Anyone's Ghost

by August Thompson

'An overwhelmingly beautiful love story. This book will make you cry.’
Jonathan Safran Foer, author of Everything Is Illuminated

The lonely life of fifteen-year-old Theron David Alden is transformed when he meets Jake. Older, cooler, more confident and startlingly beautiful, Jake likes the same bands, the same drugs, and has the same drive to oblivion.

Over the course of two decades, Theron and Jake get high, drift apart, and are brought hurtling back together, until a final collision tears them apart forever.

Theron wants Jake, and he wants to be Jake. But is Jake brave enough to want him back?

A gorgeous modern love story about the lives that change us, and the loves that haunt us, Anyone’s Ghost will break your heart.

Genres: Queer, Fiction, LGBT, Contemporary, Literary Fiction, Romance, Gay

320 pages, Paperback

First published July 9, 2024

About the author

August Thompson is from the middle of nowhere, New Hampshire, and has lived in Los Angeles, NYC, Berlin, and Madrid. His debut novel, Anyone’s Ghost, was a finalist for a Lambda Literary Prize, longlisted for the Center For Fiction Debut Novel Prize and named a best book of the year by Amazon, Vogue and Elle. His writing has appeared in The Guardian, The New York Times Magazine and beyond.

Reviews

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘It took three car crashes to kill Jake’

If you're looking for a read that combines hauntingly beautiful prose with a gripping narrative, Anyone's Ghost by August Thompson is the book for you. Thompson has weaved an intricate, emotional story that keeps you hooked from the first page to the last. The characters are richly drawn, each with their own unique depth that makes them feel incredibly real.

From the very beginning we are told of what's coming, how this story is going to end and what will be lost. But the sorrow, the tenderness and melancholy with which Therron remembers the past shot right through my heart.

I can't believe this is a debut novel. I’m going to have a hard time moving on from this one. The mere mention or thought about this book will bring back the squeeze in my chest and lump in my throat. Is love (and life) worth it if you can't experience it without fear? Is love worth sacrificing everything for? Food for thought.

Congratulations August Thompson.

My Highest Recommendation.

Thank you Macmillan Australia for gifting me an advanced copy of Anyone’s Ghost for review.

[Jaylen]

Returning home after a night out, I had 50 pages left of “Anyone’s Ghost.” On the drive home, thinking I would finish the book that night if I hoped to sleep, I erupted into an overly detailed description of the plot to my partner, even though he is not much of a reader. I told him how I was nervous to finish the book despite its tragic ending being spelled out on the first page. I was hoping to work out why this quintessential, disastrous queer love story somehow felt different and true.

Reading the novel reminded me of a formative reading experience I had back in 2017, when I read “Call Me By Your Name” in a day on a family vacation and found myself incapable of communicating properly upon its close. I remember my mom looking concerned for me; getting teary-eyed by a pool in Mexico during a law school winter break is not a great sign, so I similarly spewed my thoughts out to her.

I’ll admit that since then, I’ve balked at the proliferation of the Queer Novel to Make You Cry. And then I read Anyone’s Ghost, returning me to my younger reading self. August’s debut is a novel that leans wholeheartedly into pathos and succeeds. Nearly every line evokes tenderness and longing, while retaining narrative control and somehow avoids skewing twee. It’s an immersive read, both voyeuristic and passionate. August’s triumph is in his capacity for realism, and portraying a selfhood formed by love and grief. Even when it hurt to read, it also made me grateful for human connection, of finding people in our lives that see us for who we truly are and love us for it anyways, perhaps helplessly, and receive this from us in turn. It shows how are lives are shaped by others in irrevocable ways, despite their impermanence. It’s a terrific love story, in many ways a tale as old as time, yet in this iteration is one I’ll never forget.

[Catherine (alternativelytitledbooks) - still catching up! · Rating 4 out of 5]

**Many thanks to Shelf Awareness, Penguin, and August Thompson for an ARC of this book provided via NetGalley! Now available as of 7.9!**

It takes a special kind of book to make you wonder "Is this a memoir? Or is this fiction?"

August Thompson's compelling debut, Anyone's Ghost, is JUST that kind of haunting, memorable, emotionally penned, and evocative read.

Our story begins with a shocking message: "It took three car crashes to kill Jake." Theron Alden is more than devastated to hear of this passing...he is forever altered. As he returns to attend Jake's funeral, we then jump back in time to a summer when Theron was just beginning to find himself...but not knowing where or how this journey was supposed to start. A strained relationship with his father has left him in a vulnerable place, but when he takes a summer job at a store in his tiny New Hampshire town, he meets Jake and is instantly blown away by this effortlessly cool 17 year old who is EVERYTHING Theron (or David, as he is called by everyone else in his life) wants to be: edgy, funny, and a bit dangerous. The pair bond over their love of the same rock music, and Jake gets Theron intimately involved with drugs, theft, and a dangerous joyride or two...until one day, everything changes.

