Ten thoughtful and often lyrical short stories that explore the lives and loves of queer women. These see the women through ups and downs, confronting aging, homophobia, relationships, and most of all themselves. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Put this on your bedside and read one a day.

Zoe Whittall's debut story collection Wild Failure is made up of ten stories highlighting women and most, if not all have a queer component. The first story, "Half Pipe" may be my favorite, tracking the aftermath of a sexual assault of a high school-aged girl. In others, we meet a couple on one last road trip before their planned breakup, two writers on a book tour, a woman who dreams about being killed, and a woman reflecting back on her time as a stripper. As with many short story collections, some stories resonated more than other, but this is a strong debut and I look forward to what Whittall writes next, as some of the stories here I would have loved to have sit with longer.

Thank you to Ballantine Books for the advance reader copy in exchange for honest review.

Lovely collection of short stories exploring the intricacies of coming-of-age, relationships, and exploring queerness. It's been forever since I've read a short story collection and thoroughly enjoyed these. I will say, I would have appreciated a content warning for the first story, as it was quite graphic. The present tense, matter-of-fact narration came through in all of the stories.. While I appreciate that it stayed consistent, it wasn't my favorite and distracted me from the novel itself.

Whew this was heavy. I liked it, but I felt like I needed to sit with my discomfort after a few of these stories. These vignettes into the lives of different (mostly queer) women left me feeling like I wanted more, but that I also didn’t. Often dark, and emotionally messy, these were interesting stories of complicated feelings. I won’t lie - I’m glad I read this in the summer and not during dark and dreary winter evenings.

A good collection of shorts focused on women. Super quick read.

Thanks to Netgalley for the free advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This is my third read by the author. I found her novel Spectacular decidedly less than, but really enjoyed her next one, The Fake. This collection landed somewhere in the middle of that for me.
Not because of the quality or writing, which is quite high, but because of how similar the stories read. Rather amusing, considering how much this collection is all about diversity representation.
The diversity represented here is primarily queer. Tale after tale of a dysfunctional relationship, featuring queer characters. The characters are often well into their 30s, yet profoundly unable to get their sh*t together. Their immaturity is almost Gen Z in a way, though also very heavily of the more current Gens.
The writing, as I mentioned, is so very good, and Whittall can do some great emotional engagement when she chooses to (some of it particularly tragic), but one screwed up character after another can leave a reader craving a bit more thematic diversity to go along with the talent.
Still, it's a solid read, one that goes by very quickly. I read the entire book in one afternoon sitting from about 2 to 5. Toward the end, the collection gets somewhat more ambitious. Thanks Netgalley.

3.75/5 stars for Storygraph, rounded up to 4/5 for Goodreads.

This was an ARC that I received ages ago. A reading slump has put me severely behind in all of my ARC reads, so I’m slowly catching up.

Anyway, Wild Failure is the first book I’ve ever read of Whittall, and honestly? I’m really glad I picked this up. Whittall has a way of writing that hooked me in and held me hostage, even if the short story wasn’t my favorite. I found myself wanting more of these stories, and I hope that Whittall takes some of them and lengthens them into full-length novels.

There isn’t a whole lot I can say about this collection of short stories other than I had a lot of fun reading it and, despite the fact that I’m on SSRIs (I can’t cry… iykyk), I got misty-eyed during some of the scenes. I think… I think that says a lot :)

Wild Failure is perfect for anyone who likes unapologetically queer and feminist storytelling, especially if they don’t tend to shy away from heavy topics.

Thank you to Ballatine Books (Random House) & NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I had mixed feelings about this collection of queer short stories. It was an up-and-down collection, with some really stellar stories, and some which didn’t quite land for me.

Whittall is a good writer, but quite a few of the stories simply did not manage to capture my attention or remain terribly memorable after I read them. Some, however, are really very good; the best in the collection, I think, is the opener “Half Dome.” Some of the entries felt like they didn’t quite work in the format they were written -- the closing story, for instance, is formatted as a transcript of a podcast interview, but doesn’t read as particularly conversational, or like the way that anyone would actually talk.

In general, if you like queer literary fiction short stories, this is probably worth the read; it wasn’t my favorite, but I’ll certainly consider reading more of the author’s work.

Content Warnings: Unhealthy Relationships, Assault (Physical, Sexual), Mental Health (OCD, Agoraphobia, Anxiety, Panic Attacks), Miscarriage

For the sex repulsed, many stories feature graphic sexual content.

Whittall's collection of short stories succeeds at representing numerous queer identities and types of relationships, as well as complex and messy characters. However, when judging a collection, there are always going to be one or more stories you may like. I tend to rate collections based on how many I liked and I remembered after reading. Based on that, I'm rating this as a middling collection. There were really only 2 stories that stuck with me: "A Patch of Bright Flowers" and "Murder at the Elm Street Collective House." "A Patch of Bright Flowers" exploration of writing, aging, and lesbian dynamics was great, and "Murder at the Elm Street Collective House" offered both an intriguing story and a good critique of the True Crime genre.

