Jana Goes Wild is a second chance romance that finds a former couple who is co-parenting heading on a two-week trip to Tanzania for a wedding.

Jana and Anil were in a relationship five years ago that ended badly when Jana found out she was pregnant. Jana and Anil have had their issues with one another over the years, but Anil has always been a very good father and they have found a way to co-parent their daughter well over the years.

Now that the two, along with their daughter, are in forced proximity in Tanzania for the wedding, the chemistry between Jana and Anil is hard to ignore. The question is, will they be able to get past all that happened in the past to be able to actually build something going forward?

There is no question that Anil was a great father, and the way the co-parenting was written was amazing. I loved that it was written the way it was; there are so many times that it is not written where there is cooperation and this was a breath of fresh air. I did feel like there were times that Jana was a bit hard to take because she had such a hard time forgiving. I understand the position she was in, but after awhile you don't want to root for someone when they get that way too many times. I also loved all of the details about the wildlife and the safaris and just the land that is Tanzania. What a wonderful place it would be to go visit!

**I voluntarily read an early copy of this title courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review**

This book was cute! Not an "OMG I can't put this down" read, but also not a DNF book. I enjoyed picking it up every night and liked the characters - it was a nice escape from life. There were cringe-worthy moments, teary eyed moments and also laugh out loud moments. The characters were fun, their interactions enjoyable. I think it is a great book for anyone looking for a light-hearted read.

The last time Jana stepped out of her comfort zone she ended up pregnant and heart broken. When she finds herself in Africa with her family, close friends, daughter and ex, she decides it is time to let loose. The bridal party helped her come up with a go-wild list to get through the week with her ex. However, the more she lets down her guard, the more she realizes that she may be falling for her ex all over again. Will her heart survive the trip?

I am a fan of Farah Heron so when I saw Jana Goes Wild I was so excited. And while this isn't my favorite of hers, I think if you're committed to second chance storylines, this still might be for you. It's a book about wondering if we can put the past behind us, move forwards, and it doesn't shy away from the emotional baggage and whiplash. For Jana, not only did Anil lie to her, but she suffered misogynistic rumors and more.

Rightly so, Jana has a twofold chip on her shoulder. This unexpected reunion forces Jana to confront her feelings. To see if it's possible for Jana and Anil's relationship to move into friendlier territory. Jana Goes Wild is entirely focused on Jana. On her figuring out her future, her feelings towards Anil, and her ability to leave her comfort zone. While there were some moments that felt particularly repetitive, especially towards the end, I enjoyed it.

As a child, I was a huge Bollywood fan, and used to be obsessed with Indian weddings (of course imagining my own someday). As soon as I read the blurb, I was hooked, and read through this enticing novel within a few days. Thank you @thatsoestelle for drawing my attention to this one.

This wonderful rom-com is perfect for the fans of Jasmine Guillory and Abby Jimenez! We meet the main character, Jana Suleiman, who steps out of her comfort zone and ends up in a precarious position after she endures a break up and is pregnant. Now, she is a bridesmaid for a destination wedding taking place in Serengeti National Park with her five-year-old daughter and her mom, and she meets her ex, Anil Malek.

As the wedding fesitivies unfold, Jana, in a very human way, seeks to be free (and that he has no effect on how she actually feels about him!). Along with the other bridesmaids, she creates a “go-wild” list as she explores everything from singing karoke to performing their dance. Her attraction to Anil doesn’t seem to subside no matter how much she tries. The romantic tension between Anil and Jana is so intense, I kept on turning the pages, and wanted to see “will they? won’t they?” much like how do you when you have friends on a date or seeing the show Indian Matchmaker seasons!

Mid-way through, Anil and Jana get at odds with each other as the veneers fall through as they confront their past. And, perhaps, this is what is at the heart of this heart warming novel - about choices. Her pregnancy and choice to have Imani becomes a cause of contention, which made me admire her so much. Also, the societal expectations upon them even though they are in Tanzania as her mom berates her for spending time with her ex - the common “log kya kahenge/what will people say”. Nonetheless, this rom-com is relatable, fun, and refreshing. I am very picky about the romance genre but love these messy stories as they just tell us how we are all human just wanting to be accepted.

