Amanda is the love of Tom’s life. After an argument, Tom crashes his car and wakes up in an unfamiliar place. Amanda is out of reach. Then he meets Marcus, who has more experience in the areas that now matter. Tom accepts his help, but Marcus has his own concerns, and eventually Tom is alone again.
How can Tom let Amanda known how much he loves her? Does she feel the same way?
Spooking is a romantic paranormal Young Adult novella.
Gill James writes novels for middle grade and young adults and short fiction for everyone. Her current work consists of a cycle of novels set mainly in Nazi Germany and of some texts of experimental fiction.
She is published by Crooked Cats, Tabby Cat Press, The Red Telephone and Butterfly. She is an associate lecturer in Creative Writing at Salford University, UK, where she formerly worked as a senior lecturer. She has published several academic papers.
Her stories are published on Litro, CafeLit, Alfie Dog, Ether Books and in several anthologies.
She offers workshops on creative writing, book-building, creative writing in other languages and the Holocaust and life in Nazi Germany.
Reviews by Gill can be found in Armadillo Magazine, IBBY, Troubador, GoodReads, Amazon and on her own web site.
Member of the Society of Authors, the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, Literature Wales and the National Society of Writers in Education, Gill has an MA in Writing for Children and PhD in Creative and Critical Writing
She edits for Bridge House Publishing, CaféLit, Chapeltown Books and The Red Telephone. Before becoming a writer and an academic she taught modern languages for 23 years in various schools and has continued to make school visits as a writer of fiction for children and young adults.
Again a book that I started without expectations. I just didn't know what to expect... Now I've read it I can say to you "you may start with great expectations!". It really is a very good read with a plot I liked a lot. This is not the kind of story I normally read, but maybe I should read books like this more often.
The reason why I read this book before others on my list was (shame on me) because I needed a thin one to complete my reading challenge on Goodreads. :p So lame... I know... But I was running out of time and wanted to succeed in my mission! Woohoow! I did! This book was a quick read not only because of the thickness, but also because you need/want to know what's going to happen next.
Author Gill James tells us a kind of ghost story about Tom, a young man who dies in a stupid car accident. Just before Tom died he had an argument with his beloved girlfriend Amanda and because their separation is unfinished, Tom can't go to heaven or hell. He needs to stay in the Between Place and help Amanda through her grieving process. This is, of course, not easy for him. He has to help the love of his life to be happy again, to find a new lover, to let the old one (Tom) go,... He needs to help her to get her life back on track.
One of the reasons why I liked this book so much, is because the author doesn't give us unnecessary descriptions or something like that. You're able to read the story without boring passages. It's also very easy to connect with the characters and to understand their feelings/motives.
You may think "why don't you give 5 stars when you liked it so much?". Well... maybe because, although it's a good story, it's a little simple from time to time. Not that I mind, but I can't say it's a book with beautiful dialogues, heavenly descriptions,... Not that every book needs this kind of stuff, but anyhow... I gave it 4 stars because I really liked it and that's it ;)
This is an enjoyable paranormal YA novel with a simple, almost timeless, plot of being in that in- between place after death. Although it’s called ‘Spooking’ there’s nothing scary about it, in fact it’s a very gentle transition and any paranormal activity and interaction with the living is very credible. It’s very easy to identify with Tom and to feel for him as he struggles with his tasks- one of life’s (if I can say that) genuinely nice guys. Amanda's situation is not one anyone wants to experience but it's a scenario that happens too often. There’s an innocence about the story that makes it almost a story of yesteryear.
It's not easy to write a book that is moving without being too sentimental and which deals with the difficult topic of bereavement. It is even more difficult to pitch that book to a Young Adult audience. Gill James succeeds in achieving both of these things. A really good read.