I hate to use the word "charming" to describe a book, because it conjures up twee images of cottages and cups of tea and seaside villages -- that is not what this book is. I say "charming" because I was quite literally charmed by this book -- by Nina as our 30-something protagonist and by all of the characters who surround her as part of her story of self and love and adulthood. I was especially drawn to her dear father, a character who has a very moving journey of his own.

The author's language and choice of words and phrases made me feel like -- "wow! Same wavelength! I know *exactly* what she means!" regularly throughout the book.

The mark of a five-star book for me is when I find myself thinking about the characters throughout the day, eager to get back to the story. Will eagerly recommend "Ghosts" to others, and will snap up anything else I find by this author. 5/5 stars.

This book tore me in two directions. One, with the father of the main character, made me sad. The other just was unbelievable how absolutely awful the other men in the book were- all of them! It was an interesting read but not one I'll return to.

<blockquote><I>"The sexiest, most exciting, romantic, explosive feeling in the world is a matter of a few centimeters of skin being stroked for the first time in a public place. The first confirmation of desire. The first indication of intimacy. You only get that feeling with a person once."</I></blockquote>

Nina is 32 and single. She has finally bought her dream apartment in London, thanks to her success as a recipe developer/book writer. She has two best friends, one from childhood and one from her university days, and is on good, friendly terms with her ex-boyfriend. On the family-front there are certainly some issues. Nina's dad, who she is closest to, is suffering from dementia and it's getting progressively worse, but her and her mom are handling things as best they can, just taking one day at a time. For the most part, Nina sounds like a friend we all know or a reflection of ourselves. She's successful, stable, funny, kind, pretty - so why is she still single? Well, Nina and her ex, Joe, were together for 7 years before they both decided that they loved each other, but weren't <I>in love</I>. They were best friends in uni and thought that would be the foundation of a lifelong partnership, but truth is they weren't soulmates. So, yeah, Nina's single and 32 but she's a little new to the dating game. Enter her perpetually single friend from uni Lola, who sets her up on the dating app Linx and thus begins Nina's tumultuous experience with the 21st century's version of torture, I mean, online dating. And boy does it torture the heck out of Nina.

If I had to summarize the themes in this debut fiction novel from Dolly Alderton, I would boil it down to these three:

1. Men think they like easy-going, relaxed, wild, carefree, women. Evidence shows that they "marry" or "settle down" with confident, self-assured women who know their self-worth, what they deserve and aren't afraid to ask for, no, demand it.

Alderton reinforces this observation several times throughout the novel as Nina (our tomboyish, single protagonist) admires and reveres at any and every woman who is capable of knowing and speaking their mind and yet has people who still respects and loves them. Nina has grown up thinking that in order to be liked, or keep a boyfriend, she must be flexible, mutable to suit the needs and wants of whoever she is with at the moment. And central to this book is her discovery that, yes, men tend to like and date women who agree with everything they say and laugh at all their jokes, but if being agreeable is the foundation of your relationship with someone, then that well is going to run dry in a few months, or years time. Men ultimately marry women who know what they want out of a relationship, a partner, and life. These women aren't afraid to guide the men they meet and tell them explicitly what they want. Men can't read minds, and they really don't want to anyway.

<blockquote><I>"But the most compelling thing about Vivien was the spell of guruism she cast on whoever she met while being unaware of her own addictive didacticism. She would utter throwaway thoughts that would become fundamental truth to whoever heard them. She once told me to "always order turbot, if turbot is on the menu" (I always order turbot) and that "all scents are tacky other than rose" (I have since only worn rose perfume). I had never met a woman surer of her own thoughts and instincts, and it was an invigorating thing to behold."</I></blockquote>

<blockquote><I>"I'd never in my life met someone so sure of what it is they not only wanted but what they deserved. I knew then, on our first date, that you were the only person I wanted to be with. You inspire me, you organize me [...] you help me strive to become the best man I can be. I once read that the definition of love is 'being the guardian of another person's solitude.' Lucy, I promise that for the rest of my life-which is as long as I will love you-you will never, ever be alone."</I></blockquote>

2. Parents are imperfect people and there comes a time when they will need your care and support as much as you need theirs. The thing is, for so long, they are our superiors, wiser, more experienced, knowledgeable in all things in life. We get used to seeking their comfort and getting their advice without having to impart any in return. And then one day, it's usually a specific event or a look or a conversation, and it hits you - your parents are old. They've got their own problems and demons that they're struggling with and it's not fair to fault them for not being perfect and not spending every minute of time you spend together focused on you and your problems. Nina deals with this and comes to this harsh realization over the length of the novel and it's lovely to see her relationship with her parents evolve into something new that she can accept and appreciate.

