Grab Wilder Formulated By Andrew Simonet Accessible As Digital

strange book, and that's a compliment, The main character, almostadult white male Jason, is carefully drawn, offbeat and occasionally lacking in selfawareness in a way that is utterly real, I appreciated the compelling character Meili, who was complex and immediate in a way that felt recognizably female and Asian to me, Confident writing, oddly haunting. Really liked it until the ending which didnt seem to fit or connect Netgalley provided me a DRC of this book in exchange for an honest review

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This book was highly entertaining, and I thoroughly enjoyed the characters of Jason Wilder and Meili however, I felt like it was really lacking a punch or sense of urgency the first half of the book.
This really led me to be underwhelmed and I struggled staying committed to the text,

The second half had much better pacing and conflicts, and I felt a stronger sense of urgency about Jason's issues related to his nonexistent parents and how they contributed to his issues in school.
. Plus, the book has a seriously sexy element about it, . . the nerdy boy who really isn't all that bad, falling for the exotic bad girl,

I do think it is a bit too racy for my students, yet I think the themes are perfect for so many of my students, especially those atrisk.
I like that Jason is brave and puts his heart out there, even though it is obviously been broken by his parents, I think it is a solid book, but probably best for agesand up, Over the last two years it's been really challenging for me to read fiction something about pregnancy and being a new mom has made it hard for me to stick with a novel.
But not with Wilder. This book kept my interest through plot twists and authentic if not always relatable characters, This book felt real. And like others have said even though the book warns you over and over I still didn't expect the ending to play out the way it did.
This book is agonizing and beautiful without ever really trying to be, It just is. There's a level of honesty in it that I don't see in much other fiction, especially the other contemporary YA novels that I've read, The characters are comprised less of quirks and more of genuine humanity,

I really haven't read a book that made me feel this way in a long time, It's not always happy, if ever, and it's not tragic, either, There's elements of both. It just feels painfully real, This is a book willing to take a lot more risks than a typical YA novel, Its character are sharp and sympathetic, but unreliable, They swerve as promised, and pity on you if you forget it, There's a fair amount of sex here for a YA novel, but also a huge amount of sex positivity that is both novel and empowering, I enjoyed the page turning qualities of this book and the fast paced dialogue, and was left feeling suitably unsettled by it all, I liked this book, but I did not love this book, It is unique compared to others in the YA genre, which is what really held my interests, I think it is more on the mature side, there is a lot of talk about sex, and the theme in general is overall darker in tone.
The only reason I didn't love it is because of the way it was written, and the fact that some things just seemed too unbelievable, Though it is a fictional story so I can only criticize that so much, It is certainly not predictable at all and will keep you guessing over and over, I can say I've never read another YA novel quite like this one, and if you're looking for something different and more mature, this book is a great pick! DNF at

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
My thoughts and opinions are my own, Any quotes I use are from an unpublished copy and may not reflect the finished product,

My reoccurring thought: What the fuck Wilder was crazy and extremely convoluted, It was often difficult to follow their conversations, because they were random and bounced all over the place, I could tell the author was trying to build suspense, and I'm sure there would have been a big reveal later on, but I didn't want to stick around to find out.


Melissa, Meili, or whatever her name actually is, was condescending and evasive, The girl's secrets had secrets, She's supposedly in danger, but seems to be the only person that doesn't care, She's brash and abrasive, combative and cruel, “Youd do alright in a thong, wouldnt you Make a fortune dancing at a gay club, Is there one in town”

Neither character was relatable, but Wilder was desperate and eager to please the girl he'd just met, He knows nothing about Meili, but he's willing to do whatever she asks him to, I think he would have chopped of his hand just to see her smile for a few seconds, She seriously treated him like garbage, and he kept trying to make her happy, "And youre very cute for blushing, I mean, it would be cute if you were twelve, At your age, its a bit sad, isnt it” Why was he so obsessed with her from the beginning He should have had more respect for himself.


Wilder and Meili had a toxic and extremely unhealthy relationship, She would ignore him at school, turn down his offer to hang out, and then show up unexpectedly at his house, She was constantly changing her mind, and I honestly don't think even she knew what she really wanted, However, she was more than happy to take someone else down with her,

Also, where the hell did Manny come from He was abusive and threatening, but only because he "cared" about Melissa, Apparently, the two share the same dark secret, so he's being a protective douche canoe, but dude was aggressive, He also went from being Wilder's best buddy to his worst enemy in a single conversation, It was like watching someone play ping pong, but with a grenade instead of a ball,

In the end, my annoyance outweighed my curiosity, I was tempted to skip to the end just to see what their secrets were, but I had no desire to share that experience with them, at first glance, i thought this book would be a fun romance which would give me butterflies and satisfy my helpless romantic soul, i couldnt have been more wrong, do not be mistaken, the romance was absolutely beautiful, i deeply appreciate Andrews male AND female lead, i loved how Jason treated Meili, how he thought about her because this is written in the first person, and their overall relationship, but Jason definitely blindsided me, because he was the villain all along, manipulation is much easier to accomplish when incited by the narrator, but this is not the case with Andrews protagonist yes, protagonist, even if Jason was selfdestructive, we still rooted for him,

Andrew shows us how easy it is to confuse right from wrong when faced with a situation where there is so much grey, how clouded blame can be, during Jasons arguments with the counselors, the police, the lawyer, i was completely on his side, i too thought that his side was being overlooked, and that because of his reputation, he was being treated poorly, i thought that the system, the town, his family, were bullshitting, i didnt even consider that, maybe, Jason was at fault, i definitely believed that what he did was wrong beyond words, but he was able to convince me that it wasnt his fault, and this is where Andrew truly hypnotized me: he made the line between right and wrong blurry because of blame, this book is not a love story, it is a metaphor, made more realistic due to the part love plays, when reading his story from any point of view, Jason was undoubtedly the villain, when read from his point of view, you dont want to believe it because you can clearly see how lost Jason is, “Theyre all lost, Jason,” theyre all lost, and so is he, he thinks hes making the world better, he thinks that everyone is against him, which is exactly how a villain would feel, the villains are lost, and this is what we must take away from Wilder, If you want to waste your time reading borderline romanticized violence then read this It's done, Is there a word for the kind of book you know is going nowhere good, but you can't stop reading it to see just how bad it gets The plot just always had this foreboding feeling throughout, yet the resolution wasn't as terrible as it could have been.
The main characters were pretty unlikable, so I wasn't sad to see it end, and I wasn't interested enough to read Melissa's secret letters to Jason, Just meh. "I wanted her to remake me, . . And that disgusted her. She didn't want me to be like her she wanted me to be like me, "

Holy crap, man, this book was insane! Even though it warns you that the characters "swerve," I still was not prepared, This whole book is one crazy, wild ride and I'm still not sure if I've fully processed it all clearly yet, It starts with a bang, a whole lot of "what!", and only accelerates from there, A chaotic whirlwind that's what these characters are, And after the initial shock and confusion began to wear off, I actually found myself getting pulled in and enjoying myself,

This will be a book that not everyone likes, It is raw and unflinching about hard facts of young adult life, and chooses to stare down the ugly truths instead of washing over them, Meili is a difficult character to connect to at first, She is blunt and sarcastic,

but there is a deep honesty to her character that I admired, It is much easier to bond with Jason and the situation of his crappy life,

The roller coaster nature of this books makes it both exhilarating and confusing, I am so conflicted over the ending, I still don't know what to believe: I have a million questions and a pressing urge to reread the entire thing to find all the clues I didn't catch the first time around.
Honestly though, the openendedness and my confliction is why I bumped this from a four to a five star rating, It was utter chaos but it was fun and, strangely enough, enlightening, It is quite honestly unlike anything I have ever read before, And holy cow, I want to read it again already,

Many thanks to Goodreads Giveaways and the author for providing me with a finished copy in exchange for my honest opinion, Jason Wilder is spending his senior year in the Rubber Room, AKA inschool suspension, He landed there because he is considered to be a danger to his peers, . . he is, after all, an arsonist, but hed tell you otherwise, Jason wiles away the hours reading fantasy novels and not actually doing any of the schoolwork assigned to him, That is, until the mysterious Meili walks into the room,

The only thing Jason knows about Meili is that she ended up in the Rubber Room for breaking another girls finger, As Jason finds himself strangely drawn to this unusual girl, he feels like he is falling down the rabbit hole, Meili is wayward and enigmatic, . . and everything Jason needs in his messedup life right now,

Andrew Simonet makes his YA fiction debut with Wilder, a novel that explores what happens when troubled boy meets extraordinary girl, As the book cover and Jason forewarn, this isnt a love story with a fairy tale ending, No, rather, this is one enormous crash and burn, . . but thats the beauty of it,

When I began Wilder, I was instantly worried that this was going to be another of those YA novels that is trying too hard to be edgy, unique, and quirky.
Meili is an overthetop character, and she can be a bit much to swallow in the beginning, My opinions quickly changed after a few chapters though as I found myself captivated by Jason and Meliis story, I was especially intrigued by Jasons character and the way he sees himself and how he navigates the world, He isnt your typical male protagonist, and I found him refreshing and sympathetic,

If youre thinking of reading Wilder, put on your seat belt or in this case, motorcycle helmet, because this is one crazy ride complete with jail time, insane parties, rowdy fistfights, international crime, and two teenagers drawn to each other like moths to a flame.
What makes Wilder so good, however, is not the wild drama packed within this novels pages, but rather the fragile human elements of this story, When you turn down the noise, Wilder is hopeful, and tragic, and so very very beautiful, Dont think you have this one all figured out because like the cover states, “She swerves, So do I. So does this story. ” Are you ready

Thanks to NetGalley amp Farrar Strauss Giroux for an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, .