Waiting on a Friend: A Novel

by Natalie Adler

New York City, East Village, 1984. A young woman with the power to see the ghosts of her friends is haunted by the one who refuses to return—a dazzling, big-hearted debut of friendship and community during a time of devastation and defiance.

"A beautiful study of friendship, of how loss unmoors us, and how if we keep turning towards love, anything is possible.”—Ann Napolitano, author of Hello Beautiful

"Fresh and refreshing, both heartbreaking and uplifting. Natalie Adler has given us a gem."—Rabih Alameddine, author of An Unnecessary Woman, finalist for the National Book Award

“A ghost story, a mystery, an ode to New York City . . . A riveting debut by a writer of tremendous compassion and insight.”—Helen Phillips, author of The Need, longlisted for the National Book Award

Renata is a young dyke-about-town who can see ghosts, something she's doing more and more of lately as too many of her friends are dying of a new, terrifying disease. When Renata's best friend Mark dies of complications from AIDS, Renata is devastated by the loss of the person she loved most in the world. And to her disappointment and increasing despair, Mark seems unwilling or unable to return for the proper goodbye they both were denied.

While Renata waits anxiously for Mark, she must stay a mysterious, police-like force has begun ridding their East Village neighborhood of anything abnormal or inexplicable. What first seems like a scam reveals itself to be far more sinister, targeting the soul of Renata's community. With her band of lovably eccentric pals and lovers, Renata is determined to fight back against the erasure of her friends' memories and the sanitizing of her beloved New York. But haunting her every step is Mark, the one ghost who stubbornly refuses to reappear.

Both heartbreaking and healing, tragic and triumphant, Waiting on a Friend is a magical retelling of queer history and a celebration of youth and camaraderie. With pathos and humor, empathy and an edge, Natalie Adler freshly reimagines the past for a new generation, reclaiming the spirit of resistance and determination that would become one of the era's defining legacies.

Genres: Queer, Fiction, LGBT, Historical, Historical Fiction, Ghosts, Adult

Kindle Edition

Expected publication May 26, 2026

About the author

I am a writer, teacher, and editor. I have an MFA in Fiction from Brooklyn College, a PhD in Comparative Literature from Brown University, and was a Susan Kamil Emerging Writer Fellow at the Center for Fiction. Currently, I am an editor at Lux, a feminist magazine. I am from New Jersey and live in New York City with my wife and our Pomeranian.

Waiting on a Friend is my first novel. Check out the bookshelf "waiting-on-a-friend-research" for everything I read to write it!

Reviews

[Natalie Adler · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wrote this book and I think it's great.

[Alex]

*Read for work* It’s a Sin meets Ghostbusters in an alternative queer history set in New York during the AIDS crisis. A poignant look at grief, friendship and queerness.

[Sam Malone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Earlier this year I was in Provincetown thrifting for books, and I found my white whale: a beautiful edition of Macho Sluts for all of ten dollars. Pat Califia's leatherd*ke er0tica (apparently you can't say this on Goodreads?) is some of the greatest ever written as far as I'm concerned, but I also wanted it because reading it is like time travel. I was born in the 90s, and I don't personally know anyone who died from AIDS. I have friends who are positive, but they have no detectable viral load--and just like that, it's like they don't have HIV at all. It's easy to take PrEP for granted when I can get it at the clinic and take it as a precaution. The year that I'm writing this review is the first time the US hasn't commemorated World AIDS Day since 1988.

So. Waiting on a Friend. This hit me right where I think it meant to. Since I too am a d*ke about town, I see and recognize so much of myself and my loved ones in Renata and her friends. The novel follows Renata through a long summer in 1984, interspersed with flashbacks and recollections throughout. Renata's best friend is dead, and she's waiting to see his ghost--she can, after all, see other ghosts, other dead people she knows. But Mark is elusive.

Simultaneously, a shady company called Manhattan Remediation is offering the "service" of removing presences--the kind of things that Renata can see outright, and that are causing discomfort for the comfortable (i.e. the yuppie types moving into East Village apartments vacated due to death and poverty and uninhabitable conditions). It's sinister, and it's putting a generation of the already-dead at risk of being entrapped in their afterlife.

Waiting on a Friend follows Renata and her crew of friends, lovers, and beloveds as they grapple with grief, gentrification, illness, drugs, and violence under the long specter of AIDS. It's a story about queer resilience, about how annoying it is to work in a vintage clothing shop, about how to hold your friends when they need it, and about how to learn to care about the living when all you can think about are the dead.

This is one of my favorite things I've read this year. Once it comes out, I suspect that a lot of my fellow leatherd*kes are going to read it and love it, and I will be very proudly bragging that I actually read it last December.

