The creepy and disgusting vibes of this book are incredible!

Following a group of girls quarantined on an island after a weird and contagious outbreak took over their boarding school, Wilder Girls uses the mysterious Tox as a way to talk about queerness, growing up and belonging.

There isn't anything particularly unique about the characters, but the atmosphere made up for it. With tons of body horror and an eerie mutaded forest, it's impossible not to crave the explanation on what is the disease and why it's affecting the island and its inhabitants like that.

I specially enjoyed the Byatt chapters, as they went deeper in the details and research on the outbreak, but they were sparse compared to the main plotline.

Which is a shame, because there's nothing particularly remarkable about it. We have our main character looking for her missing best friend and trying to uncover the secrets the government and the school are keeping from them. And even with some quite fun scenes, there's nothing too out there about it.

This book is great for those who really enjoy vibes and this type of horror (toned down for YA), but anyone looking for a substantial plot might find this one lacking.

(I'm still not sure how I feel about the ending. While I don't believe a sequel is warranted, the inconclusiveness of it all wasn't that satisfying.)