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The Wolves Are Waiting

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From award-winning author Natasha Friend comes a compelling investigation of sexual harassment and the toxic and complicit structures of a small college town.

Before the night of the Frat Fair, 15-year-old Nora Melchionda's life could have been a Gen-Z John Hughes movie. She had a kind-of boyfriend, a spot on the field hockey team, good grades, and a circle of close friends. Of course there were bumps in the road: she and her lifelong BFF Cam were growing apart and her mother was trying to clone her into wearing sensible khakis instead of showy short skirts. But none of that mattered, because Nora always had her dad, Rhett Melchionda, on her side. Rhett was not only Nora’s hero, but as the Athletic Director of Faber College, he was idolized by everyone she knew.

Now, Nora would give anything to go back to that life. The life before whatever happened on the golf course.

She doesn’t want to talk about it—not that she could, because she doesn’t remember anything—and insists that whatever happened was nothing. Cam, though, tries to convince Nora to look for evidence and report the incident to the police. And then there’s Adam Xu, who found Nora on the golf course and saw her at her most vulnerable. She ignores it all, hoping it will all go away. But when your silence might hurt other people, hiding is no longer an option.

The Wolves Are Waiting begins in the aftermath of an attempted assault, but reaches farther than a story about one single night or one single incident. What Nora and her friends will uncover is a story that spans generations. But it doesn’t have to anymore.

384 pages, Hardcover

First published March 22, 2022

42 people are currently reading
4134 people want to read

About the author

Natasha Friend

18 books542 followers
Natasha Friend is the award-winning author of Perfect, Lush, Bounce, For Keeps, My Life in Black and White, Where You'll Find Me, The Other F-Word, How We Roll, and The Wolves Are Waiting. Natasha lives on the Connecticut shoreline with her family.

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5 stars
253 (28%)
4 stars
388 (44%)
3 stars
196 (22%)
2 stars
37 (4%)
1 star
5 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 233 reviews
Profile Image for book.olandia.
278 reviews2,504 followers
September 16, 2023
3.5⭐️ istotna, oddająca głos skrzywdzonym, niesamowicie ją doceniam.
Profile Image for Katy O..
2,998 reviews705 followers
June 28, 2022
I absolutely inhaled this nuanced and complex YA story of sexual assault, fraternity culture and family dynamics. I wavered on being upset about how one character was handled but I also, in my ripe old age of 41, recognize that family dynamics are insanely complicated and that a clean break would have been unrealistic.
Profile Image for teach_book.
434 reviews634 followers
July 12, 2023
Ta książka jest tak cholernie ważna, a oprócz tego boli, uwiera i nie daje o sobie zapomnieć...
Profile Image for wczytanaa.
123 reviews
Read
June 9, 2025
2.5 zawiodłam sie, sam przekaz jest istotny i totalnie potrzebujemy takich ksiazek na rynku ale calosciowo mozna bylo to zrobic lepiej
Profile Image for Nadine Schrott.
685 reviews65 followers
January 2, 2023
Jugendroman mit schwerem Thema....für mich nicht restlos schlüssig gelöst....!

Nora kann sich an nichts erinnern....Nach einer Party wacht sie ohne Erinnerung auf.
Doch ihr Klassenkamerad Cam weiß was passiert ist...denn er hat Nora durch sein beherztes Eingreifen vor jungen Männern gerettet
Nora kann sich nicht dazu entschließen, ihren Eltern von diesem Angriff zu erzählen....doch sie ist gezeichnet von den Ereignissen dieser Nacht...

Die Story dümpelt für mich einfach zu lange ohne Entwicklung vor sich hin....bis sich im letzten Drittel des Buches die Ergebnisse überschlagen.
Ein wichtiges Thema....das aber nicht restlos überzeugend für mich beschrieben wird....

Trotzdem lesenswert für reflektierte Menschen ab 14 Jahren!
Profile Image for Cozytimebooks_.
423 reviews10 followers
July 19, 2023
❗️TW:
napaść seksualna, gwałt, przemoc, odurzenie narkotykami, toksyczne relacje ❗️

„Wilki się czają” to historia o ludziach czających się pod postacią wilka. Pragnących zdobyć i rozszarpać swoją ofiarę by nie była w stanie samodzielnie się obronić. Wilk może być w każdej mijanej przez nas postaci. Bo wilk to nie tylko zwierze, ale i również osoba dobrze nam znana.