Thank you @readforeverpub, @grandcentralpub, and @farahheronauthor for the gifted copy of the book!

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and Forever (GrandCentralPublishing) for the gifted e-book ❤️ #gifted

Read if you like: Dual POV, second chances, bucket type list, miscommunication trope, slow burn, steamy 🔥

I loved Kamila Knows Best, and this one did not disappoint. Jana and Anil are exes who have a daughter. They are both in Kamila and Rohan's designation wedding. Their chemistry is off the charts. You feel it immediately. I can't stand the miscommunication trope, but it fit in this book. Jana was incredibly hard on Anil, in my opinion. Anil can do no wrong for me. I love him so much. I tried not to find Jana unlikable because of how she treated him. This was a great second chances romance to me. The build-up was perfect. The banter was top-notch. I highly recommend it!

This is my first book by the author and I have deduced that there are other books about characters in this world and this is another couple. Maybe I would have liked them more if I was more invested in the overall story.

I loved the cover of the book and along with the blurb, made me very excited to read this book. I was excited to read a book about Eastern Africa and to see how it would play into the story, since it was interesting enough to almost be a character itself. It was really neat to learn more about Tanzania and imagine what a high end destination wedding to a safari would be life. Definitely the highlight of the story!

Sometimes when I see a gorgeous cover and read a fun blurb, I get sidetracked. I really didn't consider what some of the tropes could be. I hate, with a passion, meddling parents, aunties, uncles, and friends who think they know best. We had a bit of that here, especially Jana's mother who told fibs and no one called her on it. It added to the ridiculous vibe that told us it wasn't going to end well. Also, Jana is clearly an introvert and is shamed for not being as outgoing as the others. So rude. There was a vague and unclear backstory about Anil and we weren't really given much detail and then it was glossed over and made Jana look like she was holding a grudge. Once trust is broken, it's really hard to bring that back and again, made Jana look crazy for having her feelings. Anil complained because Jana was hot and cold, but he was, too. Sure, he proposed when he found out she was pregnant, but did he explain that he really did want to marry Jana for herself and not because she was pregnant? I don't blame her for saying no. And Anil says Jana is unhappy because they don't hang out as friends or because of her facial expressions, but what has he done to clarify or converse with Jana? Communication works both ways, especially if someone has told you they struggle with it.

The #BridalBrigade made me cringe at first but I really respected them during the morning after and when they got back to Toronto. Part of that was Jana opening up, but it also seemed to be more accepting friendships. It made me happy when they had charcuterie night.

Overall, I loved the descriptions of the places and the food. I wasn't a fan of Jana and Anil's story.

I was expecting more from this book. I love the premise and thought it had a lot of potential. This is a slow burn that just kind of sizzled out for me.

I did like that this was a second chance romance that includes a baby, but not a hidden baby. I was very glad that Anil had the chance to be involved.

When the settings and descriptions are your favorite part, it’s not ideal. I really struggled to connect with Jana and her inability to forgive.

I Received an e-copy of this book from NetGalley in turn for an honest review!
All the stars!!! I enjoyed this one!
It's rare for me to be so enveloped in a book that I did not want to end. After reading two of Farah's books prior to this one I have come to appreciate her unique style of writing that is always able to engage the five senses and bring her stories to life.This was one of those books that I metaphorically ate the pages up as I read with keen interest and was drawn into the world of our main character Jana. I felt that in this slow burn second chance romance, Jana and Anil's journey from start to end was an experience. This book felt refreshingly familiar with the chemistry between Jana and Anil, the parental love and struggles, the friendships, humour, food, musical references and theatrics and of course the experiential engagement of the senses of Jana's trip to Tanzania! I will miss this couple but I appreciated the ways in which their stories felt realistic and heartfelt. Two imperfect characters figuring out life through forgivness and new found trust. The journey to their happy ending was worth the ride!

Happy Reading!