Theron begins to realize that his feelings for Jake aren't brotherly love, or the simple, unspoken kinship of two teenage boys: they are reminiscent of first love. At first, Theron doesn't know what to make of the emotions and hormones that are coursing through him...and he's also terrified to lose the person closest to him by exploring anything more or making his intentions known. But after a planned trip away together falls apart and Jake goes off the grid for a while...Theron knows that this MUST be something more. When the two reconnect, however, Theron discovers that Jake has spent a significant portion of this time with his fiancee, Jess...and something deeper than jealousy grabs hold. After a devastating car crash that both boys are lucky to escape, however, something changes...and for the first time Theron gets an indication that perhaps he isn't the only one with burgeoning feelings. But is Jake held hostage by what society and his fiancee 'expects' him to do? Or are some feelings just too strong and too complex to be ignored? Has all of the tension building between these two been leading to a crescendo of passion...or will Theron finally get his answer and be forced to repair his broken heart all alone, WITHOUT his best friend at his side....before he eventually loses him forever?

While I respect and applaud Thompson's brilliance in starting the book with the revelation that Jake would not survive his third car crash, I have to admit, this beginning made it difficult for me to immediately jump into the story. This opening points to how vital Jake is to the story, but without the context of his character, the mentions of death and the funeral from the jump felt almost off-putting to me as a reader. I was a bit concerned I wasn't going to get into the book at all, and knowing such a vital and saddening piece of information from the beginning ALMOSTmade me question whether I would feel the emotional push and pull I had initially anticipated. Much like Adam Silvera's They Both Die at the End, giving away THAT much from the very beginning can make you question the author's intent or if the story to follow will be ABLE to surprise you.

But by about 30% through this book, I honestly was questioning whether this was fiction or fact: Theron's vulnerability, openness, and frank reflective nature felt just THAT real.

This book is part coming-of-age, part light buddy comedy, and part love story...but with all the emotional heft of a no-holds-barred memoir as Jake lets his readers in on not only his transformation from boy to man, but the exploration of his sexuality and the blurred edges he experiences over the course of many years with Jake. The interplay of Jake and Theron's other relationships with their respective girlfriends, as well as Theron's complex relationship with his father are also interspersed throughout the book and help to give depth and breadth to the complexity of his journey of self-discovery. Although you know the period that will come at the 'end of the book's sentence' (so to speak) every word is worth reading along the way. Though I haven't read Call Me By Your Name (a source of inspiration for the author), Thompson also credits a long list of musical acts at the end, from the National to Metallica, and as a music aficionado, THIS I can confirm: the songs here are chosen with a purpose, and you'll almost feel as though you're riding along in the car with Jake and Theron, wind blowing in your hair, as you let the thumping bass move through you: it's simply that visceral.

Theron's connection to Jake is far more than skin deep, and despite their somewhat disparate life journeys (and Jake's untimely demise), one passage in particular sums up the pain of being alive and the sort of unwavering devotion that only the purest and most selfless kind of love can deliver:

"He told me I didn't need to say sorry because it wasn't my fault. I could never understand why people needed to clarify that. That I'm sorry is not an apology from me to you but an apology for being. I'm sorry that life is this difficult. I'm sorry that there's so much harm to be found. I would give anything to change the nature of the world, even if I could just change it for you."

💔

4 stars


Now available in paperback!

[Marieke (mariekes_mesmerizing_books)]

Three car crashes. Jake only survived two. The self-destructiveness from Family Meal meets the recklessness from Summer Sons meets the toxicity from These Violent Delights.

Anyone’s Ghost is about two lonely boys, fifteen and seventeen, when they meet, both having divorced parents living in different states, sharing a love for Metal, and smoking lots and lots of weed. And keeping shut about that one thing lingering between them.

The story starts when Theron David Alden, Davey, or David for his parents, Theron for Jake, is going to attend Jake’s funeral. Three times is a charm. But not for Jake because he didn’t survive that third crash.

Told in a flashback from the moment the boys met in 2005, Anyone’s Ghost is a story that weirdly pulls at you and forces you to surrender while you actually want to shake your head and shout NO, NO, NO at those two reckless and self-destructive teens. It made me stop reading so many times and just sit still and stare into the distance. Or write notes. And write more notes.

This novel is not for the faint of heart. Smoking weed while working, stealing from their employer, driving intoxicated. Check, check, and double check.

