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Dangerous Play
A fierce team of girls takes back the night in this propulsive, electrifying, and high-stakes YA debut from Emma Kress
Zoe Alamandar has one goal: win the State Field Hockey Championships and earn a scholarship that will get her the hell out of Central New York. She and her co-captain Ava Cervantes have assembled a fierce team of dedicated girls who will work hard and play by the rules.
But after Zoe is sexually assaulted at a party, she finds a new goal: make sure no girl feels unsafe again. Zoe and her teammates decide to stop playing by the rules and take justice into their own hands. Soon, their suburban town has a team of superheroes meting out punishments, but one night of vigilantism may cost Zoe her team, the championship, her scholarship, and her future.
Perfect for fans who loved the female friendships of Jennifer Mathieu’s Moxie and the bite of Courtney Summer’s Sadie.
Zoe Alamandar has one goal: win the State Field Hockey Championships and earn a scholarship that will get her the hell out of Central New York. She and her co-captain Ava Cervantes have assembled a fierce team of dedicated girls who will work hard and play by the rules.
But after Zoe is sexually assaulted at a party, she finds a new goal: make sure no girl feels unsafe again. Zoe and her teammates decide to stop playing by the rules and take justice into their own hands. Soon, their suburban town has a team of superheroes meting out punishments, but one night of vigilantism may cost Zoe her team, the championship, her scholarship, and her future.
Perfect for fans who loved the female friendships of Jennifer Mathieu’s Moxie and the bite of Courtney Summer’s Sadie.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published August 3, 2021
11 people are currently reading
2469 people want to read
About the author
Emma Kress
1 book58 followersEmma Kress loves writing about badass girls and her debut novel DANGEROUS PLAY (Macmillan, Summer 2021) is a fast-paced thriller about a team of field hockey players who refuse to accept the world as it is, and set out to change it.
An educator of over 20 years, Emma was one of four finalists for New York State Teacher of the Year. She is a graduate of Vassar College, Columbia University’s Teachers College, and the Vermont College of Fine Arts’ Writing for Children and Young Adults MFA program. Before teaching, Emma worked in social services helping survivors of sexual assault. Now, she lives with her family in Saratoga Springs, NY.
An educator of over 20 years, Emma was one of four finalists for New York State Teacher of the Year. She is a graduate of Vassar College, Columbia University’s Teachers College, and the Vermont College of Fine Arts’ Writing for Children and Young Adults MFA program. Before teaching, Emma worked in social services helping survivors of sexual assault. Now, she lives with her family in Saratoga Springs, NY.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 132 reviews
November 5, 2023
Note: I received a free copy of this book. In exchange here is my honest review:
A decent YA girl power read. ⛔️Trigger warnings: assault both verbal/sexual, violence.⛔️ This has the normal high school drama/click feel. 😩 But also a #metoo theme. To be honest, I didn’t love the ‘fighting violence with violence’ approach. But these are high school kids… so…. 🤷🏼♀️
Thank you @goodreads @kress.emma and @fiercereads #goodreadsgiveaway
A decent YA girl power read. ⛔️Trigger warnings: assault both verbal/sexual, violence.⛔️ This has the normal high school drama/click feel. 😩 But also a #metoo theme. To be honest, I didn’t love the ‘fighting violence with violence’ approach. But these are high school kids… so…. 🤷🏼♀️
Thank you @goodreads @kress.emma and @fiercereads #goodreadsgiveaway
July 31, 2021
3.50 Stars. I thought this was pretty good but I didn’t quite connect like I hoped. The book was well written, and had a decent reading pace, but there was just something a bit off in multiple different aspects for me. Due to the fact that I read a lot of LGBTQ+ books, I feel I should mention that this book does not fit into that category. There are a couple girls on the hockey team that are queer, but that is it.
The reason I wanted to read this book is because I enjoy YA and I have a real love for field hockey. While I played softball and basketball back in the day, field hockey -especially after I switched to goalie- is where I really came alive. It’s a fantastic sport, but it’s under the radar enough that you don’t see many books about it. When I saw this was a book about a field hockey team that takes on the rape culture in their high school, I was in.
I always try to review a book completely based on its own merits, but sometimes that is not really possible. Part of the reason I could not really do that here was bad timing. The book I read just before this one has some very similar story beats. Both stories are about young women, who play sports, and want to take their power back. They both dealt with sexual assault, toxic masculinity, and too many adults that add to the problem. Where the two stories diverged is that the first story also dealt with homophobia, where this book really became about rape culture. The problem with two books that have such similarities is that I kept comparing them to each other. I did not mean to set it up this way, reading them back-to-back, it just so happens that both books are releasing this Tuesday so the timing was what it was. And in the end, I loved the first book and I could not help but think about it while reading this one.
This may seem like a petty complaint but I have to mention it. If I see the word fockey, or some variation of it, one more time I might do some eyeball gouging. Field hockey somehow equals fockey? No just no! No one calls it that and unfortunately it didn’t end there since it soon became fock-it and absofockinglutely which was too annoying for words.
When it came to the sport aspects of the book I was a bit in the middle. I know hockey well and even I had trouble picturing some of the bigger sports scenes. Some scenes worked pretty well so I was able to get into the excitement, but other times it was only so-so. Parkour was also big for these young women but to me that worked even less than the hockey scenes did. It’s not easy to imagine flips and tricks in the air and unfortunately I was more guessing at what they were doing than actually seeing it.
When it came to the vigilante parts of the book, again I was down the middle. I thought it was an interesting twist but then it really changed course and I felt more just uncomfortable. I think this really sums up the book for me because I was in the middle about a lot of different elements. I think this had the potential to be great, but it just didn’t get there for me. As I mentioned already, the writing was well done so I think quality wise this book is a bit higher than my actual enjoyment. I think if people are looking for a YA book about strong young women challenging the rape culture of their school, mixed with some sports and a light m/f romance, then this book might just be for them.
A copy was given to me for a review.
The reason I wanted to read this book is because I enjoy YA and I have a real love for field hockey. While I played softball and basketball back in the day, field hockey -especially after I switched to goalie- is where I really came alive. It’s a fantastic sport, but it’s under the radar enough that you don’t see many books about it. When I saw this was a book about a field hockey team that takes on the rape culture in their high school, I was in.
