Reviews with content warning for Racism - Wahala

I couldn’t put this book down; I just needed to know what happened next. The ending was rather unsatisfying & it almost seemed rush in comparison to the rest of the book. I wanted to fight both Isobel & Boo. I didn’t appreciate the racism & fatphobia in this book; it just seemed to nasty & unnecessary to me. It’s a decent book - it kept me engaged & the characters’ flaws were written so well that I genuinely hated them - however, I didn’t love it.

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dominiquediane's review against another edition

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tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This book starts with the aftermath of Wahala — a storm of stress and trouble — that has swept through the lives of three biracial British-Nigerian friends in the form of the beautiful and glamorous newcomer, Isobel. There is a feeling that something awful has happened, that a crime has been committed, but before anything is revealed, we are taken back to the beginning when Ronke, Simi, and Boo are approaching almost twenty years of friendship.

At its core, this book is very much about these three women navigating their friendship, but it’s also about them navigating their separate relationships with other friends, partners, family, and more. All three are at very different places in their lives, providing for some very diverse storylines. Ronke, a successful dentist and even better cook, is in search of the love of her life - and she believes she might have finally found him. Boo has a beautiful family, but is more focused on her career and is secretly unhappy with her life and tired of not being taken seriously. Simi is lying to her husband about their attempts at conceiving while she’s secretly still on birth control. While these women aren’t always entirely honest with each other, they’ve still always relied on each other for support. However, despite their struggles and the secrets brewing beneath the surface, it isn’t until Isobel infiltrates their friend group that the titular wahala arrives.

While all the characters are compelling in their own way, they are definitely not all likeable. They each have their demons, insecurities, and flaws that make them susceptible to Isobel’s influence. But it’s that very thing that allows the author to expose the insidious nature of toxic friendships in a real way. Each of the women’s stories was compelling and dynamic, contributing a lot to the incredible pacing. Instead of reading a book, it felt more like overhearing the characters gossiping one table over while you enjoy some jollof rice at their favorite Nigerian restaurant. Typically, one character’s story is more interesting than another’s in books with multiple perspectives, but that was not my experience with Wahala. Ronke, Boo, Simi, and even Isobel all had strong personalities and unique voices. The author’s ability to keep the POVs of every character interesting was impressive for a debut author.

If you’re reading this book because it was marketed to you as a thriller, be prepared for a slow burn. Many of the thriller aspects of the book take a back seat to the exploration of these women’s lives and friendships. This is more of a drama or a soap with social thriller elements. There’s gossip, backstabbing, cheating, lying, revenge, and miscommunication - constant twists and turns to keep propelling things forward. For that reason, the book is never boring and I always had a reason to keep reading. For those who were told this book had Sex and the City vibes, beyond the basic premise of four women friends this book is very much its own unique thing and I think the comparison, while great for marketing, is in poor taste and actually rather sells the book short in the end.

I loved how this book exposed a lot of the barriers to success that women — and especially women of color — face and also how that success looks different to different people. And just because you would be happy or unhappy in someone else’s life, it doesn’t mean that they should feel the same about it.

I gave this book 4.5 stars, but decided to round down because I still think the author has a lot of promise and her next book will be even better. I would have loved to see higher, darker stakes for the characters. Despite their motivations being clear and believable, I was more invested for the drama than anything. While there’s nothing wrong with that, I got the sense that the author wanted things to be darker and deeper, but simply didn’t quite take her skill far enough. Ronke, Boo, and Simi could have been driven over the edge and pushed to rock bottom by Isobel and forced to reconcile with that before the story resolved, but it felt as if things just were never taken as far as the really could have been. Also, one of my least favorite of all tropes did very briefly rear its head - miscommunication. Thankfully, the miscommunication did last for long, but the writer could have developed a more creative to move the plot along.

In summary, I will definitely read Nikki May’s next book. I hope she takes advantage of her ability to write such compelling characters and really show us what she can do with them. I highly recommend this book if you’re looking for a lighter thriller featuring heavily on toxic friendship drama.

Also, not enough reviewers mention this, but Nigerian cuisine features very heavily in the book, and the food is described so well you almost want to lick the pages. There are recipes at the end as an added bonus!

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just_one_more_paige's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted mysterious medium-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? It's complicated

4.0

Thanks to Libro.fm for the ALC of this book. It is one that I would definitely not have picked up as fast, if ever, without that push. And while there are quite a few ALCs I've gotten from them that remain unread (I'm just one person and there are so many great books and just too many things other than reading on my to do list - ugh!) this is one that jumped to the top. I could lie and say I don't know why, but I do. The covering is freaking gorgeous, so fun, incredibly eye-catching. And I was in the mood for something a little faster and lighter and the blurbs all made this one sound just as fun as the cover makes you feel.

