This is a stunning, tender, honest and raw love story. Beautiful prose throughout that truly felt real and a queer love story I won’t forget anytime soon.

Meet Theron David Alden, known as David as we follow him through from his teen to adult days. As a teen half the summer is spent in New Hampshire with his father and the remainder of the year with his mother in California.
One other thing to note, he smokes a lot of weed, takes pills and generally spends most of high and that doesn’t stop when he gets a job in a local hardware store and meets Jake, slightly older but the person who will change his life.
It’s like a thunderbolt hit David, he admired, dare I say loved Jake but were his feelings real, was he gay or was it just an infatuation. Jake is engaged to his long-term sweetheart currently absent, and subsequently Jake and David spend every moment together. There is endless weed, drugs, alcohol, and late nights as David hangs on to his every word before suddenly Jake is gone.
David, as you would imagine is bereft, adrift, depressed, until out of the blue Jake re-emerges for one last blow-out that very nearly ends in tragedy. Fast forward and David is in New York, engaged in a so called casual relationship with Lou, Jake a memory but still one that tugs at his feelings none more so when he suddenly reappears.
Lou is left behind and once again David is under his spell. Cue a storm, a blackout, feelings acknowledged, then nothing, then a tragedy.
How did it all make me feel? In one respect annoyed that someone as intelligent as David would hang on, drop everything for Jake, but that’s infatuation. I loved having access to David’s feelings and did wonder if this was autobiographical so true was Thompson’s narrative. He made me dislike Jake using David, for keeping him dangling on a piece of string, never able to open up and acknowledge his own feelings. He continually kept pressing that self-destruct button when all he had to was communicate and talk.
Overall I enjoyed the novel and its numerous talking points would make for a good bookclub read

Thanks to the author, netgalley and the publishers Pan Macmillan for an ARC of this superb book. Anyone's Ghost grabs your attention from the opening line: "It took three car crashes to kill Jake." From there, Theron, Jake's teenage friend and former clandestine lover, looks back on their time together.

The first section of the book covers Jake and Theron's summer working together during the school holidays, where the author captures so much of what we all remember about adolescence so well. And as the characters move through the story, their attitudes and behaviour change in ways that feel realistic but not cliched. So, for example, when Theron has just finished college and is living in New York, he is much more comfortable with the idea of his queerness (which he couldn't acknowledge as a fifteen-year-old).

Up to the second section of the book, however, I thought this was a well-written novel, but not one that particularly grabbed me. But in that second section, Theron and Jake head out for Hallowe'en, and their conversation in the bar becomes increasingly intimate. Theron talks about his feelings for Lou, his best friend and girlfriend with whom he has an ongoing, though uncommitted relationship, and Jake talks about his plan to give himself "five more years" before he starts thinking about killing himself again. It's close and confiding in a way that I've rarely read about between female friends, and I can't think of another time when I've read something so intimate between two men. These chapters where Jake and Theron are talking through until they first kiss are astonishing and elevated the novel to a different level in my mind.

There's a lot more going on in this book, from an exploration of what it means to be bisexual, and how that fits with modern-day masculinity, to the search for the purpose of life and the difficulties of finding meaning late-stage capitalism. The ending felt fitting too, but it's that middle section that will stay with me for a long time. I would absolutely recommend this, particularly if you want to see a writer do something that's still rare in literature and detail frank scenes of friendship and love.

A story that will remain with you, cathartic and enthralling. Emotionally charged, a story of coming of age that mixes discovering what we are and the sentiments.
Highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine

Anyone’s Ghost is raw, aching, and impossible to shake off. A deep dive into male friendship, the messy beauty of growing up, and the way grief can knock the air out of your lungs. Equal parts gritty and tender, it’s got the kind of writing that lingers in the back of your mind.

A heartbreaking coming of age novel about the relationship between two young men over three car crashes. Theron is there for the first two but it is the third that kills Jake. A beautiful modern love story that leaves everything on the table. Thank you to NetGalley for letting me read an advance copy of this incredible book.

This is a seriously impressive debut. It is beautifully written with a raw intensity that touches every page. The character of Theron is layered and nuanced. He has flaws, contradictions and struggles which make him feel achingly real. Jake also feels viscerally authentic and complex. It is a novel that tells us from the start that this love story doesn’t have a happy ending and yet it is still compelling, intensely emotional and pretty perfectly crafted. Definitely an author to watch out for.

I liked this more than I tend to like literary fiction, and although it didn’t have me bawling my eyes out, it’s a very sad, emotional read. My main issue was that it just dragged on a little bit too long, and at parts the main character Theron verged into ‘annoying’ territory. Mostly, I liked his character and the way he was written, but there were parts where he felt maybe a little too whiny. It’s definitely a personal preference thing, but there were aspects of Theron’s character that I just don’t gel with generally in fiction.

