Scholar and award-winning author Faith Fiztgerald has every reason to be happy: a wealthy, charming man who adores her and a family cheering her marriage prospects. But from the moment she meets Eric’s sister, Sydney Van Allen, she knows her safe, predictable feelings for him are a shadow of what could be.
Openly lesbian and running for Senator, Sydney can only succeed if she can live down her wild past. That means no liaisons, especially with the achingly alluring woman on her brother’s arm who looks at her with confusion—and desire.
First published by Naiad Press 1996.
The Lesbian Review
As always, Kallmaker is a glorious writer. She is one of the best in the sector and when you read any of her books, including this one, you will see why I say that. This is a sweet romance. It takes a while for the main characters to get together because a lot of time is spent on Faith coming to terms with who she is. It is beautifully written and starkly shows the difference between settling for what is considered ‘normal’ and what your heart really wants. I am a believer that Kallmaker is one of the greats in the genre. Go read this book. Heck, just go read all of her books.
cheekybugger13 –
If you haven’t read Karin Kallmaker’s “Wild Things,” you simply MUST!
It’s a phenomenally constructed love story about 2 vastly different women whose intensely powerful feelings for each other transcends all boundaries. Faith, a professor & historical biographer who’s a devout Christian, has spent years denying her true self & just when she thinks her life is pretty much set, what with a fiancé in tow, is suddenly thrown into the deep end of her otherwise carefully constructed life where her true self has been hidden safely. Until now.
One undeniable reason: Sydney.
Sydney, whose tumultuous life also changed in recent past & is now following in her family’s footsteps in politics. The fact that her brother just so happens to be Faith’s fiancé makes everything even more complicated.
Kallmaker’s masterful use of the language in depicting Faith’s inner turmoil, fighting her natural but hidden desires, Sydney’s own struggles trying to deny her growing feelings for her brother’s fiancée is something to be enthralled by. The achingly hypnotic yearning & forbidden feelings between these 2 are evoked with such written precision & realism that you can’t help but feel every emotion they feel & experience their spellbinding journey toward each other.
It’s mesmerising.
It’s poetic.
It’s poetry in motion.
True love. All its complexities. All its nuances. All its compulsion. All its power. Defined so beautifully with words that leave you wanting more.
Hands down, “Wild Things” is arguably one of my top 3 favourite Kallmaker novels (definitely one of my all-time favourite novels) including its sequels:
“Wild Things Are Free” (5 years after WT)
**found in “Frosting On The Cake**
– THIS. MUST BE READ. OMG. Heart-wrenchingly intoxicating, breathakingly beautiful. Again, masterful use of words. It’s rhythmic.The repeated “I don’t love you anymore” reads like lyrics. POETIC.
“Losing Faith” (15 years after WT)
**found in “Frosting On The Cake 2: Second Helpings”
– READ IT .
My favourite dialogue from this sequel:
“I think I have a different destiny. Rather, I’m willing to embrace a different destiny. But I won’t endanger us again. Not like that.”
She pulled me close again, and her voice broke. “We get to go home.”
Our roles reversed, I cradled her. Sniffing in her ear, I finally said, “I really don’t think we should tell anyone how happy we are.”
“This isn’t the end,” she said.
“That’s the best part. And we get to go home.”
Honestly, Karin Kallmaker, I bow to your ever-masterful writing genius. Thank YOU for this unforgettable, mind-blowing love story. A breathtaking romance for the ages.