Reviews

Give Up the Ghost by Megan Crewe

mouse909's review against another edition

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5.0

This book was amazing! I loved it and didn't want it to end. It's a must read.

mackenzierm's review against another edition

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4.0

I was excited to read this since I joined Goodreads a year or so ago, for two reasons I suppose. The first being that it's a ghost story - and I love ghost stories; the second being that the cover intrigued me and the synopsis sounded so good.

This book sure didn't disappoint. It was just as good as I thought it would be. The only complaint from my point of view was that the beginning started off slow.

So right, Give Up The Ghost is about Cass McKenna. A girl who prefers talking to the ghosts of dead people rather than "breathers" as she so kindly calls them. She has a mission and that mission is to oust all the crap that people do and make them man up to what they've done. That's when Tim comes in. He has discovered her secret and wants her help to commune with his dead mother. While her life steadily becomes more entwined with Tim's she begins to see that he needs more help than most people care to see and she's one of the only people who really care.

This book is amazing. As you read through it, you see how Cass's opinions and priorities change and you also see how she changes.

I really liked all the lists that Cass was constantly spouting. It was clear she had a thing for lists and I liked that. You got to see how she thought about things. It was all pretty logical.

I'm absolutely certain I've read a book really similar to this one a couple years ago. The part about how the ghosts hang around until their connection to earth has been cut and they can move on. It felt so familiar. I just can't think of what book it was that I read it in.

All in all, a fabulous book. I'm glad I got the opportunity to read it.

lpcoolgirl's review against another edition

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5.0

Loved this book! Really great! Really enjoy Megan Crewe's writing! So good! Loved the ghosts!! Very funny! And there was a happy ending! Whoo!

awwwyisss44's review against another edition

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3.0

I've always wondered what it would be like to be friends with a ghost, and in Megan Crewe's debut novel, Give Up the Ghost, that's exactly what Cass McKenna prefers. Cass prefers to be friends with ghosts instead of "breathers," which is the name given to the living. Ghosts are simple, uncomplicated, dependable, and most of all they see and hear everything.


These little facts are what helps Cass become the most feared person in her high school. She knows everyone's dirty little secrets and has made it her mission in life to expose those secrets, or to at least hold them over people to get them to do what she wants. Whether it's being a modern day Robin Hood of sorts and protecting someone from the people that are taking advantage of them, or just getting revenge on the people that have treated her badly, the secrets always come out and Cass is the one to help them along.


This is not your typical ghost story. It's fun; light, spunky, and even has a few moments that could possibly break your heart. Within Cass' role as the school's Robin Hood of secrets, for lack of a better description, Cass catches the attention of Tim, the student council vice president and all around popular guy. He discovers her secret, and he doesn't want to expose her secret, he wants her to use it to contact his mother who recently passed away.


After Cass reluctantly agrees to help Tim and in this process she becomes more and more involved in Tim's life and comes to find that maybe the living aren't as bad as she thought they were. She also finds that maybe that picture perfect guy she started to help is more messed up and needs her help more than she would have ever thought.


I adored the ghosts; they were so funny and quirky, while most of the human character seemed to be more abrasive and uncooperative with the story. I think character development should have been focused on more, I mean aside from Cass, Tim, and Norris (a ghost); I can't really remember anyone else's names. I did love Megan's writing style though, it flowed nicely and Give Up the Ghost was a pretty quick read for that reason.


I found the ending to be quite unsatisfying, but it did leave it open where there could possibly be more adventures with Cass and Tim. And I hope that's the case. I would love to see more from the two of them and see where things go.


Overall, I thought it was a good story, and totally not scary like most ghost stories. I can't wait to see more from Megan, and I can't wait to see where her writing goes from here. If you're looking for a cute, quick read that's light and fun, then you should totally check out Give Up the Ghost. It fits all those things and more. Plus, like most debut authors this year, it has an amazing cover! It's so cute and totally reflects the story at hand.

friedatweehuysen's review against another edition

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4.0

This was an uncomfortable book to read, maybe because it reminded me a lot about how high school was for me. Although I didn't talk to ghosts. Might have been better. Cass has it really hard and there were big and difficult things for her to deal with. Which actually made it a good book to read.

chaotic_ramblings's review against another edition

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4.0



Wasn't able to put it down! I thought it would turn out to be a love story and was thrilled that it really wasn't

anie_star's review against another edition

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4.0



Really interesting read. I love that it deal with really important issues in the right way. Story is really interesting and also different, as I am use to.

We follow Cass, that started seeing ghosts after her sister died. Because she was heavily bullies in junior high, she doesn't trust easily and prefers to talk to her ghost friends over real people. She uses her ghosts friends to spy on people and find out their secrets. She uses them to her advantage, when time is right. She is determent to find something on Danielle, her former best friend and the girl who started bulling her

Everything changes when Tim, VP of student council asks her for help.

I really like the story, but the ending left me with so many questions. What happens after? Do they get together? Why does she has her powers? Is she suppose to help ghost to go? Does Paige eventually disappears? Is he OK? I want to know more about Cass and ghosts and I would love it, if there was sequel. Maybe that is a part what makes this book so special.

Review also on: http://diaryofawannabewriter.blogspot.si/2017/03/give-up-ghost.html

leakelley's review against another edition

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4.0

Cass McKenna sees dead people. Her older sister, Paige, drowned four years ago, and Cass has been able to see ghosts ever since. This is a skill that she puts to pointed use at her high school, where two ghost friends provide with her all the gossip she needs to punish the kids who turned their backs on her in middle school. No one knows how Cass does it, but they all stay away from her regardless, and she likes it better that way. Things start changing when Cass finally gets the information she needs to punish her former best friend Danielle, who led the turn against her years before. This also brings her to the attention of Tim, who desperately wants to communicate with his recently deceased mother, and he forces Cass back into the land of the living.

The best thing about this book is definitely the character of Cass, who tries to do the right thing even while sometimes causing more pain than the mean girls who tortured her. She has cut herself off from everyone except her dead friends and her dead sister, and her parents are too lost in their own grief to help her. Three years of knowing every dirty detail about the students and teachers around her has only driven her further away from any human contact. Since this book is set late in high school, and contain drinking and references to sex, it's more appropriate for older kids than for my 7th graders, but I think it would also be good for a student who is feeling isolated from the world or dealing with grief.

hezann73's review against another edition

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4.0

Cass doesn't have many friends at school - just the ghosts she sees. They help her get dirt on her classmates, which Cass uses to help them "face the truth" about themselves. But when one of the super-popular guys needs Cass' help in contacting his dead mom, she isn't sure she wants to get involved. The living can be harder to deal with than the dead.

This was actually a really cute book. It was a quick read and I really liked Cass.

Recommended for 8-10th grade.

marathonofbooks's review against another edition

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3.0

http://amysmarathonofbooks.ca/give-up-the-ghost/