Jake, however…Jake is a selfish, manipulative and very confused young man, who doesn’t really know what he wants, or how to articulate what he’s feeling, and hurts a lot of people because of it. I couldn’t stand him. And a part of me really didn’t understand the way Theron felt towards him. I got it when Theron was a teenager (the crush part is all-too-relatable), but the older they get, the worse Jake seems to get, and it was hard to see why Theron was so willing to discard anyone else in his life for Jake.

I think both characters are very realistic. Both struggle in their own ways, and both find different outlets for their struggles, but it got to the point where I really wanted these two to grow up a bit more. But, again, they’re realistic and portrayed in a way you can understand them, and even when puzzled at their choices and actions (or what they see in each other, what others see in them), it feels very real.

And like I said, it’s a sad book. It really hits the emotional buttons. It’s an interesting novel, and one that almost pulls you through the story (almost even against your will, if that makes sense?), and though as mentioned I liked it more than I tend to like literary fiction, I still had similar frustrations with this as with other literary books.

'It took three car crashes to kill Jake.' From its haunting opening line, August Thompson's debut novel binds the reader within the story of the brittle, life-defining friendship between Theron David Alden and his best friend - and the love of his life - Jake.

At turns beautiful and brutal, Anyone's Ghost is so much more than the latest 'queer novel to make you cry'. It is a devastating coming of age tale which begins one summer in rural New Hampshire, when an insecure, shy fifteen-year-old Theron, visiting his father for the summer, meets Jake who, at seventeen, seems to have an ease with himself that Theron can only dream of. Drawn to Jake's insouciant charisma, Theron soon finds himself utterly in the thrall of the older boy - who sees something in Theron that no one else ever has.

What follows is a gentle nostalgic vignette about the kind of friendship which can only exist between teenage boys in small towns in summer, but this is only the opening act of our story, which takes the reader to New York City before its conclusion - foretold from the beginning - in Texas.

Theron is a complex, vividly drawn protagonist; Thompson's prose is littered with beautiful reminiscences and ruminations on Theron's relationships (not only with Jake, but with his divorced parents too) and how they have shaped his sense of self and the way he sees the world and his place in it. As we experience events from Theron's perspective, Jake is inevitably a more inscrutable character, but his every action is permeated by the unbearable responsibility he feels to those around him - to be the person they need him to be. In sections of the narrative where he is physically absent, his presence still looms large.

However, as much as this is a character-based novel, the plot too is utterly compelling, and I found myself gripped from start to end. The choice to exposit Jake's fate from the beginning adds a heartbreaking pathos to even those moments of pure joy which the boys share that first summer and, although I knew all too well how Theron and Jake's story was fated to end, this did not detract all from the investment I felt in their narrative, and the vicarious elation, longing and pain I felt for both characters.

The deft assurance and tenderness with which Thompson writes belies the fact that this is a debut novel. I cannot wait to see what he produces in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pan Macmillan for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was hooked by this story from the start. The language and writing are intricate whilst sticking to plot and character development. An emotive read that will be on my mind for a while.

Without a heavy plot, this novel is focusing on the story between the two boys Jake and Thereon from T's pov. A little messy, figuring out sexuality and oneself, the writing is easy to read. I put down the book at around 30% as I wasn't in the correct headspace for it and picked it up again after 2 months. It was an average novel to me.

Thank you Netgalley for the arc.

In the end this novel feel a bit short for me, I kept reading as I was intrigued by the opening and how the plot fully started in a different era but something was missing for me to be fully invested in this story. The main characters were quite insufferable also.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read this ARC.

Loved this so much - so sad, and moving, but also powerful. Would definitely recommend for readers of literary fiction.

If you're seeking a novel that blends hauntingly beautiful prose with a gripping narrative, Anyone's Ghost by August Thompson is a must-read. Thompson masterfully crafts an intricate and emotional story that captivates from start to finish, with richly developed characters that feel deeply real.

From the outset, the story foreshadows its tragic end, but the tenderness and melancholy with which Therron reflects on the past resonate powerfully. It's hard to believe this is a debut novel, as its emotional depth leaves a lasting impact.

This is a novel that lingers, raising poignant questions about love, fear, and sacrifice—thought-provoking long after you’ve turned the last page.

I really enjoyed the opening of this book, and found that to be quite enticing, but I got to 25% in and it seems like filler.
I get the need to build relationships and background, but it seems a bit much, some of the descriptions, dialogue and inner monologues feel a little lazy and took alot of the impact away from the story.

