This was a spooky tale written in all prose which is normally a deterrent to me. Ilana being sent to Prague to help better herself and then getting in lost in the ghost of the city is such a good story. Honestly Prague is the best city to have set this in because it does feel so haunted. Really enjoyed the ending but I will admit to cry a little at the resolution.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review!

I was excited to read this after reading all the good reviews. The book is written in prose and at first, I thought it was interesting. It makes the chapters seem short (which I love). But throughout reading the writing style was getting tiring and suddenly the story seems way too long. It was dragging. There was nothing interesting about the characters. The book failed to make me feel invested in the story and by the time I finished it I was relieved. I’m giving this unnecessarily long book (which could’ve been much shorter if it wasn’t written like poetry) 2 stars.

Thank you NetGalley for providing an arc in exchange for an honest review.

Ilana, the Jewish daughter of two immigrants, is torn between her love for music and playing the violin, and living up to her parents‘ expectations of finding a stable job to make sure she will never have to go through the struggles that they did. When her grades don‘t match her parents‘ expectations, she is sent to her artist aunt in Prague in order to make her understand how difficult life with such an unstable job may be. However, instead of making Ilana go through her endless homework exercises, her aunt allows her to roam the city freely, and recover an abandoned Jewish graveyard from oblivion. Soon, Ilana finds a friend in one of the ghosts that still roam the city, and makes the acquaintance of a man without a shadow…

The most special and distinct feature of this book is surely the writing style. As the language was more reminiscent of a fairy tale than a modern ya book, the poetry style fit perfectly. Obviously, that came at the cost of having rather few details and a less developed world building than one might wish for. Still, the writing was very atmospheric and thus added a lot to the mood of the story.

It also made for a very quick reading experience, which was good for the way it was written as I would not have liked for the story to be drawn out over an actual 400 pages, but I was sorely missing a lot of character dynamics and developments, so I can‘t say I‘m the biggest fan in that regard.

The two points that bothered me the most were how sudden Ilana‘s character development moved forward over the last chapters, and how insta-lovey the relationship between her and the ghost boy were (which also felt weird to me anyway). The onset of their relationship did not seem to be founded on much of anything and it progressed very quickly.

What I did like, however, was the Jewish representation and all the historical as well as folklore elements that were woven into the story. This was very well done and quite informative as well! Funnily enough, the only other ya fantasy book I read that had poetry elements in it also had a strong focus on the Jewish beliefs of the main characters.

Anyway! I think all in all the book was well written, but it just wasn‘t able to capture my interest as much as I had hoped it would. It was a quick read and fun for in-between, and the lessons that were drawn in the end were very valuable.

3/5 stars.

The Ghosts of Rose Hill is a beautiful and lyrical YA novel-in-verse. The prose is so well crafted. I found myself highlighting line after line to read again and savor. The blend of Jewish history and folklore were perfect for this hauntingly magical tale.

“Prague is old,
but her streets are dancing.”

When I started this book, I was kind of distracted by the loose verse. As the story goes on though, you are drowned in it and in the beauty of the writing.

Every young adult that chooses to read this book should look up trigger warnings.

I wanted to read this book because it took place in Prague, very close to my own home. The story was original and the fantastical elements were subtle but beautiful. The way the author incorporated the folk story of Vodník had me squealing, as this story is told to kids to beware of strangers.

Ilana was so beautiful inside, and so very brave and mature, it was incredible watching her grow up over the summer. My heart aches for her and Benjamin, and for the love they shared.

I will cherish this book forever, and will read it to my kids one day.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book!

This story, written in prose format, follows Iliana as her parents send her to live with her aunt in Prauge for the summer. Iliana’s needs to focus on her future, but finds herself meeting ghosts and a man with no shadow, straight out of fairytales. The prose format was what drew me to the book, and I thought it was a lovely way to portray the story. The modern day fairy tale aspect certainly demands that the reader set aside reality, which is where I had trouble! Overall a quick and intriguing read.

If I could give this book 10 stars I would. I devoured it in two hours, but never wanted it to end. I will be recommending this book to everyone I know. My review may be slightly biased, as I am Jewish myself and connected to many aspects of the book. However, I think it transcends religion and ethnicity into a universal fairy tale of strength, love, and staying true to yourself.

The premise for this book is fantastic, but the format really just isn’t for me. I feel like there’s an audience for it, but a classic reader probably won’t be able to immerse themselves in it.