I always try to review a book completely based on its own merits, but sometimes that is not really possible. Part of the reason I could not really do that here was bad timing. The book I read just before this one has some very similar story beats. Both stories are about young women, who play sports, and want to take their power back. They both dealt with sexual assault, toxic masculinity, and too many adults that add to the problem. Where the two stories diverged is that the first story also dealt with homophobia, where this book really became about rape culture. The problem with two books that have such similarities is that I kept comparing them to each other. I did not mean to set it up this way, reading them back-to-back, it just so happens that both books are releasing this Tuesday so the timing was what it was. And in the end, I loved the first book and I could not help but think about it while reading this one.
This may seem like a petty complaint but I have to mention it. If I see the word fockey, or some variation of it, one more time I might do some eyeball gouging. Field hockey somehow equals fockey? No just no! No one calls it that and unfortunately it didn’t end there since it soon became fock-it and absofockinglutely which was too annoying for words.
When it came to the sport aspects of the book I was a bit in the middle. I know hockey well and even I had trouble picturing some of the bigger sports scenes. Some scenes worked pretty well so I was able to get into the excitement, but other times it was only so-so. Parkour was also big for these young women but to me that worked even less than the hockey scenes did. It’s not easy to imagine flips and tricks in the air and unfortunately I was more guessing at what they were doing than actually seeing it.
When it came to the vigilante parts of the book, again I was down the middle. I thought it was an interesting twist but then it really changed course and I felt more just uncomfortable. I think this really sums up the book for me because I was in the middle about a lot of different elements. I think this had the potential to be great, but it just didn’t get there for me. As I mentioned already, the writing was well done so I think quality wise this book is a bit higher than my actual enjoyment. I think if people are looking for a YA book about strong young women challenging the rape culture of their school, mixed with some sports and a light m/f romance, then this book might just be for them.
A copy was given to me for a review.
August 8, 2021
The concept of a vigilante field hockey team bent on revenge was what made me excited to try this book. I thought it was going to be as powerful as Michigan vs. the Boys, and the story could have totally been as good as that one, if it wasn't for the way this book tried to discuss too many issues at once and how the characters and plot were as flat as pancakes.
This book was just repetitive and I got bored pretty fast as I couldn't connect with any of the characters. Even the writing style was repetitive: I was so tired of hearing the girls say "Absofockinglutely!" and "Stick Chicks!" I wanted to throw this book out of the window sometimes. There is also extensive description of gameplay throughout the entire book that sounds the exact same every time. The games added exactly nothing to this book, there were no stakes involved. They followed a bit of a formula where the team works great together, then something happens and they start to lose games, but then things get settled, coach gives them some grand speech and they start winning again until something new happens and it starts all over again. It really failed to hold my attention for more than one third.
I definitely didn't pick this book up for the games; I was interested in how the girls would be getting revenge on the guys and how the book would discuss sexual assault and misogyny. And for a while it did: I was very taken aback by the way the author wrote Zoe's traumatic experience and her spiraling thoughts after it had happened. I had goosebumps because of the impact it had on me. Unfortunately that's the only good thing I can say, because this central theme of the book wasn't explored enough, in my opinion. The book meandered through a plethora of minor subplots that took the foreground at times and I had no idea where the plot really wanted to go at the end.
I think this book was written on a very surface level. It had the potential to explore things in a deeper way but decided to go another route instead. I can apply this not only to the plot but also to the characters. It was difficult for me to keep them straight, I kept getting them mixed up. The only girls I remember are Liv, Ava and Dylan, and that's because they're labels to me (the mc's best friend, the other captain, the trouble girl). Zoe herself missed the mark: the only part of her life you see is hockey, parkour and her dad's disability. That's literally all she worries about and all she does every single day.
The ending was okay, although kind of unrealistic because the backlash for sure would have been way worse in real life. That's pretty much the way I feel about this book in general: not good but not awful, just in-between. I loved the audiobook though. I was kindly provided a copy on Netgalley and despite having to listen to a robotic voice on the app (because apparently the NG app still sucks after all these months and you can't speed an audiobook up without it ruining the narrator's voice ugh), I could still feel the emotion the narrator put into reading this book. Her voice was perfect for this book. If I could give stars to the audiobook production only it would be a four.
This book was just repetitive and I got bored pretty fast as I couldn't connect with any of the characters. Even the writing style was repetitive: I was so tired of hearing the girls say "Absofockinglutely!" and "Stick Chicks!" I wanted to throw this book out of the window sometimes. There is also extensive description of gameplay throughout the entire book that sounds the exact same every time. The games added exactly nothing to this book, there were no stakes involved. They followed a bit of a formula where the team works great together, then something happens and they start to lose games, but then things get settled, coach gives them some grand speech and they start winning again until something new happens and it starts all over again. It really failed to hold my attention for more than one third.
I definitely didn't pick this book up for the games; I was interested in how the girls would be getting revenge on the guys and how the book would discuss sexual assault and misogyny. And for a while it did: I was very taken aback by the way the author wrote Zoe's traumatic experience and her spiraling thoughts after it had happened. I had goosebumps because of the impact it had on me. Unfortunately that's the only good thing I can say, because this central theme of the book wasn't explored enough, in my opinion. The book meandered through a plethora of minor subplots that took the foreground at times and I had no idea where the plot really wanted to go at the end.
I think this book was written on a very surface level. It had the potential to explore things in a deeper way but decided to go another route instead. I can apply this not only to the plot but also to the characters. It was difficult for me to keep them straight, I kept getting them mixed up. The only girls I remember are Liv, Ava and Dylan, and that's because they're labels to me (the mc's best friend, the other captain, the trouble girl). Zoe herself missed the mark: the only part of her life you see is hockey, parkour and her dad's disability. That's literally all she worries about and all she does every single day.
The ending was okay, although kind of unrealistic because the backlash for sure would have been way worse in real life. That's pretty much the way I feel about this book in general: not good but not awful, just in-between. I loved the audiobook though. I was kindly provided a copy on Netgalley and despite having to listen to a robotic voice on the app (because apparently the NG app still sucks after all these months and you can't speed an audiobook up without it ruining the narrator's voice ugh), I could still feel the emotion the narrator put into reading this book. Her voice was perfect for this book. If I could give stars to the audiobook production only it would be a four.
April 27, 2021
The Appalachian Bookworm
content warnings: sexual assault, sexual harassment, rape/mentions of rape, misogyny, violence, sports injury, near death situations
Dangerous Play by Emma Kress is a contemporary sports YA following fierce field hockey captain Zoe Alamandar and her tight knit team. Zoe has one goal - win state championships and earn a scholarship for college. She’s almost there too. It’s her junior year and the team she hand-picked with her co-captain is good. Then Zoe is sexually assaulted at a party. Struggling to cope with the trauma, she and her team decide to take justice into their own hands. Could a single night of vigilantism take it all away?
