I really wanted to love this more. 😭 Identifying as Lesbian, I can immediately tell when an author isn’t…or hasn’t done the research or maybe had conversations. The cover is stunning and the story would have been great.

18 year old ghost hunter Cara has made it her life mission to prove ghosts are real. She stumbles across the spirit of Aiden, a popular senior at her high school who died a year ago, while filming a video for her YouTube channel. He agrees to help her prove his existence in exchange for helping him pass over to the after life. They believe the only way to do this is to help his younger sister Meredith get over his death.

I was drawn to this book by the cover. The concept of this book was really fun, and I loved the friendship that developed between Cara and Aiden. The writing style was easy to read, and it flew by so quickly. I didn't necessarily like the reasoning behind Cara and Merideth's relationship, but I did like them together. I thought they had some very cute moments, but I agree with her anger when she found out about what started it. I wish we had gotten a POV from Meredith as well, or even Aiden. I think that would have made the book a 4.5 or 5-star read for me.

The Ghost of Us by James Sutter is a charming young adult novel that blends ghost hunting with a heartfelt coming-of-age story. The protagonist, Cara, is an eighteen-year-old aspiring ghost hunter who finds herself stuck in her small hometown after high school. Her life takes a thrilling turn when she connects with the ghost of Aiden, a popular boy who died tragically. Their pact to help Aiden's grieving sister, Meredith, navigate her emotions and attend prom adds a sweet twist to the narrative. The interactions between Cara and Aiden are engaging, filled with playful banter that keeps the story light-hearted despite its deeper themes of grief and loss.

While the book has a delightful premise and engaging writing, some readers might find Cara's character a bit frustrating at times due to her selfish tendencies. Additionally, the story could have benefitted from exploring Meredith's perspective to deepen the emotional impact of Aiden's death. Despite these critiques, Sutter successfully creates an enjoyable read that balances humor and heartwarming moments. If you're looking for a quick, entertaining story that touches on themes of friendship and love while featuring some ghostly fun, The Ghost of Us is definitely worth picking up!

This was unfortunately a big "I wanted to read it because OMGLookAtThisCOVER!!!" and It bit me in the rear. The synopsis sounded amazing too, and I was honestly excited to save this one for an early fall read.

But...

First of all, I don't understand men writing sapphic romances. They just rarely get it right, and this one was no exception. And maybe this is the mom in me, but why is a grown man writing a sapphic YA love story? Something about this is just cringey in my brain.

Second, I couldn't STAND Cara. She was the worst.

Third, why the heck were there eleventy-thousand references to pop culture? I felt like they were on every page and being shoved down my throat. I don't normally mind a few thrown in a. book here and there, but this was excessive.

A cute love story with a good payoff at the end.
I loved the twist of having the ghost brother around, and I appreciated that the writer seemed to do his research about ghost-hunting technology.

The characters in this had a lot of depth and seemed like real people. I liked Cara and I felt for her with the trauma that she had experienced from bullying. Unfortunately a story about a young girl in that situation is all too realistic.

I also really appreciated Holly as the best friend character, she was really sweet and the way she stuck by Cara when everyone else in the school was tearing her apart made me instantly like her.

Cara's character arc sometimes frustrated me, with her inability to see how much she was pushing people away and hurting them, but I think it made sense for her after what she had experienced and I liked how, when she finally went too far, everyone called her on it and she had to face the consequences.
She essentially turned into a bully herself, and the narrative called her on it, I liked that. If that hadn't been the case, this book would have gotten a lower rating from me, for sure.

This would have been a five star from me but there were a couple moments that kinda didn't work, including one that actually grossed me out so bad I had to put the book down for a little while, something I'm not sure I've ever had to do before with a romance.

All in all, though, solid read.

There was so much I loved about The Ghost of Us. For starters, the cover is stunning. Secondly, I love Sutter's ability to write humor and wit while telling a story about ghosts and a young adult's death. For me, this could have been an easy five-star read had there been more emotion on Meredith's part. I needed more emotion and grief to become fully invested in the story.

