Kate Anderson’s Here Lies Olive is a beautifully eerie yet deeply emotional young adult novel that blends supernatural horror with existential themes. At its heart, the story follows Olive, a sixteen-year-old girl who, after surviving a near-fatal allergic reaction, becomes obsessed with the idea that there may be no afterlife. This fear consumes her, leading her to search for answers in the spirit world. Her journey introduces her to Jay, a ghost with unfinished business, setting off a haunting yet thought-provoking chain of events.

One of the novel’s strongest elements is its setting—a town with a dark history. Anderson does a remarkable job weaving this unsettling backdrop into Olive’s personal struggles, making the themes of life, death, and legacy feel even more impactful. As someone who doesn’t really enjoy atmospheric horror with emotional depth, I found this aspect particularly intriguing. The way Anderson ties in cultural history and the weight of the past makes the book also stand out from typical ghost stories.

Olive is an interesting protagonist—flawed, anxious, and consumed by thoughts most teenagers would rather avoid. While her fear of nothingness might seem extreme, I as an anxious person myself also somehow relate to it. I think I haven’t read yet a YA novel that tackles these existential questions head-on, so it also feels like a refreshing take on it. That said, her self-isolation and some of her choices made her frustrating at times, though they were believable given her mental state. The supporting cast, also help ground the story, adding layers of friendship and personal growth.

Anderson’s writing is immersive, which I loved, though there were moments where the paranormal elements felt a little vague or confusing. Some scenes required a second read to fully grasp what was happening. Despite this, the novel’s balance of eerie, gothic elements and heartfelt character moments kept me engaged.

Overall, Here Lies Olive is a unique and poignant read, perfect for those who enjoy supernatural fiction with an emotional core. If you like books that make you think about life, death, and what lingers in between, this one is worth picking up.

HERE LIES OLIVE is a YA paranormal/horror set in a town billed as the “dark tourism capital of the United States”. Olive’s recently had a near death experience and then lost someone she was close to. Together this has given her a lot of trauma and questions around what happens after death.
The thing I really loved about this book was the relationships. I picked it up originally for the sapphic romance, and I do think that was really sweet, but a far smaller part of the story than I expected.
That was fine though because, instead, a lot of focus was given to Olive and Davis’ platonic friendship. I loved that we got to see not only a real ride-or-die male/female friendship in YA, but also a friendship that’s taken a real hit and taking real work to get it back to where it was.
Another relationship-pro was sort of something that didn’t happen? In this type of story, I was really expect the ‘ghost boy summoned by supernaturally sensitive girl’ trope to lead to attraction and either a ‘we found a way!’ conclusion, or something tragic. HERE LIES OLIVE created a real connection between Olive and Jay, but didn’t feel the need to make it a romantic one.
A nice coming-of-age story, with lots of spooky, small-town vibes.

Here Lies Olive by Kate Anderson is a thought-provoking read that blends mystery with emotional depth, though it doesn’t fully live up to its potential. The story follows Olive, a character whose life and secrets are slowly unraveled after her death, and the narrative weaves between past and present in an intriguing way.

Anderson’s writing is engaging, with some strong moments of character development, particularly in how Olive’s relationships and inner life are portrayed. The pacing is steady, but at times the plot feels a bit too slow or predictable, especially in the middle sections.

While the book does offer some insightful reflections on life, death, and the things we leave behind, it occasionally struggles with pacing and a lack of tension. The ending, while emotional, doesn’t quite land with the impact I was hoping for.

Overall, Here Lies Olive is a solid read but could’ve used a bit more urgency and depth to bring it beyond a 3-star experience. Still worth a read for fans of character-driven mysteries with emotional layers.

Here Lies Olive by Kate Anderson is a gripping supernatural mystery that explores themes of fear, grief, and self-discovery. Sixteen-year-old Olive, who’s terrified of death after a near-fatal allergic reaction, seeks answers about the afterlife after the death of her surrogate grandmother. She summons Jay, a hitchhiking ghost, to learn what comes next, but in doing so, she unknowingly brings danger to her classmates as Jay’s spirit becomes increasingly malevolent.

As Olive teams up with former friends and new allies to free Jay’s spirit, she is forced to confront her fear of death and the emotional toll of love and loss. Anderson beautifully weaves together suspense and personal growth, creating a complex protagonist whose emotional journey feels both real and relatable.

