I really enjoyed Dolly Alderton’s memoir Everything I Know About Love. I loved her style of writing and how it was filled with both funny and poignant moments. I was therefore excited when she released her debut novel, Ghosts.
Ghosts was a 2020 book release and was a Sunday Times bestseller.
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Plot
Although she has plenty to celebrate, including a successful job, a new home and plenty of friends, Nina is finding her 30s aren’t what she’d hoped. With her ex getting engaged and some of her friendships fading, everyone seems to be moving on except her. Her dad’s struggle with dementia and her mum’s refusal to deal with, also add to Nina’s worries.
Then she meets Max, who tells her on date one that he’s going to marry her. But is Max as perfect as he seems and will she ever get her happily ever after?
Ghosts Book Review
As a woman who was married with children in her early 20s, I’m possibly not the target audience for this book. However, I have to say I loved it. Despite not looking for love in my 30s myself, I still found large parts of the book hugely relatable.
The book is about so much more than just finding love and dating. It’s a witty, warm and wise story dealing with topics that so many of us can relate to. Nina’s dad’s battle with dementia was sensitively written and so heartbreakingly familiar to those of us who have experienced loved ones battling this horrible illness.
I also found the exploration into friendships really interesting and relatable too. It can be hard to maintain relationships with your friends when you’re at completely different stages of your life but I did appreciate how the author shows how it can be done if you try hard enough.
Nina was a brilliant character, warm and funny but also completely infuriating. I did find it a bit frustrating how she seemed to find it hard to see things from others’ perspectives and labelled anyone married with kids as boring, self-obsessed imbeciles with unhappy marriages.
It’s an honest exploration of modern dating, with all the highs and lows that come with it. It made me laugh but also made me so sad in places. I really liked the ending and the hope it offered.
All in all, I really enjoyed Ghosts and would definitely read more by Dolly Alderton.
What should I read after Ghosts by Dolly Alderton?
If you enjoyed Ghosts, I’d also recommend reading Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors and Really Good Actually by Monica Heisey. Both of these novels also felt very modern and fresh.