My rating: 5/5 ★
What I loved:
★ The whole book highlights the importance of girl friendships. But it also shows these girls bonding through activities that are not typically considered to be “feminine”.
★ The characters were diverse, human, relatable and likable. They all had varying types of friendships with one another and they all had unique reactions and emotions and experiences that really brought the story together. I think my favourites on the team were Dylan, Ava, and Liv. And of course, Zoe.
★ A lot of hard conversations were had. Like the double standards that schools uphold for male students, especially those who play specific sports. White privilege was another topic that was touched upon, although not enough given the situation.
★ Lastly, the writing was wonderful. I loved the attention to detail for the girls, the games, the raw emotions.
What I wish were different:
★ There wasn’t much I would have changed. If I had to say anything, it would be that the whole “absofockinglutely” joke got to be a little too much sometimes.
Overall, I seriously enjoyed Dangerous Play and nearly finished it in one sitting. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys good plot, girl friendships, real life topics and sports action.
I received an advanced reader’s copy of this book from Netgalley and the author in exchange for an honest review.
content warnings: sexual assault, sexual harassment, rape/mentions of rape, misogyny, violence, sports injury, near death situations
Dangerous Play by Emma Kress is a contemporary sports YA following fierce field hockey captain Zoe Alamandar and her tight knit team. Zoe has one goal - win state championships and earn a scholarship for college. She’s almost there too. It’s her junior year and the team she hand-picked with her co-captain is good. Then Zoe is sexually assaulted at a party. Struggling to cope with the trauma, she and her team decide to take justice into their own hands. Could a single night of vigilantism take it all away?
My rating: 5/5 ★
What I loved:
★ The whole book highlights the importance of girl friendships. But it also shows these girls bonding through activities that are not typically considered to be “feminine”.
★ The characters were diverse, human, relatable and likable. They all had varying types of friendships with one another and they all had unique reactions and emotions and experiences that really brought the story together. I think my favourites on the team were Dylan, Ava, and Liv. And of course, Zoe.
★ A lot of hard conversations were had. Like the double standards that schools uphold for male students, especially those who play specific sports. White privilege was another topic that was touched upon, although not enough given the situation.
★ Lastly, the writing was wonderful. I loved the attention to detail for the girls, the games, the raw emotions.
What I wish were different:
★ There wasn’t much I would have changed. If I had to say anything, it would be that the whole “absofockinglutely” joke got to be a little too much sometimes.
Overall, I seriously enjoyed Dangerous Play and nearly finished it in one sitting. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys good plot, girl friendships, real life topics and sports action.
I received an advanced reader’s copy of this book from Netgalley and the author in exchange for an honest review.
March 26, 2021
Emma Kress's Dangerous Play is a wonderful addition to contemporary #metoo YA fiction. Dangerous Play follows Zoe Alamandar through her junior year of high school and the journey of her school's field hockey team. Zoe and her teammates bond on and off the field. As the team puts up with the harassment and assaults from male students, they are met with unfairness and double standards at every turn. As they try to cope with their separate traumas, they take matters into their own hands. Will their dangerous play on and off the field bring them the win and justice? Or will it tear them apart?
June 5, 2021
This book hit me deeeep. Like this was a stunning contemporary book that will have you crying and laughing along with the characters. This book is great for people who enjoyed "Moxie". This book was well written and had the right kind of pace and if I didn't have school I would have finished this is one sitting, like it was just that good. It also touched issues on the idea that consent culture isn't rape culture. The idea that some people have that survivors don't get to say anything when their attackers didn't actually rape them and of course you do, you did not deserve it. It was not your fault. You are allowed to have feelings, you are allowed to give those feelings a voice, and you are allowed to seek help. This book shows how a survivor can feel about this topic and really highlights that people should always be able to have a voice. Then the book also identifies Zoe's conviction on who she is what voice she has and how that affects her life. All in all loved this book and I really enjoyed the writing style.#DangerousPlay #BooksForwardFriends #WomenEmpowerment
September 23, 2024
I couldn't put this down! Zoe Alamandar is SUCH an appealing, flawed-yet-lovable main character, and I just fell in love with her and her story immediately. Kress captures that feeling of being in high school and those nights when anything could happen, good and bad, so vividly—I really felt like I was there with these girls, in the ups and downs of their off-the-field struggles, some really difficult and traumatic experiences they deal with, and with their journey as a field hockey team. I'll avoid spoiling anything, but Kress is definitely not afraid to really push the plot in interesting directions, and she lets Zoe make some serious mistakes AND also shows all the girls learning and growing together as they cope with the consequences.
This is one of my all-time favorite YA covers, and the story lives up to the high bar set by that gorgeous illustration!
This is one of my all-time favorite YA covers, and the story lives up to the high bar set by that gorgeous illustration!
November 24, 2022
5 Stars
This book was everything I needed and more. It was absolutely amazing! To start with the long list of the things I loved is the characters. The characters for me really stood out they were all very well developed and were so easy to relate to. I was so connected to this story I found myself laughing out loud and getting nervous for the characters. Another really well done thing is incorporating the issues of sexual assault. The topic was well covered and shined a light on how many women go through this and the struggles that come after. I think the author truly did a great job with that. The romance in the story was another thing I absolutely loved. I was jumping up down for them and was so happy with the ending. Overall this book was amazing and I cannot wait until it is fully released!
This book was everything I needed and more. It was absolutely amazing! To start with the long list of the things I loved is the characters. The characters for me really stood out they were all very well developed and were so easy to relate to. I was so connected to this story I found myself laughing out loud and getting nervous for the characters. Another really well done thing is incorporating the issues of sexual assault. The topic was well covered and shined a light on how many women go through this and the struggles that come after. I think the author truly did a great job with that. The romance in the story was another thing I absolutely loved. I was jumping up down for them and was so happy with the ending. Overall this book was amazing and I cannot wait until it is fully released!
June 15, 2024
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review! All opinions are my own.
This book brings up many needed conversations. I need more strong, empowering girls fighting against misogyny and rape culture in books.
It is Zoe’s junior year of high school. She’s the captain of her field hockey team and all she really wants is to win the State Championships and get a scholarship to her dream school. Then everything changes when she gets sexually assaulted at a party. Now she has a new goal: to make sure that no girl feels unsafe again. Her and her teammates decide to go against their sexist school who isn’t doing anything about the situation and take matters into their own hands.