Here Lies Olive blends ghostly mystery with heartfelt themes, offering an engaging read that will resonate with those who enjoy stories about overcoming fear and finding closure.

Thank you to NetGalley, Flux North Star Editions, and the author for allowing me to read an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own

This wasn't for me. Decided to not finish it - was one of the first books I requested and shouldn't have and taken my time picking stories I would enjoy. Unfortunately this isn't it. Sorry!

It took me a while to get into this book, but once it sunk its hooks into me, I couldn’t put it down! I love the imagery surrounded with the elements in this story, I could really visualise Olive and what her friends were experience. I like the depth of Olives experience with death and how that impacted how she continued to view life going forward. I reckon this will be one I’ll read again in the future. If you like dark supernatural stories with a minor queer subplots, this is the one I recommend giving a go.

This cover is so pretty! I enjoyed the book overall, and it was pretty spooky in parts. But the twists were not twisty enough for me.

I love spooky stories but this one was special. The friendship, the healing, the family and romance was such a warm hug.

spooky and paranormal, my favorite!

thank you netgalley and the author for providing me with an e-arc!

I really enjoyed this supernatural/urban fantasy-ish adventure. It was a really creative and interesting story that drew me in and kept me hooked from start to finish.

Here Lies Olive has it all; ghosts, haunted towns, scary asylums, lesbians, etc. I haven't read a ton of paranormal YA books, but this probably would have become my entire personality 10 years ago. Great entry in the YA canon of the 2020s.

I enjoyed this book. I wish there was more like it when I was a teenager but even as an adult I still enjoy YA

Ich weiß ehrlich gesagt nicht, wie ich dieses Buch bewerten soll, da ich es aufgrund relativ kurzer Ausleihdauer (ohne Verlängerung) nicht lesen konnte.

DNF at 30% u wasnt vibing with the writing but I think I might try the audiobook another day. The story still intrigued me

Growing up in the dark tourism capital of the United States, sixteen-year-old Olive should be comfortable with death. But ever since an allergic reaction almost sent her to the wrong side of the grass, she’s been terrified that there is no afterlife. And after the death of her surrogate grandmother, Olive has kept everyone at arm’s length because if there’s Nothing after we die, relationships and love can only end in sorrow.

Give me a ghost story any time and I am here for it. This is a great spooky season read for someone who wants a little more depth to their ghost story. This is a cool examination of what could happen after we die and all the fear that comes with that, as well as all the unknowns.

This story captured relationships, hard questions, afterlife and of course, spookiness. And truly, what more do you need?

As a debut, I was really impressed with what Kate Anderson delivered to us - and I can’t wait to see what else she comes up with in the future! If this was her start, I see a lot of improvement and interesting ideas to come.

A witty and macabre paranormal YA book! I would have loved this as a teen and enjoyed it now, too. Would recommend to fans of the genre.

Dr. Andy’s Top 5 Reasons to read Here Lies Olive by Kate Anderson:
-Detailed themes of grief and healing at your own rate!
-Ex besties reuniting platonically!
-Existential dread and learning to cope! (I mean this in the most goth and positive way)
-Falling for the HOT overachiever girl who was big family trauma!
-Well crafted and tense murder mystery!

A Young Adult horror story with a mystery. Olive is cynical about the afterlife. She feels like there is nothing after we die. Like what is life without anything afterwards, a void. She summons someone from the dead, he is a spirit that is trapped on our plane and cannot leave. She is willing help him find his grave and in turn he helps her to find what she is looking for. Meanwhile there are deaths occurring amongst her classmates. Olive recruits others to try to solve these crimes. An entertaining story, great characters and a well throughout plot.


Disclaimer: Thank you NetGalley and North Star Editions/Flux for this review copy and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you for letting me read an ARC of this book! I really enjoyed reading it and I felt that it was a perfect read for spooky season! The story was super fun and also deep at the same time. I also thought that the characters were well-developed and I felt a genuine connection to all of them, not only the main character. Additionally, the plot twists in the novel were absolutely crazy and always kept me hooked. Overall I liked to book a lot and would reccomend!

I actually prefer YA horror over adult horror! I love that this book features a queer protagonist and appreciate this author's style. I'm really interested to see what she will write next.