<blockquote><I>"I had never known a feeling as unbearable-as sour, wrenching and unshakably sad-as pity for a parent."</I></blockquote>

3. Ghosts of people, contrary to popular belief, are more vibrant, emphasized versions of who they were in real life. Our memories amplify and magnify all of their good qualities and our minds fills in any holes or inconsistencies, creating a memory of the perfect man, now gone. We cherish these ghosts

<blockquote><I>"Only now do I realize that the first night I spent with Max, I was looking for evidence of past lovers. I wanted him inside me so I could search for the ghosts inside him. In the absence of any context for who he was, I was gathering forensics from the inerasable fingerprints that had been left by those who had handled him."</I></blockquote>

<blockquote><I>"So much of the love you feel for a person is dependent on the vast archive of shared memories you can access just by seeing their face or hearing their voice. When I saw Dad, I didn't just see a seventy-seven-year-old man with black-and-gray hair, I saw him in a swimming pool in Spain teaching me how to front crawl and I saw him waving at me in a crowd on graduation day. I saw him dropping me off for my first morning of primary school and leading the conga line around the living room at a Christmas Eve drinks party in our flat in Albyn Square."</I></blockquote>

<blockquote><I>"I woke up every morning and checked my phone hoping for a message from him, as I had done for months, and in a half-sleep state would feel disappointment. Then I'd turn to see him lying asleep next to me-a pile of sinewy limbs and golden curly hair. I had the flesh and blood version of Max, but I still felt like I was being haunted by the virtual one."</I> </blockquote>

<blockquote><I>"Or maybe that's all love is. So much is how we perceive someone and the memories we have of them, rather than the facts of who they are. Maybe instead of saying I love you we should say I imagine you."</I></blockquote>

Overall, this is a strong first venture into fiction. Notably, I was so captivated and invested in Nina's life, like she was my own friend telling me the riveting story of how she got ghosted by the same guy *twice* in one year, that I stayed up until 3 am just to finish this book. Dolly Alderton has written a modern romantic comedy full of characters you'll immediately recognize, going through relationship, friendship, and family drama that almost anyone under the age of 40 can relate to. It's laugh-out-loud funny at time, and absolutely heartbreaking at others. It's the modern woman's journey and exploration of love, solitude, self-confidence, friendship, and family that, while not necessarily timeless, is undoubtedly <I>timely</I>. This book is perfect for fans of Sally Rooney, Taylor Jenkins Reid, and Lily King.

Finally, can we take a moment to appreciate the STUNNING colors/cover design for the US edition? I love it.

Thank you to Netgalley, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, and Dolly Alderton for providing me an e-arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

3.7, rounded
The relationships between Nina and Bill, Joe, and Lola were lovely, but the ways she related to Kateherine, Max, and Mandy were almost unreadable. Overall, it took way too long to get to a payout point with any of them.

This novel made me relive my twenties entirely and it was a rollercoaster, to be sure. I imagine we have all ghosts, family drama, friends that have fallen off the radar, and this book gives redemption for living that.

I’m not sure where I’d categorize this book in my mind. I kept getting “Normal People” Sally Rooney vibes. It’s well written which made me want to know where the story was going to go and how it ended, but it was so very wordy. I felt myself skimming pages and not feeling like I missed anything in the story. I know people love that artsy literary vibe and I do love a contemporary approach to fiction, but I just wish it was maybe fifty pages shorter. I liked the characters, minus Max (that dude was an asshole.) But everyone else in the book, I’d love to hear from again.

“You have your bicycle, now pedal it.” Hoping to get to read a following up to see what these characters are up to.

Ghost is a quick read that was pegged a laugh-out-loud rom-com but for me, the description did not fit. I felt it was more of a coming of age story (albeit a bit late)...maybe a ''coming of age again'' story.

I loved our heroine Nina. Smart, sassy, fun, sarcastic, a great friend, devoted daughter, good neighbor aside from one strange incident, just an all-around likable character for me.

I adored Nina's bestie, Lola. We all need a Lola in our lives.

My only issue with Nina and this storyline is how she handles things with Max.

****SPOILER ahead****

Why didn't she just go to his house and confront him? They were inseparable for months. This part of the story really bothered me and felt silly. Even when the idea was brought up it was dismissed because she would have appeared to be a stalker or somehow this would embarrass her. However she confronted another man in this same way from a place of strength. So much pain could have been avoided with one simple visit.

****End of SPOILER***

This one issue was not enough to turn me off from the book but it did impact my rating. Thank you for letting me read this book and I look forward to reading more from Dolly in the future.