I will continue to read Sutter's books. I love his writing and humor.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

What a touching novel, story about a dead boy and his grieving sister, The Ghost of Us is light and funny.

a YA book with a good premise, but did not do well in its execution. The characters were not full developed to my liking.

This was cute and a bit sexy, with well fleshed out characters and enough of a mystery to it that it kept me reading. I do wish there had been more concrete answers on why Aiden was the only ghost Cara ever encountered or why only Cara could hear him, but it worked.

Typical teen romance of boy’s ghost who is trying to set his sister up and see her happy. Lots of the same old dishonesty leading to a break up because who is going to believe that your dead brother is the matchmaking type. It’s an okay story but there were a lot of stereotypes and not a lot of people stepping out of their comfort zones.

I loved this book at the beginning and end. Cara, the protagonist, has some serious growing pains during the third act, and it was painful to read. The concept of The Ghost of Us is unique and the characters were interesting and diverse. The quippy writing felt very Whedon and it was fun!

This sapphic YA romance was a ride! I thoroughly enjoyed (and laughed) throughout Cara and Aiden's interactions. It felt like real and valid conversations teens of their age would discuss. I could have read a whole book of just them talking! I adored Cara's parents and how they embraced who they are (oddballs who love each other immensely). Cara's best friend Meredith was also well done. While Meredith was religious she still supported Cara and her ghostly YouTube channel and did her best to keep Cara involved. Cara's behavior when it came to Meredith and her beliefs is where I got stuck. Cara's personality could be selfish, and very self-centered, and I know most teens are and can be that way, her actions felt over the top a lot. I honestly cheered for Meredith in the end and how she handled Cara.

The fake dating/romancing of Aidan's sister was awkward and cringe worthy---which was perfect! No one's first dates and interactions are going to be a dream. Embarrassing things happen and are said. I loved this about their budding relationship. The end got me a little teary and I wasn't expecting that but I really got attached to Aidan. He was definitely my favorite character.

Readers looking for a fun YA sapphic romance can enjoy this one while also enjoying moments including rock climbing, promposals, friendship, grief, and self-discovery.

A DNF unfortunately with potential for me to go back and finish the story. I would love to say more but I am withholding my review until St Martins Press meets the demands of the ongoing boycott.

As of August 27th R4A has determined that the demands of the boycott have been met so Im not able to share why this was a DNF for me. Since reading this Ive decided I don't think ill come back and finish it. I liked Meredith a lot and the whole concept for the story but those were the only things I liked about it unfortunately. I hated the writing, it was very out of pocket sometimes and it felt like an adult trying to write how teenagers would talk and it just did not work. Sometimes it was funny and worked well but others it just felt very ick and was kind of jarring to read. And Cara just seems very selfish and for her own gain and upon reading others reviews neither of these issues seem to get better as the story goes on so unfortunately it was a DNF. I think it would have been better had Meredith been given a POV and some of the writing and jokes were edited maybe. Regardless thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read an ARC of this!

If, like me, you are a sucker for good comedy about grief, I highly recommend* The Ghost of Us. It’s equal parts hilarious, haunting, and heartbreaking. (*if you can handle liberal sprinklings of profanity and scenes of teen sexuality.)

Due to a social media debacle in 8th grade, Cara Weaver is deeply unpopular in her high school and can’t wait to graduate and leave the town of Stossel behind. Rejected by all the colleges she applied to, she’s throwing everything into becoming internet famous as a ghosthunter. When the ghost of Aiden Reyes, a boy who died in a terrible accident the year before, starts talking to her, she thinks she’s on her way. But Aiden will only work with her if she takes his sister to prom. She agrees, but she isn’t prepared for the force of nature that is Meredith.

I loved this book from start to finish. The teens come across as authentic—snarky and confident one minute, unsure and needy the next. They’ve all been hurt, so their guard is up, yet they long for real connection. They take care of each other, let each other down, and try to do better. The book hits a lot of expected rom-com beats, but it’s wacky enough to feel fresh. I really appreciated that being queer for these kids is just an ordinary part of growing up. Their coming-out stories are in the past; now they’re trying to live their lives and get to the next thing. Sweet Christian girl Holly is not the villain, but Cara’s best friend. Ghost Aiden is still the dudebro he was in life, but he’s also a loving brother who has to make sure his sister is okay before he moves on. Overall, a delightful read.

3.5 stars. This was a cute YA story of a girl named Cara who is trying to launch her career as a ghost hunter. She winds up going to a place where a senior has passed way prior. Aiden somehow can connect with Cara from the beyond and she is the only one who can hear him. She is trying to prove he is real and he has one condition to get his sister to prom.

Thank you NetGalley and Andersen Press for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The cover is so so stunning, and I was really exited with the premise but the story fell flat for me. It was super sweet, but overall had the tone of a man writing a book about lesbians, with super out of date slang and terminology.

The romance is also very oversexualized, which is not something that i was expecting and threw me off guard. I

James L. Sutter’s “The Ghost of Us” presents an intriguing blend of supernatural intrigue and teenage romance. The premise is promising, with an engaging mix of ghostly elements and high school drama. The dynamic between Cara and Aiden adds an interesting twist to the usual ghost story. Cara’s journey, guided by Aiden’s ghostly advice, evolves into a heartfelt exploration of self-worth and connection. However, the execution of these themes sometimes falters. Cara’s transformation from a driven ghost hunter to a conflicted romantic feels a bit rushed, and Meredith’s initial characterization as a troubled recluse can come off as clichéd. The resolution presents a satisfying conclusion but may leave readers wanting more in terms of character development and emotional payoff. Overall, “The Ghost of Us” is an enjoyable read with a creative premise, though it occasionally struggles with pacing.

I received a free copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press; all opinions expressed are exclusively my own.

I almost entirely enjoyed this story, except the sheer vast looming dread I experienced almost the entire time I was reading it. It's a dramatic high school sapphic fantasy romance, but the drama is HEAVY and there are some very difficult to relate with character choices. That said, I enjoyed the characters and the way they interacted outside of the drama, and I would consider reading more works by this author.

For sensitive readers there are depictions of bullying, death, PTSD, depression, misogyny, sexuality, non-consensual voyeurism, neglect, and betrayal.

I just want to start this by saying that if I knew this was a sapphic novel written by a man, I probably wouldn't have requested this on NetGalley. It was my fault for not looking deeper into this, considering it is in the synopsis, but I don't like to know too much about books before I start them.

The concept of this was super interesting to me; a ghost hunter finds a ghost and he plays matchmaker for her. But that's more or less where my enjoyment of this book ended. The way the characters talked was just so cringe, it felt like the author had never talked to a teenager before and was using lingo that he saw on the internet to make them more "realistic". The "douche nozzle (flirty)" really sent me over the edge. I think I will always have a problem with women written by men, and the queer women written by men is just a given.

I was interested enough to finish the book so I guess that's good but I really did not have a good time. I tried remove myself from the discomfort of someone writing a queer romance in a relationship they've never or ever will be a part of but every time the main character and the love interest flirted, it was hard to not think about it. Every time the main character thought or talked about the love interest, it felt like a teenage boy lusting over the hottest girl in the world. The romance wasn't about how much she liked this girl.... it was about how much she wanted to get with her. And don't get me started on the "I'm a ghost and I think if I get my sister laid I'll move on to the afterlife!"

This author does have a MLM book that seems interesting enough but I probably won't read anything else by this author. But I will give him props for adding "douche nozzle (flirty)" to my vocabulary.

In general, I liked the plot of this one. The main character Cara was flawed (in good ways and bad), I really enjoyed Aiden in her head, and aspects of the romance were pretty sweet. There were several parts, though, that made me not enjoy it so much. The aforementioned bad flaws of Cara's (she was pretty self-pitying and selfish for too long, imo) and the catfishy way the romance happened. Not a fan. Also, I don't know if it was because it was a male author or what, but some of the descriptions were just uncomfortable.