This short novel is a quick read that sucks you in and keeps you in its grasps until you finish it.

I requested a copy of this book on netgalley because I was really in the mood to read something that satisfied my guilty pleasure for paranormal YA. This book did just that; 13 year old me would have been in love!

This book explores some interesting themes such as grief, bullying and has multiple characters who care for their parent in one way or another. Although at times there are some situations that are not handled as they should be and do not appear to hold the weight they should have (the video), the book overall tells an interesting narrative with a complex main character and interesting surrounding characters. Most of the characters featured in the narrative are well fleshed out and have their own personality rather than just being the side-kick or bad guy.

I gave this three stars because whilst I thought the book was good, I do not think that I am the target demographic. The plot was interesting and original (at least I haven't read something similar) and I read this in a couple of sittings. As the novel is relatively short there was always something to pull you in and make you read on in almost every chapter which made me want to come back to it and finish it. Overall, I am glad I read this book, I feel like it has pulled me out of a reading slump and definitely satisfied my need for some paranormal fiction.

I received a free copy of THE GHOST HUNTER’S DAUGHTER by Caroline Flarity, through NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review. Anna Fagan is a social outcast with only two close friends. Anna, who witnessed her mother’s murder, has more problems than her high school classmates calling her “Goblin Girl.” Though Anna’s dad is a famous ghost hunter celebrated for his innovations in the field, he’s a wreck in private; his hoarding’s spilling out of the house and onto the lawn. However, when the high school hijinks turn even crueler than usual, Anna begins to suspect there’s a larger problem than teenagers being teenagers. Can Anna figure out what’s going on before she loses her two friends, what’s left of her family, and her self-respect, or will Anna become a victim of her own dark impulses?

This was an interesting book. It was pretty dark. Anna is damaged from her past and lives in a pretty grim environment with no support from her remaining parent. Moreover, Anna has to face the derision and abuse of her classmates on daily basis. Anna’s entire world is already so dark, she’s the only one to notice when the little remaining light begins to disappear. In trying to save her town, she manages to save herself.

🤯🤯🤯

This book was beyond amazing, it was spooky and creepy and absolutely hooked me.

I wish I could read this book for the first time again and again.

3.75 dark stars, willingly given

The blurb to #theghosthuntersdaugher sounded intriguing but I wasn't really sure what to expect. It's good, then, that #NetGalley and the publisher East Side Press gave me the opportunity to have a look at this short book. Even the amazing cover already suggest that goosebumps-inducing hours lay ahead for me, but - heck - this is one dark story and not just because of the supernatural elements. Who would have thought? Do not let the main character's age and circumstances (high school) fool you. I would go as far and say this book needs a trigger warning, as cases of sexual pedophilic(ish) assault and self-harm are treated in this book. I must say I loved the sinister atmosphere of the book. The author made the world come alive vividly and it helped me to get sucked into this book. Usually, mystery and thriller are not on top of my genre-list but this obviously needs to change! So, let's dive into this book.

To most people, teenager Anna is known as Goblin Girl. Her Dad Jack, supernaturalist expert on everything that could even remotely be creepy, hunts ghosts, shadow people and demons for a living and is undeniably one weird character. Ever since his wife Helen's death - inflicted on her by a demon that possessed her - his hoarding has gone out of control and self-care doesn't seem to be a top priority on his agenda either. He also appears to be a bit out of date, as Anna frequently reminds him of: "There is a thing, Dad, a research tool you may not have heard of. It's called the internet." As someone whose dad still asks about "this google", I can relate 100%. Although I am pretty confident my dad's awkwardness would never result in "social death", something, Anna swears frequently, her Dad would be easily capable of by expanding his "business".

Anyhow, the weariness of the townspeople and her peers and the burden to be the one to keep Jack's sense for reality in check lie heavy on Anna's shoulders. This only adds to the hard life of a high schooler that gets taunted day in day out by her peers. Things with her friends aren't ideal at the moment either, and they keep getting worse. Just like everything else in this god-forsaken town seems to spindle down the moral scale about 50 m/h. This can't be normal, can it? Sure, teenagers are among the cruellest beings on earth, but the reader can't help noticing that things are getting increasingly hostile around town. Anna herself can't keep from snapping at her friends and forsaking them for the school musician and douche Craig and having hostile urges that are just a tad too violent to be regular emotional outlets. Supported by her dad's new assistant Genevieve, a hippie but hot PhD that has invented a special EMF detector that is supposed to seriously up their game, Anna starts digging and doing some research. And sure enough, there are bigger powers at work. And they are, for sure, not good.

Before closing this review, I would like to get back to the beginning of my review and draw special attention to a couple of quotes. Now, sit down, because I almost screamed out loud when reading this. There is this instant when "...Pickens pulled Sydney on his lap [and] she smiled at him, conditioned as she was to be a good girl and not hurt anyone's feelings." Serious groping on his part was involved shortly after, accompanied by panicked looks from Sidney. Sidney, Anna and Dor do what they can and group up against Pickens and tell Sidney's dad about, and "He looked at her with hard eyes. "Boys will be boys.", he said." Nooo, he didn't, you might think. It's his own daughter, you argue. Well, Duh, but MEN WILL BE MEN, won't they? It is clearly intended to add to the eerie feeling of the story and even though this is not discussed explicitly further, the author clearly criticizes this and other flaws of today's sexist, victim-blaming patriarchic society. To close this sexist rant with a couple of encouraging words for anyone who is tortured by average gobeshytes or even their S.O. who is SO NOT worth it by the Goblin Girl Anna herself: "Let's leave that jerk in the trash where he belongs."