I loved the friendships between the characters. All the characters were diverse, realistic, relatable, and likable. This book focuses on female empowerment and teamwork, on and off the field, which we need more of in YA books. I appreciated how there wasn’t the typical “mean girl” here. It was all about the girls’ friendship. It was really interesting reading about their dynamics and it felt like an actual friendship. They all had unique reactions and emotions to things that happened which brought the story together. Some of the decisions the characters made were quite dumb but that honestly made it more realistic.
The writing was pretty good. It showed emotion well. I had a few problems with the pacing as it seemed a bit slow and uneven at times but it wasn’t too much of an issue.
I loved how this book touched on difficult subjects. It went over the double standards the school had, victim blaming, how consent culture isn’t rape culture, internalized misogyny, intersectional feminism, and more. There was even some discussion about white privilege. I do wish that these topics were a bit more expanded on, but they were important to read about nevertheless.
I felt that the heavy topics of sexual assault was handled well. It wasn’t glorified in any way. Zoe took her experiences and used them to help other girls. I loved how this shows victims that your experiences don’t define you. It was hard to read about but I feel that it’s necessary for people to learn about in order for things to change.
I liked learning about Zoe’s story with her family off the field and out of school. By the end of the book she learns more about herself and gets closer to her family.
Overall, I liked this book and would recommend it if you’re looking for a story about strong female friendship.
This book brings up many needed conversations. I need more strong, empowering girls fighting against misogyny and rape culture in books.
It is Zoe’s junior year of high school. She’s the captain of her field hockey team and all she really wants is to win the State Championships and get a scholarship to her dream school. Then everything changes when she gets sexually assaulted at a party. Now she has a new goal: to make sure that no girl feels unsafe again. Her and her teammates decide to go against their sexist school who isn’t doing anything about the situation and take matters into their own hands.
I loved the friendships between the characters. All the characters were diverse, realistic, relatable, and likable. This book focuses on female empowerment and teamwork, on and off the field, which we need more of in YA books. I appreciated how there wasn’t the typical “mean girl” here. It was all about the girls’ friendship. It was really interesting reading about their dynamics and it felt like an actual friendship. They all had unique reactions and emotions to things that happened which brought the story together. Some of the decisions the characters made were quite dumb but that honestly made it more realistic.
The writing was pretty good. It showed emotion well. I had a few problems with the pacing as it seemed a bit slow and uneven at times but it wasn’t too much of an issue.
I loved how this book touched on difficult subjects. It went over the double standards the school had, victim blaming, how consent culture isn’t rape culture, internalized misogyny, intersectional feminism, and more. There was even some discussion about white privilege. I do wish that these topics were a bit more expanded on, but they were important to read about nevertheless.
I felt that the heavy topics of sexual assault was handled well. It wasn’t glorified in any way. Zoe took her experiences and used them to help other girls. I loved how this shows victims that your experiences don’t define you. It was hard to read about but I feel that it’s necessary for people to learn about in order for things to change.
I liked learning about Zoe’s story with her family off the field and out of school. By the end of the book she learns more about herself and gets closer to her family.
Overall, I liked this book and would recommend it if you’re looking for a story about strong female friendship.
July 20, 2021
This book was deep!
And a beautiful read about strong women and the problems in our society!
A must read for every person on this planet!
Thank you publisher and Netgalley for a copy!
And a beautiful read about strong women and the problems in our society!
A must read for every person on this planet!
Thank you publisher and Netgalley for a copy!
June 28, 2021
Zoe is a junior and co-captain of her field hockey (or fockey as they call it.) She’s also a good student, helps her father manage, after a crippling accident, and she and her fellow co-captain Ava have recruited and trained girls all summer so their team can look good to college recruiters—because Zoe and Ava believe that’s their only way out suburban Syracuse. As well as practicing hard, the girls sneak out of their homes late at night to do parkour.
Their school doesn’t care that boys are harassing them, in fact they blame the girls. After Zoe and another girl are physically attacked, they gang up on boys, superhero-like, who are assaulting girls. This is fun, in spite of its sports ball setting, that was a bit beyond me. I loved the Syracuse setting. Read on Kindle, I guess I got this Net Galley.
Their school doesn’t care that boys are harassing them, in fact they blame the girls. After Zoe and another girl are physically attacked, they gang up on boys, superhero-like, who are assaulting girls. This is fun, in spite of its sports ball setting, that was a bit beyond me. I loved the Syracuse setting. Read on Kindle, I guess I got this Net Galley.
July 21, 2021
Wow!! Honestly, this was an impulse ARC request I made and I 110% loved it! This book is super empowering YA lit with some heavy themes of sexual harassment, assault, and rape, set among a high school girls’ field hockey team. I loved the characters. I loved the messages. I loved the bits of humor and romance that were weaved throughout. The characters were very relatable and I was really invested in their stories. This book has a lot of heart.
Thank you NetGalley, author and publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Thank you NetGalley, author and publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
June 30, 2021
This book is impossible to put down. It’s well crafted, and full of fierce girls fighting back and all the conversations I wish we’d been having when I was in high school.
June 4, 2022
content warnings (my review contains mentions of some of these): sexual assault, rape, sexual harassment, sexism, violence
zoe is a high schooler determined to get her field hockey team, for which she is a co-captain, to the state championships so that her dream school will offer her a full-ride. after being sexually assaulted at a party, she finds a new goal: she, with the help of her teammates, will make sure no girl ever feels unsafe again. the girls become vigilantes, hunting these predators at night and getting them away from their victims. one night, though, they may go too far, as the police become involved and their team is at risk.
first, i just want to shout out the audiobook narrator, rachel l. jacobs, because she did an amazing job! she conveyed so much emotion just through her voice which was perfect for this book.
i was drawn to this book because of the synopsis. a team of girls kicking ass on a hockey field and in real life? count me in! and the book really did not disappoint and exceeded my expectations!
this book was not 100% about zoe’s sexual assault. we can see even before the assault that zoe is also struggling with some things at home, as her dad was in an accident and now can hardly leave his bed, whereas her mom is often gone, for which zoe resents her. i really liked how zoe’s relationship with her parents developed over the course of the book…that’s all i’ll say so i don’t spoil too much though!
i appreciated the female characters and friendships depicted. they weren’t perfect, but that just made them more realistic! they all felt like real high school girls and real high school friendships.
overall, this book was emotional yet beautiful, and if the synopsis intrigues you, i’d recommend giving it a try!
zoe is a high schooler determined to get her field hockey team, for which she is a co-captain, to the state championships so that her dream school will offer her a full-ride. after being sexually assaulted at a party, she finds a new goal: she, with the help of her teammates, will make sure no girl ever feels unsafe again. the girls become vigilantes, hunting these predators at night and getting them away from their victims. one night, though, they may go too far, as the police become involved and their team is at risk.
first, i just want to shout out the audiobook narrator, rachel l. jacobs, because she did an amazing job! she conveyed so much emotion just through her voice which was perfect for this book.
i was drawn to this book because of the synopsis. a team of girls kicking ass on a hockey field and in real life? count me in! and the book really did not disappoint and exceeded my expectations!
this book was not 100% about zoe’s sexual assault. we can see even before the assault that zoe is also struggling with some things at home, as her dad was in an accident and now can hardly leave his bed, whereas her mom is often gone, for which zoe resents her. i really liked how zoe’s relationship with her parents developed over the course of the book…that’s all i’ll say so i don’t spoil too much though!
i appreciated the female characters and friendships depicted. they weren’t perfect, but that just made them more realistic! they all felt like real high school girls and real high school friendships.
overall, this book was emotional yet beautiful, and if the synopsis intrigues you, i’d recommend giving it a try!
