I loved the cover of this, but ultimately it fell flat for me as a story. A third round purchase for most libraries, but there's definitely potential to check back in with this author.

Jana Goes Wild is a vibrantly masterful display of love, second chances, regret, sacrifice and disappointment. Farah Heron weaves a tale that will have you laughing and tearing up through the eyes of Jana as she embarks in Serengeti to find what she's been missing most in her life, her true self.

What stood out to me most in this book is the East Asian representation. I felt a level of connectedness with the rich culture and characters like I've never felt before. I felt like I could've been Jana. Trying to live up to her mother's standard of what a brown girl should be. The disappointments, the self-deprecation, the anxiety and the undulating love of community. It felt like I was reading about what I know life to be and I appreciated that so much.

That aside, the story is a wonderful tale of second chance romance and self discovery. I loved the setting of the Serengeti. With so many side characters, I appreciated the individuality of them all.

Overall I enjoyed this book thoroughly and thank the lovely people at Forever for advancing me a copy.

Jana and Anil had a fling years ago that had real potential to develop into a further relationship. Once Jana learns that Anil is married, she immediately cuts ties with him- which lasts right until she learns she’s pregnant. Years later, they are still co-parenting. What could go wrong when they are forced to spend time together during a destination wedding in Tanzania with most of their friends and family?

What I enjoyed:
-the setting! The descriptions of Tanzania were gorgeous
-getting to see Kamila and Rohan again
-co-parenting
-unique premise

Overall this was a cute read! I have loved Farah Heron’s other books but found that for me, this one lacked the chemistry of the others. Still worth a read for romance fans but I hope to feel that ‘not able to stop reading’ feeling in future books from Farah.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for the advanced reading copy!

When Jana Suleiman's best friend announces she's getting married and better yet, that the destination wedding will take place in Serengeti National Park, she's thrilled. She's looking forward to going on safari's with her 5 year old daughter and cut loose with her friends. There's only one problem: her ex-not-husband and father of her child, Anil will also be there. And even worse? Her mother keeps referring to Anil as her ex-husband to anyone who asks. What started as a trip of a lifetime, just might end up a major headache even as Jana comes to realize Anil isn't as bad as she thought.

Can I just say that this book really creeps up on you. Anil and Jana's story is not easy. In fact, after a whirlwind romance, it's littered with tension even if both of their feelings are being kept under an icy façade. Here's the thing: Anil and Jana love the child they made together, even if circumstances make their relationship complicated. I loved the co-parenting aspect of this book and thought that it was beautifully handled. I also loved how supportive Anil was when it was so clear how vulnerable Jana felt. I devoured this book in one sitting. I literally stayed up all night to finish it. If you want a book with big feelings and a happily ever after, I 100% recommend this one! And I am definitely planning to re-read this soon.

Jana is used to playing it safe - the one time she was rebellious, she ended up pregnant and ostracized because Anil Malek was a married man. Now, five years later, Jana and Anil are both part of a destination wedding in Tanzania. Jana's mother has been telling everyone that Jana and Anil are divorced, and worse yet, Anil doesn't know that information, AND Jana's potential new boss in in attendance.

This book is very well written, but not quite my thing. I'm giving it four starts because it will make an amazing recommendation for someone looking for the themes and tropes in this book.

After reading and enjoying ACCIDENTALLY ENGAGED and KAMILA KNOWS BEST in this series, I had high hopes for JANA GOES WILD...and unfortunately, it just didn't do it for me.

rating: 3 STARS
genre: romance
steam: Slightly cracked door, mostly fade-to-black

For me, Jana was just too unlikable to root for. She self-described as unattached, a loner, introverted, and crabby...and I think that's about right. She spent 80% of the book being VERY crabby and throwing around hatred and accusations like nobody's business.

With romance novels, especially second-chance romance, you often feel like you're missing a part of the story. Either you don't get enough of what happened the first time around, or there's so much flashback that you don't get to know the couple in the present day. I think in this case it's the former. I wish there had been more chapters highlighting their early co-parenting relationship or struggles so you could understand WHY Jana harbored such negativity toward Anil...who seemed to, overall, be a lovely human being and amazing parent.

That being said: I loved Anil and Imani. I loved the relationship the author described between them. This book needs more Imani - that's for sure.

Overall, it was fine. It might be your cup of tea, but it wasn't mine.

