by dolly alderton | 352 pgs | 5 stars

genre: contemporary fiction, romance

(no major spoilers)

in “ghosts” dolly alderton aptly proves that there is more than one way a person can be haunted. the novel follows nina dean, a woman in her thirties who feels all the strains of getting older and feeling left behind. from her father’s ailing health to all of her closest friends getting married and having children, nina’s life is surrounded by change and the ghosts of the people she once knew before time took its toll.

the novel kicks off with nina going out on a dating app date with a man named max who is just too good to be true. he’s attractive and fun and makes nina feel sexy. nina’s love life is in a tricky spot after her and her long term boyfriend called it quits but remained close friends. to make matters a little trickier, said long term boyfriend is now engaged. with that priming in place it is no shock the nina allows herself to get swept up in the exciting romantic swell of max.

max is flawed. he seems to have a bit of an ego problem and a complex about the job he hates. but nina feels flawed too and feels connected to him based on their mutually tough relationships with their families. the first portion of the novel flies by with the joys of a new relationship. and then max ghosts her.

it truly is a rude awakening that comes right after max says “i love you” for the first time. nina makes plans for him to meet her parents, a huge step for nina given her less than loving relationship with her mother and her father’s health complications. not only does max not show up, but he also actually unmatches her from his dating app profile so she can’t see when he’s online. just like that, max becomes yet another ghost in nina’s life.

i quite simply adore this book. i think my favorite genre of novel is contemporary fiction about female writers and their love lives (thinking about you yet again emily henry). “ghosts” has a lot of mixed reviews. i think some find nina unlikeable. i think others find the characters a little one dimensional. for me, dolly alderton could write a math textbook and i’d find it interesting. “ghosts” largely works because alderton is simply a fantastic writer. her prose are funny and honest without trying too hard to be smarter than the reader. i also think that nina is maybe not someone i would want to be friends with in real life but is however far from unlikeable. she’s easily understandable.

i would recommend “ghosts” to anyone and everyone. the true star of the novel is not the romance, but the female friendships and family dynamics. nina’s friend lola is a joy to read. i would read a ten book long spin off series about her. as well, any scene with nina’s father and his struggles with memory loss are bound to pull on the heart strings. after i finished reading ghosts, i immediately ran to the book store and purchased everything dolly alderton has ever written.