Excitement ran through my body while reading; I even felt a little obsessed after only a few pages and loved the first half, even with all that recklessness and self-destruction. I started to care about Theron and Jake, those two boys being the furthest from tenderness as they could be but needing it the most. And underneath all the grittiness and messiness lay a strong bond.

But when the years went by, and they met each other for the second time, I suddenly was kind of done with the drugs and the drinking. I understood Theron’s infatuation with Jake but not the constant intoxication. I gave all the books mentioned above a glorious five stars and expected to rave about Anyone’s Ghost for a long time, too. But although the story still pulled at me, it also started to push me away. Those two lonely souls might have been in love, but they also brought out the worst in each other.

Then, suddenly, tears shone in my eyes when I was reading the last chapters. And now I have no clue how to rate this book. I will never forget the loneliness of those two boys/men. But I also got a little lost in their story. Therefore, I’m leaving my rating blank for now.

Thank you, Picador Books, for sending me a widget of this book!

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[Chelsea · Rating 5 out of 5]

I AM IN SPAIN WITHOUT THE S!!!!!

HOLY FUCK WHAT A SICKENINGLY SAD, MORBID, EXISTENTIAL CRISIS-INDUCING, INTOXICATING, UNSATISFYING, DEPRESSING, UNHOPEFUL JOURNEY of aggressive emotional torture. WOW.

What in the emotional degradation kink do I have to have enjoyed that so much????

I feel haunted, and hollow?

The whole book, has this odd feeling that these two men don’t belong….
As teens, their friendship had this odd surface level depth to it that didn’t make me understand the depth of love here….

They didn’t belong together as teens, as young adults and not as adults either….. but their happiness felt owed to them?

The story shows you, a whole fucking book of situations and circumstances that show how and why they don’t belong….. only to still fucking throat punch you right in the feelings in the end anyway.

The power of the writing in this, when describing how Theron felt about realising he had made his first friendship, was everything. 😭😭😭😭😭




(This is non HEA, and has a non satisfying ending where nothing was resolved and it ends very openly, the mcs are apart for like 80% of this book, and really focuses on Theron and his life at 3 stages of age. I struggle to understand how I feel about this ending💔)

[Celine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Almost exactly half of this was gorgeous. Equal parts awkward, lovely and perfect.

The other half fell short. I struggled to get through it, but ultimately finished because I wanted to see it through. The ending was deeply sad, as I expected it to be.

My biggest problem with this is that the substance abuse was incredibly heavy handed. I also felt like the connection between Theron and Lou was, for lack of better words…corny? It was played up, from the beginning, as being this soulmate-level relationship, and yet I could never buy into it.

I appreciated a lot about this novel. A bisexual coming of age? Forgiving your parents for their shortcomings? There were so many lines that made me laugh without thinking about it.

I think this could be really special, for the right person.

[Amina · Rating 2 out of 5]

✰ 2.5 stars ✰

“Love you, dude,” he said.

I said, “Me too,” but the words barely made it out into the world. It was the first time I’d said anything similar to “I love you” to anyone outside of my family.

It felt earned—like maybe you had to get hurt by someone before you learned how to love them.”

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ I've only ever told one person outside my family that I love you. And though he did love me back, but as a friend only, I understood the depths of this statement - that it hurt that they did not love me back, but I would never forget that I did love them. 💟 And all the little moments that may have been as inconsequential and unmemorable would always remain close to me.

“Weird thing about this part of the world, there are a lot of beautiful parking lots.”

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ It is their teenage years that truly Part 1 had the strongest grip on me as we are introduced to fifteen-year-old Theron's own questioning doubts and insecurities about his sexuality, and has his first encounter with Jake - the carefree and charming and perfectly perfect seventeen-year-old, he's been assigned to work with at the hardware store over the summer. His admiration for him is tempted by this fierce desire that is akin to something he is too afraid to admit, but the loss of Jake in his life is something he could not bear either. The portrayal of Theron shedding his past identity of David to appear more striking in Jake's eyes was brilliantly captured. 👌🏻👌🏻 'He was an expert in all the things I longed for.' The writing was sublime - rich in dialogue and characterization and capturing how Theron's life has been shaped to live up to his parents' expectations and his own innate struggles with queerness. It was compelling and it made me invested and frustrated for Theron and the lack of emotion displayed on Jake's part. I wanted to see them connect or even feel something between them. 🥺

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ And uff, Part 2 really lost its zeal in writing. I literally was left appalled at the sudden drop in relegating to telling us rather than showing us their relationship growth. Urgh, it was just so hurried that it was blindingly apparent at how we were being rushed through the present day! 'Our conversation was unmemorable. That’s what was beautiful about it'. Yes, but let me at least savor the heightened dawning of emotions for both parties, at least! 😭😭 Not drawn it once again in drink and drugs, that makes the charged energy dissipate! The prime chance to capture their dynamic was lost in this meandering and pandering listlessness of description that - just.fell.flat. This is why time jumps don't work with me; it becomes too hard for authors to maintain the same level of interest and momentum in detail to keep it engaging, and rather ends up as lazy writing, instead. 😒

“And that it was a miracle that I had met you, Jake, at this time in my life, when I was furthest from tenderness but when I needed it most.”

