What do you think?
Rate this book
Against the Pack
A great choice for fans of Hatchet, this vivid wilderness survival adventure is about a teenager who must find her way home to save herself and her mom.
While walking on a rural road, Melender and her mom are attacked by a pack of dogs and fall down a near-vertical hillside into a ravine. Now they’re trapped on a narrow ledge and wounded. No one knows where they are. No one even knows they’re missing.
They have no food, water, shelter, or warm clothes. No phone to call for help. No medical supplies. Nothing.
The only positive is that Melender can walk. She doesn’t want to leave her critically-wounded mom behind, but it could be days before anyone starts looking for them.
They don’t have that much time.
In this compelling story about complicated mother-daughter relationships, Melender’s riveting ordeal forces her to face real dangers as well as deep emotional truths.
While walking on a rural road, Melender and her mom are attacked by a pack of dogs and fall down a near-vertical hillside into a ravine. Now they’re trapped on a narrow ledge and wounded. No one knows where they are. No one even knows they’re missing.
They have no food, water, shelter, or warm clothes. No phone to call for help. No medical supplies. Nothing.
The only positive is that Melender can walk. She doesn’t want to leave her critically-wounded mom behind, but it could be days before anyone starts looking for them.
They don’t have that much time.
In this compelling story about complicated mother-daughter relationships, Melender’s riveting ordeal forces her to face real dangers as well as deep emotional truths.
263 pages, Paperback
Published November 1, 2022
1 person is currently reading
700 people want to read
About the author
Khristina Chess
13 books131 followersKhristina Chess is an award-winning author of more than a dozen young adult novels, including The Cutting Edge of Friendship, The Delinquent Hero, and Junior Missing. Her novel about eating disorders, Hollow Beauty, was named a finalist in the Next Generation Indie Book Awards. She tackles tough teen topics and writes binge-worthy books across multiple genres, including contemporary, thriller, mystery, dystopian, and adventure.
Visit her online at www.khristinachess.com and on Twitter @KhristinaChess.
Visit her online at www.khristinachess.com and on Twitter @KhristinaChess.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
March 8, 2023
A tense coming of age tale, “Against the Pack” shows the events of a single weekend from the rotating perspectives of Melender, and her friends, Wayne and Viney.
Read full review in the 2023 March issue of InD'tale Magazine.
Read full review in the 2023 March issue of InD'tale Magazine.
November 15, 2022
This book made me want to sit and read it until it was done.
Set up as a mystery and suspense novel, it turns into an exploration of home and familial relationships. The author thoughtfully conveys attachment to and love of family and place, the beauty and danger of untouched natural environments, and finding the courage and strength to meet extreme unexpected conditions. She takes us deep into the teenagers' minds while keeping the plot moving at a brisk pace.
A beautiful, moving book with an unexpected ending.
Set up as a mystery and suspense novel, it turns into an exploration of home and familial relationships. The author thoughtfully conveys attachment to and love of family and place, the beauty and danger of untouched natural environments, and finding the courage and strength to meet extreme unexpected conditions. She takes us deep into the teenagers' minds while keeping the plot moving at a brisk pace.
A beautiful, moving book with an unexpected ending.
February 9, 2023
Thank you to Goodreads and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
My Selling Pitch:
Do you want a coming-of-age story about a girl who has to survive falling off a cliff? Do you want a book that def tips into religious propaganda territory?
Pre-reading:
I know nothing about this book, but I was sent it, and I’m trying to put a dent in my pile because I feel guilty.
Thick of it:
This girl got into Harvard and she’s still like no boys like me because I’m plain looking. Get a grip.
That’s a yummy breakfast.
God, her boyfriend is an ass.
Why is her mom such a cunt?
I was so invested and it was going so fast. Now it’s really slowed down and gotten repetitive.
Oh god, this is a heavy-handed metaphor.
caviling
Pulling an all-nighter isn’t something to be proud of. Don’t get it twisted. Self-care above all else.
There are so many assumptions being made by teenagers and none by the professional rescue crew. Like, come on. It seems kind of crazy that they wouldn’t have the helicopter search both directions.