July 24, 2021
I LOVE this book!! I love that it’s a cast of powerful young women who empower each other, rather than try to tear each other down. I love that the competition is on the field, not amongst themselves. I love that they are goal driven and diverse and flawed. I love the friendships, and openness, and family dynamics. I love that this brings the #MeToo movement to teens and explains, without patronizing, what it is, why it started, and why it matters to them.
Ok, maybe the author tried a little too hard to cover all the diversity and politically correct topics, but at least it was done tastefully.
There is laughter and sadness, tragedy and triumph. There is vigilante justice, and racial and sexual injustice.
As a teacher, these are the books I look for to fill my class library. These young women are the examples I want to use for my young women who are just learning to use their voices and find their path. I applaud the effort of the author to make the language genuine and timely.
My one serious criticism would be the use of profanity. Yes, I loved the “fock-y” play on words, but that doesn’t excuse the over abundance of usage of fu*k. Maybe since I listened to the audio and didn’t actually read the words, it’s actually the homonym each time, but to me, it sounded like an awful lot of the profanity word, and only occasional use of the pun.
I want to include this in my classroom library, but will certainly include trigger warnings for sexual assault, rape, harassment, misogyny, body shaming, and teen drinking.
I appreciated the voice actor’s subtle intonations that brought life to the characters, showed their distinct personalities, but always remained true to the teens that they are.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ALC of the book in exchange for my honest opinions.
Ok, maybe the author tried a little too hard to cover all the diversity and politically correct topics, but at least it was done tastefully.
There is laughter and sadness, tragedy and triumph. There is vigilante justice, and racial and sexual injustice.
As a teacher, these are the books I look for to fill my class library. These young women are the examples I want to use for my young women who are just learning to use their voices and find their path. I applaud the effort of the author to make the language genuine and timely.
My one serious criticism would be the use of profanity. Yes, I loved the “fock-y” play on words, but that doesn’t excuse the over abundance of usage of fu*k. Maybe since I listened to the audio and didn’t actually read the words, it’s actually the homonym each time, but to me, it sounded like an awful lot of the profanity word, and only occasional use of the pun.
I want to include this in my classroom library, but will certainly include trigger warnings for sexual assault, rape, harassment, misogyny, body shaming, and teen drinking.
I appreciated the voice actor’s subtle intonations that brought life to the characters, showed their distinct personalities, but always remained true to the teens that they are.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ALC of the book in exchange for my honest opinions.
Read
October 11, 2021TW: sexual assault, sexual harassment, rape, misogyny, violence
Absofockinglutely not. I was in the ER for HOURS the other day in pain and yet somehow this book was more painful than that.
Dangerous Play is about a girl named Zoe who wants to get a scholarship for field hockey and get out of her town. After Zoe is sexually assaulted at a party, she makes it her goal to make sure no girl feels unsafe again. With her teammates, they decide to take justice into their own hands but after a night of things going too far, it may cost Zoe her scholarship.
The worse part of this is that it had so much potential but it just shits the bed. I love the idea of girls being badasses and vigilantes but it's like this book couldn't decide if it wanted to go really off and instead half asses everything. Either be tame or go tf off, don't do this. The characters couldn't even decide what the fuck they were doing and it was a sad MESS. They spend the entire time fighting and being ridiculous, not to mention making dumb decisions.
When a character finally does some serious shit I was like, "that's cool keep doing it" but then all the characters were like nO THATS BAD AND ILLEGAL STOP. Like ???? Why are we here then ??? Maybe I'm just too used to reading messed up murder girls because this was so zzzzz. Then of course it had to have a random nice potential boyfriend because hey, not all boys are bad? Sounds fake.
Idk what is in the water of this town but every other second some girl was getting assaulted in public, just in time for the girls to show up like good timing I guess but ??? The book tried to do so many things at once but it was so repetitive and didn't slap like it wanted to. Then we had to read so much of their games and I'm like bestie I do not care.
All of the characters had fake cussing and it was so embarrassing. Focking was used so much and every time someone else said it I wanted to screech.
It hurts so much when books have all the parts that should have made it great but then doesn't get there.
Absofockinglutely not. I was in the ER for HOURS the other day in pain and yet somehow this book was more painful than that.
Dangerous Play is about a girl named Zoe who wants to get a scholarship for field hockey and get out of her town. After Zoe is sexually assaulted at a party, she makes it her goal to make sure no girl feels unsafe again. With her teammates, they decide to take justice into their own hands but after a night of things going too far, it may cost Zoe her scholarship.
The worse part of this is that it had so much potential but it just shits the bed. I love the idea of girls being badasses and vigilantes but it's like this book couldn't decide if it wanted to go really off and instead half asses everything. Either be tame or go tf off, don't do this. The characters couldn't even decide what the fuck they were doing and it was a sad MESS. They spend the entire time fighting and being ridiculous, not to mention making dumb decisions.
When a character finally does some serious shit I was like, "that's cool keep doing it" but then all the characters were like nO THATS BAD AND ILLEGAL STOP. Like ???? Why are we here then ??? Maybe I'm just too used to reading messed up murder girls because this was so zzzzz. Then of course it had to have a random nice potential boyfriend because hey, not all boys are bad? Sounds fake.
Idk what is in the water of this town but every other second some girl was getting assaulted in public, just in time for the girls to show up like good timing I guess but ??? The book tried to do so many things at once but it was so repetitive and didn't slap like it wanted to. Then we had to read so much of their games and I'm like bestie I do not care.
All of the characters had fake cussing and it was so embarrassing. Focking was used so much and every time someone else said it I wanted to screech.
It hurts so much when books have all the parts that should have made it great but then doesn't get there.