I absolutely adore this book! I've never read anything like it before! It was so heartbreakingly beautiful! Ilana is so strong! Everything about this book is perfect!

It was a nice read for me. To it seemed like I was walking across Prague with Ilana. I also found this book very interesting in regard with history like about Nazi, Communist.
It was a very fast pace read & I completed it in one night but still the plot was interesting.

The Ghosts of Rose Hill is a lovely gem of a book. The use of prose makes for an enchanting reading experience and the imagery and mythology adds an atmospheric feeling.

While I am unable to speak on the Jewish representation, I thought the latino representation was done very well. The pressure to be successful that comes from being an immigrant is definitely something I relate to. I love how fierce Ilana became in the pursuit of her dreams.

thank you to netgalley and peachtree teen for gifting me this arc in exchange for an honest review.


The Ghosts of Rose Hill is a novel told entirely in verse following a young sixteen year old Cuban-Jewish girl named Ilana. Ilana is in love with music and with playing her violin, but her parents disapprove and decide to send her to Prague for the summer to live with her aunt in order to get her priorities straight.

While in Prague, Ilana finds an abandoned Jewish cemetery and decides to spend time cleaning it up, honoring the dead buried there. While cleaning up the cemetery, she meets the ghost of a Jewish boy named Benjamin, and as they become friends she develops feelings for him and these feelings turn into love.

Benjamin and Ilana won’t get their happily ever after, however. Not when Benjamin’s soul is being kept here against his will and the man doing so wants Ilana to help him trap the souls of more dead Jewish children for him to feed on. Ilana must choose between this boy she loves and has been promised a future with, and doing the right thing.



I wanted to love this book, the prose was beautiful and the way the author wove Jewish culture, history, and folklore into the story was so intricate and seamless. But unfortunately, I can’t say I liked it very much.

One of my biggest pet peeves is when YA authors add in unnecessary romance to a plot that is initially very interesting and doesn’t take the time to develop it or even make it feel like the characters have any chemistry with each other. I also didn’t like the main character very much, she wasn’t developed very extensively and from the personality traits she did exhibit she felt very naive and not in a way that would make her endearing or realistic.

My favorite part of this book as a whole, despite the lyrical prose, was Wassermann’s storyline and his interludes. I was a little skeptical when I saw the author liked her book to Coraline, but around the 42% mark I really started to understand. Wassermann reminds me so much of the Other Mother, a monster that looks like a person that looks like a monster. The magic and the ghosts interwoven with the genuine horror that was Wassermann really made this book.

It isn’t scary or horror by any means necessary, but Wassermann is a character that feeds on the lost souls of dead Jewish children, cursed Nazis for taking away so much of his food source, and imprisons four dead Jewish children for around a century. He attempts to groom the main character, Ilana, to help him commit all of these heinous acts. He’s the kind of monster that Jewish and Romani children are warned about when we’re young, and he made my skin crawl.

Overall, the writing was stunning and the love and care that the author took with this story and portraying so much of her own culture and her people’s history was wonderful. I just wish the romance wasn’t so under-developed and that the main character was given more room to shine.

Slavic mythology meets Jewish history set in Prague, with a biracial Jewish main character.

That's all you need to know, if that doesn't sell this book to you, nothing will.

Beautifully written and a fantastic read

Thank you so much to Net Galley for this free e-ARC in exchange for my honest review of the book.
This book was absolutely beautiful and despite reading very little books that are written in a poetic style I absolutely loved this. The Jewish representation and references were really special to me as a Jew and I learned a lot about the history of Prague specifically when it comes to their history with Jews and antisemitism.
I absolutely loved this book and will definitely will be recommending it to my friends and family, especially those who are also Jewish.
Honestly, I'll most likely reread this once it's out and I can buy the physical copy because I absolutely loved it.

Slavic mythology meets Jewish history (and presence), set in Prague, with a biracial Jewish MC.

That's all you need to know, if that doesn't sell this book to you, nothing will.

It's a beautiful, emotional story told in verse - a story of dreams, of magic, of music and art, of being torn between following your heart and the pragmatism of your immigrant parents, of first love.

There's magic in this story and creatures from Slavic mythology come to life, but I wouldn't call it a fantasy because it's set i Prague and Prague always feels like magic. It's more than believable that there is a vodnik or five out on its streets. And whoever thinks that there aren't ghosts in that place, clearly knows nothing of history of Eastern Europe. If anything, the fantasy elements give justice to the setting.