Natasha Friend napisała książkę od siebie dla każdej kobiety czy nastolatki, która spotkała się z niesprawiedliwością, traktowaniem jako kogoś słabszego i uległego nie mającego swojego prawa głosu.

„Wilki się czają” to taka historia podczas której chciałam krzyczeć, wyć i wymierzyć sprawiedliwość tam gdzie powinna być wymierzona, nienawiść do sprawców to największa emocja jaką poczułam i jaka pojawiła się jako pierwsza.

Historia wołająca o głos i sprawiedliwość. Młode dziewczyny skazane na unikanie tematu by nie powstał rozgłos. Młode dziewczyny, które zawsze są słabe i same się proszą o to co ich spotyka. W świecie pełnym uprzedzeń, gdzie traktowanie płci żeńskiej jest jak słabe ogniwo, które można wykorzystać.

Na miejscu Nory mogłaby być każda z nas nawet nasza najbliższa osoba. Krzywda spowodowana przez płeć męską zazwyczaj jest zamiatana pod dywan i zapominana, ale ofiara NIGDY nie zapomni.
„Wilki się czają” to kolejna czerwona flaga mówiąca o tym by nie żałować oprawcy tylko znaleźć sprawiedliwość dla ofiary.
Profile Image for Mori.
181 reviews2 followers
July 13, 2023
Tak się zastanawiałam nad tymi 5⭐, ale książka, która przywołała mi do oczu łzy, chyba na to zasługuje.
To dobra historia, ciągle się rozwijająca, z satysfakcjonującym zakończeniem. Potrafi zezłościć, złamać, dodać nadziei. To jedna z młodzieżówek, które chciałbym przeczytać kiedy byłam nieco młodsza. Wiele by mnie nauczyła. Serducho mam w kawałkach, kocham ❤️💔
Profile Image for sto0pka.
149 reviews4 followers
July 18, 2023
Ta książka wyzwoliła ze mnie chyba każde możliwe emocje. Nie wiem czy ja skończyłam z nią czy ona ze mną.
Profile Image for Paige.
1,868 reviews89 followers
March 20, 2022
Disclaimer: I received this e-arc, arc, and finished copy from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: The Wolves Are Waiting

Author: Natasha Friend

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 1/5

Diversity: Chinese character, Haitian character

Recommended For...: I don’t recommend this book AT ALL

Publication Date: March 22, 2022

Genre: YA Contemporary

Age Relevance: 16+ (date rape, attempted sexual assault, rape, sexism, HP mentions, romance, slut shaming, language, drugs)

Explanation of Above: The book revolves around an incident where our MC is given a date rape drug and is almost sexually assaulted. The events are described and rape and other incidents of date rape drugs being used is also mentioned throughout the book. The book also talks a lot about sexism and slut shaming. There is some romance between two characters and there is slight cursing in the book. There are also drugs mentioned occasionally. Unfortunately, there are also 6 HP mentions in the book in a positive manner, one of them being a page and a half long and others being at least a paragraph. The ending also makes an allusion to a scene from HP.

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Pages: 370

Synopsis: Before the night of the Frat Fair, 15-year-old Nora Melchionda's life could have been a Gen-Z John Hughes movie. She had a kind-of boyfriend, a spot on the field hockey team, good grades, and a circle of close friends. Of course there were bumps in the road: she and her lifelong BFF Cam were growing apart and her mother was trying to clone her into wearing sensible khakis instead of showy short skirts. But none of that mattered, because Nora always had her dad, Rhett Melchionda, on her side. Rhett was not only Nora’s hero, but as the Athletic Director of Faber College, he was idolized by everyone she knew.

Now, Nora would give anything to go back to that life. The life before whatever happened on the golf course.

She doesn’t want to talk about it—not that she could, because she doesn’t remember anything—and insists that whatever happened was nothing. Cam, though, tries to convince Nora to look for evidence and report the incident to the police. And then there’s Adam Xu, who found Nora on the golf course and saw her at her most vulnerable. She ignores it all, hoping it will all go away. But when your silence might hurt other people, hiding is no longer an option.

