Ghosts is a beautifully written, moving novel about the ghosts and memories we create in our lives and how easily they can be taken away.

This is Nina Dean's story, a 32 year old who has expectations from life; her parents to be fit and well, her birthday to include her birthday song, time with her oldest friends and an easy relationship with the man she is dating. But none of these things are going quite to plan.

For me the stand out part of this book is Nina's relationship with her Dad who is suffering from dementia. It's an emotional rollercoaster which is treated and explained with care and warmth. It is not a situation anyone would know how to deal with unless you'd been through it.

Nina's relationships with her friends gave me pause, they were frustrating and her opinions weren't always fair or particularly kind, as a character she could lack empathy, but as a first person narrative it demonstrated Dolly's ability to create a rounded and three-dimensional character. None of us are perfect.

However the ending is splendid and PERFECT.

I wasn't really sure what I expected from this book to be honest, as its very different from her previous book. This is Dolly's debut novel, about being ghosted. Although its more than just about being ghosted, its about being single in your thirties. How she navigates dating and friendship in her early 30's whilst being single.

We follow Nina, a successful food writer living in London and how her 32nd year was her worst yet. She navigates being one of the last single people left in her close circle and what its like using a dating app. But its more than that, its about her friends and family and how she navigates struggles within both.

I enjoyed that it was more than just the being ghosted and I really enjoyed getting to know Nina and her family and friends.

I enjoyed reading this and picking it up, I read about 60% in one sitting and I love that because it just goes to show you that its a nice read. I thought that maybe it was slightly too long and it had elements of frustration with Max but that's the point - this is what ghosting does to you! (or so I have heard from my girl friends who have unfortunately had to experience this)

Would I recommend this book - yes I would. Its very different to her memoir for obvious reasons but I enjoyed the novel and how realistic it was.

This was an enjoyable book and I really do like Dolly Alderton’s writing. On the surface, it seems like your classic juicy romance, but actually it looks deeper at life as a 30-something single women in London. Topics explored included men being terrible; growing to love yourself and your independence/self-sufficiency; the importance of friendships; and coping with ageing parents/dementia.

All of this was written really well, but I think it’s important we recognise how privileged this book feels. It’s very much the problems of a privileged white woman in London. Though these are valid enough problems to explore, if you were torn between reading this and a book which explores a less privileged life or an own voices experience, then I’d personally go for the latter.

But, you write what you know, and this kind of narrative is what Dolly knows. Really, I wouldn’t have wanted any other narrative because it wouldn’t have been something Dolly could speak on.

Ultimately, this was an enjoyable book and I’d recommend it if you’re looking for a romance with some form of substance. But I would heavily warn you against exclusively reading books like this because it gives you a very narrow perspective of the world.

Ghosts is one of those reads that's so wickedly funny and engrossing that you don't want it to end. It's the type of book you rave over so much that you end up lending your copy to all your friends and never getting it back. Dolly Allerton has crafted a story so real and relatable it takes up space in your heart. An absolutely fantastic read.

Just superb! Wickedly funny, writing characters we all know, had me laughing by the pool this summer, highly recommended.

It’s so nice to read a book whereby the character isn’t a 22 year old falling in love for the first time. Nina is in her early 30’s, she is sarcastic, clever and has some great opinions that only come with age. The first few chapters are hilarious - and very relatable! :
“I ran a bath and put on a long loved iTunes playlist that was called ‘Pre-lash’ in my twenties, which I’d renamed ‘Good Times’ in recent years”.

Nina’s childhood best friends are on different timelines in their life, having young children and moving to the suburbs. Meanwhile, she’s busy trying online dating, which leaves her thinking.. ‘why ARE there so many graphic designers on dating apps but you’ve reached 32 and are yet to meet one in real life?’. But there is no hint of desperation or anxiety for finding a relationship - She is an independent single woman that’s actually enjoying her time before she meets the right guy - one that won’t ‘ghost’ her.