You don’t have to be friends with someone who cheats on you. You do not have to be friends with a liar.
Is it bad that I kind of wanted her to save herself?
Anger does not hurt you more than the other person. What crock of shit religious propaganda is that?
Bitch better go to Harvard. (Bitch does not go to Harvard.)
It does not make sense. This is idiotic. Pull your family out of poverty, you lunatic.
Yeah, rolling stops and not signaling are valid complaints. What the fuck?
Your mom fell off a cliff and broke her pelvis and you give her random break checks to provoke arguments. What the fuck is wrong with you?
Post-reading:
This book started off pretty engaging with some fun dialect slang metaphors, and then it absolutely crashed and burned. It feels like religious propaganda. If you get a full ride to Harvard, you take it. You just do. It’s very repetitive. It’s a YA book, but I don’t agree with a lot of the messaging in it. Don’t teach children to be friends or romantic partners with people who cheat on them and abuse them. Don’t teach them that they should stay in their small towns and forsake an education just to be with their family. Her whole schtick is I don’t want to do eight years of medical school. Like girl, you don’t have to. You can do a different major. Also, you have to be invited to do that, and you don’t know if you can succeed at Harvard yet. A very frustrating book. From the first few chapters I thought I was gonna like it, but I definitely do not.
Who should read this:
YA survival story fans
YA anti college fans
YA religious propaganda fans
Do I want to reread this:
No
Similar books:
* You've Reached Sam by Dustin Thao-coming of age YA where the main character goes through trauma
* Sam by Allegra Goodman-coming of age family drama
* The Truth About Everything by Bridget Farr-coming of age YA, home-schooled girl‘s struggle for real education
My Selling Pitch:
Do you want a coming-of-age story about a girl who has to survive falling off a cliff? Do you want a book that def tips into religious propaganda territory?
Pre-reading:
I know nothing about this book, but I was sent it, and I’m trying to put a dent in my pile because I feel guilty.
Thick of it:
This girl got into Harvard and she’s still like no boys like me because I’m plain looking. Get a grip.
That’s a yummy breakfast.
God, her boyfriend is an ass.
Why is her mom such a cunt?
I was so invested and it was going so fast. Now it’s really slowed down and gotten repetitive.
Oh god, this is a heavy-handed metaphor.
caviling
Pulling an all-nighter isn’t something to be proud of. Don’t get it twisted. Self-care above all else.
There are so many assumptions being made by teenagers and none by the professional rescue crew. Like, come on. It seems kind of crazy that they wouldn’t have the helicopter search both directions.
You don’t have to be friends with someone who cheats on you. You do not have to be friends with a liar.
Is it bad that I kind of wanted her to save herself?
Anger does not hurt you more than the other person. What crock of shit religious propaganda is that?
Bitch better go to Harvard. (Bitch does not go to Harvard.)
It does not make sense. This is idiotic. Pull your family out of poverty, you lunatic.
Yeah, rolling stops and not signaling are valid complaints. What the fuck?
Your mom fell off a cliff and broke her pelvis and you give her random break checks to provoke arguments. What the fuck is wrong with you?
Post-reading:
This book started off pretty engaging with some fun dialect slang metaphors, and then it absolutely crashed and burned. It feels like religious propaganda. If you get a full ride to Harvard, you take it. You just do. It’s very repetitive. It’s a YA book, but I don’t agree with a lot of the messaging in it. Don’t teach children to be friends or romantic partners with people who cheat on them and abuse them. Don’t teach them that they should stay in their small towns and forsake an education just to be with their family. Her whole schtick is I don’t want to do eight years of medical school. Like girl, you don’t have to. You can do a different major. Also, you have to be invited to do that, and you don’t know if you can succeed at Harvard yet. A very frustrating book. From the first few chapters I thought I was gonna like it, but I definitely do not.
Who should read this:
YA survival story fans
YA anti college fans
YA religious propaganda fans
Do I want to reread this:
No
Similar books:
* You've Reached Sam by Dustin Thao-coming of age YA where the main character goes through trauma
* Sam by Allegra Goodman-coming of age family drama
* The Truth About Everything by Bridget Farr-coming of age YA, home-schooled girl‘s struggle for real education
November 30, 2022
Khristina Chess has done it again with her new book, AGAINST THE PACK. Don’t let the write up fool you, this story is about so much more than a pack of wild dogs!