The Wolves Are Waiting begins in the aftermath of an attempted assault, but reaches farther than a story about one single night or one single incident. What Nora and her friends will uncover is a story that spans generations. But it doesn’t have to anymore.

Review: This will not be a happy review. While I thought that the base story was good and there were some good parts about it that young girls should read, especially revolving around how slut shaming and sexism are not okay and how some frats can be unsafe spaces, I was extremely disappointed in the book for numerous reasons. The biggest reason is the inclusion of HP in the book. I don’t have any idea why the author, in this day and age, thought the inclusion of HP was a good idea. The mentions are not just one and done, there’s at least one that’s a page and a half of text and the ending includes an allusion to what’s going on to a scene from the HP books. Writing a book that’s pro-female is great except when you exclude trans women from your book and the inclusion of the amount of HP references makes me think that the author wanted to exclude trans women. There’s also not any trans women, queer women, or hardly any women of color in the book with the exception of one Haitian character, and again you can’t talk about feminism and you can’t be pro-female unless you include ALL females. The HP issues alone caused me to knock the book down to a 1 star due to my review policy, but there are further issues in the book that are equally as troubling. There’s a character that is pro-female but doesn’t call out the sexist and misogynistic jokes and comments her own boyfriend makes until much later. The boyfriend had been making these comments for a very long time in the text, before they got together, and I’m confused as to why she would even want to get with someone like that. The book also has a moment between the MC who had been date raped and a character who was found to be a big part of the ongoing issues in the book. After one event where the character brings tiki torches and makes a sort of apology, the MC and others accept that character back into the fold. It’s extremely troubling that some of the male characters in the book are almost infantilized in the text, that they do the bare minimum and get accepted back to where they previously were. Even when the male characters are asked to be held responsible, the book doesn’t offer any real conclusion on if they were or not and the issue becomes null when the book and author pick and choose who it will punish and who it won’t when all actors made equally as horrifying choices. This fact troubled me greatly while reading this book. The book was also very fast paced and had a few continuity errors, where stuff was brought up multiple times. I also thought the characters weren’t developed, especially the MC past her trauma which is a whole other issue I had with the book, and the world building was way too simple.

Verdict: I don’t recommend this book at all. There are better ones that talk about the issues this book tries to talk about in a better and more inclusive manner.
Profile Image for Víctor Heranz.
420 reviews
Read
September 2, 2022
‘¿Cómo puedo separar quién es de lo que ha hecho?’.

Y cómo se mira después, quizá lo más interesante de esta novela sucede justo cuando termina.
Profile Image for Marta.
1,070 reviews112 followers
July 14, 2023
ALE TO BYŁO POWERFUL! POZA TYM TA HISTORIA KILKAKROTNIE ZŁAMAŁA MI SERCE, ROZWALIŁA EMOCJONALNIE, A NAWET OTULIŁA PIĘKNYMI PRZYJACIELSKIMI RELACJAMI.

✊🏻🤍😭
Profile Image for kim.
938 reviews50 followers
January 11, 2022
My feelings aren’t hurt. She thought, I woke up on a golf course with a Sharpie 9 on my crotch. She thought, I didn’t misinterpret anything.

Thank you, Netgalley, for the arc!

I’ve read books with this kind of social commentary on sexual assault and rape culture, and they always amaze me. This book was different for me because it felt like we got different POVs. I usually tend to steer away from books with multiple POVs, but this one was handled well since they all brought different perspectives and had their own struggles to relate to the main conflict.

I really wanted to know how things would’ve been resolved for Nora. That freaking plot reveal in the middle surprised me so I was hooked on seeing the resolution. It was amazing to see how Nora grew as a character who experienced the absolute worst — and that she had such a great support system.