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ Part 3 angered me; not in Theron's nonchalance at the news he had received, but it suddenly dawned on me - then, that Theron did not really grow up nor has he embraced that part of him - 'I wonder if you ever found enough. I’d still like to.' He did not learn anything from these supposed three car accidents, he did not work to keep Jake in his life, he still is searching. It made me frustrated, but it also made me sad, knowing that this is also painfully true for people - that you miss an opportunity at love, and perhaps, burying it in a part of you is the only way to move forward. 😞 I did feel, though, that the lack of context into Theron's life after that summer at fifteen was questionable. Was it perhaps to show how focused he is on Jake solely - driven by his attraction to him, or simply that the author did not care to elaborate on it. Even years after, we really don't learn anything much about him, either. The absence of Jake's perspective was really felt in the latter part; his ending, bleak and unfortunate, felt anticlimactic and rather unfortunate at how no one was there for him, in the end. 💔💔

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ While I admit, the theme of this story is something that definitely resonates with me - to my core, I failed to feel any sympathy for the narrator, Theron, who, honestly, was not a likable character. It's not that I don't agree that it is okay that he is uncertain, even ambivalent about the true heart of his attraction. But, his behavior and attitude struck a nerve with me that made it difficult for me to sympathize with him 'a catch-up and apology and self-examination.' 😔 It's a strange coming-of-age story, where we literally only get three glimpses into three distinctive snippets of his life, where he encounters Jake. Jake, who was struggling with his own personal inner demons, but sadly, never finds the outlet of expressing his true nature. The drugs - it did not bother me as much as it could have; it was a part of their friendship, something they bonded over, so why take that away from them, despite how unhealthy it may be? I also struggled with the relevance and significance of emphasizing on the car crashes' the foreshadowing did not quite live up to its supposed build up. 😕

“It’s all here, it’s now if we want it to be. Time, distance, they’re no longer the problem.... We can find it in each other, I swear. I swear, if you’ll just let me show you.”

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ What people would view as a toxic relationship, to me, it felt like a heartbreaking example of If only and what if. Though fleeting, August Thompson captured some very intimate and heart-wrenching instances where Theron and Jake mirrored their desire for being together - if only the timing had been different. This 'trope' of not exactly unrequited love, but more, that if we had met maybe in another life, huh?', before we were who we are - that connection resonated deeply within me. 👌🏻💔 Not only in Theron's rather selfish, if not desperate ways to appeal to Jake's nature, in order to convince him to stay closer to him, but in the longing of silence in Jake's actions and expressions. It's subtle, but tangible. And I thought the author portrayed that quiet ache - quite well. It left an ache in me that I wanted to know what was in Jake's mind - what was he really thinking - even when he hurt Theron with his scathing words. 😢

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ If anything, this is a hauntingly tragic story that felt unresolved in its conclusion, but perhaps, it was intentional. As disappointing as it may have felt that the melancholic feeling of loneliness over his grief was not quite palpable for me in the final reveal, what does remain true and something that hit hard was that no matter how hard we try, there will be something not within our grasp that keeps it out of reach. I wanted to tell him that I didn’t even need to be anything specific. That I could live forever in his intimations.' 🥺 The grief and guilt of not making an effort with the time given to save even a friendship is a tragic truth. It reflects how we don't always get the love that we want and we tend to move on from it; that as much as Jake impacted Theron's life, his presence is but now a passing thought, as if the very thought could have belonged to Anyone's Ghost.. And yet, even though, it may feel like those times shared together were of insignificance, there is that forever memory rooted in your heart that it is a time that can never be replaced - that haunts us - even when it breaks your heart to remember the echoes of a happiness of a love long gone. ❤️‍🩹❤️‍🩹

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ While I did not cry at this bittersweet love story, I am still open to say that I will perhaps read another book by this author, because I am curious to see if there will be some difference in their writing technique from their debut. There is potential and promise, so I don't feel like it's fair for me to write them off just yet.

