From William C. Morris Finalist Nafiza Azad comes a thrilling, feminist fantasy about a group of teenage girls endowed with special powers who must band together to save the life of the boy whose magic saved them all.
We are the Wild Ones, and we will not be silenced.
We are girls who have tasted the worst this world can offer. Our story begins with Paheli, who was once betrayed by her mother, sold to a man in exchange for a favor. When Paheli escaped, she ran headlong into Taraana—a boy with stars in his eyes, a boy as battered as she was. He tossed Paheli a box of stars before disappearing. With the stars, Paheli gained access to the Between, a place of pure magic and mystery. Now, Paheli collects girls like us, and we use our magic to travel the world, helping to save other girls from our pain, our scars.
When Taraana reappears, he asks for our help. Dangerous magical forces are chasing him, and they will destroy him to get his powers. We will do everything to save him—if we can. For if Taraana is no longer safe and free, neither are the Wild Ones. And that...is a fate that we refuse to accept. Ever again.
About the Author
Nafiza Azad is a self-identified island girl. She has hurricanes in her blood and dreams of a time she can exist solely on mangoes and pineapple. Born in Lautoka, Fiji, she currently resides in British Columbia, Canada where she reads too many books, watches too many K-dramas, and writes stories about girls taking over the world. Her debut YA fantasy was the Morris Award–nominated The Candle and the Flame. The Wild Ones is her second novel.
Industry Reviews
“Utterly unique storytelling. The Wild Ones is just as magical as the girls and cities found within its pages, weaving together a tale that refuses to flinch.”
Chloe Gong, New York Times bestselling author of These Violent Delights
"Prose as lush and as beautiful as the world of the In Between, it's easy to get lost in Azad's feminist fantasy The Wild Ones, where diamonds exist as magic and every doorway leads to the oldest cities in the world."
Roselle Lim, author of Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune and Vanessa Yu's Magical Paris Tea Shop
"The Wild Ones is a stunning tale of resilience, tenderness, and fierce wildness, all rendered in Azad’s exquisite prose—a symphony of a novel."
Axie Oh, author of Rebel Seoul
"To read Nafiza Azad’s The Wild Ones is to journey into a literary spice shop, a space full of bright colours and sharp tastes, where bitterness leaves the delicate taste of hope on the tongue, and the acrid burn of reality is sweetened by love, friendship, and the resiliency the human spirit. Tragic and triumphant, lush and lyrical, The Wild Ones will linger with readers long after the last page has been read."
Natasha Deen, award-winning author of In the Key of Nira Ghani