Profile Image for Izzy.
698 reviews1 follower
May 29, 2022
i felt like her dad’s actions were excused in a way which is disgusting 🤷‍♀️
Profile Image for faustyna。 (lekkidramat).
514 reviews22 followers
May 11, 2025
"– a jak niby miałby coś naprawić dla tych wszystkich dziewczyn?
matka potrząsnęła głową.
– nie wiem.
– tego nie da się naprawić, mamo.
na tym polegała istota sprawy. tych ostatnich dwudziestu lat nie dało się po prostu wymazać. ani jednej nocy nie dało się po prostu wymazać."

książka porusza ważny temat, tego nie mogę jej odjąć. jednak ma duże braki, jeśli chodzi o głębię w zachowaniu bohaterów. polskie wydanie też ma sporo błędów, które za którymś razem rzucają się w oczy jeszcze bardziej.
Profile Image for livquebooks.
131 reviews4 followers
July 31, 2023
3.5⭐️

Sięgacie po książki, których tematyka nie należy do najłatwiejszych?

Muszę przyznać, że mi nie zdarza się to za często. Zazwyczaj zostaję w swojej sferze komfortu i nie czytam książek, które opowiadają o ciężkich czy smutnych tematach. I to nie tak, że ich nie lubię, tylko po prostu zazwyczaj nie mam ochoty na pozycje, które wywołują u mnie smutek czy dyskomfort. Jednak raz na jakiś czas coś mnie podkusi i decyduję się sięgnć po tego typu historię. Tak też było w przypadku "Wilki się czają".

Bardzo ciężko pisze mi się opinię na temat tej książki, ponieważ dawno nie czytałam czegoś tak smutnego i frustrującego. Dosłownie od pierwszego rozdziału wiedziałam, że to nie będzie łatwa lektura. Chciałam dla głównej bohaterki tego, co najlepsze, a niestety Nora podejmowała decyzje, z którymi kompletnie się nie zgadzałam, więc cały czas miałam ochotę przenieść się do tej książki i potrząsnąć dziewczyną, a potem przytulić ją i wesprzeć (dlatego tak dobrze rozumiałam uczucia jej najlepszej przyjaciółki Cam).

Na pewno nie polecam wam tej historii na rozluźnienie. "Wilki się czają" sprawi, że będziecie odczuwać ogrom ciężkich emocji oraz wywoła u was głębokie przemyślenia, które po prostu nie pozwolą się wam zrelaksować. Dlatego tak ważne jest sięgnięcie po tę powieść w odpowiednim momencie. Nie spieszcie się z jej lekturą, tylko dajcie sobie czas na oswojenie z tematem i przerobienie tego, co czujecie.

Na sam koniec chcę też wspomnieć o tym, że bardzo podobało mi się to, że autorka poruszła również tematy ślepej ochrony amerykańskich sportowców przed oskarżeniami o napaści seksualne oraz braku zaufania do własnych rodziców. Rzadko spotykam się z nimi w innych książkach, więc dzięki temu lektura "Wilki się czają" okazała się jeszcze ciekawsza.
Profile Image for Natalia.
163 reviews1 follower
July 29, 2023
ojciec Nory i Ashera 🤡☠️
[liczyłam na wątek romantyczny między pewna dwójka osób,ale się przeliczyłam 🥹]
Profile Image for Lesley.
491 reviews
April 23, 2022
Nora Melchionda was a typical high school girl. She played a sport, earned good grades, wore fashionable clothes, and had a group of friends, an older brother and a younger sister. Her father was Athletic Director of Faber, the local college, and her hero.

Then one night Nora attends the college frat fair, a fundraiser for the fraternities. And she wakes up on the golf course, surrounded by her former best friend and Adam Xu, a boy from school. The last thing she remembers is someone handing her a root beer. Adam explains how he was practicing his baseball hitting, found her, and chased off the three boys who, most likely, had roofied her and were planning to rape her, and called Cam.

“They took off her clothes, and they wrote on her body, and they hung her underwear on a stick like some kind of trophy.” (139)

Nora wants to forget what happened. “It didn’t happen to you. It happened to me. And if I say it’s over, it’s over.” (50), but Adam and Cam are determined to investigate and find out who the boys were and what exactly happened, especially when they begin hearing of other stories by young women of the college and the town. “Help me find out who they are,” [Cam] said. “Please. Before they do it to someone else.” (110)

Through technology and good legwork, they trace the young men to Alpha Phi Beta, the Faber fraternity for athletes, Nora’s father’s fraternity, and discover that what happened to Nora was part of a pledge game.

