Although this book is outside of my preferred genre or romance, I really enjoyed it. I loved the Afro-Panamanian representation of the characters which also allowed for some history gems to be dropped. I loved the spiritual element of the story because it is central to the ancestry of many African and Latin folx. The characters were dynamic and complicated. The plot was unique and intriguing. The writing was impeccable. I can’t wait for this author to put out more works. If you love a little thriller mixed with fantasy elements then I would definitely give this a read.

The book was pretty good. At times it was a bit much for me. I keep being told to read the epilogue but it wasn’t in the arc. The audio is what kept me interested in the book. So I’m rating off of that.

CW: Blood; Body Horror (Mild)

This book was not poorly written, but ultimately fell a little flat for me. On the one hand, I liked the book’s focus on Afro-Latin culture and characters, and the overall idea behind it (saving the world from a rift in the spirit world) was solid. Main characters Gwendolyn and Fonsi were also fine. On the other hand, I felt like some of the worldbuilding went by too quickly for me; we jump from learning a little bit about the supernatural and then straight into El Intermediaro. Likewise, I think the family drama was introduced and resolved too quickly. The pace just always felt rushed. I do think other people will enjoy this book, even if its not for me.

The Ghosts Of Gwendolyn Montgomery by Clarence A Haynes is an interesting read.
The story is obviously about Gwendolyn and how she has created this persona in her life. It couldn’t be further from the humble beginnings she started from.
She runs a PR management company that has top clients. All is good until things start to go wrong….she has no idea who is behind this attack and why.
We then find out what has happened and its to do with the spirit world.
She is helped by her cousin Fonsi, who she had lost touch with after leaving spirits behind. He can talk to spirits and has his own little hustle in the back room of his shop.
It was a good read, had good characters and who doesn’t love a few spirits thrown in?!
Many thanks to Central Publishing for the opportunity to read this arc copy via Netgalley.
#Netgalley, #GrandCentralPub, #ClarenceAHaynes.

The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery is a fast-paced urban fantasy told by Gwendolyn, a publicist working for New York's top Black owned firm and Fonsi, a psychic who runs a shop in the South Bronx. Gwendolyn finds herself literally being haunted by the ghosts of her past as terrible things start happening at her events in a clear message for her.

For me this book definitely started off slower than I expected but it was the details of the story needed to draw you into the story.
As the story progressed , I realized it wasn't gonna be so sweet and things began to shift.
Things get weirder and I left wondering when the
main characters paths will cross and what the outcome will be. The book immediately takes a turn and speeds off into the chaos.
From that moment forward there were a whirlwind of events that moved the book along quickly.
Overall, I enjoyed this book it’s a great debut from this author and I look forward to more works in the future
4 star read and i would recommend
Thank You to Grand Central Publishing via Netgalley for providing me with an Arc. All thoughts and opinions are my own

I'm always down to read books that feature mysticism, and this book had no shortage of that.

For the first third of the book, I had a hard following the two main characters. While I found both of Gwen and Fonsi’s stories to be intriguing the story came along pretty slowly, and felt a little disjointed at times. I was really able to get into it the latter 2/3 of the book where we found out how the storylines were interconnected. I'm glad I stuck it our because the message was beautiful. I do wish there was a little more context about certain things and that there was a bit more resolution to the story.

I really appreciated the representation in this book of Queer identity, Afro-Latine cultures, and traditional religious practices. It was beautiful to read a book with spiritual focus centered on orishas. I also really appreciated the lessons around self abandonment and how important it is to honor and love all of yourself.

Overall it was a good read.

I overall enjoyed The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery. The concept is fresh and the setting is rich. But it didn’t quite pack the punch I was hoping for at the end, as it felt a little flat to me. Still, if you’re into ghosts, fantasy, and the idea of a whole city under supernatural siege, it’s worth checking out.

I am offering my honest opinion voluntarily.

This book is the perfect example of " you can't run from your past". Gwendolyn changed her name and became a prominent publicist following a family tragedy. This book was all gas from the first chapter. I finished it in one day. Bloody runways, ghosts with the ability to be an active seggs buddy, family drama, dream walking, and Yoruba mythology! This book is action-packed, full of emotion, with a tastefully done LGBTQIA representation, great banter, and a nice spice element.