As the emotions get more complex throughy the novel, there is definitely an increase in pace and quality, the relationships are built in a mindful way, exploring alot of difficult areas and experiences we have in the modern day.

Navigating this book felt like a marathon, I can definitely see where they were going, and some of the writing is excellent, however it fell short for me based on the overdone descriptions, dialogue and inner monologues.

As I’m sure you’re read in multiple reviews, this is a beautiful, poignant and heartbreaking coming-of-age novel.

Told through the eyes of Theron, we are drawn into a world of a teen dealing with a fractured relationship with his dad after his parents divorce, and the moment he meets Jake, the boy who would turn his world upside down.

I’ve had a hard time rating this book. On the one hand, I enjoyed the real rawness of the story but, on the other, because I didn’t connect with the characters and so the sadness didn’t elicit the response I hoped for.
I think, for me, I would have preferred a dual time throughout. Like reminiscing whilst at the funeral. I don’t know, I’m not an author. Lol

Oh, and why is a queer book referencing HP?

Anyone’s Ghost contains themes of drug use/abuse, depression & death.

Thank you Pan MacMillan & NetGalley for the arc.

#anyonesghost #augustthompson #panmacmillan #arc #netgalley #bookreview #comingofage #depression #queer #bookstagram

i honestly just found this really boring and impenetrable. some of the writing was kinda nice, like i'd stumble on an image that cut through it all, but yeah.

This book was GORGEOUS. Gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous. A beautiful queer romance than spanned time and space.

I may be too old for this book... It is billed as a heartbreaking love story, and I certainly haven't forgotten how a strong attraction to a beautiful waster can totally consume a teenager, but I find I just don't have the patience for the angst these days.

Theron is a lonely, angry 15-year-old, only son of divorced parents, spending the summer in New Hampshire with his father who veers between self-pity and stern parenting and trying to do better with his son. He finds Theron a job in a store which is being managed by the beautiful, easygoing 17-year-old Jake. Jake is supremely non-judgemental and seems happy to befriend Theron; Theron feels accepted for himself. Under Jake's influence he takes drugs, hangs out in what sound like supremely depressing shopping malls and arcades, listens to music, drinks too much and falls in love.

We know from the outset that this is going to end badly - it opens with a 30-something-year-old Theron talking about Jake's untimely death in a car crash which is not the first he's been in. And it's clear that Theron is working through his relationship with Jake over the course of 20-odd years, and coming to know himself better as a result. The story is told in three timelines - the present day and Jake's funeral, the first summer when Theron and Jake met, and some ten years later when Jake visits Theron in New York during a storm-induced blackout. As a teenager, Theron has not yet thought about his sexuality and barely acknowledges the attraction he feels for Jake, instead almost sublimating it in their friendship. In his 20s he is bisexual, in a fairly no-strings relationship with a woman but more ready now to acknowledge his continuing feelings for Jake although he hasn't seen him in years and Jake is married to his childhood sweetheart. I found this section the most compelling, with the blackout adding a surreal element to Theron's long-awaited reunion with Jake and a resolution of sorts to the simmering sexual tension.

As much as anything I suppose this is a coming of age story, and the tone is quite elegiac, as if events are being looked back upon from a much longer timeframe. I found this curiously distancing, apart from not finding any of the characters at all sympathetic, and this probably coloured my feelings about the book. I ploughed through to the end, but remained largely unimpressed.

“𝘐𝘵 𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘳 𝘤𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘑𝘢𝘬𝘦. 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘴𝘵 𝘵𝘸𝘰…”

So opens August Thompson’s debut, Anyone’s Ghosts. From this ending, Theron and Jake’s story begins.

A teenage Theron, who is spending his summer with his father in rural New Hampshire, gets a job at a local store and there meets his new co-worker, Jake. The two form a deep connection and, over the course of the next 15 years, as they drift apart then come hurtling back together, we see this play out.

This is a book about love and the influence one relationship can have on a person. Thompson creates in Theron a character who, through the lens of his connection with Jake, explores self-identity, addiction, masculinity, longing, sexuality and grief. Told in three parts, focusing in turn on Theron meeting Jake, reconnecting with him and grieving him, this is tender and intimate exploration of connection, both to oneself and to others.

It took me a minute to get going with this one, I think because you have that sense of foreboding from the opening line. But, once I did, I couldn’t step away, staying up into the small hours to finish it. There’s an honesty to the characters that makes them feel vivid, and the closeness with Theron that is built up through the novel only makes the ending hit harder. Thompson’s writing throughout is imbued with such an emotional depth and sincerity. Honestly, I loved it.

Thank you to Pan MacMillan for the eARC of this one via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.