I'm always the last to praise books by US authors set in Europe but I can't recommend this one enough. Please read it.

R. M. Romero is a Jewish Latina and author of fairy tales for children and adults. She lives in Miami Beach with her cat Henry VIII and spends her summers helping to maintain Jewish cemeteries in Poland. You can visit her online at RMRomero.com. Her newest book, a YA verse novel, is the ethereal The Ghosts of Rose Hill.

The Ghosts of Rose Hill features Illana Lopez, a biracial Jewish teenager who is sent to spend a summer in Prague with her aunt. Her parents send her there to encourage her to focus on her studies and give up her passion for music. However, once in Prague, Illana discovers a forgotten Jewish cemetery by her aunt’s house and meets a ghost who lives there. As she tends his grave and befriends him, he introduces her to a magical side of the city. However, this journey is not without danger. A violinist named Wasserman, a mysterious and enchanting man with no shadow, pursues Illana. He offers her promises of music and a life with her ghost, but there’s a dark side to this bargain, and Illana must make a choice that will ultimately change her life.

Romero’s narrative is lush and magical, and the verse novel form suits it well. Her language is accessible for her target audience, but it’s rich with metaphor and connotation, as all good poetry should be. At times, the narrative takes over, and the book reads like a prose story simply chopped into uneven lines, but most of the time Romero makes the form work for her story, and the reader is enchanted. The story itself reads like a fairy tale imbued with religious myth and mystery, capturing the audience in its magic and leaving them satisfied.

What makes The Ghosts of Rose Hill particularly interesting is the history found within the texts. Romero has clearly researched Prague or knows the city intimately, and this shows in the text. Furthermore, the lessons of Jewish rituals and religious rules found within the text not only educate the reader, but also add context and depth to the characters, specifically Illana. However, the way these elements are introduced doesn’t come across as overly didactic, and feel natural within the language of the story.

Overall, The Ghosts of Rose Hill is a really strong YA verse novel. It’s part ghost story, part mythical horror, part fairy tale, part spell-binding narrative all wrapped up in the perspective of an intelligent and self-aware teenage heroine. YA readers will certainly be engaged by this tale, but older readers will not be disappointed. Fans of delicate ghost stories and mythic horror will thoroughly enjoy this tale.

A beautiful story that almost reads like a modern day fairytale, set in Prague.
Had a hard time putting the book away, the story is very compelling - despite it being not the most elaborate, but that's entirely made up for by the well written prose.
Love the cover too!

The plot of The Ghosts of Rose Hill is as beautiful as its cover. A story told in verses with a hint of magic in a deeply tragic and historical context. I am not usually into this type of literature but Romero’s work makes me want to read more.

Throughout my reading, I thought that there was something familiar about Ilana’s story; the young girl who feels disconnected from her parents, a second world, the “other” adult figure that becomes present in her life… It was only after finishing the book that I noticed its parallels with Neil Gaiman’s Coraline, another favourite book of mine.

The only aspect of the book that made it a 4 star in my ranking system is the romance between Ilana and Benjamin. I found it unnecessary and awkward at times but that’s just my personal preference. Overall, I absolutely adored reading Ilana’s story and look forward to reading more from the author.

The Ghosts of Rose Hill, has a fast rhythmical flow that sweeps you up in lyrical magical prose catapulting you into the haunting coming of age/love story of a you girl and a cemetery ghost,
Although it may sound strange, it works! It’s beautiful and captivating and her characters are multilayered and compelling.
I loved, loved, loved this story and can honestly say I have never read anything like it.
Filled with tension and family dynamics, Illana visits with her Aunt for the summer in Prague and contemplates her future desires to be a violinist and while her father pressures her to peruse other options. The tone of the story is further developed when Iliana becomes passionate as she cares for a local cemetery and meets the ghost.

I look forward to more books from R.M. Romero and would like to thank Peachtree Press and #NetGalley for the advanced digital copy of this book.

“And the most impressive monsters are always the least impressive men.”

Written entirely in verse, this gorgeous novel captured my full attention as I read.

A wonderful, romantically told story, even when the author addresses the atrocities of war, refugee parents, and the oppressed. This coming of age novel was truly beautiful and one that I definitely recommend.