This book was so atmospheric; the concentration in the writing caused the world-building to be very detailed, and reading it sucked you into the world. You could feel the light from the deity, you could see the sunflowers, I enjoyed this book, and the ending was satisfying. Fonsi was my favorite character; his gift and his haunting were the most intriguing to me. I'm not sure that I would have been able to participate in his extracurricular activities. This was a great start to this author's catalog.

Thank you, Netgalley, Grand Central Publishing | Legacy Lit, and Clarence A. Haynes for the advance readers copy of this debut novel.

This book is a wild, it gives style, glamour, ghosts, and secrets that should stay buried. Gwendolyn our FMC pulls you in with her polished surface, only for the cracks to reveal something much deeper, darker and intriguing. She is the kind of character who captures your attention. I enjoyed the combination of high stakes mystery, supernatural intrigue, and that magnetic energy between past and present.

Fonsi’s character brings a unique vibe and atmosphere to this story. With voice and heart, and layers of queer, cultural, and spiritual nuance. If you enjoy haunting, horror, and a fierce heroine forced to face what she thought she buried, this one is absolutely worth the read. It’s moody, clever, and impossible to put down.

This was a fast paced read. Magic + mystery. Psychics, ghostly love triangles, a curse, and a lot of secrets.

In all honesty, this book was a lot lol. It gave me MCU vibes near the end, and if/when you read it you’ll understand what I mean.

The culture was amazing, I loved every aspect of its display. The Black representation was (as far as I can tell since I’m not a New Yorker) hella relatable and the Latin inclusion was smooth.

I followed the mystical aspects just fine and really enjoyed them; I think I just struggled with so many plot lines and how they didn’t converge until so late in the book. I do agree with some of the reviews that indicate it would have benefited from being a longer book because there was so much more that could have gone into it. don’t want to knock it down too far though because it is definitely a good book.

The description and the cover definitely led me to requesting it in the first place because I was so drawn to that. It didn’t let me down, I just think it could have been a little more impactful. I have become more thoughtful in my reviews - past me would have rated this 5 stars and kept it moving but I want to be fair to people interested as well as to the author.

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley and this is my honest review. 4.25 stars. I’d definitely read another book Clarence A. Haynes writes.

This was a short, but very mystical read. I enjoyed the magical elements with a bit of mystery involved while the character tried to figure out what was happening at Gwendolyn's events.

Thank you for the arc. The storyline kept me engaged and had me intrigued from start to finish . There were so many plot twists and WTF moments. The writing was very descriptive. The spice had me gigling and kicking my feet. Loved the mystery , the fantasy world, and the magic! it was beautiful.. This was a fun read! I enjoyed it.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy in exchange for my honest review. Unfortunately, this really was not for me. I can get on board with a mystical, otherworldly horror book, but this one wasn’t written well enough to make it work.

This book did a great job mixing in magic with Afro-Latinx spirituality to create a unique fantasy story. The New York City setting was vibrant and authentic not touristy like some NY set books can feel.

This story was special to me as I have afro-latina's in my family. I really enjoyed the structure of the story and the Gwendolyn's character growth. This is something I'd love to see on screen.

LGBTQIA+ Rep
Identity
Facing the Past
Culture & History
From the beginning, this had me pulled in! It's engaging and the prologue immediately has you wondering how that ties in. Although it starts out fun, you really get into the nitty gritty towards the middle and end. I actually teared up during a single moment towards the end with just one word. I do wish there was more on the characters feelings and thoughts about everything that quickly happened.
This is fast paced! The exploration of identity towards the end and not letting go of certain parts of who you are was beautiful. The personal/ romantic relationships shown of Gwendolyn and Fonsi's love interests were so realistic (minus the ghost part). She was scared and he was changing himself to stay in a relationship that wasn't building him. It does start out pretty spicy but the magical elements to this was so interesting to read!

Author: Clarence A. Haynes

Genres: Romance/YA/Fiction/Latin American Fiction/Mystical/Fantasy/Magical Realism/

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Summary: Gwendolyn Montgomery is New York’s top publicist that appears to have it all until her first show was sabotaged. She then begins to experience mystical and supernatural situations after her first show was sabotaged. When her cousin, Fonsi, a psychic, appears, Gwendolyn begins to understand the secrets that ties her.

