A little slow to start but an enjoyable read of three Friends who have Nigerian backgrounds/heritage until a fourth one tags along and the three friends find things in their life falling to pieces . 3.5 rounded to 4 stars

I loved loved loved this book.

I really enjoyed the interconnecting relationships and although I could see what was about to happen, it gave me serious nostalgia of 'being at school' and how friend groups are always on a precarious line between best friends or enemies.

I loved each of the characters for what they brought to the friend group and definitely feel that most people will be able to relate to each of them in a different way.

I would highly recommend this book! Also loveeeee the recipes at the end!

I read Wahala by Nikki May over the weekend which is published this week! I was totally hooked from the first chapter to be honest, but it certainly felt intense and at times I was furious with the characters 😅 The story is about Ronke, Simi, Boo who are three mixed-race friends living in London. When Isobel, a glamorous friend from their past arrives in town, she is determined to fix their futures for them. Cracks in their friendships begin to appear, and it is soon obvious Isobel is not sorting but wrecking. Wahala is very much a character driven novel and explores race, revenge, culture, love, family and the complexities of female friendships. Cue a lot of glamour, secrets and shit stirring 😉 It was a really entertaining and bold story with a cracking twist, and I enjoyed being with these characters despite making me feel uncomfortable and furious!! I can see this on the small screen as a fab mini series 📺 A fierce and intriguing debut! 🔥

I loved this unconventional book. Set in London, the book is about three 35 year old friends, Ronke, Simi and Boo, all half Nigerian/half English. We meet Nigerian culture in their regular meeting place, the fabulous sounding restaurant they frequent. All have different lives - Simi married to Martin who spends most of his time working in New York, their relationship always strong, until they disagree over starting a family. Boo, who's a bit bored with her lovely husband, Didier and headstrong daughter Sophia. And the wonderful Ronke, who is a complete foody and whose descriptions of the meals she cooks and eats had me drooling. Enter Isobel, a childhood friend of SImi's from Lagos. She disrupts the group, and is trouble from the start. Wahala means trouble in Yorubi, which describes her beautifully. She pits them against each other, subtly tries to break up relationships and we don't know why. The ending is explosive and the ends are pulled together tightly, very clever. A really entertaining read. #netgalley #wahala

Ronke, Simi and Boo are Nigerian-English friends in their mid 30's living in London. Isobel, a childhood friend of Simi's abruptly reappears in her life and has soon inserted herself into their lives and begins to exploit the tensions in their relationships leading to all kinds of drama and heartache.

This was a fairly quick, easy read and I was invested enough in the relationships to want to keep reading on. I particularly liked Ronke and her assistant Rafa but I felt frustrated with most of the other characters. I wasn't convinced they could be so easily influenced by Isobel and that it would take them so long to work out what was going on. From the description of the book I was expecting a thriller and that's not really what this is. I enjoyed the depiction of the Nigerian community in London - the food, the clothing, the family dynamics - and it was refreshing to read a book focused on three smart, capable mixed-race women in their 30's but this didn't really meet my expectations.

With thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this advanced review copy.

An intersting book about three best friends.

It was topical and well written. The characters are stong and larger than life.

I enjoyed this book

I requested this book without reading the blurb, only because the author is a winner of the Grindstone Novel Prize. The beginning promised an interesting story, but unfortunately, the book turned out not to be my cup of tea. I contemplated not finishing it, but I ploughed through and skim-read it.
It is a well-written book, but it simply wasn't a genre I would reach for, and therefore I give it 2 stars.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this one but I was drawn to it for both the description and the cover and I got so much more than I bargained for!

I couldn't put this down, the flow and pace of the writing and the interwovenness of the three POVs were so spot on that before I knew it I'd been reading for two hours and hadn't looked at my phone (a rarity for me at the moment).

This felt like a family saga, but if you replaced the family with three best friends, add a dash of mystery and a dollop of thriller and you've got yourself Wahala! I didn't feel like any of the mystery or thriller twists and turns were done cheaply or simply for effect, they were true 'OMG' moments for me. I will say that most of these characters are NOT likeable, but somehow I didn't dislike them, however I did want to climb through the book and give them a shake. It also made me think a little on the idea of nature versus nurture, but in the sense of friendship - can someone really influence your poor life choices or was that sitting lying dormant within you and you just needed this person to come along and give you that final push?