This one started out a bit slowly, but picked up speed. I enjoyed the laughs and look forward to more books by this author. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

The story starts off a bit slow however it picks back up quick. It’s a story lots of ladies are going to relate to. I class it as chick lit, beach read type of book.

I’ve never been so disappointed at not enjoying a book before. The writing is impeccable. There’s such attention to detail that gives the book such depth, yet somehow that’s also the pitfall of this book. There’s so much attention to detail (however well written) that it detracts from the actual story.

All I can tell you is this book is about a young 30-something year old woman dealing with all the things normal people deal with: awkward break-ups, aging (some well, some not so well) parents, friends at differing points in life, and navigating online dating. But if there was a point in there, I lost it. Felt more like I made a new friend who just gave me her whole life story at a coffee date I didn’t ask for.

Also, Max gave me such creepy vibes. So there’s that.

I wanted to give it 2 stars but relented and gave 3 simply for the writing skill. The story itself deserved 1 or 2 stars.

Thanks NetGalley for the copy in exchange for this honest review.

Ghosts is definitely a laugh-out-loud romantic comedy.

It had me laughing the entire book. Here you will find that Nina does not mind being single. Actually, she is doing great. She is about to publish another book, owns her own place, and has enough friends to keep her entertained.

Suddenly she meets a great guy. However, soon Max ghosts her and now she is trying very hard to ignore his behavior and everything else that is happening in her life.

The overall storyline was quite enjoyable and you cannot help but fall in love with the characters. I hope to read more from this author.

I thought this book was so relatable for me. I felt very connected to Nina and what she was going through as I feel like we’re in the same boat in a lot of ways. The way she depicted dating today was so spot on. I feel like after reading this I’m a little more confident in singledom. This book shows that you don’t always have to go along with what other people think you should do with your life and start living it for yourself. I will definitely be recommending this one to all my single friends!

I had seen this title for quite a while and was curious about it. When it popped up on NetGalley I went for it immediately. I was nervous it wouldn’t live up to the hype, but I’m happy to say it did. Now for the good and bad.

The Good

I loved the realism of how a relationship went south without Nina having a say.
I loved that this was a repeat offense. (Cuz she’s hard headed)
I loved that she learned to pick herself up and continue
I loved that she was still a good friend
I loved the way her family was portrayed and their very realistic struggles
I loved that Nina learned to see what was truly important and to be ok with her circumstances

The Bad

That neighbor scene left me scratching my head. I just didn’t get it.

Overall, this was a great read and I think it is a realistic look at the challenges we face in life.

Not sure what i expected from this book but it was an interesting read and was enjoyable. I will be watching for more by her! Thank you netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc in exchange for a review.

This book sort of in the romance or chick lit genre offers one of the strongest and most relatable main characters I have seen recently.

After becoming a food writer, Nina realizes its time to start dating again, and with the help of an app and the advice of her friends, she does. More than that, this book is about growing up, dealing with family issues, and so much more. I really enjoyed the protagonist and the entire story.

I found it difficult to read this book. The book as it is now, is too wordy and feels like the author is trying to write a literary novel. This reads like a jumble of Shakespeare plays put together. The prologue was interesting, but the first chapter was not interesting. I would not recommend this book as it is currently. Please edit this book thoroughly before it is published.

Dolly Alderton’s new book, Ghosts, is enjoyable, entertaining, and a wee bit haunting, as it should be. Don’t get me wrong, though, it’s not a thriller...it’s a lovely British rom-com with “ghosts” at every turn. Childhood memories, lost love, a new love acting oddly ghoulish, aging parents yearning for their lost memories...so many beautiful reminders that life is for the living and that there is no escaping hard times.... it’s what you do with and learn from these times that matters. This book is a gentle voice reminding us all what being human really means. Thank you NetGalley for an advanced eCopy of this delightful book.

This felt like the equivalent of a solid brunch with a good friend after a long while away. Charming, witty, and so refreshing - it felt like Dolly read my mind about the woes of modern dating with no holds barred. It was such a comforting read as well, she describes the world for young modern women in a way I've found hard to pin down myself, so to read it here just bolstered me amidst all the stupidity of dating.

I received this ARC with the promise of a review. This book resonates with the ups and downs sure to be a part of a relationship. The ups made me laugh out loud and the downs made me realize how low a melancholy period can feel. The characters are truly wonderful and the situations are both classic and extreme. I totally recommend this book to anyone who has ever been in love - real or imagined.

A whirlwind sitcom of a novel. At times far-fetched and clichéd, but always compulsive, relatable and moving. I applaud Alderton for being able to address a range of issues related to dating, family and friendship.