I enjoyed this ARC of the author's new book which releases tomorrow, May 2/23! I've read one of her other books and really enjoyed it. Though I don't think I like this one quite as much it was a second chance romance, which I'm starting to like more and more, and was set mainly in Tanzania, which sounded beautiful. I also didn't realize this is about two side characters from one of her previous books, so I'll plan on reading that one too even though this stood alone well on its own.

Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for this ARC!
⭐⭐⭐⭐

When Jana travels to Tanzania for two weeks for her friends' wedding, the last thing she expects is to see her ex, especially since he put into the co-parenting app they use that he would be busy at meetings during that time. Now Jana and Anil, along with their daughter and friends and family, are spending two weeks together after nearly 5 years of avoiding each other at all costs.

I loved Kamila Knows Best, so I was thrilled to return to this world and these characters again. And while I wouldn't have imagined while reading that novel that I would want a book focused on Jana and Anil, I loved it and their second chance romance.

Thank you to Farah Heron, Forever, and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

As soon as I saw the cover of this book, I knew I needed to read it. The problem is, once I started reading it, I did not like it. I couldn't connect with Jana. At times I felt she was ungrateful for her mother watching Imani for months at a time.

Other parts of the book felt repetitive and very drawn out.

Jana Goes Wild is the story of Jana Suleiman who is a bridesmaid in a destination wedding in Africa. While en route to Africa, she realizes that Anil Malek, her daughter's father and her worst nightmare, is also part of the wedding party. They'll soon cross paths many times over the next few days.

This second chance romance had the most perfect setting. Reading about their time in Serengeti National Park made me want to jump into the pages of the book and experience what the characters were experiencing. I've always wanted to go on a safari and after reading this book, I want go even more.

Though Jana holds much resentment towards Anil, who caused a bit of a scandal five years prior when he left Jana after she accidentally became pregnant, he really did care for her and their daughter. There were some great scenes with Jana and Anil co-parenting, and that was nice to see.

Overall, this romance was very slow burn and while it wasn't perfect, I enjoyed reading it very much. Read this one for the setting and Jana's mom, Rashida, if nothing else! She was one of my favorite characters!

The following review was posted on my blog on Sunday, April 30th, two days before publication. The blog post includes links to order the books and to its Goodreads page, so readers can add it to their to-be-read books.




Genre: Romance
Actual Rating: 3.5 stars
Spicy Meter: 2 fire emojis
Content Warnings: Revolves around infidelity-ish. Mentions parental death and panic attacks. Contains some sexual content.

“Jana Goes Wild” follows Jana Suleiman as she embarks, along with her 4-year-old daughter Imani, on a great adventure that she isn’t too excited to take—a destination wedding in Serengeti National Park. What she did not expect was that her baby daddy, Anil Malek, would be attending the wedding as well, even though he originally had opted out of it. He’s a great dad, yes, but he also cheated on his wife by being with Jana when Imani was conceived, so you might see why Jana doesn’t really quite trust him—although she’s still very much attracted to him. And that’s why Jana’s friends come up with a go-wild list of sorts, in hopes that it’ll keep her mind off of Anil. Will it work? Or will Jana end up as confused as always?

Okay, here’s my problem with this read and why I think my review might not be a fair one: Cheating is the biggest no-no for me. I can’t even begin to think of a redeeming arc for someone who’s blatantly cheated. So you might see where that could interfere here.

If I could just erase the cheating from my mind, I would’ve really enjoyed the premise of this book. A group of friends helping the main character burst out of her shell through a “letting loose” list? Sign me up. But even though this book was as fun as that sounds and the writing was actually great and pretty entertaining, I couldn’t look around Anil and his betrayal. I just couldn’t.

If second chance romances (that include one character that cheated on his significant other to hook up with the other main character) are your thing, then you might like this book more than I did.

If you click here, you’ll be redirected to Goodreads, so you can add the book to your TBR list.

Or you could click here, and be redirected to Amazon, so you can order the book.

