Thank you to St. Martin’s Press, James L. Sutter, and NetGalley for an ARC of The Ghost of Us. This is my honest review!

The teenage characters in The Ghost of Us were all so believable in a way that shows understanding of teenage psychology. Cara, the FMC, struggles with self-esteem and abandonment issues in a way that is teenage angsty but constructive because she learns from her journey. And it was a joy to go along on that journey with her. From her friendship with Holly to her encounters with ghost Aiden to her budding relationship with Meredith, I adored Cara!

I really liked this one. I wanted this book for the cover alone. I loved that the MC had a YouTube channel hunting ghosts. It felt unique and quickly pulled me into the story. I also loved the banter between Cara and Aiden and her bestie Holly. All the characters were fleshed out well and grew by the end of the story. Although Cara’s actions were far from perfect it was nice to see her learn from her mistakes. I also liked that her BF stood up for herself and wasn’t afraid to call out Cara. The ghost parts were cool and the look into grief felt realistic and respectful.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

Wow this definitely lives up to the Cemetery Boys comparison! It has all the heart of that story that I adored so much. The main draw of the book for me was Aiden's relationship with Cara. In Cemetery Boy's the connection with the ghost is romantic, but I found Cara's platonic connection with Aiden to be just as compelling. Watching Cara's excitement about meeting a ghost turn to sadness as she becomes close friends with him and realizes that helping him means losing him was so emotional. Especially since she's a bit of an outsider, her making a close friend who understands her so well only to watch him get closer to moving on was incredibly angsty. The sapphic romance plot was also adorable. I loved watching two queer teens navigate their first relationship. YA can be hit or miss for me because sometimes the characters feel too immature to be relatable for me. However, that wasn't the case at all with The Ghost of Us. Watching Cara struggle with the change that will come when her only (alive) friend graduates high school and leaves her felt so similar to my experience. That anticipatory grief during senior year is painfully relatable and I really felt for her as she tried to build a network of people only to realize that she couldn't keep them and was guaranteed to lose at least one. I 100% recommend this book and now I'm really excited to read more from this author!

This had a very unique premise and I really enjoyed how this played out. This is an adorable LGBTQ story about a social pariah and a self isolating teens who are brought together by the ghost of the brother who died suddenly. This is a positive romance with all the feels. It brought back my broody teenage years and I found myself bonding to these characters. High school was so hard.

Thank you Wednesday Books and Netgalley for this eARC, these opinions are my own. A fun read! Cara hints for ghosts, she wants to prove they’re real. But more than want, since her rejection from college, she needs yo prove they’re real. It’s her only way to get out of her town, where the incident looms large over her. After another failed attempt to find the ghost of a boy who died a year ago, she’s moping in her room. A voice starts speaking to her, is she losing her mind? Turns out she found Aiden, the boy who died, but she can only hear him and no one else can. Proving he exists will be a lot harder than she’d hoped, and when he won’t help her unless she takes his sister to Prom, it’ll be even more difficult. Cara barely knows Meredith, how’s she supposed to get a yes from her? And what happens if her feelings for Meredith start to become something more? And if Meredith finds out that Aiden’s ghost is around? I different take on grief and self-worth that’s also funny lovable! I enjoy the relationship between Cara and Aiden! I also enjoyed the budding relationship between Cara and Meredith, and with that learning more what things were like between Aiden and Meredith! There’s sadness that comes with it as you’ll spend the book learning to care about Aiden but ultimately knowing what is coming with his character. A fast read that will leave you laughing, swooning, and crying! Highly recommend!

Before the actual review, let it be 100% known that this is my favorite cover of the year. Drew me in instantly. 10/10. Whoever drew this absolute masterpiece needs to know that this is perfection, and actually what drew me to The Ghost of Us! Spooky, sapphic, and tender -- utterly stunning.

As for the book said masterpiece cover belongs to...it was, sadly, a bit of a miss for me.

Let's start with the good:
-I adored the premise. A contemporary rom-com with a touch of paranormal? Amazing
-I felt that Cara's voice was on point. Sutter perfectly embodies bitter, standoffish Cara and manages the transitions between more lighthearted moments and more serious with ease. I also loved Aiden, her ghostly bestie. Their friendship is realistically drawn and I love the push and pull between both their motives; it makes for delicious narrative tension and also leaves the narrative ripe with opportunities for Cara's and Aiden's growth
-Meredith's grief is captured very well without overwhelming the narrative. I think this goes back to how Sutter balances heavy and light
-I liked Cara's whole family dynamic and also liked her friendship with Holly. It was refreshing to have a queer YA romcom where the MC coming out is not the main conflict (although there are certainly mentions of homophobia--more on that later)
-Sutter's prose flows very nicely

So, what has The Ghost of Us hovering at 3 stars for me?
-the main thing was that the depiction of Cara's sexuality did not feel authentic. Even though I appreciated that Sutter mentions a couple sensitivity readers in the acknowledgements, there were parts that made me, a bisexual woman, uncomfortable. Namely, Cara's coming out story (trigger warning: involves cyberbullying and sexual harassment by a former friend). I also didn't like the way that Cara sexualizes Meredith. It feels...male gaze-y.
-the other thing is the relationship between Cara and Meredith. By the end, I liked them, but the pacing was off for me. Felt too fast in the beginning and lagging in the middle
-the motivation for Cara's ghost hunting is never fully clear to me? It felt like it vacillated between "connecting to Grandma" and "wanting to leave this dead end town." In the end, I'm not sure the motivation ever mattered, but it definitely weakened her arc

I would give another one of Sutter's books a try, but this one just didn't click for me like I was hoping!

