A LOVE SONG FOR RICKI WILDE

This swoony, flower filled, jazz infused novel was a highlight of my summer reading, after sitting on my shelf for over a year! When artistic, free spirited Ricki leaves her proper southern family to open a flower shop in Harlem, she intends puts her heart and soul into making her dream a reality. But she never expects to cross paths with Ezra, a handsome stranger who repeatedly warns her away from their undeniable connection. Ezra’s mystery - originating in the Harlem Renaissance, a century earlier - slowly unfolds in a deeply romantic story filled with passion and history, with infinite consequences for them both.

This was an absolutely enchanting love story, atmospheric and addictive enough to listen on audio while reading the physical book! A heady mix of flowers, music, Harlem history, and two people consumed with each other, trying to outrun a mysterious past they don’t fully understand.

Do you believe in fate or coincidence? I asked myself this when I opened this book, languishing on my shelf for a year, and my bookstore receipt was still inside. Curious to know when I bought it, I looked closer: it was FEB 29, 2024. Friends, this book is literally about leap year and this exact date! Don’t you think that’s wild? If this backlist title is on your TBR, consider this a sign to pick it up this summer!

One dramatic scene at the end of the story involves a batch of weed brownies - and while these homemade brownies are drug free, the bouquets are very real and truly gorgeous in the wildflower style Ricki loved in the book. Have you read A Love Story for Ricki Wilde?