Ronke is a successful dentist, but wants the family life to match (a husband and kids), but her track record with guys isn't great. And her friends are convinced her current boyfriend is also not the perfect NIgerian man (like her father was) that she's looking for either. Boo has a devoted husband and young daughter, everything Ronke wants, but she's feeling crushed under feelings of stagnation and a loss of sense of self. Simi works in fashion and seems to have the perfect high-style life, but is secretly suffering with imposter syndrome and guilt from having "failed" family expectations. Her relationship with her husband is perfect except for one thing: he thinks they're trying to get pregnant, and Simi is still on the pill. Enter Isobel. She's a childhood friend of Simi's and they just reconnected. Iso is high energy, loaded, and looking for a group of friends to be besties with. However, the more time she spends with the tight-knit group of three, even though it *seems* like she's helping them, each of their lives slowly start to unravel until everyone's secrets are out in the open and things reach an intense and unexpectedly violent climax. Can Ronke, Boo and Simi survive Isobel and all the wahala (trouble) she brings?

Well this was 100% pure entertainment literature right here. So. Much. Drama. And it was all drama that was always there, simmering (nd growing) under the surface, amongst the friends and within their homes and with their partners, that might have one day come out all on its own and caused (at least some) of the same issues. As keeping secrets, and the eventual outing of them, is wont to cause. However, with Isobel thrown in there fanning the flames and encouraging questionable decisions and sowing discord, her position as the catalyst for all these secrets coming out and issues coming to a head was high quality theatrics. I was turning pages as fast as I could, as the interpersonal tension built, trying to figure out how it was all going to play out and what the heck was up with Isobel! I do love reading an unhinged/unreliable female character every now and again, and she was a fantastic one. (Like Lucy in Tangerine, except I enjoyed this novel much more - it had the tension, but was more drama than thriller, which was the lighter vibe I needed.) I also appreciated how May wrote Ronke, Boo and Simi as really well-rounded characters. They had hopes and dreams, but they also had weaknesses and emotions/reactions that they couldn't explain...and all of that felt really perfectly messy and human in a way that was deeply recognizable. Always a sign, for me, of a well-written, fully dimensional character. And while they all, especially Iso, needed less enabling and some real time with a therapist, they all rang true (minus some parts of Iso, haha).

This is looking like it's going to be the shortest review I have written in...maybe years. But I just don't have all that much that I feel needs to be added. I loved the Nigerian cultural and food aspects, especially in the way they were presented from so many different Nigerian perspectives, from being deeply steeped in the culture growing up to those who feel separated from their heritage because they didn't have exposure to it during their formative years. It's a great look at the variety of ways that immigration affects traditions and families. I also was happy with the fact that the drama and secrets of the three friends stayed...realistic, relatable. And while the reason Iso comes (back) into their has a touch of the "suspension of disbelief needed" to it, it also stemmed from decisions and situations made before the three met and while they're facing "consequences" for them, it felt more believable when they were all unaware of/"slow to catch on to" Iso and why she was there and making their lives fall apart.

This had all the vibes of a traditional suburban family drama (though of course it was set in uber-urban London). It had the secrets, the "gasp" moments of reveals, the aspects of tragedy/violence, the families and friendships, and the unputdownable "what is going to happen next?!" tension-building. I was completely diverted by this story, it was so vibrant and melodramatic - such a lively reading experience!

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yolie's review against another edition

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lighthearted mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

The book spends a lot of time building up the tension to this “tragic event” forboded in the synopsis and introduced early on into the book. However, when the incident occurs it is dealt with rather swiftly and makes the ending seem rushed and unsatisfactory.

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saraheli's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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bookish_wanderer's review

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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spillingthebooktee's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

A beautifully done debut novel from Nikki May!

We follow 3 women (Ronke, Simi, and Boo) as they navigate their friendship and their relationships with their spouses/partners until in comes a new member of the group— Isobel. Isobel wants to be a part of the friend group but then tries to get to know all 3 women individually and that’s when the real drama begins.

I think Nikki navigated these friendships so well and showed the complexities of real life in a believable way through multiple perspectives. I loved seeing the cultures represented in this book! Nigerian, British, French, American… you have it all! It was a fast paced and jam packed novel with twists and turns at every corner. Nikki gave us crumbs in each chapter that helped you form the entire picture by the end of the book when she brought everything together (and completely blew my mind lol). I have to say, I did not expect the ending we got in any way!!! I was so thrown off!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book & cannot wait to continue to discuss it with my book club!

Content Warnings

thatbookbinch's review against another edition

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tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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