July 24, 2021
Dangerous Play centers on a high school field hockey team and their fight for the championship-- as well as their fight against sexual assault and the system that continuously lets them down. Let me tell you, I LOVED this book. I was given an ARC of the audiobook by Netgalley (thank you so much!) and couldn't stop listening once I started. The rage I felt at the injustice the girls faced was palpable, but the sisterhood of this team and the way they supported each other made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. While the girls didn't always handle the situation quite right (and didn't always see eye-to-eye about solutions), they always had each other's backs at the end of the day.
I found the protagonist, Zoe, to be charming and at times a bit frustrating, which is exactly how I expect to feel about living in a teenage girl's head. I also loved all of her teammates and their nuanced personalities and relationships. The dash of romance was adorable as well. The intense moments, both in games and out, had me at the edge of my seat. Rachel Jacobs' narration hit the nail on the head, giving life to the story and nailing the emotions of every scene. By the end, I was misty-eyed and empowered. Highly recommend if you want to see girls kicking ass and finding their strength in each other.
It should be noted that this book contains several instances of sexual assault and harassment. Please take this into consideration before reading.
I found the protagonist, Zoe, to be charming and at times a bit frustrating, which is exactly how I expect to feel about living in a teenage girl's head. I also loved all of her teammates and their nuanced personalities and relationships. The dash of romance was adorable as well. The intense moments, both in games and out, had me at the edge of my seat. Rachel Jacobs' narration hit the nail on the head, giving life to the story and nailing the emotions of every scene. By the end, I was misty-eyed and empowered. Highly recommend if you want to see girls kicking ass and finding their strength in each other.
It should be noted that this book contains several instances of sexual assault and harassment. Please take this into consideration before reading.
July 27, 2021
This book belongs in every middle/high school classroom and library. Period.
The girls in this book are total badasses. I loved reading Zoe and her friends' passion for sports, parkour, and of course, getting their revenge on! I did not expect the Batman-level shenanigans that she and her squad got into, but I enjoyed the heck out of them.
On top of that, the book deals with sexual harassment and assault powerfully, without being heavy-handed. It tackles these issues in a way that helps the reader see how it impacts *every* girl and woman. I am so grateful for this book, and it should frankly be required reading -- for teenage girls, but even more so, teenage boys.
It's a painful, passionate, joyful story. Zoe's emotions are so tender and raw, good and bad. It’s got female friendship, sports, athleticism, anger, hope - all of it. It hurt and it filled me with adrenaline. It’s a celebration of the power of young people - of girls, and their bodies. I loved it.
The girls in this book are total badasses. I loved reading Zoe and her friends' passion for sports, parkour, and of course, getting their revenge on! I did not expect the Batman-level shenanigans that she and her squad got into, but I enjoyed the heck out of them.
On top of that, the book deals with sexual harassment and assault powerfully, without being heavy-handed. It tackles these issues in a way that helps the reader see how it impacts *every* girl and woman. I am so grateful for this book, and it should frankly be required reading -- for teenage girls, but even more so, teenage boys.
It's a painful, passionate, joyful story. Zoe's emotions are so tender and raw, good and bad. It’s got female friendship, sports, athleticism, anger, hope - all of it. It hurt and it filled me with adrenaline. It’s a celebration of the power of young people - of girls, and their bodies. I loved it.
July 31, 2021
'They all explode and jump, twist and spin. Like they're the smoke and the fire.'
'Dangerous Play' is a powerful story about girls standing up to a society where they are constantly degraded and undermined, and a story which I loved because of the female friendships and how they are highlighted throughout the book.I read this in one sitting, especially as I was drawn in by the team's journey as well as the developing relationships between Zoe and her friends and family.
All the characters were realistic, from their actions to the dialogue, and, although I wish that some of the side characters had been given more depth and room to develop, Kress did a good job of making me root for Zoe and her team. The writing style was effective and definitely worked in the sense that I could feel the emotions coming out of the narrative, especially near the end.
Overall, I'd recommend to fans of contemporary looking for something with an amazing sense of female empowerment, or someone looking for a story where you will feel the successes and failures that the characters experience throughout the book.
I was provided a digital copy of this book in exchange for a review!
'Dangerous Play' is a powerful story about girls standing up to a society where they are constantly degraded and undermined, and a story which I loved because of the female friendships and how they are highlighted throughout the book.I read this in one sitting, especially as I was drawn in by the team's journey as well as the developing relationships between Zoe and her friends and family.
All the characters were realistic, from their actions to the dialogue, and, although I wish that some of the side characters had been given more depth and room to develop, Kress did a good job of making me root for Zoe and her team. The writing style was effective and definitely worked in the sense that I could feel the emotions coming out of the narrative, especially near the end.
Overall, I'd recommend to fans of contemporary looking for something with an amazing sense of female empowerment, or someone looking for a story where you will feel the successes and failures that the characters experience throughout the book.
I was provided a digital copy of this book in exchange for a review!
July 30, 2021
What an important, immersive and wonderful read filled with heart, humor and girl power. Without being heavy handed, Emma explores sexual assault, family dynamic, and friendship in and effective and relatable way. An empowering read for all teens (parents too)—one I wish I had as a teen!
August 12, 2021
TW: sexual assault and descriptions of violence/violent acts
The cover for this book instantly drew me in. It looked powerful and I wanted to read it, even before I realized that the summary was beyond interesting. I was lucky enough to get a part in a book tour for this book. So I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a honest review.
Zoe and her friends are field hockey players. They are strong and dedicated and determined to make it to the championships. Zoe gets sexually assaulted at a party and the group decides to make sure that no other girl feels unsafe again. They become a badass team of vigilantes that prowl through the town to make sure that everyone feels safe. Eventually things seem to be getting out of hand and the girls have to face whether what they are doing is right and worth it.
I thought that this book was absolutely amazing. The author was able to describe people and items without it feeling as though readers are being drowned in descriptions. I was also immediately drawn into the story and remained immersed the entire time.
I want to make a note about the author’s writing. The author does describe the actions of the sexual assault as well as Zoe’s thoughts during the time. I thought that the author did a great job at describing the attack. It stopped being this perfectly written paragraph with well-formed sentences. It worked well to illustrate Zoe’s thoughts.
The characters were the absolute best part of this book. All of the characters were written in a very realistic way. They were characters that you could root for or characters that you wanted to hate. None of the characters felt overly perfect or too flawed. Zoe is a very interesting character, especially since you get to watch as she has to deal with the mistakes that she’s made.