Read if you like:
Stories about POC
Lots and lots of African food references and descriptions
Second Chance Romance
Non-Traditional Families

Farah Heron really knocked this one out of the park! I am generally a hater of second chance in contemporary romances and almost didn't request this one because of that. Thankfully my bookclub was doing a buddy read for it so I picked it up and I was not disappointed!

I think why this worked for me so well is because it was also a slow burn. It gave us time to get to know both characters (though we learn about Anil though Jana's subjective POV) and really appreciate the tension and really complicated emotions. Jana in particular really struggles with seeing Anil now with their daughter and his friends and seeing his kindness towards her even and contrasts that to her experience of him all those years ago which she cannot seem to forgive nor get over.

What this has:
-Second chance
-Forced Proximity
-Single parent
-Only one bed
-South Asian rep
-African setting

This story is MESSY. There's a lot of will they/won't they, some miscommunication (though honestly pretty minor at the end), and a lot of angst. But honestly that lended itself so well to this story - it feels really realistic to how this might happen in real life. Jana struggles with wanting to protect herself from heartbreak and also knowing that what her heart really craves is Anil and the magic they created during those two weeks together.

Thank you to Netgalley and Forever for the eARC in exchange for a review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Jana Suleiman has never really fit in—everyone always sees her as too aloof, too cool, too perfect. The one time she stepped out of her comfort zone she ended up with a broken heart and a baby on the way. Aaaand lesson learned. Now she’s a bridesmaid for a destination wedding in Serengeti National Park, and almost everyone she knows will be there. Her five-year-old daughter. Her mom. Her friends. Even her potential new boss. And of course (because who doesn’t love surprises!) her gorgeous-but-not-to-be-trusted ex. Fortunately, Anil Malek is a great dad, even if Jana hasn’t quite forgiven him for lying to her all those years ago. Determined to show he has no effect on her whatsoever, she and the bridesmaids concoct a go-wild list to get Jana through the week. Sing karaoke? Sure. Perform their high school dance routine in front of strangers? Okay. But the more she lets down her guard, the less protection she has against her attraction to Anil. And Jana soon realizes it’s one thing to walk on the wild side . . . and quite another to fall for her ex all over again.

This is a second chance romance set in the background of the the African Safari. The cover was so cute and the premise was something I thought I'd enjoy. I really wanted to enjoy this one, but I just couldn't get into it. I found myself skimming and just wanted something to happen. It was a very slow burn. I'd say the action and spice didn't come until 70% of the way through the book. The cadence was off for me, and I felt like it was packing too many plot lines. Did we really need the mom lying ot everyone about her daughter and her future employer being there hearing all the lies and causing drama? Personally, giant miscommunications that could have been easily avoidable is my least favorite tropes and this book is filled with bad communication between Jana and Anil,

Things. I did enjoy included how strong and independent Jana was. She seemed like a kick ass character who just needed more confidence. This book did a great job at building the scene. Everything was very descriptive and did a great job of feeling like you were there on the trip with them. I loved the bridal party and a lot of the secondary characters. I hope we see more from them!

Thanks to the publisher for the ARC in return for an honest review. This book releases 5/2.

Jana goes Wild by

Pub date: May 2,2023
My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This book focuses on Jana, a single mother who is part of the bridal party of the destination wedding of two of her best friends. Jana doesn't count that some of the guests include her ex-partner and father of her daughter and a potential future boss. Jana and her friends develop a “letting lose list” for her to enjoy her time in Tanzania and go wild for the first time in her life.

I haven’t read the first book in this series, which I was made aware after finishing this one. I don’t know if my appreciation or enjoyment of the book would have been different if I read the first book before this one. Kamila was my favorite character in this one so I will have to read that book soon.

I loved the destination wedding setting in which this book takes place. The author described the scenery so well that made me desire to experience it myself. The beginning of the book was kind of slow, I’ll say till the 55-60% mark it dragged a bit. But after the wedding finally ended, the book picked up quite nicely. Loved the circle of friends that helped the heroine make the right choices and stand by her during those.

The miscommunication between the main characters was infuriating at times. But I was glad to see everything come to a full circle at the end.

Tropes:
Second chance
Forced proximity
Miscommunication
Single parent
Found family

Thank you @NetGalley and @ReadForeverPub for sending this ARC for review consideration. All opinions are my own.

