Review: Wahala by Nikki May

I had really high hopes for Wahala—I was expecting a fun, dynamic story about a fabulous friendship group, kind of like Sex and the City, but unfortunately, it fell way short for me. The book centers around three Anglo-Nigerian women—Ronke, Simi, and Boo—and their friendship dynamic, which is disrupted when Isobel, a new and unpredictable force, enters their lives.

While the premise sounded promising, the story quickly became bogged down by too much focus on colorism and internalized racism. It was really difficult to engage with the characters because it felt like these issues were constantly being pointed out in a way that didn’t allow for much depth or nuance. I had hoped for a portrayal of female friendship that was full of fun, drama, and empowering moments, but instead, I found myself feeling uncomfortable with how much attention was given to superficial aspects like appearance and status.

The group dynamics didn’t quite live up to the vibe I was hoping for either. Instead of feeling like a supportive, engaging friend group, their relationships felt strained and toxic at times. There were moments when I could see the potential for a good story, but they were often overshadowed by the repetitive themes of judgment and competition between the women.

In the end, I gave Wahala two stars because I was disappointed by how it turned out. It just didn’t live up to the fun, vibrant friendship story I had imagined, and the over-emphasis on colorism and body image issues made it hard for me to connect with the characters.

There’s a specific kind of frustration that comes with a book that should be everything you love—female friendships, drama, a London setting—but instead leaves you cold. Wahala by Nikki May promised a juicy, tangled web of relationships and culture, but for me, it delivered something that felt half-baked, at times even problematic, and ultimately boring. And if there’s one thing I can’t abide in fiction, it’s boredom.

I gave it a fair shot. I really did. But at some point, I found myself actively avoiding picking it back up, gravitating toward literally anything else. That’s when I knew—it was time to DNF. Life’s too short to push through a book that isn’t sparking something, whether that’s love, rage, or even mild irritation. Instead, Wahala gave me the reading equivalent of white noise.

Let’s start with the characters. Ronke, Boo, and Simi should have felt like complex, messy, real women, but instead, they came across as either flat or frustrating. It’s not that they were flawed—I love a good flawed character—but their flaws didn’t feel intentional or insightful. They just… existed. And then there’s Isobel, the supposed agent of chaos. The problem? I didn’t buy into her charm or her destruction. She felt more like a plot device than a real, breathing person.

Then there’s the cultural aspect. Wahala centres on three mixed-race Nigerian women, and while there were moments of sharp cultural commentary, they were overshadowed by unsettling themes. The way textured hair was discussed felt archaic—like we were stuck in a time loop where “good hair” was still a compliment. And don’t even get me started on the portrayal of Nigerian men. They were talked about as if they were inherently unworthy, with the only “good” relationships being with white men. It felt less like an exploration of identity and more like internalised bias seeping through the pages.

The “Sex and the City” Comparison? Absolutely Not.
The marketing comparisons to Sex and the City should be a crime. Yes, we have four women and their relationships, but the similarities end there. The friendships in Wahala lack the warmth and ride-or-die energy of SATC.

A unique read. It was a good diverse read that showed you about living in the city. For me it was a three out of five star read.

There is a lot of drama in this. I didn’t really like the main characters they were all a bit annoying. I know I’m not meant to but I enjoyed the drama caused by Iso and ended up liking her the best.

A thriller ish type of read about friendship, race, secrets and betrayal when someone from the past appears.

Knocking a star off as not quite keen on that ending. This was suggested to me as contemporary women’s fiction, but there is a decent thriller plot here, which should have got better billing!

I enjoyed the main characters, especially ‘poor Ronke’, and it was great to get a flavour of Nigerian culture and food (look out for some of Ronke’s recipes at the back of the book…

WOW what a book!!!! THIS IS A BOOK. This was such a thrilling book to read. Filled with three flawed and relatable women, some hilarity, a toast of friendship mixed with some thriller vibes and you have this masterpiece. I devoured this books and Simi, Ronke and Boo are such good characters you cannot but enjoy this. Pick it up and read now.

It was full of over the top characters that were so unbelievable. I didn’t care for anyone (Auntie K is probably the only likable one). For being advertised as a Sex and the City with Nigerian women, it read very over the top and petty. I do not care for books when the villain is SO OBVIOUS (Isobel!!!!) and I just kept screaming at Boo, Ronke, and Simi to face the music about their trouble maker friend.

I found this book quite frustrating. It's so slow burn that the paving feels almost glacial until the end, at which point, it feels really rushed to get everything resolved.
I liked the characterisation, I just felt the pacing could be better.

Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience

Loved this in every way. Saw it playing out as I read it and hope it makes it to the screen. Nikki May writes beautifully and I found this so engrossing and interesting. Will definitely be looking out for more from this author.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publishers, Random House.

I had really high hopes for this but I was sadly let down. Nothing really happened until the end and then that was very predictable. I didn't care for any of the characters which didn't help.

I definitely seem in the minority with this opinion as it is a highly rated book.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, especially the parts that covered the relationships in the friend group. I found this so easy to read because I just didn’t want to put it down and I wanted to see what would happen all the time. Brilliant
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

A brilliant book with interesting characters and intriguing premises. I loved the recipes too. An amazing debut I can't wait to read more from this author.

This was a fast paced story about a trio of Nigerian women. Thank you for the opportunity to read and review

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this book, it being part thriller, part testament to female friendship but I thoroughly enjoyed it. The main ensemble of characters at witty and sharp. Through miscommunication and gossip things go a miss but with a twist ending I never could have predicted it was wrapped into a deliciously satisfying bow.

Wahala is a Nigerian/Yoruba term for ‘trouble’ and that is exactly what the character Isobel represents when she wades into the lives of three best friends – Boo, Renke, and Simi. This is bright, contemporary novel set in London about the complexities of friendship and straddling the multicultural chasms.

The three best friends are Nigerian-British and have been close for years but what’s intriguing about Nikki May’s depiction of the three women is that, despite being best friends, they do keep big secrets from each other. It’s a great twist on the ‘share everything’ thesis that can often dominate best friends in novels and its these secrets that newcomer Isobel exploits as she seeks to deliberately manipulate the three friends to her side.

It's an easy-to-read novel and Nikki creates a world that is easy to languish in. It’s worth noting though that Nikki does insist on her characters having racist and colourist opinions e.g., all black men are useless, all Nigerian men are liars. I suspect Nikki has this as a way to portray them as anti-heroes but it can get a little painful to read – an aspersion that Thai manicurists in salons could all be part of the modern-day slave trade is a little strong to put it mildly. It also makes the characters quite unsympathetic and that is a little problematic when it materialises Isobel has sinister intentions.

This aside, I quite like the fresh take on best friends. They are not easy relationships to maintain and require a hell of a lot of forgiveness to keep on track – and in that way Wahala makes for a welcome piece of contemporary fiction.

I'm not sure how I feel about giving such a low rating to a book that has such clearly defined characters.

I do love the characters themselves - May has done a fantastic job at creating realistic, problematic, *human* characters to follow but their actual stories sadly did not grip me as much as I had hoped.

I found myself skimming more often than not, and have had to put the book down for weeks - sometimes months - at a time before picking it back up again.

I am hoping that it is the genre itself that has led to this downfall for me, as I have heard many great reviews for Wahala.

I enjoyed the parts of the story that detailed the relationships of the friend group. I found the novel a little difficult to get through. Still an interesting read so 2.5 Stars.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the novel in exchange for an honest review

Wahala means Trouble. It’s been said that it will be a major BBC TV series. With so many themes, you can see there’s a lot to work with. The cover is striking, the blurb is eye-catching and my review will reveal the rest of my opinions below. Thanks first to TransworldBooks for the book to review.

Wahala is an African word. Most commonly used in Nigeria. In this context, it means trouble! There’s plenty of troubles within this book for the characters to navigate and issues outside and within themselves to handle. Will they handle them in a good way or not and what will the outcome be is the question for the friends.

The world is always interesting and wherever you go, whatever your background is, food and friendship is universal. Wahala has both of those in abundance. Wahala is set in London but you’ll learn a bit about Nigeria, including Nigerian food, including recipes.

Meet friends, Ronke, Boo, Simi and Isobel. Their lives, lavish with the lovely things life has to offer, in some respect,  and readers can follow them as they chase their dreams. Ronke has a desire to have a husband and decided he must be Nigerian. Boo endures motherhood, Simi desires to have a fashion career.

There is humour and also some waspish anger. It’s sharply written and is fast-paced and you’ll reach the end before you know it because suddenly, it is easy to be immersed in each of the characters lives. When Isobel is one the scene, things are shaken up in the other women’s lives, who have known each other for years and there’s some provocation that develops and cracks appear. It’s interesting to see how the dimension changes within this friendship group.

It’s a book that isn’t just one thing. It has very sad tensions that develop too, coupled with the joy of food and socialising. It is a very multilayered  book of all sorts of relationship troubles, identity troubles, race troubles, past troubles. So Wahala does what it says on the cover, so don’t expect a cosy friendship book where everything is uncomplicated, here lots in their lives become so, but there is entertainment to be had. It has a certain balance that becomes captivating, with a surprising and good way to end Wahala.