ARC provided by NetGalley and Forever Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: May 2, 2023

DNF at 52%. The story is way too repetitive, and neither of the main characters or their relationship are compelling enough for me to continue. "Jana Goes Wild" is the follow-up to "Kamila Knows Best," and I loved getting to see Kamila and Rohan's wedding. The setting and animals safaris throughout the novel were great. However, the story feels painfully slow because we're in Jana's head, and she's just ruminating on the same things over and over. I was bored sadly and won't finish this one. Though I will continue to read this author.

- 3.75 Stars -
This book was a fun little read! I found it almost too perfect that a lot of the story took place with Jana as a member of a bridal party as while I was reading this book, I was at a bachelorette party weekend! While ours didn’t take place in the Tanzanian wilderness it was still a blast!

Imani absolutely stole the show with her adorableness and the way she had both her parents wrapped around her little finger. Jana and Anil showed an awesome co-parenting system and you can just feel and see how much they really love their daughter. Also, the way that Jana was treated in the workplace after everything happened with Anil (and future Imani) made me absolutely enraged. I felt that Farah wrote this experience well and as something other women might relate with in their own lives.

The second chance romance piece of this story, seemed believable and possible. However, Jana’s trust issues seemed like something that could have been tamped down just by her having easy conversations with those around her. So that area frustrated me a fair bit, but otherwise I really enjoyed the second chance romance piece. Anil seemed like a really great guy who just dealt with some crap in his previous marriage!!

The setting of this book was amazing! All of the descriptions of the landscape and the safari’s made me absolutely desperate to go on some kind of trip to Africa so I can experience all of these incredible things for myself.

Overall, this book was a cute and adventurous read and if you have a love for giraffes and elephants, this book could definitely be for you!

🤍 Thank you so much to the publisher @readforeverpub and the author @farahheronauthor for this physical advanced reader copy!

⚠️TW: infidelity, panic attacks/disorders, sexism, death of parent

This book was delightful and truly so funny, I found myself laughing out loud the entire time I was reading. The premise was a lot of fun and I was really rooting for Jana the whole time.

Also any book with a single dad is automatically 4 stars. Excellent!!

Jana Suleiman has never really fit in. The one time she stepped out of her comfort zone she ended up heartbroken and pregnant. Now she's a bridesmaid for a destination wedding in Serengeti National Park and almost everyone she knows will be there. Her mom, 5 y/o daughter, friends, potential new boss and even her gorgeous-but-not-to-be-trusted-ex. Anil Malek is a great dad but Jana hasn't forgiven him for lying all those years ago. She makes a go-wild list to get her through the week but the more she lets loose, the more she realizes she is falling for her ex again..

LOVED this book! I've always wanted to go on a safari vacation and I kind of got a feel for it from reading this book. This second chance romance had the ANGSTTT that I love and so much chemistry. Jana was a strong and intellectual FMC (which I love to read) who grows throughout the book - she starts off living to the tune of what people would think but learns to push through it. I thought it was a fair representation of the South Asian culture and how parents sometimes parent in accordance with what others would think as well. I love reading South Asian protagonists because I can always see a part of myself in their story.

Thanks to Forever Publishing for my ARC!

I love Farah Heron's writing. I need to go back and get caught up with Kamila Knows Best, now!

There are two things in romance that I'm not usually a fan of: Second chance romance and miscommunication, but I LOVE Farah Heron so I took a chance...and I'm glad I did.

This was a definite twist on the second chance romance trope, and I thought it worked out really well. There were a few times that the miscommunication was a little much, and I found myself wishing they could have just had a conversation, but other than that, it was an enjoyable read.

This was a fun one! I loved the safari descriptions, the wedding events, and the meddling family members. The romance definitely took a backseat to the family and coparenting drama. But I still enjoyed my time with this one! 3.5⭐️ rounded up

I didn't realize that this was a sequel to Kamil Knows Best, though for those that haven't read it, the author is good for giving a good refresher. Unfortunately I only made it to 30%, this saddens me, being a big fan of the author's previous works - Accidentally Engaged it awesome! I couldn't get into this story or the characters, Jana was just to angry all the time and rehashing the past to make this the fun read I was looking forward to. Maybe I'll try again but I doubt it, I'll just keep my eye open for her next book.