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taliabasma's review
3.75
This book edges on a four for me because overall it was really good and I think the concept and plot was well done and different. I do believe there are not enough love stories with ghosts that are not really dead. However, that being said, I think the pacing of the romance was interesting and 75% into the novel I started to lose interest and kind of get impatient with the main characters as they just stopped talking or communicating properly in any shape or form for a reason that is not so clear to me. I also feel like it was so focused on grieving (which was really well done) however, it was very disorienting once she left the funeral home/home town how the story played out between them especially after reminded that they’ve only been talking to each other for a week.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Death
Minor: Gaslighting
lizzye33's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Cursing, Grief, and Death
Moderate: Stalking, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting
Minor: Blood, Body horror, Car accident, Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Medical content, Sexual content, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Bullying, and Toxic relationship
fiercereadsfiction's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Death
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Gaslighting
shesawildflower's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book took me on a JOURNEY! I laughed, I cried, I couldn't put it down. There's a lot going on at times, but I loved every second of it. The side characters are GREAT, everyone of them comes across well and developed. There's a non binary character woven in so seamlessly and I love that representation. Towards the beginning there's a moment when the two MCs are present together just after meeting and another when she seems him again and I thought I would dislike the story in those moments, boy was I wrong!
Once I realized the twist, somewhere around pg 65-68, maybe? When I was like, OK, I'm down, I kinda know where this is going to go and I'm ok with it, and then I let the story take me for a ride. I loved the second twist towards the end, it made me chuckle and clutch my heart at the same time. The main thing I disliked was at the end there's an unnecessary amount of time that "goes by" before the HEA, even if Florence did need that time to work out her stuff it just felt TOO long.
I LOVED the dark humor used in this book, a lot of people don't usually like dark humor but I love it. Sometimes it's the best thing to use to cope with trauma especially when you've been around so much death in your life. I can relate to the sister who tries to handle everything, tries to make everything ok. I like that this was different, and unique and Ashley is a great story teller. It's one of my favorite books of the year so far and I'm excited to read her newest book.
Her acknowledgments section is a hoot too:
"I would like to give a very enthusiastic, FUCK YOU, to my anxiety. Thank you for, as always, being the worst."
"For anyone who has proclaimed drunkenly at a bar that LOVE IS DEAD - I've been there and trust me, love is not dead. It's simply sleeping off a raging hang over. Give it two Tylenol and tell it to call you in the morning. Thank you for reading this book. I hope you find a little bit of happiness wherever you go."
Once I realized the twist, somewhere around pg 65-68, maybe? When I was like, OK, I'm down, I kinda know where this is going to go and I'm ok with it, and then I let the story take me for a ride. I loved the second twist towards the end, it made me chuckle and clutch my heart at the same time. The main thing I disliked was at the end there's an unnecessary amount of time that "goes by" before the HEA, even if Florence did need that time to work out her stuff it just felt TOO long.
I LOVED the dark humor used in this book, a lot of people don't usually like dark humor but I love it. Sometimes it's the best thing to use to cope with trauma especially when you've been around so much death in your life. I can relate to the sister who tries to handle everything, tries to make everything ok. I like that this was different, and unique and Ashley is a great story teller. It's one of my favorite books of the year so far and I'm excited to read her newest book.
Her acknowledgments section is a hoot too:
"I would like to give a very enthusiastic, FUCK YOU, to my anxiety. Thank you for, as always, being the worst."
"For anyone who has proclaimed drunkenly at a bar that LOVE IS DEAD - I've been there and trust me, love is not dead. It's simply sleeping off a raging hang over. Give it two Tylenol and tell it to call you in the morning. Thank you for reading this book. I hope you find a little bit of happiness wherever you go."