[Troy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anyone’s Ghost is a tender, unforgettable coming of age novel and a completely surprising debut; August Thompson’s writing was so well executed and self-assured. I couldn’t stop highlighting passage after passage because of how he so perfectly captured moments of high emotional intensity and softly devastating reflection in the characters’ lives. I raced through the pages of Theron and Jake’s beautiful and achingly tragic love story, the tension hardly ever letting up. This novel was a reminder of how foolish and lucky we are in this life if we are allowed to love another person with such passion and verve.

The early parts of the narrative brought me right back to the heartbreak and destruction of being a queer teenager and wanting desperately to be loved and seen by another human being. The later parts of the novel when Theron and Jake are in their 20s reminded me of the perspective that is given with time, and the beauty and sadness of growing older and further from the people we once were in our younger years. I'm always in awe of books that make me pause and be as thoughtful and reflective about my own life as this one did. It was a deeply felt and relatable reading experience for me. Right book, right time - I’m so glad it came along for me to pick up and get lost in.

[enzoreads · Rating 3 out of 5]

D’acc

[Patricija || book.duo · Rating 5 out of 5]

5/5

Iki ašarų graži draugystės, meilės, aistros ir skausmo istorija. Viena tų, kur pabaiga pasakoma dar pradžioje, bet nuo to širdį spaudžia ne ką menkiau. Kai žinai, ką prarasi, gal net skauda stipriau? Ypač kai veikėjus pamilti taip lengva, pamilti nuo pat pirmų puslapių. Pamilti spuoguotus ir riebaluotus paauglius, tokius kvailokus ir priimančius durnus sprendimus, darančius nesąmones, bet kaip giliai kvėpuojančius, kaip norinčius gyventi, kaip siekiančius kurti savas taisykles. Mylinčius ne tik vienas kitą (kokia graži vyriškos draugystės istorija, kokia tikra, norisi lyginti su „Little life“, bet šitoje daug daugiau džiaugsmo ir gal net... tikrumo?), bet ir muziką, kuri sujungia. Visada knygas apie muziką (šioji ne tik apie tai, bet tema ypač svarbi) skirstau į dvi kategorijas: tų autorių, kurie muziką mini, nes taip pasirinko, ir tų, kurie negali neminėti. Ši gula prie pastarųjų. Ir gali užuosti tas grupių maikes, permerktas prakaito ir kraujo, gali jausti jas tarp pirštų ir ant nugaros, burna, rodos, dar ką tik buvo pilna kiek išsibezdėjusio pigaus alaus. Ir koks jis atrodo skanus!

Su kokia atida, kokiu rūpesčiu, kokia meile autorius aprašė aistringas scenas. Tiksliau, aistringą skyrių. Jis tik vienas, bet kaip pavyksta jį išjausti, koks jis tikras, koks romantiškai neromantizuotas, koks paveikus! Net oro trūksta suvokiant, kad tai, kas duota, bus atimta. Tokios žaidimo taisyklės. Su jomis sutinki atsivertęs pirmąjį knygos puslapį, o paskutinio užverst be ašarų man niekaip neišėjo. Ir nieko negalėjau čia kaltinti, bet veikėjus priėmiau kaip savus, kaip draugus, už kurių laimę sergi. Bet nereikia mokėti skaityti iš delno, kad suvoktum, jog gyvenimo linija – trumpa, o meilė, nors ir amžina, laiminga negali būti. Nuo to ji ne ką mažiau graži ar tikra. Oi, kaip patiko!

[a_n_i_t_a · Rating 4 out of 5]

• litfic • queer • coming of age •

It took three car crashes to kill Jake.

This book was equal parts pain and a strange morose beauty. The writing, so good. Told in the first person, this reads like a memoir. A nostalgic, coming of age, melancholic reminiscence…

News of Jake’s death starts Theron’s story. 15 years old, adjusting to his parents split, spending all his spare time getting high, he is made to get a job for the summer. Here he meets almost 18 year old Jake.

Their connection is that of an almost instantaneous kinship. It feels organic although it makes no sense. A maybe-attraction that may just be infatuation? Or is it love?

“[…] I've forgotten a lot of my childhood for whatever reason, but I remember being fucking lonely. And I was convinced a brother would solve all that."


I know now that there are tiers of humiliation when you are beginning to fall in love with someone. The lowest, the most forgiving, is someone saying the timing is wrong. Above that is being told that you are, have been, always will be, a friend. And then at the top are the words that make me want to turn into a soft, viscous lump that someone could then hose into a sewer grate—
You've always been like a brother to me.

The story is told in three parts - the timelines of the three crashes. We get to know Theron intimately while Jake stays this melancholic enigma, a perpetual mystery in a way… Theron’s what if?