The story takes place in the Appalachian Mountains (which plays an important part) with Melender facing some difficult life decisions. When she applies to Harvard on a lark and is accepted, she loses her boyfriend, Billy who had wanted her to stay local and go to community college. Her best friend Viney is supportive in wanting her to go and Billy’s friend Wayne likes Melender from afar. (You know, bro code.)All the while, she is being raised mostly by her very opinionated and contentious mother who never approves of anything Melender does while her father works one month on/one month off on a rig.
Melender feels the weight of the world on her shoulders and isn’t sure how much more she can take. Enter…you guessed it…the “pack”. What began as a walk to clear her head ends up teaching her much more about life than a Harvard education ever could.
It’s not a big surprise to me that I loved this one for I love each book Ms. Chess has written. She is a powerful voice in Young Adult fiction. You will not be disappointed to spend a few hours in a world where you will feel the rain pelt your face and the cold settle in your bones. Curl up with a blanket and something to drink…you’re gonna need them! BRAVO, MS. CHESS! BRAVO!
I received a free copy of this book for an honest review.
The story takes place in the Appalachian Mountains (which plays an important part) with Melender facing some difficult life decisions. When she applies to Harvard on a lark and is accepted, she loses her boyfriend, Billy who had wanted her to stay local and go to community college. Her best friend Viney is supportive in wanting her to go and Billy’s friend Wayne likes Melender from afar. (You know, bro code.)All the while, she is being raised mostly by her very opinionated and contentious mother who never approves of anything Melender does while her father works one month on/one month off on a rig.
Melender feels the weight of the world on her shoulders and isn’t sure how much more she can take. Enter…you guessed it…the “pack”. What began as a walk to clear her head ends up teaching her much more about life than a Harvard education ever could.
It’s not a big surprise to me that I loved this one for I love each book Ms. Chess has written. She is a powerful voice in Young Adult fiction. You will not be disappointed to spend a few hours in a world where you will feel the rain pelt your face and the cold settle in your bones. Curl up with a blanket and something to drink…you’re gonna need them! BRAVO, MS. CHESS! BRAVO!
I received a free copy of this book for an honest review.
November 7, 2022
I enjoyed reading this book. It isn't what I was expecting however when I saw it on an article listing it being about about the mother-daughter relationships. The little love story on the side left something to be desired. If nothing and I mean NOTHING is gonna happen, why even include it? Ya know?
Putting that in there probably was the author's way of relating to the younger audience. Which was unsuccessful. It is a good read though, I like the author's way of writing, and how quick the author just gets to the point. Unlike this review, at this point I'm just letting out what I was thinking while reading.
tl;dr Would I recommend this book? No. Would I deter you from reading it? No.
Putting that in there probably was the author's way of relating to the younger audience. Which was unsuccessful. It is a good read though, I like the author's way of writing, and how quick the author just gets to the point. Unlike this review, at this point I'm just letting out what I was thinking while reading.
tl;dr Would I recommend this book? No. Would I deter you from reading it? No.
January 3, 2023
I had to read the book through. I needed to know what was happening next. This was more of a family relationship book rather than a mystery. But so be it, i was hooked.
I had the chance to delve deep into a teens mind, a viewpoint welcomed right now, seeing her views on the situation she finds her and her mother in, the environment, and herself as she grows through this ordeal.
I must say, the ending was a surprise for me. In no way predictable.
Enjoyable read.
I had the chance to delve deep into a teens mind, a viewpoint welcomed right now, seeing her views on the situation she finds her and her mother in, the environment, and herself as she grows through this ordeal.
I must say, the ending was a surprise for me. In no way predictable.
Enjoyable read.
February 27, 2023
This book was right in my sweet spot. Plus the cover art is amazing...highly reccomend if you like wolf stuff
January 7, 2024
I enjoyed this outdoor adventure where encounters with the wild tested the limits of a teen and forcing her to evaluate family relationships.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews