Waif - A Feminist Tale of Discovery
I received this book in my February 2022 "Frostbite" Night Worms package. I loved True Crime and was not surprised to find that I loved Waif as well.
I adore Samantha Kolesnik. The way she thinks, and the way she makes the images pop off of the page and into my brain. It's all priceless. "She was a secret confined to my memories, tied forever to the scent of clove smoke and autumn."
This story follows Angela as she tries to find herself. Her husband Matt is shallow, rich, abusive, and does not satisfy her. She realizes she is staying in the relationship for all the wrong reasons. One day, she meets a stranger named Ben in a grocery store and becomes obsessed with him, or more accurately, obsessed with the idea of him. She wants him to be the man of her dreams, expects that he could heal her and fill the void. Angela is vocal about it with Matt, whose narcissism and competitiveness push him to literally become this other man through plastic surgery. Of course, not for his wife's happiness, just for his own ulterior motives. Things go absolutely off the rails and Angela becomes a different woman through the twisted journey.
This feminist tale draws from women who are domestically abused, who are forced to be people they are not. It is disturbing how much the world can change who a person truly is inside through suppression, control, and perceived family values. So many people don't ever get to publicly be who they really are on the inside, and that is a horror in and of itself.
This little novella is a page-turner and completely worth your time. Check it out!