Jana is single mom to 5yr-old Imani, who she co-parents with Anil—though they haven’t seen each other in years, since Jana’s mother always facilitates the transition between homes. So you can imagine the tension when they find themselves in the wedding party of mutual friends, and in Tanzania for TWO WEEKS of wedding festivities. A story of adventure, forgiveness, friendship, and learning to step out of one’s comfort zone and find that happiness can exist out there too.

Read if you like: second chance romances, mouth watering food descriptions, safari adventures, forced proximity, and dads who kick ass at braiding their daughters’ hair.

Things I enjoyed:
• Main characters with professions in development, who are passionate about lifting up communities worldwide.
• The positive co-parenting representation.
• All the Indian & East African dishes mentioned throughout, and the recipes included at the end!

Wasn’t crazy about:
• Jana’s character, honestly. I felt for her but also wanted to have some serious convos with her.
• The miscommunication trope—although I did appreciate the way the couple acknowledges their struggles in this dept. and do grow in this area in the end.

Pairs perfectly with: fresh samosas, chai, and sunshine on your face!

This was my first Farah Heron novel and it most certainly will not be my last! I enjoyed Jana’s story. This second chance romance set against the beautiful East African landscape was beautiful and full of rich culture and natural description that really brought it to life. I love how Heron used the backdrop of an extravagant wedding to bring Anil and Jana together in a forced proximity style novel. She also keeps readers waiting for that HEA and does so very well. There’s a lot of push and pull elements here and I think Heron does the situation justice.

Great setting and fun characters. True escapism, and readers will be hard pressed not to want to take this trip with the characters.

This book was an emotional ride. Five years ago Jana ended up pregnant after a whirlwind two week romance with Anil. She found out he was married, broke it off and found out she was pregnant. Anil proves to be a great father, while they have been coparenting Imani, while maintaining a safe distance from each other. Until they are part of a wedding party on safari in Tanzania. The only problem is that Jana hasn't fully forgiven him for what happened all those years ago. Soon they are spending a lot of time together and starts to have feelings for Anil again.

This was a good book, but to me, categorizing it as a romance wasn't right. It felt more like a contemporary with romance aspects in it. There was a lot of focus on Jana's life and the impact that decisions in her life had on her future. I really liked the focus on coparenting and how Jana and Anil were working together to parent Imani.

The romance portion of this book was a super slow burn book, but it was emotional all the way. The author does such a good job of putting you right in the story and feeling everything Jana is experiencing. I found myself often frustrated with Jana and her inability to forgive Anil, but knowing her experiences made sense at the same time.

I have loved Farah Heron's previous books for the South Asian representation and this one is no different. I find myself learning so much and really being immersed in the stories. I also loved how this book was set in such a wonderful setting on safari in Tanzania. There was such great descriptions that really pulled me in. I also loved the Toronto nods, being a Torontonian myself!

This was a good book with some great aspects. I loved seeing the parenting of Imani and how great of parents both Jana and Anil were. It was an emotional second chance romance. Thank you to NetGalley and Forever publishing for a copy of this book. All opinions are 100% mine.

Going into this book, I think I had too high of an expectation due to my love of the other books by this author, but I was a little disappointed with this latest book. I love a good second chance romance because it’s filled with tension between the two leads, angst at every interaction, and there’s a lot of heart in the story. At times I felt these emotions, but overall it lacked a bit of chemistry for me. It also felt repetitive. The author kept reiterating the flaws in both characters to the point where it felt unnecessary to constantly hear the same thing.

Where this book shines is the author's wonderful representation of South Asian culture. Every little detail this author brought to this book was much appreciated because I felt seen in this story which is a rarity for me and romances. I also enjoyed the setting of this book. It felt as if I was there right along with Jana through these pages.

Though I didn’t connect with this book like I had hoped, I do see why others enjoyed it more than me. The potential was there and the overall writing was good, so I want to encourage others to try it first.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever Pub for this ARC

Farah Heron has become one of my favourite romantic comedy writers. Her characters are well-developed and have interesting backstories. This book has lots of banter and plenty of humorous moments that make this book one of my favourites from this author.

Jana Suleiman holds a Ph.D. and her work focuses on improving the lives of others in developing countries around the world. She has a five-year-old daughter from a two-week whirlwind romance with Anil, who she falls hard for but later discovers he is still married. The shame and humiliation of having a child out of marriage within her community is something she’s had to live with. She’s lost friends because of this, but has had tremendous support from her Mom and a close group of friends she’s known for most of her life.