This book also deals with the issue of vigilantism. The summary tells you that they want to make sure no one gets hurt, but the book actually acknowledges the problems that come from taking the law into your own hand. This isn’t going to be a long post, but there will always be problems with people deserving who deserves what punishment. Kress did a great job at describing the situations and people where you could understand the thought process, even if you didn’t agree with it.
I didn’t really have many issues with this book. My first was the usage of the word fock and fockey. I get that they are field hockey players, but that got annoying after a while. The other thing was that at times it got uncomfortable. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, especially since it was meant to be seen that way, but I don’t necessarily like reading/feeling that way.
I honestly adored this book so much. It was fun and realistic (well, to a point). It featured great characters that took on a serious issue and it handled it well.
~ Check out my other reviews on my Blog, Instagram, or Twitter. ~
The cover for this book instantly drew me in. It looked powerful and I wanted to read it, even before I realized that the summary was beyond interesting. I was lucky enough to get a part in a book tour for this book. So I received a free copy of this book in exchange for a honest review.
Zoe and her friends are field hockey players. They are strong and dedicated and determined to make it to the championships. Zoe gets sexually assaulted at a party and the group decides to make sure that no other girl feels unsafe again. They become a badass team of vigilantes that prowl through the town to make sure that everyone feels safe. Eventually things seem to be getting out of hand and the girls have to face whether what they are doing is right and worth it.
I thought that this book was absolutely amazing. The author was able to describe people and items without it feeling as though readers are being drowned in descriptions. I was also immediately drawn into the story and remained immersed the entire time.
I want to make a note about the author’s writing. The author does describe the actions of the sexual assault as well as Zoe’s thoughts during the time. I thought that the author did a great job at describing the attack. It stopped being this perfectly written paragraph with well-formed sentences. It worked well to illustrate Zoe’s thoughts.
The characters were the absolute best part of this book. All of the characters were written in a very realistic way. They were characters that you could root for or characters that you wanted to hate. None of the characters felt overly perfect or too flawed. Zoe is a very interesting character, especially since you get to watch as she has to deal with the mistakes that she’s made.
This book also deals with the issue of vigilantism. The summary tells you that they want to make sure no one gets hurt, but the book actually acknowledges the problems that come from taking the law into your own hand. This isn’t going to be a long post, but there will always be problems with people deserving who deserves what punishment. Kress did a great job at describing the situations and people where you could understand the thought process, even if you didn’t agree with it.
I didn’t really have many issues with this book. My first was the usage of the word fock and fockey. I get that they are field hockey players, but that got annoying after a while. The other thing was that at times it got uncomfortable. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, especially since it was meant to be seen that way, but I don’t necessarily like reading/feeling that way.
I honestly adored this book so much. It was fun and realistic (well, to a point). It featured great characters that took on a serious issue and it handled it well.
~ Check out my other reviews on my Blog, Instagram, or Twitter. ~
Want to read
July 1, 2021Um yes please.
August 2, 2021
CW: sexual assault/attempted rape (on page), mentions of rape, sexual harassment, misogyny, violence, sports injury (concussion), assault, guns, anxiety, post traumatic stress, bodyshaming, and injury to parent with lasting physical effects.
4.5 stars
This was a very powerful read. It was heartbreaking at times, but I thought the author tackled the issues head on in a realistic and honest way. At times I had a visceral response to what the characters were experiencing. The examination of rape culture was both eye opening and in some ways also sadly not. I think many readers will relate to the situations presented, so please note the content warnings before starting this one.
The writing was engaging and I liked how the sport of field hockey brought all these different individuals together on and off the field. I played field hockey throughout High School, so it was wonderful to see the sport featured in a book. Sometimes the game play scenes felt overly descriptive, but they added an element of excitement and helped convey the different emotions the characters were experiencing. Zoe's growth through the novel was very satisfying and I appreciated how realistic her journey was (the highs and the lows) and how she learned from her choices. Some aspects of the story came together a little too neatly at the end, but ultimately, Dangerous Play is a triumphant and empowering read.
*I voluntarily read an advance review copy of this book*
4.5 stars
This was a very powerful read. It was heartbreaking at times, but I thought the author tackled the issues head on in a realistic and honest way. At times I had a visceral response to what the characters were experiencing. The examination of rape culture was both eye opening and in some ways also sadly not. I think many readers will relate to the situations presented, so please note the content warnings before starting this one.
The writing was engaging and I liked how the sport of field hockey brought all these different individuals together on and off the field. I played field hockey throughout High School, so it was wonderful to see the sport featured in a book. Sometimes the game play scenes felt overly descriptive, but they added an element of excitement and helped convey the different emotions the characters were experiencing. Zoe's growth through the novel was very satisfying and I appreciated how realistic her journey was (the highs and the lows) and how she learned from her choices. Some aspects of the story came together a little too neatly at the end, but ultimately, Dangerous Play is a triumphant and empowering read.
*I voluntarily read an advance review copy of this book*
August 19, 2021
Emma Kress wrote a brilliantly vulnerable and powerful story for women of all ages, but especially young women. It has so many layers of strength, hope, resiliency, change, friendship and love. It is an absolute must read.
December 13, 2020
**I received an ARC from the publisher on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I'm a sucker for books about female hockey players and girls fighting back after being sexually assaulted. This book has both. It's heart warming and heart wrenching. I couldn't get enough of it. You'll be rooting for Zoe.
I'm a sucker for books about female hockey players and girls fighting back after being sexually assaulted. This book has both. It's heart warming and heart wrenching. I couldn't get enough of it. You'll be rooting for Zoe.
August 22, 2021
It's gonna take me some time to fully gather my thoughts about this one. Not because they're conflicted at all. No, because this dealt with so many important topics, and I'm not really sure how to tackle this review. Because yes, this showcased incredible friendships, a sweet romance, and the passion that goes into sports. I would love to rave about all of this. But it also tackled sexual assault, consent, and rape.
These topics made this so hard to read at times, but in a good way. It wasn't pretty, it wasn't right. Our characters didn't react in the best way, and the boys didn't learn or change. Nobody was in the right, which made this so beautiful. There was no magic word to fix anything, and no magic word to fix anyone. This felt real.
On top of that, I loved how this really focused on the friendship between Zoe and her team. They were all so supportive, and even when they didn't agree with each other, they were there for each other. On and off the field, they were there to help.
Speaking of sports, I loved the sports elements in this. As someone who plays a sport, it was so easy to immerse myself into their games. Every interaction felt so realistic. And by the end, I found myself cheering just as loud as Zoe for her team.
Although this book ended up being so far from what I was expecting, I loved it. It had its fluffy moments, it had its hard moments, but not once did it let up. This was an amazing book, and I'm so happy to have a copy of it on my shelves.
