As someone who tends to stick to thrillers, Ghosts was a departure from my usual type of books although I was keen to read it as I enjoy the work (and podcasts) of the author, Dolly Alderton (though controversially not Everything I Know About Love). I was really, really impressed. Dolly captures 32-year-old Nina incredibly well and her profound thoughts are something a lot of women will resonate with, helping to make a Nina a really likeable protagonist. I really enjoyed witnessing the relationships with her friends and thought it was a really realistic portrayal, identifying the changes these relationships go through as we grow older. I was initially really confused by the Angelo storyline and exactly where it was going but this rounded of really nicely. As someone who isn't personally familiar with the trials and tribulations of dating apps, it was interesting to watch Nina's journey and I really did feel for her at times and it was easy to share her frustrations. The stand out storyline was by far the decline of Nina's father. This was incredibly well done and it was an emotional read, clear that Dolly had done her research. I've no doubt this book will do really well and I'm excited to see what fiction Dolly does next.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this book.

Dolly Alderton is one of my absolute favourite writers.
Her memoir, Everything I Know About Love, is one of my favourite books. I keep it by my bed at all times to revisit passages, and I even read a quote from it in my speech at my wedding.
I’m also a huge fan of her podcast, The High Low, and never miss an episode.
So it’s fair to say, I was pretty excited about reading her first novel!

Ghosts is the story of Nina, a successful food writer living in London who is single in her early thirties.

I listened to an interview with Dolly this week where she was asked how much of Ghosts was autobiographical, and one thing I enjoyed about the book was how different Nina was from Dolly. Nina is a brilliant character - interesting, relatable, a mess of contradictions. I absolutely loved being in her mind through this book.

This is a book about relationships - romantic relationships, friendships, families - and I felt all the characters were incredibly realistic and well-rounded. I particularly loved Nina’s Dad and her best friend, Lola.

I don’t really read “rom-com” books but I found this really enjoyable. I read it over a few days as I found it hard to put down. I actually wish it had been longer!

Obviously biased as I am a huge fan of Dolly, but this was a brilliant read and I can’t wait to see what she writes next.

The debut novel Ghosts by Dolly Alderton is one I knew I just had to read as soon as I heard about it. I listen to Dolly and Pandora on the High Low podcast and have listened to Dolly’s podcast Love Stories so while I was reading I definitely heard her voice in my head as the main character. As expected, this book did not disappoint and perfectly captured the modern trials and tribulations of dating, navigating female friendships and growing up. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and look forward to reading any books that Dolly writes in future! Thank you to Penguin General UK and Dolly Alderton for the advanced review copy.

The story and characters in this book were good, you were carried along with it and did begin to feel for the characters and their situations, they felt real at the end of the book. The main issue I had was the writing, it was verbose and stiff, describing so many things that didn't need it in such stiff detail. It didn't lend itself to losing oneself. This did settle down as the story went on but the first part of the book is overly stiff.

32-year-old Nina Dean is a successful food writer with a loyal online following, but a life that is falling apart.
Dolly Alderton's fiction debut is a touching, funny, intense, emotional read. A well-written story, despite dealing with some problematic issues like parenthood, broken relationships and dementia, broaching the topics with the sensitive consideration they deserve.
I thoroughly enjoyed it.
I want to thank NetGalley, Penguin General UK - Fig Tree, Hamish Hamilton, Viking, Penguin Life, Penguin Business and Dolly Alderton for a pre-publication copy to review.

My rating: 4.5/5

Poignant and honest. Dolly Alderton’s style is absolutely captivating and engaging. I absolutely loved ‘Ghosts’.

Nina, a successful food writer in her early thirties, is a great voice in voice in ‘Ghosts’. She is often sharp, blunt and amazingly real. She doesn’t shy away from hard truths about her friends, family and most importantly herself.

Although not unhappy as a single woman she wants something more as sees most of her friends expanding their families, getting married or engaged. Life seems to be moving on at a high speed, and Nina, at moments, feels like she’s missing out. What follows is something many of those searching for a relationship experienced - dating app and getting ghosted. And yet, that’s not the most important part of Dolly Alderton’s book - ‘Ghosts’ underlines the importance of friends and family, even if they have different lives and at moments, they are slipping away from you further and further away. Nina’s friendship with her oldest friend, with whom now she has nothing in common, was tense and full of drama throughout the story, and I loved the resolution in this relationship.

‘Ghosts’ also handled dementia, with Nina’s father fading away more and more each day. While it was heartbreaking to witness through Nina’s eyes, I loved the way Nina’s family’s dynamic portrayed - they all have been affected through that so much.