Anil Malek is a successful businessman and a great Dad to their daughter. He’s explained to Jana that he considered his marriage over when his wife disappeared months before he met Jana. He would like to try again with Jana and make their family whole.

Jana and Anil are part of a huge wedding party for a destination wedding in the Serengeti. Jana’s friends try and bring her out of her protective shell by giving her a list of challenges. It’s particularly hard for Jana to let go when a prospective employer is also in attendance for the wedding. The close proximity of Anil and the lies her Mom is telling creates a very stressful holiday for Jana. Will Jana’s list of challenges help her to find a life that she doesn’t even realize she’s looking for?

JANA GOES WILD by Farah Heron is an emotional second-chance romance that brings all the feels in a stunning and dynamic setting. Heron’s descriptions made me feel like I was right there in Tanzania with Kamila’s Bridal Brigade looking through binoculars at elephants and lions. When Jana and Anil are forced to spend time together on a wedding trip, tension is at an all-time high. The two co-parent their daughter, but their relationship hasn’t been the same after it erupted five years ago. Now the two have a chance to clear the air and figure out how to better make things work between them and their family.

I was intrigued by Jana in KAMILA KNOWS BEST, and I'm happy she got her own book! Introverted Jana wants to be seen as vibrant and as a team player on this trip, so she creates a “letting loose" list. I love a good list, so this was a fun way to get Jana out of her comfort zone.

Heron’s books are always incredibly immersive and leave me feeling so happy—JANA GOES WILD did the same!

Thank you to Forever, NetGalley, and Farah Heron for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

Jana has always been a good girl, working hard, following rules and making choices that would make her parents proud, except for 2 weeks several years ago. She lost friends and jobs because of her choice but gained an amazing daughter. Now she has a happy daughter that she co-parents with Anil, a dream job is within reach and her closest friends are getting married and the wedding party is going on a safari. Sounds perfect, until she discovers Anil is part of the wedding party and the person she interviewed with for the job is related to the groom. This entire trip is outside Jana's comfort zone, especially when the Bride brigade challenges her to let loose. What will Jana discover about herself and her relationships? A story of family, expectations, and discovering your true self. I could not put this down, felt like a visit with friends and it left me wanting to know what happens next.

This book was just really not for me unfortunately. I requested this because I had heard good things about this author's other books and ended up reading one of her YA ones a couple months ago, which I enjoyed. However, so much in this book irritated me, namely that the same details were repeated constantly throughout the entire story. Again, just not for me personally but I do think others will enjoy it.

Such a fun and emotional second chance romance! Jana is as quirky and hilarious as she is lovable. The book does an incredible job at showing readers her struggles with herself and her relationship- both romantic and non romantic relationships- and it truly grounds the story in genuine emotion and humanity. Great read!

@rachelbookclub

If you love second chance romances, smart and driven FMCs, let loose lists, safaris that will make you wish you’re in Tanzania, this book is for you!

Overall, I enjoyed this book! The whole idea of the book, where Jana is off on a two week trip with her best friends and family, and her ex, who is also the father of her child, shows up, is quite well done. I kept imagining the safari, and it even made me want to go on one 😂 I enjoyed the message of this book and how Jana was learning to let loose and to not think too much about what people think about her.

There’s some things that slightly annoyed me throughout this book, mainly Jana. I really wanted to love her, but I felt a bit frustrated by her and how she walked away from Anil quite often for little things without talking to him. There was quite a bit of miscommunication in this book, which personally is not my favorite. However, I did appreciate that they were acknowledging that they communication was not really good. I also thought the book was a really quick read, but I found it quite loaded with so many things but not really concentrate on anything. Like, there was a lot going on in the story to me, which made it hard to get to know characters, and with this cast of a lot of characters, it felt hard to connect to them and to get to know the main characters more. I also wish we learned a bit more about Anil… I feel like I didn’t know much about him when I finished the book, and I would have liked to learn a bit more about him. Overall, despite their miscommunication, I quite enjoyed Jana’s and Anils relationship. I also think Imani was a really fun character and she really added to the story and I loved the love both Jana and Anil had for their daughter.

One thing I thought was so fun was the recipes at the end of the book 🥰 The recipes included sound so good and I can’t wait to try to make some of the recipes myself!

Overall, this was a pretty sweet and easy read! I enjoyed the story, but the characters didn’t win my heart…

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this book.

3.5⭐️