RaveiNews (UK)... immersive ... Carty-Williams excels at taking us inside the heads of unpolished, vulnerable, flawed characters ... Along with getting deeply involved in the Penningtons’ shenanigans, readers may well catch unnerving glimpses of themselves in the pages ... The novel also has a strong sense of place – it is clear the author’s heart has always been rooted in south London ... The author brilliantly portrays the bonds, and jostling, found among African diasporas who have made the UK, and namely south London, their home ... This is a highly personal book – Carty-Williams has explained it was born of a conversation between her and her older sister Selena around sibling loyalty – and the world of the Penningtons is infused with humour. Their interactions are so well-observed, you’ll wonder whether the Queenie author has been eavesdropping on your conversations with your own siblings ... A gripping study of the intangible nature of sibling bonds, then – and what you might do for someone you share little more than DNA with.
Nikki May
PositiveiNews (UK)The wants, needs and ambitions of Ronke, Boo and Simi are recognisable and relatable, while their partners are simply props. It certainly works, if you read it as a nod to how all three women are seeking to fill the space left by missing or absent fathers – but at the same time leaves the arcs of Boo and Simi’s white husbands, Martin and Didier, and Ronke’s boyfriend, Kayode, somewhat unfinished ... May’s skill for weaving together entertaining personal problems with a wistfulness for Nigerian food, customs and culture is unparalleled ... However, as evocative as her writing is, it cannot mask that Wahala doesn’t quite deliver on the promise of the prologue. The ending feels hurried compared with the rest of the book, scuppering the explanations and revelations we’ve been chasing. Elsewhere, while we are offered a glimpse of the stark class divide that rules over Nigeria, commentary on colourism is minimal at best ... Even so, Wahala is hard to put down – an energetic, entertaining interrogation of fundamentally flawed friendship and how uncomfortable emotions such as jealousy and bitterness are not always easy to confront, yielding trouble indeed.