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Death, and Car accident
Minor: Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, and Child death
wilybooklover's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
2.5
This had such an interesting premise, but sadly didn’t live up to my expectations. There was so much potential here for fun ghost interactions and swoony romance, but it seemed to get overshadowed by the family/ex drama, funeral plans, and lots of talk about grief. The setup was so delightfully weird, and I just wish it had delved into the seeing ghosts aspect more. I would’ve loved more detail around the murder that Florence solved as a teen, for example. The plot seemed very chaotic and bounced from one thing to the other without giving the characters time to breathe, and despite being labelled a romcom, I thought it was more cringe than funny. I think the scene where she forgives her former bully is supposed to show growth and maturity or whatever but it honestly just made my soul leave my body in second-hand mortification. Not to mention that she calls coffee zoom zoom juice. Zoom zoom juice.
I did really like Ben, he was very sweet (to the extent that I didn’t understand Florence’s initial antagonism towards him). Loved the pining when he’s a ghost and they can’t touch no matter how much they want to. Their first kiss scene before he becomes a ghost did bother me; you can’t just go around suddenly kissing people who have expressed zero indication of interest without asking or at least giving them time to pull away first, especially if you work with them. It’s one thing if they had been flirting or something first but it literally came out of nowhere and it’s never mentioned again in the rest of the book. And it was so odd and unbelievable that Florence just went off to finish writing the book for three months before going to see Ben after he woke up from his coma.
Oh, and they’re not gauges — they’re plugs, or tunnels. Gauge is a measurement of the thickness, not a type of jewellery. A minor pet peeve.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Grief, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, and Death of parent
Moderate: Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Blood, Bullying, Child death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Car accident, and Gaslighting
Minor: Medical content and Infidelity
theverycraftyvegan's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I was on my library’s waitlist for this book for what felt like forever and now I know why.
A sweet and romantic ghost story about a ghost writer with a predictable plot twist that I nonetheless thoroughly enjoyed to the last word. This book made me laugh, cry, and smile while crying and placing my hand over my heart.
The Day family was perfectly written with the eldest, middle, and youngest siblings with all their different roles and personalities.
There were multiple love stories woven into this book and all but one were beautiful to read.
To the next 27 people waiting to borrow this book from my local library: it’s worth the wait. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
A sweet and romantic ghost story about a ghost writer with a predictable plot twist that I nonetheless thoroughly enjoyed to the last word. This book made me laugh, cry, and smile while crying and placing my hand over my heart.
The Day family was perfectly written with the eldest, middle, and youngest siblings with all their different roles and personalities.
There were multiple love stories woven into this book and all but one were beautiful to read.
To the next 27 people waiting to borrow this book from my local library: it’s worth the wait. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Sexism, Alcohol, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Violence, Cursing, and Car accident
princessjasminefliesaway's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Grief, Gaslighting, Bullying, Death, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Cursing, Child death, and Murder
saurahsaurus's review
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Death of parent
Moderate: Gaslighting and Car accident
Minor: Bullying, Murder, and Child death
pinkfloydian's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Chronic illness, Toxic relationship, and Gaslighting
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, and Bullying
beatyjulia's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The Dead Romantics is, at its heart, a romance. However, the pieces I found most endearing didn't always involve the developing love between Florence and Ben. I found the strongest pull towards Florence's grappling with the loss of her father.
"I began to realize that love wasn't dead, but it wasn't forever either. It was something in between, a moment in time where two people existed at the exact same moment in the exact same place in the universe."
The wind in the trees, the crows announcing the presence of a ghostly presence, the treatment that death is a part of life and should be treated with all the love and enthusiasm and care that other life events garner...these were the elements that impressed on my heart.
I love Ben's heart and his heart for Florence. His presence for her in her time of sorrow and searching was so honest and kind. This is a sweet book that will stay with me for more reasons than just the romantic storyline!
"I began to realize that love wasn't dead, but it wasn't forever either. It was something in between, a moment in time where two people existed at the exact same moment in the exact same place in the universe."
The wind in the trees, the crows announcing the presence of a ghostly presence, the treatment that death is a part of life and should be treated with all the love and enthusiasm and care that other life events garner...these were the elements that impressed on my heart.
I love Ben's heart and his heart for Florence. His presence for her in her time of sorrow and searching was so honest and kind. This is a sweet book that will stay with me for more reasons than just the romantic storyline!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Death
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Gaslighting