Reviews with content warning for Alcohol - Wahala

The first thing I'll say is that Wahala is incredibly readable and fun—I got about halfway through on audio (mostly doing chores and driving to work) then switched to an e-book version because I just wanted to keep reading!

The Sex and the City-meets-murder-mystery billing is spot on, and is a large part of why the story is so enjoyable. Three incredibly different women navigating modern life together? Sign me up.

But where SATC forces its characters to grow as a result of being friends with people who have different priorities and values, Wahala leans a bit too far into the women's foibles. Instead of relying on, listening to, and learning from one another, Ronke, Boo, and Simi judge each other with a viciousness that makes their years-long friendship hard to believe.

As far as the murder mystery goes, the opening vignette offers a completely different tone and understanding of events than what actually, eventually transpires, leaving readers feeling either confused or tricked.

Overall, I don't regret reading Wahala and look forward to reading May's future work. Like the friendship at the center of the story, Wahala is a compelling and enjoyable—as long as you don't look too closely.

Content Warnings

jaimeeslitlife's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Wahala took me on an emotional JOURNEY! Nikki May is a powerhouse writer and sweeps the reader up in this story of friendship, flaws, vengeance, and forgiveness. I absolutely devoured this book - I can't wait to see what Nikki May does next!

Content Warnings

peachani's review against another edition

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challenging emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.5

Content Warnings

jeniwarren's review against another edition

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mysterious 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? It's complicated

3.5

Wahala

By Nikki May

Three friends close since college, an interloper comes into the close circle. Mayhem erupts.

That’s the gist of it. The big reveal left me wishing for more.

3 stars ⭐️ on Goodreads

3.5 stars ⭐️ on Storygraph

Content Warnings

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

Content Warnings

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

jennikreads's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced

4.0

Content Warnings

caseythereader's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny mysterious tense 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? Yes

4.25

Thanks to Libro FM for the free copy of this book.

- WAHALA is pitched as an Anglo-Nigerian Sex and the City, which, sure, in the sense that it's about a group of girlfriends and their relationships. But it's also more than that, of course.
- The story builds slowly as we learn about each woman and her life, regrets, annoyances, and sense of belonging in London's Nigerian community. At first it seems like just a standard literary fiction novel peeking into their lives, but about 3/4 of the way through things take A TURN and suddenly you're on a rollercoaster with them, rushing to turn the pages and figure out what the heck is happening.
- I won't give anything away, but give this one a try if you're in the mood for something with both depth and action.

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