I found myself highlighting my favourite moments, and sentences, as I read Dolly Alderton’s ‘Ghosts’. Some fragments will definitely stay in my memory for a long time!

The review will be posted on Goodreads & Amazon closer to the publication date.

In 'Ghosts', Dolly Alderton yet again shows her brilliant insights into modern dating, life as a millennial and the nuances of family dynamics. Her deftness with language makes this novel all the more delicious to read. This is the most realistic and least cheesy modern romance I have ever read, and I finished the book feeling seen and understood on a cellular level. Rather than telling a love story, 'Ghosts' tells a story about the many different kinds of love that life can offer us, and that we should wholeheartedly embrace.

I was provided a free copy by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

There's no one who can write about love and dating as well as Dolly Alderton. She proved it in her first book 'Everything I Know About Love' and did it again in her debut novel 'Ghosts'.

I absolutely loved this book and could really relate with Nina, the main character. She's in her 30's and still single whilst majority of her friends are getting married or starting a family. She finally decides to give online dating a try and gets ghosted for the first time.

This book is about so much more than just dating in the modern world. It's about hope, female friendship, family life, change and life experiences. Dolly writes about the good and the bad in your twenties and thirties.

If you liked her memoir, you'll love Dolly's debut novel and I can't recommend it enough.

I really enjoyed Dolly’s first novel. It’s an easy read but very well written; it draws you in and makes you want to keep reading. I could identify with so many of the changes in female friendships that happen in your 30s, as highlighted by Nina and her friend Katherine. The part with the baby gender scan made me laugh a lot as I have had similar experiences with friends. Nina’s relationship with her father was written about beautifully. In one way it was a shame that so many of the negative aspects of online dating were focused on, it would have been nice to see possibly a happier ending, but I know that’s not necessarily realistic. Looking forward to reading what Dolly writes next.

3.5
There were many parts of this book i really enjoyed. Parts of it we could all relate to in this era of online dating. However I do think the author focused a lot on negative parts of online dating and it would have been nice to see the other perspective too. Also a lot of book time was wasted on Max, and frankly he was off from the start. I really wished there was more of a focus on her relationship with her parents and her friends and maybe a bit m,ore on how she navigated the world of online dating, not just one date.

“Maybe friendship is being the guardian of another person’s hope. Leave it with me and I’ll look after it for a while, if it feels to heavy for now.”

I’ll give you an idea of how much I was looking forward to reading Dolly Alderton’s debut novel: even though I pre-ordered my hardback copy long ago, I still rushed to hit the “request” button when I saw it appear on NetGalley.

Dolly’s memoir, Everything I Know About Love, is one of my favourite non-fiction books. I’ve read her articles, and I listen to the podcast she co-hosts with Pandora Sykes, The High Low, every week. In all honesty, I was a bit worried that Ghosts wouldn’t live up to my expectations.

Well, I needn’t have worried: Ghosts is wonderful. It’s not out until October, so I don’t want to give too much away, but it’s a story about love in all its forms. From the blurb, I thought Ghosts was going to be a straightforward story about dating gone wrong, when the main character, 32-year-old food writer Nina Dean, delves into the world of dating apps for the first time and gets “ghosted” by the first man she meets. But there are more ghosts than the man who disappears from the dating app: there are the ghosts of Nina’s childhood, the ghosts of her past relationship, and the ghosts of her oldest friendship.

Ghosts is a story about modern dating, yes, but it’s also a story about the ups and downs of long-term female friendships; about the love and enduring memories we build with our families, especially as they age; and about how women navigate adulthood and the question of children in their thirties. The characters felt deep and real, and it’s the kind of book you get so lost in that you forget you’re reading at all. So even though I’ve read it digitally, I’ll still look forward to my hardback copy arriving through the post in the autumn!

I was a big fan of Everything I Know About Love so when I heard that Dolly was releasing a novel I added it straight to my ‘Want to Read’ List and it didn’t disappoint. The story follows 32 year old Nina’s experiences dating and her relationships with her friends, parents and ex-boyfriend. I enjoyed how the story explored the relatable situations of relationships with friends who are in different stages of their lives (married with children) and the expectations placed on women in their late 20s/early 30s. I loved the characters observational humour particularly Nina, the main character, and her single friend Lola. Thank you Net Galley and Penguin/Fig Tree for the advanced digital copy.

