This was ok but I really didn't feel that invested in the story or the characters. It took me a while to finish because I kept losing interest. I finally finished it but it wasn't spectacular for me or anything. I had high hopes for this.

My Review:⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/ 5 stars

A mix between Fleabag, Sex and the city, and Bridget Jones and you get Londoners Nina Dean and her friend Lola. Nina is in her mid 30s, owns her own flat, has a successful career that she enjoys, and has wonderful friends, including her ex boyfriend Joe. Now that he is engaged to Lucy and her friend Katherine is on their 2nd baby and moved to the suburbs, she feels left behind and lonely. Nina decides to download Linx (similar to Tinder) and meets Max, a handsome man who she has insane chemistry with. They date, he sweeps her off her feet, tells her he loves her, and talks about their future. Then he ghosts her.

The book is absolutely witty, fun, and reminded me of dating in the world of social media and dating apps. The effects of ghosting are frustrating and it is hilarious reading it from Nina’s POV and her friend Lola. There were parts that were a bit slow and her relationship with her father who is suffering from Alzheimers is heartbreaking. In ways it is very similar to how she is being treated in her love life (being ghosted ) and ignored and her own father slowly forgetting their memories. Overall, a solid rom-com read!

Thank you to Knopf and netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

Ghosts was an unexpected surprise. Nina Dean a charming, intelligent and attractive thirty something puts herself out there on a dating app looking for that special someone. As the title suggests the man, Max, overwhelms her and then just disappears. This seems to be a phenomenon that occurs often in this age of social media.
As broken hearted as she is, her life of friends and family are rife with complications and needs. More than Max is becoming a ghost to her. Recently I’ve read a few stories about millennials trying to find their way but this author Dolly Alderton realistically captures their lives. Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for a copy of this book.

Nina has had a rough year with different ups and downs that she is navigating (sometimes well, sometimes not so well!) It was a good read but I didn't love it. It was frustrating to have her take Max back a second time after he ghosted her so well the first time, did she really expect a different outcome?

As we get older friendships, family, and relationships change. This journey of a year in the life of Nina tackles all these changes and more.

I don’t know what I expected from this book, but whatever it was this was not what I thought it would be. To be honest, I really disliked this book for the first 150ish pages. I considered not finishing it, but decided to read one more chapter… and something switched and it became so much more meaningful then just a guy ghosting a woman.

This book touches on so many real-life scenarios we face as we age. Relationships (friendship, family, romantic) change as we get older and sometimes it’s hard to see until we take a deep look. Ghosts really is about relationships and being who you are instead of being what people expect you to be.

Nina is a very relatable woman in her early thirties who has a successful career, close friendships, and a strong bond with her father. Upon her 31st birthday, she decides that it’s time to start dating again. She remains very close with her ex-boyfriend, but hasn’t really dated anyone since they broke up years earlier. As she downloads the dating app, Linx, she ponders the possibility of a new romance. But like real life, nothing goes as planned. She meets Max. He seems perfect and Nina is head over heels for him. And then he ghosts her. And this amazing life she had becomes more challenging than she can handle. Her dad is quickly fading away into dementia and she feels like her mother is not realizing the seriousness of the situation. Her best friend is pregnant with baby #2 and cannot see outside her suburban family life. Her ex is in a serious relationship. Her downstairs neighbor is driving her crazy. It feels like suddenly this perfect life Nina had built is crashing down around her.

I ended up really enjoying this book. A lot of it really hit home with me. Learning how to navigate changing friendships, aging parents, dating, and work alters as we age. And this book really showcases that. It also addresses who we are vs. who we are supposed to be. Should a person start dating because there is societal pressure to do so? Or should they realize they are perfectly content in their life and happy with the work they do and relationships they have in their life?

If you’re in your thirties, this book might hit home for you. I found it very relatable.

Rating: 3.5/5

Ghosts by Dolly Alderton is a unique take on the dating world in one’s 30s. Nina Dean is a successful food and cookbook writer. She has a solid group of friends, including her ex boyfriend and his new lady. Nina owns her own condo and is sailing through her early thirties except for the fact she has no fellow in her life and her beloved father, William Dean, is slipping slowly away with the effects of Alzheimer’s.

This novel follows Nina through two years of her life, including the birth of her best childhood friend’s children, the loneliness of her best adult friend, the marriage of her ex boyfriend, and the slow loss of her father. In this time period she meets the man she thinks is her dream come true but when he ghosts her he becomes her worst nightmare. In fact, it is feeling like everyone is a ghost in Nina’s life in one way or another.

This is a very interesting tale of the in between stage of life. Although I found this good difficult to get into I was sure my perseverance would pay off and it did. I did find this an interesting read and do recommend it to those who enjoy a quirky take on life.

Ghosts by Dolly Alderton is a stream-of-consciousness/not-really-meant-for-public-consumption novel documenting a year in the life of Nina George Dean, a 32/33-year old female who is looking for love, looking to renew old friendships, and taking car of her aging, quirky parents. She is, in places, amusing, and colorful. Her comments on society, her surroundings, and the people she knows are often hilarious, sometimes unkind, and always personal. She is a good friend. Overall, the style just doesn't appeal to me.

