Wild Geese is the stunning debut novel from Irish author Soula Emmanuel which follows the daily life of Phoebe Forde, an Irish Trans woman living in Copenhagen. One day as Phoebe is plodding along in her newly curated life, her ex Grace appears on her doorstep and we watch the two as they meander and dance around what was, what is and what could have been.

There is something quite magical happening between the pages of Wild Geese that is in ways quite difficult to describe. With just over 240 pages this beautifully petite book manages to be poetic and profound yet somehow refreshingly gentle and simple. It is this magic that escapes from the pages in the form of Emmanuel’s lyrical and lustrous prose. I found myself happily lost among sumptuous passage after passage that I had to reread and highlight.
“The surest sign that pain has been fully felt is when nothing is taken seriously at all.”

This book isn’t just another story to follow, it is an in depth and unhurried character study which creates an introspective wistfulness and sense of catharsis. I often found myself melting away into the text in awe of its all-encompassing relatability. This paired with a gentle underlying Irish humour - “Life is the Brittas Bay car park and you’re always looking for the sea”, made for the kind of book I didn’t want to finish yet somehow found myself clinging to the last page far too quickly.

One of my top books of 2023, I could read Wild Geese again and again and never be bored.
I always say the books that I love the most take me the longest to review, so take from it what you will that I read Wild Geese in May 2023. I eagerly await to see what’s next for Soula and truly wish she receives the recognition she deserves.

Next up in my 'it took me so long to read this #gifted NetGalley advance copy that the book has been published for ages now' series we have Wild Geese by Soula Emmanuel. The TL; DR version of my review is that this is a strong contender for my favourite books of the year list!

Phoebe Forde has been living a quiet life in Copenhagen, housing sitting and looking after an anxious dog named Dolly. Phoebe commutes to Sweden where she is studying and working toward her PhD. Phoebe is a 'woman without a past', until her former girlfriend Grace arrives at her door looking for a tour of Copenhagen.

Grace has never met Phoebe as Phoebe. Their relationship ended before Phoebe's transition and Grace's reappearance brings the life Phoebe left behind in Ireland back in focus.

Set over the course of a long weekend, Wild Geese sees Phoebe and Grace explore Copenhagen as they reflect on their lives and their relationship.

Emmanuel's writing is evocative, humorous – at times darkly so, in the way Irish humour so often is – lyrical, and full of empathy. Wild Geese is a stunning debut and I cannot wait to see what Emmanuel does next!

I highlighted so many sentences and passages, so I'm ending my review with a couple of my favourite lines.

"I am not altering the blueprint of my body – these things were always there, from the day I was born. They just required a certain mature and gentle coaxing, a habitual tensing of the muscle of self-knowledge."

This was a beautifully written novel, although I did find it slow going at first - the almost lyrical prose is a tad dense, and took some work to get into. I love the short timeframe, which was nicely paced, and the balance of melancholy, reflection and wit was well done. Occasional dense verbosity aside, I’d be interested to read more of Emmanuel's work in the future.

"Wild Geese" by Emmanuel presents a contemplative journey. The poems touch on themes of nature and self-discovery, reflecting moments of introspection. While the collection captures fleeting emotions, some pieces lack the depth to truly resonate. Emmanuel's imagery is evocative, yet the overall impact varies. A poetic endeavor that offers glimpses of beauty but occasionally struggles to maintain consistent emotional depth."Wild Geese" by Emmanuel presents a contemplative journey. The poems touch on themes of nature and self-discovery, reflecting moments of introspection. While the collection captures fleeting emotions, some pieces lack the depth to truly resonate. Emmanuel's imagery is evocative, yet the overall impact varies. A poetic endeavor that offers glimpses of beauty but occasionally struggles to maintain consistent emotional depth.

*4.5 (rounded up)

Content Warnings: transphobia, abortion, death of a parent, alcoholism (mentioned)

"Now, I no longer see myself as something to be cured. Now, I will hobble around on a mass of broken bones and take pride in them, because if what lies within me is sick then I no longer care to be well."