The story is told in alternating chapters narrated from the perspective of Nora, Cam, Adam Xu, and Asher, Nora’s older brother, a well-meaning high school senior who learns a lesson himself. “You tried to tell me. ‘When you wear things that are too short’—she shook her finger and made her voice deep—‘guys think it’s an invitation.’” He shook his head. ‘I said some guys. I didn’t mean—.’”(139)

With her new supporters and her mother and younger sister, Nora decides she has the strength to make a difference and end this sexual harassment and abuse.

An important, even vital, well-told story for adolescent girls—and especially—boys, Natasha Friend’s newest novel joins a too-small group of other novels about this crucial topic. Assaults among people under the age of 18 are common: 18% of girls and 3% of boys say that by age 17 they have been victims of a sexual assault or abuse at the hands of another adolescent (theconversation.com). Females ages 16-19 are 4 times more likely than the general population to be victims of rape, attempted rape, or sexual assault. Among undergraduate students, 26.4% of females and 6.8% of males experience rape or sexual assault through physical force, violence, or incapacitation. These statistics are incomplete as only 20% of female student victims, age 18-24, report to law enforcement. (RAINN.org).
Profile Image for matylda (dedukcyjna).
166 reviews6 followers
July 15, 2023
4.25

Baaaardzo dobra młodzieżówka, poruszająca niezwykle istotne tematy dotyczące napaści seksualnej. Pokazuje jak ciężkie jest to doświadczenie i jak bardzo wpływa na życie człowieka. Jestem naprawdę pod wrażeniem. Czytało mi się to niezwykle szybko, ale również było przy tym okropnie bolesne.
Profile Image for marian ☾.
47 reviews2 followers
March 25, 2022
Un libro escrito desde la sencillez, con un toque muy gen-z que ha hecho que me enfadara, que riera y que se me escaparan algunas lágrimas de la impotencia. Me ha durado menos de 24h.

Dadle una oportunidad: por todas las Noras por las que tuvimos, tenemos y tendremos que pelear, o ser; por todas las Cams que deberíamos ser; por todos los Adams Xu y Ashers que queremos en nuestras vidas; y, sobre todo, por todas las Dianes que puede que conozcamos, pero no lo sabemos.

⭐️ - 4,5/5
Profile Image for cyannie.
576 reviews68 followers
July 19, 2023
ksiazki poruszajace tematy takie jak nadużycia seksualne i systemowy patriarchat są dla mnie bardzo wazne i zawsze osobiście mnie dotykają, jednak ‘wilki się czają’ nie było do konca tym, na co liczylam. niemniej, doceniam przedstawienie problemu bezkarności tzw ‘golden boys’, który w usa (choc oczywiście nie tylko tam) jest po prostu nagminny.
Profile Image for Oliwia.
247 reviews87 followers
July 30, 2023
prosta, a jednocześnie bardzo ciężka, ale bardzo potrzebna historia, powinno być o niej dużo głośniej

to jedna z tych książek, które gdybym mogła, dałabym każdemu do przeczytania
Profile Image for Melissa Rae (raenydayreads).
121 reviews75 followers
December 9, 2021
I received this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. ARC provided by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.

I have chills. The Wolves Are Waiting is an incredibly powerful piece of writing. It will speak to anyone who stands against rape culture and has the opportunity to educate those who have been living under a rock, especially since the Me Too movement shined a necessary light on the issue. Sexual violence exists and it is never the victims fault. The only person to blame and who should bare consequences for their actions is the assailant. Please remember that, always.

In the aftermath of an attempted sexual assault, Nora wakes up on a golf course with no memory and she does not want to talk about it, even if she could remember. Cam, her best friend, tries to convince Nora to document any evidence she may find for a police report, believing this is the route to be taken. The problem, Nora wants to ignore it all, but when your silence might hurt other people, is hiding the right choice?

The Wolves Are Waiting explores events and actions that may be triggering to some readers. It is highly realistic. As I began reading, I was immediately brought back to Chanel Miller and her memoir Know My Name. I would love to see this book discussed in secondary schools as a time in young people's lives when misogyny, harassment, victim blaming, and unwanted sexual attention and demeaning comments start to prevail, largely due to peer pressure and the normalization of sexism at the hands of group behaviour.