We know from the beginning that we are not going to get a HEA as far as Jake goes. But I was left wanting more when this book came to an end. I didn’t want it to end that way…

I didn't feel nervous or even that sad. This was how everyone I knew talked eventually.
For a while, I assumed the species was depressive.
But then I realized depressives attract each other, that we can't help it, that there's some blue magnetism that pulls us.
"Are you still afraid?" I asked.
"Of course. Aren't you?"

Definitely recommend if in the mood for beautiful melancholy hits.

Time's proportions make no sense. It is grotesque, the forgetting, when all I can think of now is life without him.

I combo audio/eyeballed this. Both versions excellent.

4.5⭐️ I really don’t know whether to round up or down? The ending though 😩
2🌶️

Heavy mental health themes, depression, suicide, substance use/abuse.

[sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

give me like. 5-10 business days to emotionally recover from this book and i'll let yall know how i felt about this (spoiler: i fucking loved it. the writings fantastic. the characters are so REAL. need a physical copy so so bad. and i can't stop crying.)

thank you sm to penguin press and netgalley for an eARC of this, 'anyone's ghost' is definitely a top five read of the year!

[james · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I wanted to say: Build in me a lighthouse. Be guided by the love I feel for you, for the safety I want to offer. Put knives in your wheels and leave the truck until it's ticketed and towed. Move your bags into my room and stay. Find a job at a record store, become a security guard at the Met, don't work at all, and we can live off my twelve-an-hour as you make every record you've wanted to. We can take it slow; we can move fast. You can leave me and come back. You can be exactly who you are or you can be what you've always wanted to be. You can sell that gold twisted band, and we can find a studio in Queens, and I can cut your hair every other month. Let's live off rice and beans, oranges when they're in season. Let's make friends and forget them for days and weeks at a time. Let's ward off all of the terror with talk. Let's make love over and over, until our ribs hurt and we think we're tired of it, then do it once more, just to see if there's still life to be made.
It's all here, it's now if we want it to be. Time, distance, they're no longer the problem. The problem is courage. The courage I need and the courage you want. We can find it in each other, I swear. I swear, if you'll just let me show you."


i was told that saying it's gay and sad is not a good summary of a book, but it is gay and it is sad and what more could you want

[Anna Dorn · Rating 5 out of 5]

inhaled this!! beautiful, devastating, raw. love seeing straightish boys flirt. gutted moi

[Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

lol. i feel very numb inside after finishing this. this fits in the same vein as stories like yes, daddy, a little life, and young mungo on the sad stare at the wall feeling I'm left with at the end

[⋆˚°✩*˖ Gohnar23 (•˕ •マ.ᐟ ˚⟡˖ ࣪ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4️⃣🌟, and it takes one car crash to make me love Jake

ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـ♡ﮩ٨ـﮩﮩ٨ـﮨ﮴ﮩ___________(⁠•⁠ө⁠•⁠)⁠♡

#️⃣5️⃣2️⃣ Read & Reviewed in 2026 💕💘
Date Read: Tuesday, February 3, 2026 💝💖
4th read in "I Mean Yall Know What This Month Is About Already (⁠´⁠ ⁠.⁠ ⁠.̫⁠ ⁠.⁠ ⁠`⁠)" February 🩷💓

I don't know about you but I feel like Jake It's one of the most unluckiest characters in all of literature because damn this guy got into a car crash like three times already 😭😭😭, and that one just never going inside of a car ever again, maybe you'll get into a fourth one If you continue doing that 😆😆😆.

Ye and so it's just that — This book is about the extraordinary relationship between Theron and Jake. It really is deeper than most romance books now out there as this is an entire journey, one from when they were kids and another when they're now fully grown. It really shows the differences that time can do when it comes to our relationships.

and also probably car crashes idk. 🫠🫠🫠 like its not really that big of a deal right? one car crash,.,.,.,.,,and then another one.,,..,.,,..,,,.,and then......another one 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭 gosh why was car crashes like the main plot point and the main tragedy inspired choice to be done in here, its like so random. It's almost done to the point where it comes off a bit comedic. one time a was even just like 'omg a car crash -- again???!!?!?!😆😆😆' because of just how important cars -- and more specifically cars when they crash into one another, car crashes is definitely the one and single aspect of this book that would stick to the reader's minds even when the book ends because of its obsecure and odd nature and how it's treated in here. Makes you wonder if Theron is going to die in a car crash -- most likely in poetic irony (That's not a spoiler btw)

[Olivia (Stories For Coffee) · Rating 2 out of 5]

This did not hit for me, I fear.

[James Mercadante]

could nooooootttt finish this. could not get into the aesthetics of this book and i could almost smell how bad these characters reeked

[Jason Conrad · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars.