Recommended for: queers of all stripes, everyone who goes to my local cruising spot, anyone craving recent-ish historical novels with a magical realism twist, anyone who's ever been priced out of their lovely apartment.

[Alison FP · Rating 4 out of 5]

New York City, 1984. Renata’s best friend Mark has just died due to complications from AIDS. Also, Renata can see ghosts. She can talk to them, hear their stories, and sometimes help them. But the thing is, she hasn’t been able to find or see Mark.

When I read the blurb about this book I thought, “1980s? NYC? Ghosts? Yes, please!” Renata is a complex character… I found her very likable and well developed, and she is also very matter-of-fact in how she describes all the horror and grief happening around her. I was 11 years old in 1984, so I didn’t understand what it was like to be in the middle of the AIDS epidemic, back when we didn’t understand it. People had all their friends dying terrible deaths all around them. Renata is much more sensible through it all than I would expect. Mark is the closest thing she has ever had to family, and her grief continues as others in her circle also become sick. The author writes Renata as somewhat emotionally detached from the situation around her at times, and maybe that’s how she copes. Even the sexual encounters she has (which are pretty kinky BTW) are described in this way. The ghosts are interesting characters who add to the richness of the story.

I wasn’t able to predict where the story was going, and I appreciated the complexity of a young woman and her friends experiencing the injustice, grief, joy, and pain all around them. I recommend this book as a realistic fictional account of being young and trying to live and love during a crisis this country refused to face.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for this advance reader copy.

[Chelsea Knowles · Rating 5 out of 5]

*Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance reader copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.*

Waiting on a Friend takes place during 1984 in the East Village. Renata is a young queer woman who can see ghosts and she is seeing ghosts constantly as her friends are dying due to AIDS. Her best friend Mark dies of AIDS so she assumes she’ll see his ghost. Renata wants a chance to say goodbye to Mark but his ghost never appears. In the East Village, a police-like-force has been ridding the village of ghosts. At first Renata thinks they are scam artists but soon realises they are really trapping ghosts. She decides to get her friends together to stop these people and release the ghosts and her friends’ memories.

I really liked this book and I found it to be very impactful. I wasn’t born when the AIDS pandemic happened but this book really brought home to me the personal impact the pandemic had. This book shows how much pain this disease caused and the impact it had on queer people. I loved reading about Renata and Mark’s friendship and it broke my heart knowing he died. I feel as if these characters are real people. I found it easy to understand Renata and I just love queer novels like this. I don’t want to label this historical because it’s set in the 80s but it is a queer historical novel and it’s a very good one. I will be recommending this book as I had a great time reading it. 4.5 stars rounded up to a 5.

[Kara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley for the arc! I really loved this book. A beautiful story about love and friendship and mourning and ghosts. I couldn’t put this book down and thought about it often when I wasn’t reading.

[Char Grell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the advanced readers copy.

Waiting on a Friend is a ghost story and a mystery, blending speculative elements with emotional realism. A tribute to friendship and chosen family, exploring how grief and love shape us. A portrait of a community under siege, capturing the fear, resilience, and defiance of queer life during the AIDS epidemic.

I grew up in the Midwest in the 80s and remember clearly the AIDS crisis and being terrified. Looking back, we were so far removed from the tragedy occurring in places like New York City where people were losing friends and chosen family members one after another to AIDS. This is the first time I've read a book about what it may have been like. I appreciate the story and will likely seek out more books around this topic.

The main charterer, Renata, is not all that likable; she's gritty and hard. But she is loyal and determined to seek acceptance with those that surround her. While I did enjoy that Renata could see ghosts, I mostly connected with her personal relationships and her loyalty. Friends are the family you chose yourself and the people in Renata's life needed each other during a very challenging period of time.

I give very few 5-star reviews and reading is subjective. This book will land as a 5-star for many people. It is well written, and the author has taken us to a place that has been overlooked (in my opinion).

Thanks again to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for this copy!

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an odd but often funny and heartfelt novel about Renata who sees ghosts as her friend, Mark dies. Unsure at first, she's certain she's going crazy but the ghosts don't mean her harm and soon she comes to embrace their presence as they may have answers for the questions she didn't realize she had! It's a sweet and charming book that may have you rethinking your ideas about heaven!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!

[Nicole Clapp · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and RandomHouse for the arc! This was tough for me. I really liked the idea but didn’t connect with Renata or really any of the other characters. I had a hard time understanding what this book is trying to say, which made me end up reading it pretty slowly. The plot confused me and some moments felt disjointed. This novel does a good job of exploring grief and loss which was the best part for me. I wanted to love this but it wasn’t for me.