I appreciated how all of the characters grew in their own way and love how this story spoke to the strength of supportive friendships.
Profile Image for Alex Nonymous.
Author 26 books561 followers
December 31, 2021
Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of The Wolves Are Waiting in exchange for an honest review.

gabndlsfolkm I'm so torn. On one hand, I think Natasha Friend does a really good job of writing Nora as a realistic young person dealing with trauma. I like how complex she and her relationships with her family are and think it paints a really realistic picture that is vital for these kinds of story.

Our two main POV characters Nora and Cam are also 15 year olds and 15 year olds are obviously allowed to not be perfect but I think the issue comes with this book not really spending enough time demonstrating how in the wrong Cam is for the majority of the book? I don't think it even had to make the reader turn against her or see her as an antagonist because she's clearly not and she's fighting for what she thinks is justice but her consistantly putting labels on Nora's trauma that Nora doesn't want, trying to micromanage how Nora deals with her trauma, and pushing the "well you have to do something about it or you'll be responsible for the next SA" is icky and since Cam is also framed as a heroic character I think The Wolves Are Waiting should have been more blunt and upfront with how wrong her reactions to Nora's SA was because otherwise, readers in the target demo might think that its a) their job to pressure their friends to do "the right thing" if they get assaulted or b) their duty to become a community symbol even if it means revisiting trauma they're trying to move past.
Profile Image for CorniHolmes.
942 reviews44 followers
October 18, 2022
Bei einem Blick in das diesjährige Herbstprogramm des Magellan Verlags ist mir „NO GAME - Jetzt ist Schluss mit Schweigen!“ sofort ins Auge gesprungen. Das Cover finde ich richtig cool, mir gefiel es auf Anhieb, und da mich auch der Klappentext direkt ansprach, stand für mich sehr schnell fest, dass ich das Buch lesen möchte.

Die 15-jährige Nora Melchionda führt ein Leben, um welches sie viele beneiden. Sie ist hübsch und beliebt und gut in der Schule, sie hat eine tolle beste Freundin, auf die sie sich stets verlassen kann und seit kurzem hat sie auch eine Art Freund. Eine einzige Nacht wird ihr Leben jedoch schlagartig ändern. Nora erwacht halbnackt und ohne Unterhose auf einem Golfplatz und hat nicht die geringste Ahnung, was geschehen ist. Sie weiß nur noch, dass sie auf der Party einer Studentenverbindung war und keinen Tropfen Alkohol getrunken hat. Neben ihr kniet der Außenseiter und Nerd Adam Xu, der offenbar Furchtbares verhindert hat, als er drei junge Männer verjagt hat. Nora möchte den Vorfall am liebsten vergessen, einfach alles verdrängen und darüber schweigen. Sie lebt schließlich in Faber, einer kleinen idyllischen Universitätsstadt, in der nie was Schlimmes passiert und keiner seine Haustür abschließt. Ihre beste Freundin Cam aber ist ganz anderer Meinung: Sie versucht Nora davon zu überzeugen, nach Beweisen zu suchen und an die Öffentlichkeit zu gehen. So ein Übergriff darf nicht totgeschwiegen werden. Cam beginnt schließlich auf eigene Faust die Täter ausfindig zu machen, gemeinsam mit Adam. Als herauskommt, dass noch mehr Mädchen betroffen sind, wird schließlich auch Nora klar, dass sie das Ganze nicht weiter ignorieren kann.

Dies war mein erstes Buch von Natasha Friend und es wird definitiv nicht mein letztes gewesen sein. Zwei ihrer vorherigen Werke durften sogar bereits vor einer ganzen Weile bei mir einziehen, stehen nur leider bis heute ungelesen in meinem Regal. Da mir „NO GAME - Jetzt ist Schluss mit Schweigen!“ so gut gefallen hat, hoffe ich nun sehr, dass ich in absehbarer Zeit endlich dazu kommen werde, die beiden Bücher von meinem SuB zu befreien. Auf diese bin ich jetzt nur noch neugieriger geworden.

Mich hat das Buch von Anfang bis Ende begeistern können. Ich habe mühelos in die Geschichte hineingefunden und einmal in ihr versunken, wollte ich am liebsten gar nicht mehr aus ihr auftauchen. Der angenehm flüssige Schreibstil und die kurzen Kapitel haben mich nur so durch die Seiten fliegen lassen und da ich mich der Sogwirkung der Handlung kaum mehr entziehen konnte, habe ich das Buch innerhalb kurzer Zeit beendet.