The writing for best friend Lola deserves an award in itself, best supporting book bestie. She is lovable, wacky and you get a whole other sub-plot related to her own story which I’d love to read more of. I screenshot a few paragraphs to send to my own best friend with the message “read this and tell me this isn’t a conversation that we’d have”.

I really had a love hate relationship with this book. I loved it, but it was difficult to read because of how honest it was about how alzheimers can affect a family. I found myself wanting to give her character a hug, after a particularly emotional run in with her father - by this point I was emotionally invested in the character from the first few chapters of wanting to be her best friend. It isn’t a ‘fluffy’ chick flick read by all means - but it’s brilliant.

The only flaw in my opinion is that Nina is most definitely not the typical millennial working a 9-5 job, her life of friendship dates and daytime dating app jaunts can be hard to relate to. I didn’t actually read about her doing all that much work - it just seemed to be mentioned whenever someone ‘asked’ about it that she had written four new chapters. But the basis of her new cook book is ‘Nostalgia’ and to be fair, this theme is explored well in Ghosts.

All in all, it’s a great read - I’ve already recommended it to three friends the day after finishing it and it’ll have you talking about its topics for days.

I really enjoyed this one. A lot of books in this genre with a single, female lead character in her thirties mainly deal with her relationships with a variety of suitable and unsuitable men. This book was different as it explored a wide variety of the relationships in Nina’s life in a meaningful way. Humorous and heart-wrenching in equal measure.

I loved Dolly Alderton’s memoir so I was really excited to read her debut novel. It did not disappoint. I really warmed to the main character Nina and her other single friend Lola. While I was reading this, and although it’s not written in diary format, I felt like I was reading the new Bridget Jones because this book shows what today’s generation of 30 something singles go through. I think this is going to be a massive bestseller. It certainly deserves to be. I adored it.

I absolutely ripped through this book- after reading Dolly’s memoir I was intrigued as to her approach to fiction- but it was just as funny, whip smart and well observed as her first book. The Complicated relationships between the main character and her mother who is going through a identity crisis, and her poor dad, so loved but fading away to dementia contrasted against the infuriating and oh so common trials and tribulations of dating in 2019/2020 where men-children are incapable of honest communication and knowing what the want from a relationship, a conversation I have with my friends repeatedly. A must read for every young woman wanting a funny, emotional and accurate escape into a shared experience of many London millennials.

I loved Dolly's first book and was very excited to be able to get an early copy of Ghosts. If you love reading about the highs, lows and below the low of lows of dating and relationships, you'll eat this book alive and not come up for air. Dolly has captured the hope and anticipation that the swiping of online profiles brings, as well as the frustration and resignation that follows. There's the undercurrent of meditation on the main character Nina's relationship with her parents. Her mum who is entering a new phase with a zest for reinventing herself and her life whilst Nina's dad is losing his grip on his. There's all the confusion and widening gulf of interests in Nina's friendships as her friends find love and begin making families. There's a rich web of friends and lovers, past and current as well as an ongoing unwelcome dispute with a heartbroken neighbour. This is an insight into the stories that cloak our lives today and the humour, sadness and nostalgia that unites us all. I kept looking forward to when I could pick it up again and read some more and am a bit miffed now it's finished.

This is a funny and poignant tale of the challenges facing a young independent woman.

Nina is in her 30s, owns a flat in London and is making her name as a food writer. But her friends are getting married with babies, her father is sinking further into his dementia, and she is battling dating apps.

She thinks she's finally found 'the one' in Max, but things don't turn out as she had hoped, nor how she'd been led to believe.

This was a hypnotising read! First I thought the love story was going to get me down, and the thirty-something lifestyle no longer one I was relating to, but the ups and downs of Nina's story were compelling. Her tender attention to her father in his illness was particularly appealing and enlightening, and the conclusion to her emotional rollercoaster didn't disappoint.

An enjoyable read!