This one was a letdown, unfortunately. I'm not sure if I read the same book that the 5-star reviewers did? Because it just did not do it for me. Maybe the praise I'd seen for it had me go into the book with unrealistic expectations.

On paper, this book is everything I love -- a gritty story about longing, loss, grief, and pain, guaranteed to make its readers cry. Not only did I not cry, but I was just ready to finish it when Part 3 rolled around.

I really didn't connect with the characters, and when I DID connect with Theron, it was in very brief instances. Jake was not a likeable character. A liar, a cheater, and a manipulator. It was hard to root for Theron and Jake's relationship when they were so toxic for one another and their friendship itself felt unhealthy, unsafe, and so brief that its significance almost seems overinflated. It also commits the sin of "telling" and not "showing" when it comes to their supposed love for one another. It felt like I was supposed to believe they truly loved each other because we were told to.

The book approaches the topic of suicide, but does so in a very cursory manner for a book in which it is supposed to be an important element. Drug use was central to the plot, but the topic of addiction was barely explored. A book with this tone and this plot is an excellent place to do a deeper dive into these topics than it did, and it felt like a missed opportunity.

The prose and writing itself was at times quite lovely and impressive -- but the issue I had was that at other times it felt very contrived and manufactured.

A decent story, but the elements and components of it all just did not add up to anything groundbreaking or earth-shattering for me personally.

Thank you, NetGalley, for an advance copy of the book in exchange for a review!

[Letitia | Bookshelfbyla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many stories rely on the ending, which remains unknown to the reader at the start, to hold their attention throughout. However, this story tells us the ending from the very first line. And yet, knowing the ending spoils nothing. It allows the freedom to be taken on a different journey—one that is captivating, heartrending, sincere, and wistful about self-discovery, love, sexuality, friendship, boyhood, masculinity, complicated family relationships, and life’s fulfilling and unfulfilling moments.

In August Thomspon’s debut ‘Anyone’s Ghost,’ we meet Theron, nearly thirty, about to attend the celebration of life for his friend Jake. However, he reveals they’ve barely spoken in the past decade, and his death does not come as a surprise. We are then taken to the summer where it all started, where David, 15, and Jake, 17, meet and follow nearly 15 years from New Hampshire to New York, where we see the moments in life that have bonded and broken them.

These are the coming-of-age stories I love the most. I honestly don’t think I’ve read a story that so perfectly captures the range of emotions, from insecurity, pining, and angst to the power dynamics and nuance of a complicated relationship with a parent and the limitations and misperception of our understanding of others. There is also confusion, sadness, loneliness, rejection and the unexpected nature and excitement of meeting your favorite person.

The summer they meet in Part One embodies youth. That is the time in your life when you are still forming your identity, from how you carry yourself to how you speak. This is when you tend to shape and morph yourself around the friendships you admire, and that is what we see in Theron with Jake. He’s insecure ("𝐈 𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐮𝐦 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟-𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞”) and has a shaky sense of masculinity and we see how Jake exudes self-assurance and confidence that helps center Theron and gives him pillars to build on.

“𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙨𝙚𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙅𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙟𝙤𝙮 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙤 𝙥𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙩𝙞𝙘 𝙚𝙢𝙥𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙚”

“𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙚𝙚𝙩 𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙮 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙞𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙮. 𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙛 𝙄 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙖𝙜𝙚 𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙮, 𝙄 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙖𝙩 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙗𝙚 𝙦𝙪𝙞𝙚𝙩”

I loved being a part of their adventures. They were far from my own as a teenager, lol, but I remember the days of nothing when you just filled your time with your friends and were excited to do so.

“𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙚𝙚𝙠𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙢𝙚 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚. 𝙄𝙛 𝙬𝙚 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙤𝙛 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙤𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙗𝙚𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚, 𝙬𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙡”.

“𝙒𝙚 𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙩 𝙎𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙛𝙚𝙡𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜”

I would be remiss not to mention his relationship with his father. I haven’t seen it mentioned much in other reviews, but this storyline tugged at my heartstrings just as much as his relationship with Jake.
That summer with Jake was also instrumental in setting the tone of his relationship with his Dad. It is a unique type of distress when you have a parent whose mood dictates your day.

“𝘿𝙖𝙙 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙖 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙢𝙤𝙤𝙙, 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙘𝙝 𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙖 𝙜𝙤𝙤𝙙 𝙢𝙤𝙤𝙙”

And then you realize the only way you can rebel is by limiting the friction between them.

“𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙫𝙖𝙡 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙢𝙮 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙥𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧. 𝙄 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙢𝙮 𝙛𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧. 𝙄 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙘𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙨𝙞𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙬𝙖𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜. 𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙨𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙥𝙖𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙙 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙚 𝙘𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙮 𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚”

This can be tricky because it's hard to put your guard down when they have endearing moments, but you do it anyway because you gain nothing otherwise.