[rachel x]

"Renata is a young dyke-about-town who happens to have the ability to see ghosts, which has been happening more and more frequently as her friends have started dying of what has recently been named AIDS."

sign me up

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I think that people who are sensitive to presences have a responsibility to them[...]Not just for them. But because refusing to look at the pain of others is denying the same pain in yourself."

This book isn't about ghosts--not really. It's about grief and what happens when you try to push it down or, in this case, lock it away in storage. The "villains" in the story aren't the bad guys (those would be Reagan and those in power who ignored the AIDS crisis and caused countless deaths); they're just Ghostbusters-like figures who want to eradicate the world of discomfort. But you can't lock grief away. Eventually it'll burst free.

[A · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5/5 ⭐

Review to come on publish date!

[Alyssa Haley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book very immersive. The writing is raw and honest. There were times when I was unsure how the story would develop, and the pacing flagged slightly, but I think that is appropriate for a book about grief. Highly recommend for those interested in complicated friendship and grief, as well as anyone curious about fiction set in the 1980's NYC AIDS epidemic.

[A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Random House/Hogarth for the ARC of Waiting on a Friend.

Back in May 2025, I read Jonathan Mahler's The Gods of New York, a great history of New York during 1986-1989 that ended up being a sort of companion to Natalie Adler's Waiting on a Friend. In Gods, Mahler describes the horrible state of New York City during this time, a city plagued by corruption, greed, racial tensions, homelessness, and a government infrastructure incapable of doing much about these issues. In addition to all these "big city" problems, AIDS was a scourge unchecked by the authorities. The initial response to the AIDS epidemic was shamefully callous, and it is in this setting that Waiting on a Friend tells its story of people caught up and dealing with the horrors of AIDS.

The novel is centered on a group of queer friends who begin to lose some of its members to AIDS. The descriptions of the people suffering from the disease are at times brutal, but they serve to distill the horrors of the disease into individuals. We become witnesses to the pain and agony of friends and lovers, not faceless, nameless bodies. Adler succeeds in illustrating the devastation that passed through this community by making you feel the anguish of a few people watching their loved ones die. I couldn't help but think of Angels in America or Philadelphia as I read Adler's novel because it forced you to face the brutality of AIDS without flinching.

The surprising aspect of Waiting on a Friend is the ability of Renata, who tells the story, to see ghosts. I read the book blurb before starting the novel so I knew this going in, but I was interested to see how it would be incorporated into the story. In a way, Renata's ability ends up being the power that blows away the anonymity of those who died from AIDS. Instead of people dying hidden away in anonymous hospital wings, Renata can see them (and show us) as they were when they died, scarred, in agony, almost unrecognizable. Like most super powers, it can be a curse and a blessing.

What pulls the novel back from these horrors are the circle of people, friends and lovers, who are connected to Renata, who are a family by choice. They support one another, help one another, and they are there at the darkest times when no one else steps up. They become stronger together as the worst happens. I can only assume that the novel's title is a reference to the Rolling Stones song of the same name, but I could be wrong. But the song speaks to the value of friendship, a relationship where there is someone "I can cry to" and "someone to protect." Friendship becomes, if not the solution, the source of the energy to fight against the darkness.

Waiting on a Friend is at times tough to read because of its subject matter, but its frankness, honesty, and characters make it a valuable read.

[Adrian · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great title, great idea, a fascinating historical period, but this book, what I assumed was a debut novel, left me in another world.

Renata can see dead people. Renata is living in the trauma of the AIDS crisis in New York in 1984. Near the end, she acknowledges that Mayor Koch doesn’t care, that Ronald Reagan will likely win and that the solution isn’t going to magically appear.

The book yields a hip youngster from New York with demons. She’s struggling but tries to find a resolution by trying to see how to navigate through the unfair death of several of her friends. The writing is brisk and biting.

However, this book mixes sex and sadness messily. There was a lot of sex, which, you know, didn’t quite meld with the story. I think this book will, however, inspire people to tap into that time when it did feel that the world was ending and ‘other families’ were navigating survival, which was the heart of the novel.

Waiting on a Friend by Natalie Adler was given to me by Quercus Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Ryan Brandenburg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed Natalie Adler’s debut novel, “Waiting on a Friend.” However, it did have a few shortcomings.

Initially, I found the sometimes meandering train of consciousness writing style challenging to follow. While it didn’t completely detract from the storyline, I understand that some readers might be turned off by it.

Typically, stories with elements of magical realism or ghosts aren’t my cup of tea, but I managed to overlook these aspects and remain captivated by the narrative of Renata’s storyline as a bystander during the AIDS crisis in New York City in the early 1980s.