I love love loved this book! Dolly's writing is impeccable and she is very good at creating characters with lots of depth. Any woman who has used a dating app has had the experience of being ghosted and Dolly captures the feelings of this outrageous new trend perfectly. MUST READ!

This book did not download properly so I couldn’t read it to review it. I would love for you to send me this again if you can.

I enjoyed this novel about 30- something Nina who, despite her successful career, has a less than perfect love life and the sadness of seeing her wonderful father deteriorate with dementia. I didn’t always warm to Nina (for example in her relationships with old friends) but one could feel for her and the story felt real.
I thought the writing was generally very good and it was a quick and compelling read.

This is exactly what I wanted from Dolly’s first foray into fiction. I had to keep reminding myself that the protagonist was Nina though, and not Dolly herself 🙈
There are so many wry observations which will ring true to every 30-something woman across the land. ‘Ghosts’ felt like reading an email from an old pal who knows you inside out. <3 I liked it a lot.

Having never heard of this author before I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this book but the synopsis sounded good so thought would give it a try.

It tells the story of 32 year old Nina Dean, a successful food writer but whose personal life is falling apart. Surrounded by smug married friends she feels she is getting left behind and, along with her one loyal single friend, she joins a dating app, only to become the victim of ghosting for the first time.

Mix in thinking’s about her biological clock ticking and age being ever prominent the story proceeds to go through the various stages of her dating experience, including attending her ex-boyfriends wedding. All this along with the worry of her dad and his demise into dementia.

The father and daughter relationship is the best part of this book and is beautifully described, highlighting the decline of her father right before her eyes to the horrible disease that is dementia. Unfortunately I failed to engage with the rest of the book as it just didn’t flow or seem believable, the writing was a little all over the place which found it hard to truly get absorbed in the story too. This may have been the advance copy text layout and may well be changed for the final published copy but at present there seems to be something missing to get everything together.

It wasn’t my cup of tea and overall I just felt that nothing really happened, there was nothing I could take away from the book and unfortunately did struggle to motivate myself to finish this which was a shame.

A lovely debut novel from Dolly Alderton, focusing on Nina Dean, a 30-something in London looking for love. Witty, intelligent and, at times, quite sad, Ghosts was a joy to read.

The ending was lovely and surprised me which is always the sign of a great book!

The only reason not for 5* was after reading Dolly's Everything I Know About Love, I felt like some aspects of the novel were slightly too similar and I struggled to picture Nina as anyone but Dolly. Although I loved EIKAL, I felt I couldn't give Ghosts 5*.

Nina George Dean is my new heroine. I loved this witty, tender and beautiful book, another heartbreaker but packed with hope and love and friendship, and a beautiful relationship between father and daughter (And being a certain age all the cultural references littered throughout the book are hardwired into me!) Dolly Alderton writes like a dream, I cannot wait for all the excitement when this comes out... you're going to see it everywhere. Thank you @netgalley for the arc, perfect read for a sunny Sunday afternoon.

This isn’t usually a genre that I read but I have heard so much about Dolly Alderton, I was curious about her work. I did struggle with the first half of the book as I found the characters laboured and two dimensional at times. However, I was glad I persevered as the relationship between Nina and her father is very moving. The heartbreak portrayed over the gradual loss of a parent to dementia feels real and it is deftly handled by Alderton. Nina and her mum react differently to the idea of becoming carers and Alderton shows that this is both normal and natural. I also appreciated that the term ‘ghosting’ did not just refer to Nina’s romantic relationships and it could also be applied to her father’s fading memories, or the deterioration of childhood friendships. I was less convinced by Nina’s love life, but overall this was an enjoyable read from a debut fiction book.

I haven’t read anything by this author before, and I knew this was her first fictional book so wasn’t sure exactly what to expect. It wasn’t exactly as I expected but I still enjoyed it. The characters came to life and the book flowed and was a very pleasant lockdown read.