Thanks to Turn the Page Tours for providing a free copy!
These topics made this so hard to read at times, but in a good way. It wasn't pretty, it wasn't right. Our characters didn't react in the best way, and the boys didn't learn or change. Nobody was in the right, which made this so beautiful. There was no magic word to fix anything, and no magic word to fix anyone. This felt real.
On top of that, I loved how this really focused on the friendship between Zoe and her team. They were all so supportive, and even when they didn't agree with each other, they were there for each other. On and off the field, they were there to help.
Speaking of sports, I loved the sports elements in this. As someone who plays a sport, it was so easy to immerse myself into their games. Every interaction felt so realistic. And by the end, I found myself cheering just as loud as Zoe for her team.
Although this book ended up being so far from what I was expecting, I loved it. It had its fluffy moments, it had its hard moments, but not once did it let up. This was an amazing book, and I'm so happy to have a copy of it on my shelves.
Thanks to Turn the Page Tours for providing a free copy!
June 8, 2021
4.25 Stars
Content Warnings at end of review.
Thank you to Netgalley and Fierce Reads for an arc of this book.
Zoe Alamander is determined to lead her field hockey team to States this year. Zoe and her co-captain Ava spent the summer recruiting and training the best possible varsity team, and they are going to have each other's backs on and off the field. But when the girls keep experiencing sexual assault and harassment from the boys at their school, they decide to fight back in the shadows.
Wow this book made. its. point! The struggle with rape culture in this book is all too real and extremely poignant. It was honestly making me feel a little sick because I know how true this stuff is in our schools and it was so frustrating to see the same stale arguments and victim-blaming happening in this book. It did such a good job illustrating the power differentials at play and a few of the different ways people might deal with that trauma.
I honestly really liked Zoe and related to her a lot (other than her overactive crush). I loved her determination and the way she fiercely fought for her teammates and friends, and for herself. The sports aspect was very fun!
My only dislike of this book was the pacing. There were times when chapters felt like they ended really abruptly and started later on, and I didn't really like the way that worked. Some of the sports scenes in particular felt really drawn out and detailed, while things I thought were more important didn't always get enough air time.
Overall, I definitely recommend picking this up!
Pub Date: August 3, 2021
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexism, Sexual violence, Rape, Vomit, Violence, Misogyny , Medical content, Gun violence, and Body shaming
Content Warnings at end of review.
Thank you to Netgalley and Fierce Reads for an arc of this book.
Zoe Alamander is determined to lead her field hockey team to States this year. Zoe and her co-captain Ava spent the summer recruiting and training the best possible varsity team, and they are going to have each other's backs on and off the field. But when the girls keep experiencing sexual assault and harassment from the boys at their school, they decide to fight back in the shadows.
Wow this book made. its. point! The struggle with rape culture in this book is all too real and extremely poignant. It was honestly making me feel a little sick because I know how true this stuff is in our schools and it was so frustrating to see the same stale arguments and victim-blaming happening in this book. It did such a good job illustrating the power differentials at play and a few of the different ways people might deal with that trauma.
I honestly really liked Zoe and related to her a lot (other than her overactive crush). I loved her determination and the way she fiercely fought for her teammates and friends, and for herself. The sports aspect was very fun!
My only dislike of this book was the pacing. There were times when chapters felt like they ended really abruptly and started later on, and I didn't really like the way that worked. Some of the sports scenes in particular felt really drawn out and detailed, while things I thought were more important didn't always get enough air time.
Overall, I definitely recommend picking this up!
Pub Date: August 3, 2021
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexism, Sexual violence, Rape, Vomit, Violence, Misogyny , Medical content, Gun violence, and Body shaming
July 31, 2021
*Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an early copy of this book for review, all opinions are my own*
Audiobook!
Trigger warning: rape, abuse and gun threatening
This is a very good and very important book, but at the same time it makes me a little apprehensive.
For me this is the kind of book every teenage girl should read, but I think it should be read and discussed, because as much as the topics covered in this book are very real it is still fiction and in real life things don't happen that way, where everything works out in the end.
This book is great for girls to read and not feel alone and understand their feelings, our protagonist grows up and learns a lot in this book and I think if I were between 14-16 years old I would identify a lot with Zoey and her growing up.
It would teach me a lot, but I've grown up and I've already passed this stage, that's why I can see how some things in this book only work because it's a book.
I think this book is perfect for reading and discussing in classrooms and book clubs.
I found it very necessary but I know that some things that happen in this book, however much they served as a lesson for our protagonist, it was wrong and that's not how things happen in real life!
Audiobook!
Trigger warning: rape, abuse and gun threatening
This is a very good and very important book, but at the same time it makes me a little apprehensive.
For me this is the kind of book every teenage girl should read, but I think it should be read and discussed, because as much as the topics covered in this book are very real it is still fiction and in real life things don't happen that way, where everything works out in the end.
This book is great for girls to read and not feel alone and understand their feelings, our protagonist grows up and learns a lot in this book and I think if I were between 14-16 years old I would identify a lot with Zoey and her growing up.
It would teach me a lot, but I've grown up and I've already passed this stage, that's why I can see how some things in this book only work because it's a book.
I think this book is perfect for reading and discussing in classrooms and book clubs.
I found it very necessary but I know that some things that happen in this book, however much they served as a lesson for our protagonist, it was wrong and that's not how things happen in real life!
August 9, 2021
Well, *intensely rubs eyes* well, well.
PARKOUR
I’m so sorry, I hate myself so much for saying that. Pfft. Oh dear, I’m wheezing. I’ll write a review when I can put into mature words what I felt for this ever so heartbreaking and renewing debut novel
PARKOUR
I can’t breathe
For background: My brain has been traumatized by sad books and sad movies so that’s me coming to terms that I have the humor of a toddler and I cannot delve into more serious topics because I’ll either get shattered or absolutely enraged.
PARKOUR
PARKOUR
For background: My brain has been traumatized by sad books and sad movies so that’s me coming to terms that I have the humor of a toddler and I cannot delve into more serious topics because I’ll either get shattered or absolutely enraged.
August 18, 2021
Dangerous Play is a multi-layered book full of heart. The author expertly manages the complexity of emotions for those sexually assaulted and most importantly, offers hope. Zoe's well-intentioned but misguided response to a world that doesn't believe girls' stories of assault is understandable and sets the stage for her transformation as she helps create a larger community who reject rape culture. The story is fast paced; the subplot around family dysfunction, winning states, and her love interest are just as exciting.
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