I don't read a lot of short stories -- I tend to get too focused on where the plot will go in a short number of pages and don't let my self just enjoy it. But I gave this collection a try and enjoyed it. The language throughout was lovely. It was wonderfully detailed and lyrically. You get the interiority of the narrators in a way that shows as opposed to tells you who they are.

I likely some of the stories more than others beginning with the first one, Half-Pipe which had a terrific ending. I also really liked A Patch of Bright Flowers and the final one Murder at the Elm Street Collective House was a solid choice to end on.

So I knew going these would be short stories but I like that from time to time. These however were just average for me for the most part. The author does have a good writing style, the content just didn’t grab me. The cover is absolutely beautiful!

Will add to my monthly roundup on social and will tag afterward.

Given the reviews on Goodreads, I thought this was going to be epic. However, short stories are a hit or miss for me. 90% of these short stories were misses, and that made me really not vibe with the few I enjoyed.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Ballantine for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This collection of short stories was a fun, if a bit of a neutral read for me. I very much enjoyed that all of the stories feature queer characters and have a feminist bent to them. The stories address issues of mental health, trauma, aging, and the general impacts of living as a queer person at various points in one's life. While I enjoyed the scope of the collection, I was less enthralled by the writing style which felt a bit too stilted for me and rendered a few of the stories not very memorable or as impactful as it could have been. However, this is more down to my personal reading taste in terms of prose; I wasn't familiar with Whittall's work until this. However, if the writing style is to your liking, this is a solid, thought-provoking collection.

A lyrical and gripping examination of experiences that happen to many people in real life, Wild Failures is a perfect read for those interested in poetic essays about life.

Before I begin my review, I’d like to mention some content warnings for this book. Some of them will spoil the story. For those who don’t want to be spoiled, please skip the sentence sandwiched between “spoilers start!” and “spoilers end!”.

SPOILERS START!

CWs in this book: rape (Half-Pipe), depression and implied suicide (This is Carrie’s Whole Life), sexual assault (The Sex Castle Lunch Buffet), and forced miscarriage caused by injury (I Need a Miracle). I’d like to give a disclaimer that these warnings are what stand out to me at the time I’m writing this review, but may not encompass everything that happens in this book.

SPOILERS END!

Wild Failure by Zoe Whittall is an unapologetically queer and feminist collection of short stories that forces readers to recognize the intertwined intricacies of violence, desire, and love.

Although the short stories in Wild Failure are sometimes hard to stomach, there’s a readability and tension to them that always kept me engaged and wanting to know more. Some scenes were so heartbreaking that I had to take a pause before jumping back in, but there was never a doubt that I wouldn’t jump back in and see the story to the end. All ten stories are extremely unique and stand apart from each other, yet are undeniably tied together by a common thread of queerness, desire, and violence. Each story features a female protagonist who is far from perfect, but is never unlikeable and is trying her best. The complexity of the characters, their situations, and their issues felt realistic and satisfying even if some situations were so specific that I’ll never experience what they’re going through. This collection simultaneously demands imagination and sympathy while staying grounded and true.

Like it did for me, Wild Failure will fail to leave your mind long after you’ve finished reading. People who enjoyed Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado will also enjoy this book. Big thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group (Ballantine Books) for sending this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own. ⅘ stars.

This short story collection, from bestselling author Zoe Whittall, explores themes of growing up and living in a misogynistic, dysfunctional world.

The protagonists are queer women and the stories seem to take place at one pivotal point in their lives. They struggle with mental health issues such as OCD and agoraphobia. Their survival is laced with shame and doubt. Their experiences and reactions relatable. It also makes you question the actions and consequences of the men and other genders in this book.

The author’s humor helps balance the overall collection. I enjoyed reading this collection. It was funny and thought provoking. Whittall’s raw emotional takes feel honest and witty. I recommend this collection.

Thank you Ballantine Books and NetGalley for the ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC in exchange for my honest review!

This was a weird little short story collection. All of the stories revolved around different experiences of queer women. Some of them got under my skin. I appreciated the way it explored aging and being queer. Most of the stories were centered around women in their mid thirties and how aging has affected them. It also explored bisexuality, being trans, and being how people few different sexualities. It had been a long time since I’ve read a short story collection and I enjoyed these. I don’t think I had a solid favorite of the bunch.

This is a collection of small stories about queer people living their life and dealing with life. They make you think about your life and people around you. Some are eye opening than others, but all are good.
Nothing sparked my interest tho, they were good stories, but I don't think they’d be memorable much

I try not to give negative reviews, but this book was almost unreadable for me. The writing was stilted, almost in note form instead of a fully formed novel. I'm not sure if it was because it's an uncorrected arc. I hope it improves before it's released. I couldn't finish the story and barely made it through the first five chapters.

A lovely, engrossing, and often heartbreaking collection of 10 short stories. I’ve enjoyed previous works by the author and this was no exception.

Each story offers us a glimpse of a woman dealing with the realities of living in a man’s world. There is violence, disregard, disrespect and the women depicted manage to cope and sometimes persevere. The writing is full of compassion and dry humor. There isn’t always a clear resolution which adds to the beauty of the storytelling.

Thank you very much to Random House Ballantine and NetGalley for the opportunity to read a copy.