e-Audio, 08:14:02
Narrated by: Jess Nahikian
Release Date: September 6, 2022
Published by: Dreamscape Media
Read from: September 1-3, 2022
Stand-alone
Source: Netgalley Audio (I received a copy of this audiobook from Netgalley and the Publisher in exchange for a just and honest review. This did nothing to influence my review.)
TW: Mental health spirals, Panic Attacks on page, Body Horror, Death
For Readers Interested In: Paranormal, Ghosts, Mental Health Rep (Anxiety… Mostly about death/dying) , LGBTQIA+ (MC is Ace & BFF is non-binary), Family Diversity (Twins), YASixteen-year-old Georgia Richter feels conflicted about the funeral home her parents run–especially because she has the ability to summon ghosts. With one touch of any body that passes through Richter Funeral Home, she can awaken the spirit of the departed. With one more touch, she makes the spirit disappear, to a fate that remains mysterious to Georgia. To cope with her deep anxiety about death, she does her best to fulfill the final wishes of the deceased whose ghosts she briefly revives.
Then her classmate Milo’s body arrives at Richter–and his spirit wants help with unfinished business, forcing Georgia to reckon with her relationship to grief and mortality.
*MY THOUGHTS*
I was so excited to read this because I was still on a high from reading The Dead Romantics and for whatever reason, I thought this was going to be like that. And in a way, it was, but it’s also YA, so that means it’s also a lot more angsty. So there’s so much more going on in this one, but that did NOT take away from the fact that this one was also good af.
Although this DID make me spiral a bit, the mental health rep was definitely something I loved about this book. I’ve had some of the same thoughts she did before. I was never on the same level as her, but I spoke with my mom and she remembers me once telling her I was afraid to die and the conversations that followed. So basically, I was around the same age. But I’ve always remembered her answer, “If you wished you were never alive, you’d still be dead. So live your life to the fullest while you have it.” Not particularly profound, but it was enough for me not to feel worse after hearing it. So basically I really felt seen in this anxiety rep. However, like I said, if you’ve ever had some of these thoughts, be mindful this content is in there. It can make you spiral as it did me.
As a character, I also saw other ways she was like me. Like the journaling. I’ve been a large journaler for a long time. I have a book journal and a creative book journal. I have been doing both for a long time and I love it. It sounded very much like the journal she made for those that she woke up. Although hers is a lot more sad than mine, I think it was cathartic and helped calm her when she was in her anxiety’s clutches. This made the character feel a lot more real. Now for her personality, I didn’t like how she acted towards her friends, but by the end she knew what she had done wrong and wanted to change. She’s a teen and they are the main ones who are constantly changing. I loved that they author showed that change for her.
Being able to do what she does and having the power she does, I can see why she’s had those thoughts tho. I think this would mess me up lol And she doesn’t know how to use it? Yeah, no. That seems super reckless. But also I don’t know if I would have thought that way as a teen. I think I would have wanted to explore it like she did, consequences be damned. But also, how was she not frightened? Because um I think I would have freaked out. Especially with the first ghost. Like they don’t know what’s happening and I don’t either? I would have immediately panicked. I don’t know how she was able to be ok enough to have an actual conversation with that person. And then the person that it was? I don’t know how she did it. I DO wish she had known more or learned more about her powers tho. It just made it all feel incomplete.
There is also LGBTQIA rep in this one too. The main character is ace and her best friend is non-binary. As I’m not a part of either community, I won’t comment on the rep, but I will say that the BFF’s pronouns are they/them and their parents are very supportive of them. And nothing happens to them in the end of the book. I know that’s a stereotype, but it’s not a problem with this character and I loved that.
The ghost that this was about really captured my heart. Him and his parents made me hella emotional lol I remembered I was clutching my pearls at one point. His whole family made me teary, I’m not gonna lie. And the end?! The eulogy? The very last thing with his friend? I hated it lol Why? Because I was in real tears. From a paranormal book lol I don’t think I’ve ever been in that position before. So be warned. Because if you’re like me and cry at anything, you will definitely cry at this.
The narrator was okay. Not really memorable, but still good. I was able to decipher between the voices and things like that. I went to check out the narrator and I haven’t listened to anything else they had done, so I enjoyed getting an introduction to someone new. I will be sure to keep an eye on this narrator to see how they grow and if they did anything else in the near future.
But in all seriousness, this book was so good! I realize this won’t be for everyone (in fact I had to warn my coworker off because she also has anxiety and I know this would have caused more harm than been enjoyable with her) but this definitely hit the mark for me. It was a perfect way to welcome me to Spooky Season!
Overall, I give this
