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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy of the Wild Ones in exchange for an honest review!
This book was beautifully written. I had to stop myself at times because I didn't want to speed through it too fast. Words can't describe how much I enjoyed the concept of this book and all of the magical elements that made this book special. The author touches on many sensitive topics throughout, but she does so in a way that each play a key role in how the Wild Ones came to be.
While overall I did thoroughly enjoy this book, I did have a hard time figuring out which member of the Wild Ones was narrating the story at times. Some chapters are told from Paheli's point of view (the leader of the Wild Ones) and others are told from another member, who is not specifically stated. I found this a bit difficult to follow at the start, but accepted that all of the Wild Ones were connected and one voice was essentially used to tell the story. The chapters were enjoyable and easy to get through, each with their own title, giving us a taste of what was to come. I enjoyed the concept of "the Between" and how these magical beings can travel from one place to another through magical doors. I thought the world building was done very well, taking us on a journey through different cities, with a focus on historical locations and local food that caused my mouth to water.
While the Wild Ones are comprised of nearly a dozen different women, there are only a few we truly get to know throughout the story. Small facts about some of the other Wild Ones are told through short sections, titled "from the Book of Memories", but not enough information was provided to really get an idea of who these women are. While I did find myself wondering more about these women and what brought them to the Wild Ones, it might have been too overwhelming to have a full backstory for each of them. I do think the author did a good job selecting which of the characters to shine a brighter light on to tell the story of the Wild Ones and how they came to be in existence.
Romance and sisterhood were also two aspects of this book that I really enjoyed. I found that the growing relationship between Paheli and Taraana didn't take away from the plot in any way, showing us a different side of Paheli than we were used to up until the two officially meet. Paheli and Taraana complement each other well, and his character was one that I truly did like. I also loved the sisterhood between the members of the Wild Ones. Each of the women seems to support and truly care for each other. It is clear that each of the Wild Ones have gone through something horrible in their lives to bring them to where they are, and the love and support they have for one another is heartwarming.
I 100% would recommend. "Be wild."
This book was beautifully written. I had to stop myself at times because I didn't want to speed through it too fast. Words can't describe how much I enjoyed the concept of this book and all of the magical elements that made this book special. The author touches on many sensitive topics throughout, but she does so in a way that each play a key role in how the Wild Ones came to be.
While overall I did thoroughly enjoy this book, I did have a hard time figuring out which member of the Wild Ones was narrating the story at times. Some chapters are told from Paheli's point of view (the leader of the Wild Ones) and others are told from another member, who is not specifically stated. I found this a bit difficult to follow at the start, but accepted that all of the Wild Ones were connected and one voice was essentially used to tell the story. The chapters were enjoyable and easy to get through, each with their own title, giving us a taste of what was to come. I enjoyed the concept of "the Between" and how these magical beings can travel from one place to another through magical doors. I thought the world building was done very well, taking us on a journey through different cities, with a focus on historical locations and local food that caused my mouth to water.
While the Wild Ones are comprised of nearly a dozen different women, there are only a few we truly get to know throughout the story. Small facts about some of the other Wild Ones are told through short sections, titled "from the Book of Memories", but not enough information was provided to really get an idea of who these women are. While I did find myself wondering more about these women and what brought them to the Wild Ones, it might have been too overwhelming to have a full backstory for each of them. I do think the author did a good job selecting which of the characters to shine a brighter light on to tell the story of the Wild Ones and how they came to be in existence.
Romance and sisterhood were also two aspects of this book that I really enjoyed. I found that the growing relationship between Paheli and Taraana didn't take away from the plot in any way, showing us a different side of Paheli than we were used to up until the two officially meet. Paheli and Taraana complement each other well, and his character was one that I truly did like. I also loved the sisterhood between the members of the Wild Ones. Each of the women seems to support and truly care for each other. It is clear that each of the Wild Ones have gone through something horrible in their lives to bring them to where they are, and the love and support they have for one another is heartwarming.
I 100% would recommend. "Be wild."
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
The Wild Ones is lyrical, magical, and stunning. The writing is exquisite and there were so many sentences that just stopped me while reading. Celebrating friendship and support, it's a book that isn't afraid of showing the pain because it's a piece of their journey. While this feels a bit more experimental - with passages like memories and more stream of consciousness - Azad weaves a journey of resistance and love. The beginning feels like a slow unfurling of atmosphere and vibes and then all of a sudden there's this switch and the action builds on this foundation.
The Wild Ones is lyrical, magical, and stunning. The writing is exquisite and there were so many sentences that just stopped me while reading. Celebrating friendship and support, it's a book that isn't afraid of showing the pain because it's a piece of their journey. While this feels a bit more experimental - with passages like memories and more stream of consciousness - Azad weaves a journey of resistance and love. The beginning feels like a slow unfurling of atmosphere and vibes and then all of a sudden there's this switch and the action builds on this foundation.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicide, Violence, Kidnapping
⭐️ 2.5 Stars ⭐️
I wanted to enjoy this book, but it ended up falling flat for me. The premise seems very interesting, but the concept didn’t end up living to its full potential. The cover is stunning, and I loved the idea of a magical girl squad that could represent many readers who felt not represented in the YA genre.