I was invited to read a free e-ARC of Ghosts by Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are mine. #netgalley #ghosts

I received an eARC of Ghosts by Dolly Alderton from Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you!
2 stars. The description promised more than was delivered. I wanted so badly to like this book, but unfortunately, it was not for me.

Unfortunately this book just didn't do it for me. I had never read this author before and based on the description was expecting a light-hearted, funny read. It met these expectations at certain points, but overall I felt like it was a lot of ranting and at times the tone just felt angry. Without giving any spoilers, I felt like some of the things that happened were very unlikely. Parts of the story were heartwarming. It was an easy read and I did like the characters. Thanks NetGalley for the opportunity to read the ARC.

This ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to like this book a lot more than I did. It tries very hard to find that a balance between seriousness about import issues with humor and romance, however, the end result just didn’t do it for me. This book started out so slow and boring I almost didn’t finish reading it but pushed through.

I thought the main character Nina was an okay character who brought something to the table, but honestly not enough. I enjoyed her relationship with her family the most in the story, I found her friends full and annoying and her relationships rushed and lacking. Overall this book just wasn’t for me, while it was well written and witty I just didn’t really enjoy the story.

A different reading for anyone who wants to meet a new author in the literary world.

Nina "George" Dean (named after singer George Michael who was the musical sensation with the band Wham! at the time of Nina's birth), is making her birthday. Already at the age of 30, famous with published cookbooks, she sees several of her friends or acquaintances with an established family life, with children, buying a house in the suburbs, and asking her why she's not taking the next step of being a "responsible person".
So, she decides to enter the Linx app to try to find someone. After 3 weeks, she finally has her first date in a pub (thank god the guy wanted to meet her in a public place!). At first glance there's no chemistry, but after three drinks the subject gets more interesting and Max says he's going to marry her.
This only on the first date!

But throughout the reading - in which the reader follows practically a year of Nina's life - other questions appear, and Nina, as well as her friend Lola, discover the dark side of current relationships.

Dolly's writing has a characteristic of being very detailed, as soon as she starts a subject absolutely everything about that subject is dissected. Depending on the subject, this can be funny...or boring.
Her sarcasm is a little reminiscent of Nora Ephron's way of being (Gosh! How I miss Nora!), but I confess that I skipped some parts of the book that were too long.
The feeling I got when I finished the book is that once again life slammed the door in my face, and I didn't like it.
The story is interesting, some passages are really funny, Max and Jethro are two idiots. Period.
3 stars

I couldn't get into this book. Finally after setting it aside for awhile at 23% in I decided I should just review what I had read so far. Written okay, wanted to get into it, but couldn't. Not my cup of tea. Thanks for the opportunity.

Absolutely loved this. I wasn't sure how Alderton's writing style would translate to fiction (I've always loved her essays), but I shouldn't have doubted her - Ghosts was as beautifully written as any of her nonfiction, with a complex, thoughtful plot that kept me reading long past bedtime.

Nina George Dean. She felt like my best friend. She annoyed me. She made me laugh. I wanted to hug her. I wanted to shake her. I loved her.

A beautiful, raw, human story about navigating friendships, aging parents, and looking for love.

Can I get a part 2 please? Not ready to give these characters away.

This is the author’s first book, so I feel bad being critical about it. After reading the title I was excited to read it. Then it became a plodding story with way too much inner voice and stream of consciousness. Nina is a food writer in her 30s and single. She meets Max on a dating app and things are going well until she stops hearing from him. He ghosts her. She goes on with her life until he comes back. Things are good until he does it again. While all of this is going on, her friends are dealing with their own relationship issues and Nina and her family confront her father’s illness. There were times I really liked this book, but ultimately it was way too wordy. I would have liked to hear more about Nina’s work as a food writer which is something she doesn’t talk about much.

While single, Nina has a very full life. Her career is successful, she owns her own flat and has a nice social life with her friends. She had a relationship with Joe (her only real boyfriend) for seven years, but while they have broken up, they are still best friends. When one of her friends convinces her to download a dating app. Her first date is with Max, who seems to be her perfect match. When Max suddenly ghosts her, she is forced to deal with other things related to her life. Her father has Alzheimer’s, her downstairs neighbor is driving her crazy and she is having difficulty with writing her second book. This seems like an accurate depiction of single women in their 30s.

Also reviewed on B&N - 1IrishEyes430 and Kobo - IrishEyes430

Thank you so much to #Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.
I loved to hate this book. What I mean was I HATED what happened Nina but it was so typical.
For anyone who wants to know what it's like being a single woman in this day and age, Ghosts is perfect for you!

I really enjoyed this book. It was beautifully written and I truly cared about the narrator and what would happen. I even highlighted a few sentences which is a first for me. I think both women and men will relate to this book because we’re all looking for love. Whether it’s a parent’s love or that of a life partner. Happy reading!!

TYSM to NetGalley for the copy of this book.

Ugh, what a brilliant read. Story aside, this was my first time reading anything by Dolly Alderton and I can confidently say that I want to read her words forever. The way she writes is so beautiful, and the life she gave to her characters was palpable. The love and heartache that Nina was feeling felt incredibly real, and the way the novel unfolded it made you feel as though you were right by Nina's side joining her and her pals on all their crazy adventures.

I can't wait to dive into more of Dolly Alderton's work.