Being in my 70s I'm probably the wrong age to read this book. However, the quality of the writing more than made up for the problems of 20 to 30 year olds. It's the first book of Alderton's that I have read, and I loved her clever knife edge observations.
Ghosting is not something I am familiar with and it sounds a thoroughly selfish thing to do to someone. Max seemed very self centred and rather unlikeable. For me , the best bits of the book were the relationship between Nina and her father, a gentle look at the problems of living with dementia.. Taking him back to Albyn Square was touching and meaningful. What a perfect summing up --" I think of everyone he loves as a gallery of Picasso paintings - in a constant stateof fascinating rearrangement rather than in the process of erasure"
Altogether an enjoyable book.
thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a review copy.

Thank you netgalley for another amazing book. Dolly Alderton's Ghosts is another must read for 2020.
32 year old Nina Dean appears to have her life together. Her dream career is on the rise, she's bought her own flat. But not quite everything is together, family dynamics are up in the air as her father's condition deteriorates, and her love life is non-existent, until she joins a promising dating app in the hopes to get her love life on the right track. Mr perfect sweeps her off her feet, but is it too good to be true?
Follow Nina Dean through the highs and lows of internet dating, neighbourly feuds and being left behind in your social circle as everyone else seems to be progressing to the next levels of the game of life faster. I didn't know it was possible to feel heartbroken and feel good at the same time until I read this book. I couldn't put it down.

Ooooft. Such delicious descriptions and metaphors in here, I have major writer’s envy!! Unlike a lot of books that rely on an explosive plot to maintain the reader’s interest, this story drops us in the midst of Nina’s 32nd year of life and ends at her 33rd. A single year - yet some of the most compulsive reading I’ve ever experienced!

You can tell Dolly delves deep into her characters, settings and situations because everything feels so seeped in background that you feel like you’re truly living it. Despite never having used a dating app in my life, I feel like I have shared PTSD now, haha!

I loved every page of this book. I laughed and I cried, and the characters are so strong and recognisable (I swear she must know my mother). I never quite knew what direction the story was going to go in - in a fantastic way - and I’m now very impatient for my friends to read it so we can discuss it when it comes out!

Favourite quote: “Hello?” Mum barked as she picked up the landline, harried and hassled, as if I were a PPI salesman calling for the fifth time in an hour.”

Just so relatable!!!

I loved everything about this book, they way Dolly writes is so honest and real, as a fellow 32 year old, I could completely relate to Nina and the ticking time bomb pressures that society puts on you all whilst navigating how to be an adult in this day and age with work, family, dating and social media, she's the friend we all need and want. It's everything you'd expect from Dolly, beautifully written and hits all the emotions.

Much like Dolly's memoir, I raced through this book in just a few days. I was so invested in the main character from the get-go and really could not put it down. It made me laugh and cry. Her observations of online dating and life in your early thirties were spot-on while the storyline about dementia was poignant moving.

As a person now in my late 20s (the horror!) Nina really resonated with me, being the single pringle amongst an ever growing larger amount of settled friends who have almost seem to expect for you transition your behaviour to their new standards. If I dare draw comparisons Ghosts is a modern day updated take of a Bridget Jones style novel on the manic lives we live, the pressure those of us in our late 20s and 30s face in terms of expectations of others, especially us ladies (being constantly reminded my eggs are a ticking time bomb by news articles is argh!). In a way Alderton's novel whilst clearly fictional has actually made me feel relieved, that the forced expectations are this horrific standard fare and that we are all battling life in our own way.
I devoured this book pretty quickly and am looking forward to grabbing a copy for my heavily full bookshelves when it releases in October, thank you NetGalley + the publisher for allowing me to have access to an advance copy.

Being a fan of Dolly’s, when I heard she was releasing a novel I couldn’t wait to read it and I was not disappointed. Equal parts heartwarming and heartbreaking, I initially thought this was going to your typical romcom read but it was so much more than that. Very well written with a protagonist you just want the best for, and complex characters that are as infuriating as they are loveable (well... most of them anyway!). I couldn’t recommend this enough, I loved everything about it and didn’t want it to end.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for an advanced digital copy of the book in return for my honest review. This book is released in October 2020.

Having read Everything I know about Love, I was already familiar with Dolly Alderton's writing and storytelling style going into 'Ghosts', which I think made it a lot easier to get drawn into immediately.
The story is one that many of us can relate to, and even more so those of us who are female, in our 20s-30s and live in London. I tick all of those boxes, so a lot of the things described, experienced or felt by Nina and her friends are things that my own friends and I have experienced too.
I found the characters well written, not just the main character, but the supporting characters all had a depth to them that's also forgotten when it comes to secondary characters.

This was one of those stories that I stayed up far too late to finish because I just got really invested in what was happening. It's an easy read and despite dealing with some difficult topics (breakups, parenthood, Alzheimer's), manages to be light while still treating those topics with the respect they deserve.

Overall, a good read and one that'd be ideal for a rainy weekend.