The Wild Ones is on girls and women that centers on their hard struggles in life, the strength they can find from others, and creating a loving family that they can feel supported. Azad expands on how we form relationships and the horrors or beauty that can lay within them.
This novel brings to center stage issues girls and women face around the world in our society. It demonstrates how we can find a community with others to face head-on the struggles that all women endure. We get to see how the survivors cope after these horrible experiences they have faced over their lifetime.
One of the main problems with this book was it was so difficult to follow this book. The book switched between the first person of Paheli, the leader of the Wild Ones, and another point of view of one of the wild ones. But we are never told who the other point of view is. This made it even more confusing because it was just some mysterious Wild One we don’t know much about.
There were also so many characters in this book. There were 11 girls in the Wild Ones then you have various side characters as well as Taraana. I didn’t get the chance to know who they were and what they were like as people. I don’t even remember most of the Wild One’s names except Paheli, Valentina, and Taraana. I would have liked to know about the characters, we do get these little excerpts from each Wild Ones, but for me, that isn’t enough. Either the characters should get more development or have fewer Wild Ones so we can learn more.
The writing was another major problem in this book was the writing. Usually, there is only one writing style used in the book, but various writing styles were confusing to follow. There were moments where the writing style was full of so much life and written beautifully. Other times, we switch to writing, which was similar to middle-grade writing style, and it was choppy, and many things were redundant.
But other times the writer did the one thing writers should avoid. Instead of showing the story through the writing, she just straight up told us what was happening. This took so much away from the story and creates a disconnect for me. A wide majority of this including telling, rather than showing, so it wasn’t like it happen once, but it happens consistently. The writing style did not match up with the more serious themes presented in the book.
The worldbuilding was very weak. Most of the time, we would receive vague descriptions of places The Wild Ones would travel. In this world, there is a place called “the between,” where you can travel to any place you want through doorways. We are told that there is a Keeper of the Between. I would have liked the concept of the between expanded upon more because I didn’t “really” know what it was. I just thought of it as a place with doorways where you can travel to other locations.
Not only do we have “The Between,” in this book, but we also have humans and Middle Worlders. Middle Worlders are people who can use magic. Many times in the book, they are either described, as human or not human. Honestly doesn’t give us details about them, rather, it just says, “they are Middle Worlders, but they don’t look human.” I would have liked more description and to get more backstory about them. Most of the time I found the worldbuilding to be lacking and sometimes to be very confusing. Honestly, I feel like we got more worldbuilding for the food the characters ate rather than the actual world they live in.
The pacing in this book was also all over the place. The beginning was very slow, so it took me forever to get into the book. I found it to be very confusing while simultaneously being very boring. The book doesn’t begin to pick up until towards the middle, but even then, it’s still painstaking slow and still contains scenes that slow the plot down. It isn’t until about the last 100 pages, the book beginnings to pick up, and starts to go at a zooming pace. I would prefer for it to keep a faster pace throughout rather than having a super slow beginning and fly-by ending.
Overall, this book fell flat for me and ended up being a major disappointment. I had high hopes for this book, and it ended up not reaching most of them.
TW: Misogyny, child endangerment, human trafficking, abuse, rape (mention), bullying, grief, blood, violence, and victim’s guilt
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an ARC of The Wild Ones in exchange for an honest review!
Check out this review on my blog: https://inkingandthinking.wordpress.com/2021/05/29/the-wild-ones-review/
I wanted to enjoy this book, but it ended up falling flat for me. The premise seems very interesting, but the concept didn’t end up living to its full potential. The cover is stunning, and I loved the idea of a magical girl squad that could represent many readers who felt not represented in the YA genre.
The Wild Ones is on girls and women that centers on their hard struggles in life, the strength they can find from others, and creating a loving family that they can feel supported. Azad expands on how we form relationships and the horrors or beauty that can lay within them.
This novel brings to center stage issues girls and women face around the world in our society. It demonstrates how we can find a community with others to face head-on the struggles that all women endure. We get to see how the survivors cope after these horrible experiences they have faced over their lifetime.
One of the main problems with this book was it was so difficult to follow this book. The book switched between the first person of Paheli, the leader of the Wild Ones, and another point of view of one of the wild ones. But we are never told who the other point of view is. This made it even more confusing because it was just some mysterious Wild One we don’t know much about.
There were also so many characters in this book. There were 11 girls in the Wild Ones then you have various side characters as well as Taraana. I didn’t get the chance to know who they were and what they were like as people. I don’t even remember most of the Wild One’s names except Paheli, Valentina, and Taraana. I would have liked to know about the characters, we do get these little excerpts from each Wild Ones, but for me, that isn’t enough. Either the characters should get more development or have fewer Wild Ones so we can learn more.