In meinen Augen hat die US-amerikanische Autorin Natasha Friend mit „NO GAME“ einen gelungenen Jugendroman für Leser*innen ab 14 Jahren aufs Papier gebracht, in welchem sie uns zahlreiche wichtige und aktuelle Themen näherbringt wie sexueller Übergriff und dessen Auswirkungen, den Mut seine Stimme zu erheben und für Gerechtigkeit zu kämpfen, die Ambivalenz der sozialen Medien, Freundschaft, Liebe, Zusammenhalt, Slutshaming und Rassismus. In dem Buch steckt wirklich eine Menge, es wirkt aber an keiner Stelle zu überladen, und obwohl es sich mit vielen sensiblen Dingen befasst und vor allem die Hauptthematik eine ziemlich schwere ist, wird die Story niemals zu drückend oder heftig. Natasha Friend ist die Balance zwischen Ernst und Leichtigkeit hervorragend geglückt und behandelt alles auf eine sehr einfühlsame und genau richtig humorvolle Art und Weise.

Geschildert wird die Geschichte im Wechsel aus vier Perspektiven, jeweils in der dritten Person : Nora, ihre beste Freundin Cam, ihr großer Bruder Asher sowie ihr Mitschüler und Retter Adam Xu. Mir haben die ständigen Sichtwechsel unheimlich gut gefallen. Ich bin generell ein großer Fan dieses Erzählstils und finde, dass er hier ideal gewählt ist.
Auch mit unseren vier vielfältigen Hauptprotagonisten und den Nebenfiguren hat mich die Autorin überzeugen können. Sind sind facettenreich und lebensnah gezeichnet und verhalten sich stets nachvollziehbar. Da hätten wir zum einen die 15-jährige Nora, deren Charakterdarstellung und Entwicklung mir ganz besonders zugesagt hat. Ich habe es als vollkommen glaubhaft empfunden, dass sie die Vorkommnisse zunächst verdrängt und nicht darüber sprechen möchte. Mit der Zeit wird aber noch ein Umdenken in ihr stattfinden, Nora wird schließlich erkennen, dass sie sich mit dem Ganzen auseinandersetzen muss und nicht länger schweigen darf. Die Gründe für diese Wandlung sind verschiedene. Einer davon hat mit ihrem Vater zu tun, der für sie schon immer ein Held war, den sie aber jäh mit völlig anderen Augen zu sehen beginnt. Näher ins Detail gehen werde ich diesbezüglich allerdings nicht, da ich ansonsten vermutlich zu viel von der Handlung verraten würde.

Cam, Adam und Asher mochte ich ebenfalls sehr gerne. Ich fand es wundervoll zu sehen, wie Cam und Adam als Team zusammenarbeiten und gemeinsam versuchen herauszufinden, wer hinter diesen schlimmen Vorfällen steckt. Adam habe ich dabei besonders liebgewonnen, ich fand sein schüchternes und etwas nerdiges Verhalten irgendwie total süß.
Unter den Nebenfiguren war ganz klar Noras kleine Schwester Maeve mein absoluter Liebling. Mit ihrer pfiffigen Art hat sie mir ständig ein Lächeln ins Gesicht gezaubert und da sie meine große Harry Potter-Liebe mit mir teilt, habe ich mich sofort richtig mit ihr verbunden gefühlt.

Auch das Setting hat bei mir punkten können. Die Kleinstadt Faber ist einfach die perfekte Kulisse für die Thematik dieses Buches und da sämtliche Orte sehr anschaulich und bildhaft beschrieben werden, kann man sich alles stets ganz genau vorstellen.

Mir hat „NO GAME“ insgesamt ein sehr emotionales und intensives Leseerlebnis beschert. Ich habe mit unseren Protagonisten mitgefühlt und mitgelitten, ich war an vielen Stellen geschockt, wütend und fassungslos, saß öfters aber auch ganz bewegt und manchmal sogar mit einem Schmunzeln auf den Lippen da. Und da mich die Story, wie weiter oben bereits erwähnt, durchweg packen und fesseln konnte und ich vor allem zum Ende hin ganz gebannt von den Geschehnissen war, habe ich das Buch kaum mehr aus der Hand legen können und es quasi in einem Rutsch durchgelesen.

