Review: This is a Mature YA Novel with Offbeat Characters, Ghost, and Little Crime Solving
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 07 15, 2014
How to Date Dead Guys by Ann N. Noser is a 2014 Curiosity Quills publication. I was provided a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.This mature YA novel will have you embroiled in Emma's awfully strange dilemma right away. Anyone that is a little offbeat will identify with Emma's personality and the pressure she puts on herself. If adjustment to college weren't stressful enough, Emma must deal with her social butterfly roommate and her crush on Mike. When Mike drowns in a river after a night of heavy drinking, Emma is blamed by Kevin, Mike's brother.The Book of Shadows was left in Emma's apartment by a visitor and Emma gets the bright idea to attempt to bring Mike back. Well, it worked...sort of. Someone comes back from the river, but it's not Mike.Each person that wound up dead in the river that Emma brings back has unfinished business they want to attend to. Revisiting family and putting things in order before they move on. So, Emma didn't immediately get Mike back but she is able to help some people out. However, she has also caught the eye of Officer Walker. Walker thinks Emma knows more than she is telling about Mike's death and he thinks she knows about others that drowned in the river. One of these poor souls was murdered and this will open up a new mission in Emma's life.I thought this book was a very imaginative paranormal novel that dealt with great many issues without being patronizing or chock full of platitudes. Some of us really like an oddball character and Emma is certainly a little on the strange side. But, that makes her interesting and less predictable. It's been a good long while since I was the age Emma is, so I don't recall my maturity level at that age, but I did think Emma was a little too old for some the perceived angst she exhibited. Her life was a tad sheltered so that could account for some of it. On the other hand, Emma was very brave and held her own under the sharp eye of Officer Walker and her parents who are very concerned about her.The ghost were quirky and moody and funny and of course I felt bad for them. All of them had a bright future and were loaded with potential, but their lives were cut short. So, the message perhaps was to live life to the fullest everyday. Also, be aware that even when things look their worse, tomorrow is another day, Be patient and don't do anything rash just because you think your dreams have been crushed. Even though Emma hung out on the fringes of society, her goals and purpose were perhaps more meaningful than that of the more accepted and conformist college peers. Emma may not get all she ever hoped for right his minute, but she may be on a path that will help many people over time, but could also see Emma put herself in serious danger.This was a very good effort by the author and I do see potential. There were a few chapters that got just bit confusing and were “too busy” and things got a little bit off course. However, the story righted itself in the end and we are assured that Officer Walker and Emma are going to be seeing each other again for more crime solving.Over all this one gets 3.5 stars rounded to 4.