Having moved from Ireland to Copenhagen, and three years into her gender transition, Phoebe's existence as a woman without a past is shaken up when her ex-girlfriend shows up on her doorstep.

This was great. Something about the writing style - that blend of simple and eloquent - is do enticing and just an absolute pleasure to read. I rarely highlight quotes in Kindle books, but I felt compelled to multiple times with this one.

The own voices trans rep is so wonderful - Phoebe's insights and experiences are so authentic. I really liked Grace and Phoebe both as characters, they both stay really likeable while being complex and flawed. Phoebe I especially loved (her randomly interjected factoids omg... I related). While I did get a little lost towards the end in the section where we start getting Grace's POV, overall I just really loved reading this.

This is very much a character study and a 'vibes not plot' read, but if you like gorgeous writing and musings on the complexity of human existence, this is well worth a read!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

A cis woman meets her ex in Copenhagen, who since they were last in a relationship has transitioned. The two women explore the Danish capital and essential have conversations about themselves, their lives and their identities. They also explore their friendship, their relationship and past.

What emerges is a novel that demonstrates the need for direction, acceptance and identity, the exploitation of women, the young and the poor.

Brilliant.

“There’s a reason the butterfly moves quicker after the chrysalis: she has secrets to keep. Now, all I have left of my larval city is a loveless doctoral thesis and half-spoiled vestiges of what I used to be. I have moved on, just like everyone else.”

The author is a gifted writer, sharing a story that felt far more relatable than I anticipated. Stunning prose, if occasionally veering into the incomprehensible, I will be keeping an eager eye out for what she does next. .

“I am not altering the blueprint of my body – these things were always there, from the day I was born. They just required a certain mature and gentle coaxing, a habitual tensing of the muscle of self-knowledge.”

Wild Geese is the debut novel from author Soula Emmanuel.

Phoebe Forde is an Irish Trans woman living in Copenhagen. She has lived there for three years, and commutes to Sweden for college. Phoebe has gotten used to living a quiet life in Copenhagen, content to navigate daily life with her ten-year-old bichon frise, Dolly. Hers is not a life of excitement - but, as she says, "A woman without a past can be anyone she wants", and this is the life she has built for herself in Scandinavia.

Until one weekend, when there's a knock on the door, and her ex-girlfriend Grace is standing there. This is Grace's first time seeing Phoebe as Phoebe, and the two have some unfinished business. Phoebe tentatively agrees to show Grace around Copenhagen, and the two get to know each other again. But with Grace comes the past - and Phoebe's not entirely sure she wants to go there.

This was such a beautiful book. I adored the writing, there was a dry, uniquely Irish humour to it that gave it huge warmth and heart. ("She wore a shocking pink beret and tinted sunglasses, like she'd just been doing the entertainment at a paramilitary funeral").

I felt for Phoebe, and her desire to move on, but also remain connected to her past in some way. Her experiences as an ex-pat and as a Trans woman sometimes overlapped, and I felt that Grace was the perfect character to blend those two experiences together. I really liked Grace too, and could empathise with her feelings of being lost.

A gorgeous debut novel, Soula Emmanuel is one to watch.

Thank you to the publisher for the ARC via Netgalley, I bought a copy of the book after reading it.

#wildgeese #sharonreadwildgeese #sharonreadthis

This was wonderful! Beautifully written. It's different to everything else I have read so far, and parts of the writing confused me at times but for the most part I enjoyed the style and the detail. I now have a list of many words I've never seen before which is great. Also, those moments when you're reading and want to highlight nice quotes all the time? I wanted to do that frequently throughout this book. I think a reread in the future is a good plan and will help me understand more.

Wild Geese is a character study about Phoebe, a PhD student who searches for her place in the world while struggling with loneliness and alienation.

Unfortunately, I didn't really vibe with the writing style, but I can definitely see how it could work for others!

Lyrically written a book that swept me in kept me reading .The authors style of writing brings the characters their emotions alive and holds the reader in its grip.#wild geese #netgalley

Phoebe Forde is an Irish trans woman pursuing a PhD and dogsitting in an apartment in Copenhagen. Reserved and focussed on building her new life, she's shook when her ex-girlfriend, Grace, who she dated pre-transition, shows up on her doorstep without warning. Grace and Phoebe slowly warm to one another and re-kindle their romance, while trying to reconcile the pain they've caused one another in the past.