Just about over 200 pages, this author did a very good job developing the story and speeding it up just in time to not make me wonder when the actual action would start. I had a bit of trouble getting in touch with Anna sometimes, but this is definitely owed to the fact that I am about a decade older than her and could probably still relate a little too much to the annoying stupidity of teenagers. "Over the summer, she and Craig shared music and chatted online, and since junior year started a few weeks ago, they'd flirted in the hallways, exchanging a few heat-inducing glances." I am pretty sure anybody my age knows exactly, that by "heat-inducing glances" between teenagers pretty much translate to smug but awkward staring. Also, Anna's character traits are badly influenced by the forces at work, so that excuses the action that made me want to squeeze her neck just a little too tight *insert creepy smiley here*.
__________________
Writing Quality + ease of reading = 4*

pace = 3* (At about 25% I was getting worried the highly expected thrills would not kick in)

plot development = 3,5*

characters = 4* (yes, I'm sorry, teenager are exhausting and yeeees I knew from the beginning what I was getting into...)

enjoyability = 4* (This book was so deliciously sinister, know I want MORE)

insightfulness = 4* (there were some very serious issues tackled here and I actually liked that the flaws of today's sexist society were put on display so many times, because PEOPLE NEED TO HEAR THIS)
___________________

This eArc was provided by the publisher East Side Press via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC! 

I’m usually not a big fan of stories about the supernatural but this was a surprisingly good read. It reads a little like Buffy but for a much younger crowd.

At its core, the book is very much about the father-daughter relationship between Anna and Jack following years after her mother’s death AND how they deal with Jack’s mental health. The supernatural element was a nice aspect to what could read as Quiet YA.

In my opinion, this book would fit into the Teen shelf of a bookstore. The book reads a bit juvenile at times but that’s nothing bad - I think I just prefer books which read at the older end. One big plus for Teen readers is the humor which is effortlessly written.

The main issue I have with this book is the fact that a lot of the characters were quite… meh. They don’t seem to be very interesting or have much depth to them. I would have really liked to explore Jack’s hoarding in much more detail as well as more about Anna’s grief regarding her mother.

All in all, the book is a pleasant read and something to keep your mind off day to day things!

I really liked this book! I was not able to finish it because of the book glitching on the device I am using but since I really liked it I hope to get it in a physical copy since it is out now and finish it up. Overall this was such a fun light read and I can’t wait till I finish it up.

This book will appeal to younger YA readers who enjoy being mildly spooked. I appreciated the unique quirks of certain characters that you do not usually see represented in YA fiction (from hyperhydrosis - never see that talked about in fiction - to hoarding).

An escapist read that would be perfect for a summer camping trip, or in September when fall is just creeping into the edges of the season.

Thank you so much to Netgalley for this ARC! As an avid fan of Buffy, Supernatural, and The X-Files, I was immediately drawn to this story of ghosts, demons, and the heroes that hunt them. It was a thrill ride to say the least; Sunnydale's Hellmouth on CRACK!

We dive into Anna's life, which is as messy and rotten as the house she lives in. Her mom killed herself because of a demon that had possessed her, and her dad was never the same after. I loved the exploration into his grief, which manifested itself in his hoarding. It gets worse as worse as the story reaches its climax, and it's heartbreaking to actually see the physical sign of his pain. He's unable to let anything go, including the memory of his late wife.

Anna has her own problems outside of this, though. She is constantly bullied at school for being the daughter of a ghost hunter. Nicknamed Goblin Girl, kids are either scared of her, disgusted by her, or turned on by her. None of this is wanted attention, and so she seeks affection from a boy in a band who could care less about her. She finds her only other solace in her two friends, Dor and Freddy.

Things start to go sideways, and Anna is plagued with nightmares, headaches, and violent thoughts. She sees people she's been surrounded by her whole life turn nasty or sullen, and she knows something supernatural has to be to blame. By tapping into her genetic connection to the Source (the metaphorical light at the end of the tunnel), she uncovers the truth of her diseased and demon-infested town, and begins a journey to not only save her town, but to finally figure out who she is.

The thing I loved most about this narrative was the supernatural lore. It was interesting and compelling, and unlike anything I've ever read before. There was a myriad of beings: shadow people, Tricksters, demons-- all who had their own time to shine and it never felt like there was too much being crammed into one story. They all had their own specific purpose and I was left feeling like I had just finished watching a season of one of my favorite supernatural shows. It was a rollercoaster ride of thrills, chills, and despair, and I loved every second!

A book that sounds like it should be the love child of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Supernatural ends up being a bit too juvenile for my tastes.

“The Ghost Hunter’s Daughter” finds Anna struggling to pick up the pieces after her mother’s death while handling the social consequences of her fathers profession when painful headaches and uncontrollable thoughts of violence threaten to tear her apart and it doesn’t take long before she realizes that whatever this evil is has set it’s sights on everyone in town.

This book is okay I feel like it would appeal to a younger crowd than myself which is fine. I felt like a lot of the problems outside of the demon hunting were way too cliché for me to really care but it did get interesting to see how the demons influence was able to take these conflicts and twist them into something far more unsettling that they usually play out.

Anna was great but she has her moments when I wanted to shake her especially when it came to the love story. I feel like she went through a lot and it was nice to see how strong she was fighting both the mundane and supernatural forces that were determined to drag her down but everyone else were pretty forgettable.

This isn’t a bad book and there’s definitely a lot of action and gore to keep things moving but unfortunately it just didn’t work for me.

**special thanks to the publishers and netgalley for providing an arc in exchange for a fair and honest review**

While The Ghost Hunter’s Daughter isn’t the most literary book, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have fun because dammit, this book is a lot of fun! I have a soft spot for kind of hokey supernatural young adult fiction, and Caroline Flarity’s novel here satisfies that soft spot. Parts of it are very well written, and parts move a little too slowly, but it’s a quick read. And like I said, it’s a fun time, and how can I be mad at that?