At over 90k, Something Wild and Wonderful by Anita Kelly should have been a two-day read. I devoured it in one day and had such a raging book hangover I could not read anything else the next day. I’m still thinking about the story and about Alexei and Ben. This is a gorgeous read, an exploration of both internal and external landscapes, and I’m so glad to have read it. For sure this is going on my list of 2023 faves.
This is a spoiler-free review. But, I need to flail a little, so there’s a “Spoiler-y Discussion” section down below the Author Stalking. So avoid that until you’ve read the book.
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Something Wild and Wonderful
🥭🥭🥭🥭🥭
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
(you can find my rating and spice system here)
POV & Tense: Dual POV, third limited, past tense
Genre: Contemporary Romance, MM Romance
Tropes/Themes: Forced Proximity, Journey of Self-Discovery, Hurt/Comfort, Angst (with a side of angst and a happy ending), Strangers to Friends to Lovers, Opposites Attract: adorably awkward bird nerd + outgoing cinnamon roll, Grief, Found Family
Locations: Pacific Crest Trail and surrounding area; Nashville, Tennessee; Portland, Oregon
Synopsis:
Hiking the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) means something different to every person who endeavors it. For Alexei, grieving the loss of his family and church after being disowned for being gay, it’s a step forward into an unknown new life. For Ben, restless and lamenting his poor decisions in relationships, it’s a means to work out his wanderlust. When the two cross paths, it’s a catalyst for change, and neither is prepared for where the path may take them.
My Review:
It’s been a few days since I finished Something Wild and Wonderful, and I’m still shaking. I am not okay. This gorgeous story is as much a punch to the gut as a soothing balm for the soul. It’s a journey of self-discovery and the dark night of the soul. It’s those restless hours at three a.m. when you just can’t sleep, and the glorious splendor of a weekend in bed with pancakes for breakfast. This story has touched something deep inside my soul.
Opposites Attract
Alexei immediately captured my heart and empathy. Raised in a strict and religious Russian family, he’s been taught from a young age that being gay is a sin. And when he’d finally built up the courage to come out, his parents disowned him. He lost everything—his family, his faith. When he begins his journey on the PCT, he’s reeling from trauma, tightly wound and seeking solace. Human contact only seems to make him more anxious, except for Ben. Ben is this super chill, outgoing, cinnamon roll of a man. He has a knack for talking to anybody and everybody, getting them to open up and be comfortable in his presence. And sometimes all it takes is for an outgoing person to extend an olive branch, and an introvert can grab on, open up, and form a solid friendship.
It was truly beautiful to watch Alexei blossom in Ben’s presence, and for Ben to be able to explore more of himself and his surroundings within Alexei’s frequent silences.
It was only when Ben had started hiking with Alexei that he’d actually started to relax. Like he suddenly remembered why he had wanted to do this in the first place. Able, in Alexei’s calm silences, to fully absorb the natural world around him. The curiosities of the desert, the wonder of it all. His mind free to wander wherever it wanted to go.
Forced Proximity
I adore the forced proximity trope—it’s delicious. From their rattlesnake meet-cute onward, Ben and Alexei make a pact to hike together because hiking on your own can be dangerous (running out of water, illness, and injury being only some of the risks). But the more time they spend together, the more ambivalent they are about their pact. As Alexei becomes increasingly attracted to Ben—who he thinks is straight—he knows he needs to part ways and return to his solo journey. Ben, determined to put to rest his dating mistakes of the past, has sworn off men. And the last thing Alexei needs is Ben coming on to him. But the shared journey brings them closer and tests Ben’s resolve. When creatures howl and go bump in the night, things get complicated…
Ben had crashed into Alexei’s tent in an all-out panic less than ten minutes ago, and now he was sound asleep, his body taking up half of Alexei’s single-person mattress pad, his arm curled around Alexei’s waist like it belonged there, and Alexei was too pissed off and turned on and too confused and exhausted for this.
Double Angst with a Side of Angst (and a happy ending)
Something Wild and Wonderful, gorgeous as it is, is on the angstier side of what I typically read. There were many heart-in-throat moments that had me doing that thing where I skip ahead to make sure everything is going to be okay before going back to where I left off, and there’s one thing that happens (you’ll know what it is when you get there) where I just knew I had to finish the book that night or else I wouldn’t be able to sleep. It’s very much a ‘here, scoop my heart out, might as well take my lungs, perhaps my spleen’ moment. But I can attest, your heart will be returned to you fluffed up and full of love.
There were two things that mattered: family and faith. Without them, he was a drifting ship at sea. And Alexei liked sturdiness. He was trying to be hopeful about the future, his new plans. But in the deepest part of himself, he simply didn’t want to be out on these riotous waters at all.
Strong Character Arcs
I love a good, well-developed character arc, and this book doesn’t disappoint. Both Ben and Alexei undergo tremendous growth and changes throughout the story, and it’s easy to become invested in their emotional growth and journeys—both individually and together. Honestly, I can’t fault either of them for the things that happen or the choices they make; they are both going through so much. Thank god for the romance law of happy endings, and for heart-warming epilogues.
Alexei was a butterfly, just emerging from his chrysalis, and he was showing Ben his wings. Ben couldn’t turn away from that. Like every Joshua tree, every flowering cactus, every strange bug and rock formation Ben had been lucky enough to witness on this trail so far, he could only cherish it.
Final Thoughts:
Ahhhhhhhhh, I have so many feelings about this book. Something Wild and Wonderful is an incredible journey, one that I know I will want to reread again (and who am I kidding, again… and again). It’s too soon to tell, but I suspect this is a story that you’ll get something different out of every time you read it. I urge you to take a chance and pick this one up. You won’t regret it.
Something Wild and Wonderful by Anita Kelly
Author Stalking (but not in a creepy way):
Anita Kelly is the other of two (with a third on the way) queer contemporary romance novels. The premises all look amazing and are going on my TBR…
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Image Credits:
Banner + Insta: Mountains
Insta: Joshua Tree
Spoiler-y Discussion
You’ve been warned….
Below, there be spoilers…..
Down a bit more….
Okay, I want to chat about Nashville. OH. MY. GOD! When Alexei got up and left without saying goodbye, I honest to god thought I was going to throw up. When two people who clearly love each other are suddenly separated, my poor heart and my poor stomach can’t take it. It was like watching something happen in slow motion while being unable to stop it. I just wanted to reach out and grab Alexei back and make them have an open conversation about their feelings.
I was chuckling when I read Anita’s discussion questions at the back of the book, specifically where she said some readers were mad at Alexei, some were mad at Ben, and others were mad at her. Yes, I’m mad at you, Anita—except I can’t be. She set everything up so perfectly. When Alexei gets overwhelmed, he removes himself from the situation (as evidenced when he left the hotel room after he and Ben first hooked up). And Ben falls asleep when stressed out (as has happened numerous times). There are no deus ex machina moments here. It’s all so perfectly tragic, and that I had such a strong, visceral reaction is a testament to Anita Kelly’s writing and the power of the story. The book is over, has been wrapped up nicely, and I’m still shaking. Love that.
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