One Friday, her ex-girlfriend Grace unexpectedly turns up at her door. This is set over the course of a weekend - with timestamps! - as both Phoebe and Grace contend with how their pasts and presents reconcile, all the while rekindling their romance.

I loved this book - it's warm and melancholic, funny and profound. These might sound like contradictions but Emmanuel makes it work with the self-assuredness that belies her status as a debut author. It is told largely from Phoebe's point of view with a few sections narrated by Grace. By zeroing in on just 2 characters, she allows us to dig deep into their pysche and how they feel avbout one another. This works so well because both women feel so real; they're both flawed, funny, and deep thinkers, and instantly likeable to read about.

I've read so much trans literature that's based exclusively out of the US so it was a joy to read this kind of story in an Irish context. Excellent jokes about modern Irish life abound and became some of my most-highlighted sections on my Kobo. The inherent messiness of Phoebe and Grace's relationship also gives Emmanuel room for plenty of dry humour, which I loved.

I also adored the setting; Copenhagen is a fantastic city, but not one I've seen in literature before. Setting the novel here allows the Irishness of the characters to the dialled up without irritating the reader; it's also stunningly depicted by Emmanuel and immerses the reader in the location and thus, the story.

Wild Geese is a deeply honest, moving and urgent novel about the difficult changes inherent in becoming your own person in the world, and one I will remember for a long time yet. A stunning read.

Phoebe is an Irish trans woman living alone in Copenhagen. One Friday, her ex-girlfriend Grace unexpectedly turns up at her door. This is set over the course of a weekend as both Phoebe and Grace contend with how their pasts and presents reconcile, all the while rekindling their romance.

I loved this. It felt quietly profound with an undercurrent of very Irish humour. Phoebe is so likeable, Grace maybe a little less so, but their dynamic was electric. A really beautiful mediation on what it means to become someone new and if it's ever really possible.

Wild Geese follows Phoebe, a trans woman from Ireland who lives in Copenhagen. After an unexpected visit from her ex-girlfriend, Grace, they spend the weekend together.

Poetic and profound, witty and intelligent. We navigate through the complexities of relationships, gender and being a foreigner abroad.

Phoebe and Grace are confronted with their past, a rekindling of their relationship starts to happen only to be met with complications.

The novel explores gender and finding a place within the world. A really great read.

The idea of the messiness of life is a recurrent theme in this work. Millennial readers who enjoy Halle Butler will enjoy this will enjoy this work. Looking forward to reading future work from Soula Emmanuel.

a really beautiful, stirring exploration of quiet combustion and trying to figure yourself out ! felt very true and urgent !

Wild Geese is a novel about a woman who spends a weekend with her ex-girlfriend and explores the messiness of life. Phoebe is trans and Irish and lives in Copenhagen, where she moves through the world largely alone, with the company of the dog she looks after, Dolly. When her ex-girlfriend Grace suddenly appears on her doorstep, visiting the city for the weekend, something is kindled between them, but it isn't straightforward, and both of them have pasts and places to reconcile and a sense of being lost to face.

This is a beautiful novel, set over a single weekend (with timestamps) from Phoebe's point of view, and manages to capture a lot of wistfulness, loss, and hope within the writing. It combines poetic, literary prose with modern references (Blåhaj being my favourite, but I was sat with one whilst reading) and the limited timeframe of the narrative allows for a lot of space for not only thinking about the past, but also plenty of thoughts about the present and future. I spent a fair bit of the book worried about how sadly it might end, but actually I think it was a powerful narrative with a conclusion that was satisfying and shows how things can be complicated and messy, but also help you to move forward.

As the title suggests, this is a book about two women chasing things and hoping to find them in each other as they reunite. Wild Geese is both an emotional look at a relationship and the changing nature of one, and an exploration of escaping place and gender and how these can feel intertwined.