It also had me thinking about long term friendships - Boo, Ronke and Simi met at university and have been best friends since. When we're at a younger age, teenagers and early twenties, our lives are usually on similar paths but as we get older we have different goals, sometimes similar, and we're often achieving things at our own pace. These three are at different points in their lives and from a readers POV, it felt like the sentiment of wanting what you don't have and not appreciating what you do. It would have been interesting to get a glimpse of their life in the 'before', to see if the cracks in their friendship and often cruel inner monologues some of them had towards each other had always been there or if this too was heightened by the addition of a new group member?

I'm so glad I picked this one up and beyond impressed that this is a debut novel!

I cannot wait to see this come to life via the BBC series later this year, I can only imagine how well it's going to play out on screen!

I had heard lots of buzz around Wahala so I couldn’t wait to read it – though I had a certain amount of trepidation as as we all know hyped books can sometimes prove to be a disappointment. Well I am happy to confirm that its not the case on this occasion and it is entirely deserving of everything that has been said about it – I flew through it, loved it from beginning to end and, as my first book of 2022, I already predict it will be one of my favourites of the year. May is to be applauded for writing such an impressive debut novel and I will be recommending it to everyone I know.

Ronke, Simi and Boo, now in their 30s, have been best friends since university – they share the fact that they are all mixed race, with British and Nigerian heritage, but all very different. Ronke is a dentist, loves to cook and keen to find the (Nigerian) man of her dreams, though her choices to date have been somewhat questionable. Simi disappointed her family by dropping out of medical school but is now working in fashion and leads an apparently glamorous life with her successful husband. Boo is also married and has a child but is bored with her life and wants something more. When an old friend of Simi’s, the glamorous and newly-divorced Isobel, joins the group, the dynamics begin to shift and suddenly there is friction amongst the women in a way there has never been.

Chapters alternate between the three women and the characters are fabulously drawn, enabling the reader to feel that they really get to know them, flaws and all, over the course of the book. There is something very real about this book – May’s writing draws the reader in so effectively to the group dynamics as the women navigate their friendship whilst juggling the pressures of life, further complicated by their heritage which they all view in very different ways. It was this that kept me turning the pages, along with a tension that builds as we see Isobel manipulate all three women for her own ends and we begin to suspect that things are not going to end well.

It's a book that leaps off the pages – from the characterization and the fabulous dialogue to the descriptions of Nigerian food and culture. A tale of friendship and so much more, so funny at times, at others achingly sad and even shocking as it explores the racism the women encounter, with the perfect amount of intrigue, it kept me engaged from beginning to end.

Three great friends and one new friend (can we say cuckoo in the nest?) people this novel which is basically an exploration of female friendship and domestic drama Loved the interplay between the characters, though I detested one of the main trio (truly, how neither of the others called her on her self-pity I'll never understand!) but a bit excessively melodramatic towards the end.

I spent a lot of time googling the food in Wahala: helpful tip, there are recipes at the end!

I requested Wahala as I was immediately drawn to the cover which is so striking and colourful and I honestly feel that this translated through to the book itself. Wahala is a bright vibrant story of 3 Anglo- Nigerian friends and their everyday lives in London. The book bring us through the trials and tribulations of the lives of Ronke, Boo and Simi and we see how they deal with the everyday dramas of relationships, motherhood, family drama and of course friendship.

The first 85% of the book is an enjoyable slow burning but drama filled women's fiction style story so I can kind of see the comparisons to Sex and the City in the marketing. These 3 girls are out living their best lives while negotiating their home lives in what seems to be a perfect balance. Until....

Cut to the last 15% of the book and hold on to your seats this ride is going to get bumpy. While throughout the book there was a simmering tension and you could certainly feel things weren't quite right, the twist and turns that come in the last section of the book are absolutely gripping.

The characters within the book are each 3 very clear individuals and it's great to see that shown from the classic married with kids to the girl who isn't too sure if she even wants kids. The book oozes with personality and vibrancy in every way. I especially loved the insight and glimpses it gave to traditional Nigerian culture but also to how these have adapted over time as people have moved about. The constant mentions of the food had my tummy rumbling throughout. I think it would have been amazing if there was a little glossary of the Nigerian terms at the back to save putting the book down and googling each time a new one popped up.

Overall I really enjoyed this book, I probably would have preferred a little bit more action earlier on but that's just me. A must read think, Big Little Lies with a seasoning of My Sister, The Serial Killer.

This book was not quite was I was expecting which made it difficult for me to figure out how I felt about it.

I think the characterisation was strong- they did feel like real people as they were introduced. I'm not sure all the action of the book was quite believable but it did seem to ramp up from plausible beginnings.

It took me a long time to invest though and some of the writing felt a bit serviceable rather than anything more elevated.

Ultimately, this might not have been the book for me but I would read more from this author.

My thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

This is such a great read!

It has been on my TBR list since I read about the acquisition and I'm so glad to have been given the opportunity to read it early as it most definitely lived up to my expectations (maybe even exceeded them).

Refreshingly told with humour, authenticity and unexpected twists and turns, Wahala is quite easily one of the books of the year. I can't wait to see what Nikki May does next.

I feel a bit bereft now I have finished this book. A fascinating insight into the mixed race culture of friends who are all British Nigerian. Three friends for years have their lives disrupted when a childhood friend of one comes on the scene. A really gripping domestic drama with a thriller element. The food, culture and dialogue makes you feel you are sitting eating with the girls. A cast of eclectic characters. I loved it.

This book didn't sit right with me. I didn't like any of the characters except Ronke and I felt there was so much missed opportunity for character development that just didn't happen. It didn't read like a thriller to be honest, only like a sex and the city novel with delicious food.
I kept asking myself why they're even friends the way they talk to each other.
Not my cup of tea, but I'm clearly the minority (it's me not the book).

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Described as ‘a sharp, modern take on friendship, ambition, culture, and betrayal’, Wahala certainly lives up to its title which means ‘trouble’ in Yoruba.

There’s a Sex and the City vibe to the get-togethers of Simi, Boo and Ronke in bars and restaurants around London in the first part of the book. Being a low maintenance girl myself and the opposite of a social butterfly, I couldn’t quite relate to the obsession with fashion, the gossip over cocktails and the boozy lunches. I guess Ronke was the character I found most engaging perhaps because she seemed more down-to-earth. Her cookery skills helped and the inclusion of some of her recipes for traditional Nigerian food at the back of the book was a nice touch. I liked the way the author explored the dynamics between the three friends and the pressures on those friendships that arise as the book progresses.

The ups and downs of Simi’s, Boo’s and Ronke’s relationships and the dilemmas they face – in some cases of their own making – are ones that could happen in any partnership, not just between couples of different ethnicity: competing career aspirations, different attitudes towards parenthood or simply feeling weighed down by domestic responsibilities. I have to say what follows seemed to me a case of ‘women behaving badly’ – Ronke being the honourable exception. The men in their lives were positive saints in comparison, especially the lovely Didier. I even had sympathy for Ronke’s boyfriend, Kayode, he of the poor time-keeping, obsessive support for Arsenal football club and fridge stocked only with beer and past its use-by date milk.

As soon as Isobel arrives on the scene with her demand ‘I want to know everything’ it becomes pretty clear her motive is not a genuine desire for friendship. ‘Isobel was good at collecting secrets, not so great at keeping them.’ She becomes an insidious presence in the friends’ lives and the catalyst for the trouble referred to in the title. This was the strongest part of the book for me. The reader sees, although Boo, Simi and Ronke do not, that for reasons of her own, Isobel is an expert in playing on their insecurities, doubts and frustrations – and, at times, their naivety – encouraging them to do things they otherwise wouldn’t have; the equivalent of waking up with a hangover and wishing you hadn’t drunk so much the night before, except with much, much more serious consequences. As the fallout from Isobel’s actions play out, the book builds to an unexpectedly dramatic and explosive finish, one of those conclusions to a book that forces you to go back and re-read the prologue.

Wahala is a deft exploration of the fragile nature of friendship and how easily people can be manipulated.

Well this was definitely an interesting book, it was so nice to read something with this perspective but it did take a while to get used to the language used etc. Once I was over that it was a really good book and I definitely will look for more by this author.

An added bonus was the recipes at the back which I am really going to try.

I was given an advance copy by netgalley and the publishers but the review is entirely my own.

Ronke, Simi and Boo are the best of friends. That is, until Isobel comes into their lives.
She tries to be everyone’s best friend, but did they really need another best friend?

This book is like eavesdropping on delightful gossip, but as you read on it becomes darker and deadly.

A fantastic debut by Nikki May, thanks to NetGalley for giving me this opportunity to read it.

Three mixed race women who have been friends since school face all the difficulties that life throws at us during adulthood. The introduction of a new friend changes the dynamics of the group. A great book about friendship. You can easily relate to the characters. The sort of book that you will want to reread.

I really enjoyed this book, at its heart is an age old story of female friendships and rivalries, but Ms May imbued this with warmth, wit and hard hitting reflections on the complexities of being a mixed race woman in the UK. I shall miss the company of Boo, Ronke and Simi with all their flaws and idiosyncrasies.
I especially liked the recipes at the end!
Thank you to netgalley and Random house for an advance copy of this book