Nafiza Azad

After Paheli escapes a terrible fate, a magical boy gives her access to the Between, allowing her to collect other women of color, hurt by men, and lead them when the boy is in peril.

The Wild Ones

Sarah Sammis

Paheli is one of the first Wild Ones — women who travel between cities via doors that open in the Between. The Between is like a conduit to the Other Side, but also works as its own network of paths. It's also the only way the Wild Ones can travel the world as they are tied to the cities. Besides the Wild Ones who were once human and are now immortal as long as they keep the stars in their palms, there are Not-Humans who live in the cities and trade in magic.

But it's mostly the Wild Ones who drive this beautiful, poetic novel. It's how they parley their pain into strength that gives The Wild Ones a Wonder Egg Priority vibe. Around the world there are different stories of crying women as vengeful spirits; the Wild Ones are in good company.

http://pussreboots.com/blog/2021/comm...

S/M	City	Labyrinth	990099

Tatiana

The Wild Ones: 2.75/5 (rounded up)

Thank you NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing for providing me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review


  “We have the temerity to be not just women, but women of color. Women with melanin in our skin and voices in our throats. Voices that will not be vanquished. Not now, not ever. We will not be silenced.”

Premise:
The Wild Ones centers around the varying struggles that women face worldwide and the strength, support, and healing that others can provide. Long ago, Paheli was tossed a box of stars by a boy and was saved by magic from her mother, who tried to sell her to a man for a favor. She and her pack of girls who she has gathered call themselves the Wild Ones. The girls travel through The Between, rescuing others. That is until the boy who tossed the box of stars reappears and begs for help.

Writing & Plot:
I want to start by saying there is nothing wrong with the plot of this book. I enjoyed the concept and the characters. I think this book has so much potential, and I the idea is so important and beautiful and heartbreakingly joyful. I want to like The Wild Ones so much that I may have to try to reread it.

Where this book falls apart is the execution. Pieces of this book are written so beautifully, and after the prologue, I was hopeful that this would be five stars. The perspective then jumps between Paheli and some unnamed character or entity. I believe this perspective is intentionally vague to show the connectivity between The Wild Ones, but it yielded a frustrating reading experience. Furthermore, the flowery prose is juxtaposed with a choppy middle-grade-esc style of writing with childish humor and fourth wall breaks. The constant choppiness and repetitive nature take the reader completely out of the story and experience. I'm unsure why Nafiza Azad decided to use two different writing styles, but it makes the book difficult to follow and a challenge to get through.

Another writing issue I have is that instead of showing, Azad repeatedly tells the reader precisely what is happening. It feels like Azad doesn't trust the reader to come to their own conclusions and creates a vast disconnect between the writing and the reader. This becomes jarring when serious themes such as rape are being discussed in an almost childish way.

The structure of the book also provides challenges. The first 50 pages repeatedly describe what a Wild One is, and the majority of the book after is about them traveling to different places, exchanging currency, and eating food. It gets very repetitive.

Characters:
One thing Azad does exceptionally well is she provides a vast array of different characters with different backgrounds. Overall, the character concepts are strong, and I can see the potential, but there is a problem when there are an overwhelming amount of characters. There are about 11 different Wild Ones and numerous side characters, and none of them get the development and background they deserve. It is so challenging to keep each character straight when none of them are fully developed. I almost wish there were fewer characters so each could get the time they deserve, and the reader could learn more about them because they're all so interesting. 

Conclusion:
I want to like this book. I want to love this book and have it be my favorite read of 2021. I think the concept is beautiful and has so much potential to empower girls from around the globe, not to mention that the cover art is stunning. I know some people enjoyed this book and believe it lived up to its full potential, and because of that, don't let my review taint you from at least trying to pick it up. I think this book deserves a chance, and I will probably give it another go in the future. 

I wish the execution were more solid because this book can be one of the greats, but unfortunately, it let me down. I cannot get past the difficult nature of the multiple writing styles, lack of character development, and repetitive themes that span the entire novel. 

Ultimately, solid concept, poor execution. Please let me know/DM me if you liked this book because I'd love to chat about it.

Alice

Oh... mygosh.

I had been yearning to read this book since I first saw the cover and synopsis last year and boi did I drop everything to read it as soon as I got it.

We stan the queens. Paheli and Valentina own my heart. All the Wild Ones and Taraana and Lalie do too, but Paheli and Valentina could ask me to give up my favorite books and I would. 

The. writing. is. so. beautiful. It's even more magical than the Between.

I wasn't 100% invested in the plot, but give me magical doors and for some reason I forget everything.

The girls' struggle and pain aren't hidden or sugarcoated, they're stated on the page and visible through their actions and words, and Nafiza Azad does it in a really powerful way, allowing them to reclaim their life and their body.

Catch me recommending this book until my last breath.

The Wild Ones

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