If you’re seeking a more contemplative novel that doesn’t rely heavily on plot, I highly recommend checking out this novel when it releases in May 2026.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Waiting on a Friend
By Natalie Adler

This is a combination ghost story and queer history. It is set in the East Village in the summer of 1984 – the early days of the AIDS epidemic. The dying had begun and would only continue to ravage the predominantly gay community for years, until medications were finally found to control the disease.

Aids is a horrible disease and the dying is terrible. I worked for an infectious disease doctor who, at the time, had several AIDS patients. Our office worked on the protocols for the drugs that would eventually save lives. But watching people you know "up close and personal" face death with courage and dignity is something you can never forget.

Renata's story rings true. It should be read by anyone who wants to understand this scourge of the queer community.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC.

[Lucky · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book which I read as a digital ARC. While I was reading it, I happened to meet up with a friend who I hadn't seen since we both worked in a bookstore in the early 90s. We spent 3 hours reminiscing about our time at the bookstore and early 90s Minneapolis and the coworkers we lost along the way. And we talked about our lives since then. Afterwards, I went home to this book and couldn't help but notice the themes that I had just spent the afternoon chatting about: friendship, death, AIDS, community, queerness, neighborhoods. This book has all of that with a layer of magic and ghosts and even some ghostbusters. It has the delight and quietness and humor of Somebody Somewhere (sorry for the TV reference). I loved it.

[Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can all to well remember back in the 1980"s, the devastating AIDS epidemic and all the young men dying.
It was a horrid, fearful time for everyone.

Main character in this story is Renata, a queer who is losing friends quickly from this disease.
She seems to be coping, however is she really coping?

She sees ghosts of her dead friends. They show up in strange places and times,
But... not her best friend. Where is he? Mark never did say good-bye.

I did enjoy this book and found it to be a quick, different read.
Thank you to @NetGalley and to @Random House for his ARC and allowing me to provide my own review after reading.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4*

Inadvertently, I've been on a run of stories with supernatural aspects. I somehow read three books with ghosts taking center stage in a row?

Nonetheless, Waiting on a Friend was a good story. It takes place in New York City in the early 1980s, where young queer creative Renata's group of friends is dying off due to the AIDS crisis. Renata has always been sensitive to spirits but when her roommate and best friend dies of the disease it takes a greater toll.

This kind of felt like a mashup of Ghostbusters, The Sixth Sense and some queer rom com. I did like it though.

*with thanks to NetGalley for the digital ARC in exchange for this honest review.

[Danna · Rating 2 out of 5]

I started Waiting on a Friend despite the mixed reviews because I loved the premise: 1980s. A lesbian haunted by her gay friends who’ve died from AIDS. Meets ghost busters? Sounds incredible to me, in more than one use of the word.

Unfortunately, for me, Waiting on a Friend fell flat. The story is relatively short, yet meanders in a way that I didn’t enjoy. There’s a lot of grief, yet it doesn’t really feel sad. And the ghosts and ghost busting raise social challenges, but also left me wanting more.

Ultimately, I do not recommend. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[James B · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to Netgalley and Hogarth for the ebook. Renata lives in the East Village in 1984 just as AIDS is starting to kill more and more gay men. Mark, one of the recently deceased, was her best friend and roommate. Renata is desperate to see his ghost, which isn’t as crazy as it sounds, because Renata frequently sees the newly dead wandering around the city. This is a sadly reflective novel, but filled with about a dozen very funny characters that make up Renata’s friends as she tries to find a way back to normal.

[Katy Wheatley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was like a brilliant mash up between the musical Rent (thankfully without songs) and a dark version of Ghostbusters. Fresh, vivid and brilliantly written it writes about the AIDS epidemic in New York and the gentrification of areas once inhabited by queer people, artists and others on the margins of society. It looks at dark subjects and asks difficult questions but does this in such a way as to be absolutely unputdownable.

[Amanda Kettler · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this book had a really strong start and a unique take on the theme of seeing ghosts. As the story went on I found it a bit confusing and disjointed. Overall, a clever and at times light hearted angle on a what I’m sure was an incredibly tragic time, the AIDS crisis, and not knowing who of your friends you were going to lose next.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is so good…. Beautifully written it has a gay female lead and is set in 1980s New York. A wonderful heartbreaking and life affirming novel about AIDS, friendship, families and life. Oh and the narrator can see ghosts. Wonderful read, recommended. Thank you to the author. Thank you to #netgalley and the publisher for an ARC.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This takes place in 1984, in the height of the AIDS crisis. Renata can see dead people, yet she hasn't seen her best friend Mark, who died from complications of AIDS. Can she focus on the living when all she can see is the dead? I felt like I was there.

The title is perfect!

Thank you to NetGalley and Hogarth for the ARC.

[Desig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Think on move

[Praveena Power · Rating 4 out of 5]

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