The writing was another major problem in this book was the writing. Usually, there is only one writing style used in the book, but various writing styles were confusing to follow. There were moments where the writing style was full of so much life and written beautifully. Other times, we switch to writing, which was similar to middle-grade writing style, and it was choppy, and many things were redundant.
But other times the writer did the one thing writers should avoid. Instead of showing the story through the writing, she just straight up told us what was happening. This took so much away from the story and creates a disconnect for me. A wide majority of this including telling, rather than showing, so it wasn’t like it happen once, but it happens consistently. The writing style did not match up with the more serious themes presented in the book.
The worldbuilding was very weak. Most of the time, we would receive vague descriptions of places The Wild Ones would travel. In this world, there is a place called “the between,” where you can travel to any place you want through doorways. We are told that there is a Keeper of the Between. I would have liked the concept of the between expanded upon more because I didn’t “really” know what it was. I just thought of it as a place with doorways where you can travel to other locations.
Not only do we have “The Between,” in this book, but we also have humans and Middle Worlders. Middle Worlders are people who can use magic. Many times in the book, they are either described, as human or not human. Honestly doesn’t give us details about them, rather, it just says, “they are Middle Worlders, but they don’t look human.” I would have liked more description and to get more backstory about them. Most of the time I found the worldbuilding to be lacking and sometimes to be very confusing. Honestly, I feel like we got more worldbuilding for the food the characters ate rather than the actual world they live in.
The pacing in this book was also all over the place. The beginning was very slow, so it took me forever to get into the book. I found it to be very confusing while simultaneously being very boring. The book doesn’t begin to pick up until towards the middle, but even then, it’s still painstaking slow and still contains scenes that slow the plot down. It isn’t until about the last 100 pages, the book beginnings to pick up, and starts to go at a zooming pace. I would prefer for it to keep a faster pace throughout rather than having a super slow beginning and fly-by ending.
Overall, this book fell flat for me and ended up being a major disappointment. I had high hopes for this book, and it ended up not reaching most of them.
TW: Misogyny, child endangerment, human trafficking, abuse, rape (mention), bullying, grief, blood, violence, and victim’s guilt
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an ARC of The Wild Ones in exchange for an honest review!
Check out this review on my blog: https://inkingandthinking.wordpress.com/2021/05/29/the-wild-ones-review/
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
*** I won this ARC from a Goodreads giveaway ***
The Wild Ones is a beautiful work of art. It combines our reality and a unique magic system. I especially loved that this book gave a voice to many whose voices we haven't heard. It showed me that life is never easy and that we all have something to say. We all have a voice. And voices need to be heard.
I love this book, and I hope everyone who read it finds strenght in it.
The Wild Ones is a beautiful work of art. It combines our reality and a unique magic system. I especially loved that this book gave a voice to many whose voices we haven't heard. It showed me that life is never easy and that we all have something to say. We all have a voice. And voices need to be heard.
I love this book, and I hope everyone who read it finds strenght in it.
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
#thewildones is a narrative centering girls and women in all their expressions and complexities; the horrors that they face and the strength that they can find to carry on and band together, creating a loving, supportive, and protective found family.
Azad has used historical settings, food, and friendship to connect us all while weaving this fantastical and magical world. What I also enjoyed and appreciated is her portrayal of the particular magic that exists and permeates a specific city.
She draws upon the complex intricacies of girlhood and womanhood to explore how we come into our femininity or lack thereof; how we form relationships, platonic and romantic; how we grow within the confines or freedom of said relationships; and the beauty, cruelty or futility that can reside within them as well.
She tells a story of what makes us leave the place where we should be safest and most loved: home.
But as with all things magical, there are persons who wish to harness and steal what is special to twist to their evil intentions and it is here that the Wild Ones must truly count on their bond and trust to face what is hunting them.
The choice to switch between memory, first person narration, and a conversational style of prose really aided in engaging and capturing the reader's attention.
But what really made me enjoy this read, besides the strong bond of sisterhood, is the love our MC has for mangoes and food in general. This book had me salivating. Every new city was a new experience with the food of that region, and I loved it.
Azad has used historical settings, food, and friendship to connect us all while weaving this fantastical and magical world. What I also enjoyed and appreciated is her portrayal of the particular magic that exists and permeates a specific city.
She draws upon the complex intricacies of girlhood and womanhood to explore how we come into our femininity or lack thereof; how we form relationships, platonic and romantic; how we grow within the confines or freedom of said relationships; and the beauty, cruelty or futility that can reside within them as well.
She tells a story of what makes us leave the place where we should be safest and most loved: home.
But as with all things magical, there are persons who wish to harness and steal what is special to twist to their evil intentions and it is here that the Wild Ones must truly count on their bond and trust to face what is hunting them.
The choice to switch between memory, first person narration, and a conversational style of prose really aided in engaging and capturing the reader's attention.
But what really made me enjoy this read, besides the strong bond of sisterhood, is the love our MC has for mangoes and food in general. This book had me salivating. Every new city was a new experience with the food of that region, and I loved it.
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, Suicide, Kidnapping