “I love you but I’ll hurt you” vibe felt way too emo. If I have to read pages of pontificating about love with no dialogue and multiple rhetorical questions, I’m going to switch off.

OVERALL: I’d recommend this book to fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid and Kennedy Ryan. If you like a multi-layered romance with sprinkles of spice, this is for you.

You can purchase this book with a discount and support @aminasbookshelf via my bookshop.org account.