Tropes and Themes: time loop, grief, emotional healing, fate and destiny, revenge, family secrets.

Character: I love the development of Gwendolyn's character. As the story unfolds, she begins to come into her true character and unleash the gift that was hidden.

Thoughts: I listened and read this book at the same time-immersive reading. I observed that in the beginning it was very slow paced in building towards the plot. The climax did not appear until about 55% of the book, starting with chapters 10 and it continued to thicken as the story unfolded. Throughout the book, there was a lot of character development, which some of the information was found a bit irrelevant to the book. Other background information was needed in order to help the reader establish the connection with her cousin, Fonsi, whom is a psychic that is able to communicate with spirits. Moreover, the author rooted the book in Latin American cultures as there was Spanish language embedded in the book.

In the end, it was definitely a page turner, and I really love how Gwendolyn was able to accept her place in the mystical order. All those years, she felt like she was to blame for her godmother's demise, but Gwendolyn eventually understood the true reason her godmother was pulled into the spirit world. in short, she was able to manipulate this reason in order to close the breach between the natural and spiritual world. In short, I was glad that she was able to accept her gift and want to be called by her birth name.

📖 Title: The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery-a standalone

✍🏾 Author: Clarence A. Haynes-debut

📅Publication date: 6/17/25 | Read: 6/11/25

📃 Format: eBook 240 pgs.

Genre:
*Multicultural
*Urban Fantasy
*Contemporary
*Paranormal
*Horror

Tropes:
* ghosts/mediums
* family drama
* Afro Latinx culture
* LGBTQIA+rep
* love triangle

👆🏾POV: 3rd person dual

⚠️TW: homophobia, death of parents, murder, arson

🌎 Setting: New York

Summary: Fonsi notices he's busier than ever working as a medium able to communicate with the dead. Gwendolyn is enjoying her career as a PR agent until her client events, her office, and boss are haunted by her past in the supernatural world. Fonsi has to find his cousin believing ghosts have breached El Intermedio-the in-between place for the dead who haven't passed on. Together they will save the world from a ghost invasion.

👩🏾 Heroine: Gwendolyn "Gwen" Montgomery/Giselda Rivera-an entertainment publicist@ Sublime Creative. She changed her name to Gwen and stopped practicing magic- she's a manipulator (one of the most powerful mystics in the world).

👨🏾 Hero: Fonseca "Fonsi" Harewood-owns La Playa Espiritu, a medium and a sculptor

🎭 Other Characters:

*Madrina/Ignacia Harewood-claimed to be Giselda's cousin/godmother. She took her to the USA from Panama when she was a child. Fonsi's mother-deceased
* James Watson-Gwen's new boyfriend
* Estelle Bailey- a medium and mentor to Fonsi
* Trevor Duarte-Ignacia's on/off gangster boyfriend -deceased
* Raphael-Fonsi's ex-boyfriend
* Amede-a ghost Fonsi has an affair with
* Arturo-an artist/friend of Fonsi's, likes Gwen

🤔 My Thoughts: This reminded me of Ghostbusters for some reason. I guess because of the red sky/cold temperatures, being in NYC, and Fonsi and Gwen were literally ghostbusters. There was a nice found community that rallied Fonsi and Gwen from neighbors, clients, to employees. I wished there was more spice and/or romance between Gwen and James or Fonsi and Amede, but I knew going in this wasn't a romance. I could have done without all the Guardian lore and divine spirits.

Rating: 3.5/5 ✨
Spice level 3/5 🌶️ off page

🙏🏾Thanks to NetGalley, Grand Central Publishing | Legacy Lit, and Clarence A. Haynes for this ARC! I voluntarily give my honest review, and all opinions are my own.

The cover art and title of this book initially caught my attention, but it was the mystery surrounding Gwendolyn and Fonsi's supernatural job that kept me reading. I became enthralled by the mysteries surrounding Gwendolyn, Fonsi, their past, and the In-Between.

I like how Haynes crafted this story and brought these two characters together. He left enough gaps in the story for us to fill in with our imagination until we reached the explosive ending. If Gwendolyn and Fonsi couldn't work together, the world would have been taken over by spirits of all kinds. And man, you will not guess who's the mastermind of it all!