Den Ausgang der Geschichte fand ich äußerst passend, mich hat er zufriedenstellen können. Ein wenig vermisst habe ich nur einen Anhang mit hilfreichen Telefonnummern und Adressen, an die sich Betroffene wenden können. Einen Stern abziehen werde ich deswegen aber nicht, ich wollte es einfach nur mal erwähnt haben.

Fazit: „NO GAME - Jetzt ist Schluss mit Schweigen!“ von Natasha Friend ist so ein Buch, bei dem ich sehr hoffe, dass es eine große Leserschaft erhalten wird. Es erzählt eine wertvolle und authentische Geschichte über Empowerment, die #MeToo-Debatte und weiteren wichtigen Themen, es ist toll geschrieben und schonungslos ehrlich, es rüttelt auf, bewegt und reißt mit und ist definitiv nicht nur ein Roman für Jugendliche ab 14 Jahren, sondern auch für erwachsene Leser*innen. Ich kann „NO GAME - Jetzt ist Schluss mit Schweigen!“ nur empfehlen und vergebe 5 von 5 Sternen!
Profile Image for Brinley.
1,250 reviews73 followers
February 12, 2022
I'll admit that when I started this one, I had no idea what I was getting it up. I saw the cover, thought it was a contemporary romance, and dove into it. While I was surprised by the turns this took, I also loved it. It confronted so many essential problems in today's society, and was so much more than just another YA book.

My favorite thing about it was definitely the perspectives. Every one of them added a new side and complexity to the dilemma. In reality, situations like this are so nuanced, and this book did a great job of portraying that. Every perspective offered a slightly different viewpoint, working together to offer an almost complete picture. Every perspective felt so distinct, and I loved every character with my whole heart.

I also really liked the way the possible romance between Adam and Nora was dealt with. I can't say too much because of spoilers, but I loved the way it all worked out. Their friendship was so amazing, and I loved how their conclusion didn't affect that.

I also loved the family aspects to this. Once again, the complexity they offered was priceless. The mom as a character was an icon, and I loved her so much. The way she dealt with the situation was amazing, and the support she offered Nora was inspiring. The rest of the family had their own part to play, and I was definitely surprised at points.

Although I went into this one blind, I ended up loving it. It was a great break from my typical fantasy, and a book I won't be forgetting anytime soon.

Thanks to the Novl for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!
Profile Image for Jessica Gregory.
438 reviews16 followers
March 17, 2022
I’m going to start by saying that I loved that this type of story was YA. I’m not really sure what’s out there, but I think this sexual assault story was a great addition. It’s a deep conversation that needs to be discussed more and more. Nora is only 15 years old in the book which is scary, but it makes you realize SA really can happen to anyone. I think Nora’s character was great and I loved the multiple POVs. But the side characters drove me INSANE. Her best friend Cam, while I get her intentions, but she was a lot. She was very pushy towards Nora to come forward and I just wanted to yell at her the whole time. AND Nora’s Dad??? C’mon. I never wanted to hit someone harder. So, besides the aggravating side characters I really enjoyed this story. It was deep and i was satisfied with the ending.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!
Profile Image for Estibaliz.
2,577 reviews71 followers
August 24, 2022
Thanks to Novl Books and Goodreads Giveaways for providing me with an Advance Reading Copy of this book, which I quite enjoyed.

This was a pretty realistic young adult novel that delves in always relevant and interesting topics, such as the aftermath of sexual assault, college sports and fraternity culture, sexism and slut shaming, and family dynamics.

I really appreciated the different point of views, from both male and female characters, and the inclusion of some twists and turns on the main plot that made for a much more compelling read than just your average teenage angst case.

Lots of topics and ideas that would make for an interesting book club discussion here, it just doesn't get the five stars because, even being an story for young readers mostly, it could still have gone deep in some aspects.
Profile Image for anna.
108 reviews
Read
August 16, 2023
I liked this book but the JKR references kinda destroyed it for me. a book about women rights and u decide to name drop a women who is openly transphobic and makes trans women feel like their existence is not valid? total no go
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