Many thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press/Wednesday Books, and James L. Sutter for gifting me this e-ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I loved the story, the world building and meeting the different characters. I felt completely immersed in the story and couldn't stop reading it.

Unfortunately for some reason my ARC was archived before I could really get into it. I had checked the archive date about a week before that and it showed that I would have plenty of time.

Things happen, but from the description and what I was able to read- I think that this could be a great read and I will pick it up once it is published!

This was not for me! The tone was too silly for a proper ghost story, not silly enough for a romantic comedy. I didn’t finish.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book! The ending even made me tear up a bit. I will say that Cara's character and intentions throughout the majority of the book annoyed me. It seemed like too long before she hit her redemption arc and everyone forgave her a bit too fast. However, it was a very cute love story with a refreshing format.

Thank you NetGalley for this ARC.

I was very excited to read this book, the description really grabbed my attention. Unfortunately this book falls short for me. I was having a hard time getting through it and the pacing was just too slow. I didn’t like Cara or Aiden that much. Maybe if there was some chapters from Meredith’s POV I would’ve enjoyed it more.

I was so excited for the premise of this one, but it just fell flat for me. It did not hold my attention. I never felt the true urge to pick it back up and keep reading. I unfortunately had to DNF.

Actual rating 3.5 stars.
 
Let’s start with the cover. Isn’t it stunning? A cover like this deserves a fantastic story. Did it deliver? For the most part, yes, even though I have some critical remarks (hence my 3.5-star rating).
 
The Ghost of Us is about Cara, who loves to hunt ghosts since her Nana died. When Aiden’s ghost, the popular boy who died a year ago, manages to contact her, they’re both over the moon. Cara because she’s finally able to talk to a ghost, Aiden because he wants to help his sister Meredith, who is grieving his death. So they make a pact.
 
Despite this being a story about a dead boy and his grieving sister, The Ghost of Us is light and funny. I think it’s mainly because the conversations between Cara and Aiden are pretty hilarious. Add the sweet moments between Cara and Meredith, and the story made me smile and chuckle instead of cry. The few sad moments didn’t do anything with my emotions. And this is precisely what I have mixed feelings about.
 
I guess I wanted to feel the grief more, Meredith’s pain about the brother she lost, the brother she depended so much on. Therefore, I longed to read Meredith’s POV. She was such an interesting person (more than Cara, in my opinion), but I felt I didn’t get to know her well enough. For me, it would have made the story more complete. But overall, this was a fast and enjoyable read, and I recommend it to all of you who love to read funny and sweet stories with a flawed (in this case, rather selfish) main character.

I rounded my rating down for now, but I might change my opinion. I’m not sure about it yet.

I was in a reading slump and this pushed me further into a reading slump. I don’t think i’ve had a title i’ve disliked so much i can’t even form into words how terrible this one was. I’m genuinely so angry I wasted my time reading this And i’m even angrier i wasted my time writing this review.

This book was absolutely adorable. Not only the sapphic romance, but add in ghosts? I was a little nervous about the paranormal aspect, honestly. That maybe it'd be too cheesy? But no, I think Sutter did a wonderful job of not overdoing it and created a beautiful story of grief, loss, and love.

In an happy to give feedback on this book once the readers for accountability ban has been lifted due to SMP addressing their racist employee.

At first I thought what in the tiktok trope video is this book but when it’s 4am and you started reading at 9pm and you have to finish it, I think that brings it all to a whole new level. Solid 5 stars. Also I love lesbians

Many thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I was intrigued by this book since it was said to be “One last stop meets Cemetery Boys” , but that was a stretch to say the least. Cara and Aiden were both selfish throughout the book and had little to no character development. The plot was slow in the middle and rushed at the beginning and the end. I did enjoy the romance between Cara and Meredith as well as Holly and Elvis’ relationship, but wish there had been more. This was a misleading read for me and definitely not my favorite.

High school senior Cara is a ghost hunter. In the opening scene she's hoping to find a ghost in an abandoned papermill, where a local teen boy died a year ago. She's initially unsuccessful until she's home and starts hearing his voice. Aiden, the ghost, is stuck until he can make his sister, Meredith, happy and he enlists Cara to do so. In return he agrees to help Cara prove she's found a ghost.

This long novel is told solely from Cara's POV and she's not always the most likeable character. The author provides a lot of background motivation to explain her shortcomings, but I found it hard to stay with her through a lot of the book. I actually found Aiden and Meredith a whole lot more likeable.

Overall, this is a great concept and mostly well executed, but a bit too long to stay with a character I wasn't crazy about.

Overall I enjoyed this book, even if the plot was a bit predictable. This book deals with some heavy topics, so make sure to check the trigger warnings. I liked all the characters but Aiden is my favorite for his ability to make me laugh. Would recommend