Genre Fiction
![Nikki May - [object Object] author](https://res.cloudinary.com/readsomnia/image/upload/authors/a_B094TRGZFY.jpg)
Wahala: A Novel
"Utterly winning…brings to mind Sex and the City but feels more modern, more real. When I closed Nikki May's delicious, hilarious novel, I felt I was returning to joy. I knew it was time to call my friends...time to get into some good wahala of my own." -- Amanda Eyre Ward, New York Times bestselling author of The Jetsetters and The Lifeguards
An incisive and exhilarating debut novel following three Anglo-Nigerian best friends and the lethally glamorous fourth woman who infiltrates their group-the most unforgettable girls since Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte, and Samantha.
Ronke wants happily ever after and 2.2. kids. She's dating Kayode and wants him to be "the one" (perfect, like her dead father). Her friends think he's just another in a long line of dodgy Nigerian boyfriends.
Boo has everything Ronke wants-a kind husband, gorgeous child. But she's frustrated, unfulfilled, plagued by guilt, and desperate to remember who she used to be.
Simi is the golden one with the perfect lifestyle. No one knows she's crippled by impostor syndrome and tempted to pack it all in each time her boss mentions her "urban vibe." Her husband thinks they're trying for a baby. She's not.
When the high-flying, charismatic Isobel explodes into the group, it seems at first she's bringing out the best in each woman. (She gets Simi an interview in Shanghai! Goes jogging with Boo!) But the more Isobel intervenes, the more chaos she sows, and Ronke, Simi, and Boo's close friendship begins to crack.
A sharp, modern take on friendship, ambition, culture, and betrayal, Wahala (trouble) is an unforgettable novel from a brilliant new voice.
An incisive and exhilarating debut novel following three Anglo-Nigerian best friends and the lethally glamorous fourth woman who infiltrates their group-the most unforgettable girls since Carrie, Miranda, Charlotte, and Samantha.
Ronke wants happily ever after and 2.2. kids. She's dating Kayode and wants him to be "the one" (perfect, like her dead father). Her friends think he's just another in a long line of dodgy Nigerian boyfriends.
Boo has everything Ronke wants-a kind husband, gorgeous child. But she's frustrated, unfulfilled, plagued by guilt, and desperate to remember who she used to be.
Simi is the golden one with the perfect lifestyle. No one knows she's crippled by impostor syndrome and tempted to pack it all in each time her boss mentions her "urban vibe." Her husband thinks they're trying for a baby. She's not.
When the high-flying, charismatic Isobel explodes into the group, it seems at first she's bringing out the best in each woman. (She gets Simi an interview in Shanghai! Goes jogging with Boo!) But the more Isobel intervenes, the more chaos she sows, and Ronke, Simi, and Boo's close friendship begins to crack.
A sharp, modern take on friendship, ambition, culture, and betrayal, Wahala (trouble) is an unforgettable novel from a brilliant new voice.
Editorial Reviews
"This has bestseller written all over it. Fast-paced, funny, shocking, unputdownable. I loved it."
-- Paula Hawkins, author of The Girl on the Train and A Slow Fire Burning
"I couldn't get enough of the four women at the heart of Nikki May's utterly winning debut novel, WAHALA. Every evening, I sank into my bubble bath, eager to return to the lives of May's deep and complex characters: Simi, Ronke, Boo, and the fabulous (but maybe evil) Isobel. Their loves and wahala ("trouble") brought to mind Sex & the City but felt more modern, more real. When I closed Nikki May's delicious, hilarious novel, I felt I was returning to joy. I knew it was time to call my friends...time to get into some good wahala of my own." -- Amanda Eyre Ward, New York Times bestselling author of The Jetsetters and The Lifeguards
"Wow, what a debut! Brilliant writing about food and friendship, warm and fun, and I loved watching the more sinister side to the story emerge. Fantastic!"
-- Sarah Pearse, bestselling author of The Sanatorium
"Witty, boldly contemporary, and sharply observed, this book is an illicit peek into the very secret lives of women--their fears and desires, their weaknesses and dreams, their relationships between each other and with a world too often fraught with prejudice and class divides. This is a must-read debut by a brilliant new voice in fiction."
-- Nita Prose, author of The Maid
"I got so immersed in the lives of Simi, Ronke and Boo, such flawed, lovable women, I just raced through Wahala. Nikki May writes so well about friendship, food, fashion and the many ways modern women can stumble in their careers and personal lives." -- Clare Chambers, author of Small Pleasures
"I devoured it, Nikki May's voice is sharp, precise unapologetic, and modern. In one word – Exquisite!" -- Lolá Ákínmádé Åkerström, author of In Every Mirror She's Black
"Brilliant… a funny, tragic, piercing portrait of modern women and friendship, written in glittering and discerning prose." -- Emma Stonex, bestselling author of The Lamplighters
"If you loved My Sister, The Serial Killer, and Expectation, this is a must-read. My only regret is not being able to read it beside a glittering swimming pool while sipping a cocktail!" -- Marianne Cronin, author of The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot
"This is one of those books you want to crawl inside and inhabit. I loved hanging out with Simi, Ronke and Boo and I miss them already." -- Clare Pooley, bestselling author of The Authenticity Project
"May seamlessly weaves love, betrayal, self-reflection, and Nigerian food, clothing, and customs in...
-- Paula Hawkins, author of The Girl on the Train and A Slow Fire Burning
"I couldn't get enough of the four women at the heart of Nikki May's utterly winning debut novel, WAHALA. Every evening, I sank into my bubble bath, eager to return to the lives of May's deep and complex characters: Simi, Ronke, Boo, and the fabulous (but maybe evil) Isobel. Their loves and wahala ("trouble") brought to mind Sex & the City but felt more modern, more real. When I closed Nikki May's delicious, hilarious novel, I felt I was returning to joy. I knew it was time to call my friends...time to get into some good wahala of my own." -- Amanda Eyre Ward, New York Times bestselling author of The Jetsetters and The Lifeguards
"Wow, what a debut! Brilliant writing about food and friendship, warm and fun, and I loved watching the more sinister side to the story emerge. Fantastic!"
-- Sarah Pearse, bestselling author of The Sanatorium
"Witty, boldly contemporary, and sharply observed, this book is an illicit peek into the very secret lives of women--their fears and desires, their weaknesses and dreams, their relationships between each other and with a world too often fraught with prejudice and class divides. This is a must-read debut by a brilliant new voice in fiction."
-- Nita Prose, author of The Maid
"I got so immersed in the lives of Simi, Ronke and Boo, such flawed, lovable women, I just raced through Wahala. Nikki May writes so well about friendship, food, fashion and the many ways modern women can stumble in their careers and personal lives." -- Clare Chambers, author of Small Pleasures
"I devoured it, Nikki May's voice is sharp, precise unapologetic, and modern. In one word – Exquisite!" -- Lolá Ákínmádé Åkerström, author of In Every Mirror She's Black
"Brilliant… a funny, tragic, piercing portrait of modern women and friendship, written in glittering and discerning prose." -- Emma Stonex, bestselling author of The Lamplighters
"If you loved My Sister, The Serial Killer, and Expectation, this is a must-read. My only regret is not being able to read it beside a glittering swimming pool while sipping a cocktail!" -- Marianne Cronin, author of The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot
"This is one of those books you want to crawl inside and inhabit. I loved hanging out with Simi, Ronke and Boo and I miss them already." -- Clare Pooley, bestselling author of The Authenticity Project
"May seamlessly weaves love, betrayal, self-reflection, and Nigerian food, clothing, and customs in...