“𝙄 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙄 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙖𝙫𝙤𝙞𝙙 𝙞𝙩, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙗𝙪𝙞𝙡𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙨”

I commend August for balancing both [Theron’s relationship with his father and Jake] throughout the story. How it ended for both made me very emotional.

August also captured another emotions so well:

being fragile and not wanting to rock the boat in your friendship with someone.

“𝙄 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙖𝙘𝙦𝙪𝙞𝙚𝙨𝙘𝙚. 𝙄 𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙬𝙚 𝙬𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙙𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙜𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙞𝙨𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙩.”

“𝘽𝙪𝙩 𝙄’𝙫𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙗𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙣 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙥𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙞𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨”

The idea of playing it cool when you finally get what you have been pining for but don't want to appear like a loser.

“-𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙄 𝙝𝙖𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙩. 𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙚𝙭𝙘𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙝𝙖𝙙 𝙢𝙖𝙮𝙗𝙚 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙚. 𝙄 𝙝𝙖𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙙 𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙚𝙡𝙨𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙮”.

Knowing Jake’s death from the first line makes it clear this is not a happily ever after love story. August credits Luca Guadagnino as one of his inspirations in his acknowledgments. I shockingly hadn’t watched Call Me By Your Name before, but the comparisons to the movie in other reviews with the acknowledgment inspired me to watch. And I immediately understood. It pulls on similar heartstrings, and I agree that if you loved that story/movie, this should be on your reading list.

Where we end, Theron is more mature and weathered by life but still discovering, learning, unpacking, and navigating his way in the world. He is still flawed and figuring things out, like we all are. This story has an honest ending that I really appreciated. Goodbyes are never fulfilling or come at the right time, and we continue to move forward and focus on the relationships that give us light in the dark.

Lastly, a round of applause for the writing and the structure. I loved August’s writing and I highlighted so many lines (as you can see). The rest you can discover on your reading journey, but I have to share this… As someone who always felt awkward when saying sorry to someone when something bad happens, I now no longer will feel that way.

“𝙃𝙚 𝙩𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙢𝙚 𝙄 𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙣’𝙩 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙖𝙮 𝙨𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙮 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙢𝙮 𝙛𝙖𝙪𝙡𝙩. 𝙄 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙣𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙬𝙝𝙮 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙡𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙛𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩. 𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄’𝙢 𝙨𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙮 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙥𝙤𝙡𝙤𝙜𝙮 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙢𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙖𝙣 𝙖𝙥𝙤𝙡𝙤𝙜𝙮 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜. 𝙄’𝙢 𝙨𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙙𝙞𝙛𝙛𝙞𝙘𝙪𝙡𝙩. 𝙄’𝙢 𝙨𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚’𝙨 𝙨𝙤 𝙢𝙪𝙘𝙝 𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙢 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙. 𝙄 𝙬𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙, 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙞𝙛 𝙄 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙚 𝙞𝙩 𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪”

To end... [if you made it this far, i hope you get the next winning lottery numbers] I loved the dry humor, and the pacing was *chef's kiss* I now realize the perfect length for a chapter. Pacing is crucial to creating minimal friction for a positive reading experience, and August excels at it. I often feel like I'm preparing for war when I notice books have 40+ page chapters, but fortunately, here, each chapter flew well to the next. I finished within two days, which is rare for me, but I had no reason to stop!!! as my attention was tightly kept until I reached the end of each of the three Parts.

I can talk about this book forever…. I finished weeks ago and it still hasn’t left my mind. I’ve been yapping about it in person as much as online. I don't think I've ever been so verbose in a review before. Actually, I KNOW I haven't. I still don’t think my words can do August’s book justice. All the early praise is truly well-deserved. I feel so lucky to have received a galley/gifted copy.

Publishing July 9. Thank you, Penguin Press, and Congratulations, August. You have a fan in me for life. I already miss it, and to pull wisdom from the story…“all I know is I’ve never missed anything I didn’t love.”

[emily (whatsemilyreading) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anyone’s Ghost is August Thompson’s debut novel, a coming of age story about grief, surviving, first love, and coming to terms with who you are. It closely follows Theron David Alden, our protagonist and narrator, who spends the school year with his mom in Los Angeles and summers with his dad in the small town in New Hampshire where he grew up. It’s there that he meets Jackson Siegel – Jake – over the summer that he turns sixteen, the summer that changes him forever.

Readers go into this novel knowing Jake and Theron will be involved in three car accidents – the first two they survive together, and the third takes Jake’s life, fifteen-hundred miles away from Theron, nearly a decade after the two of them speak, really speak, for the last time. So it’s not his death that shakes us, takes us by surprise, but the slow, tender way that their relationship develops over that single, fateful summer, in between shifts at the town’s lone hardware store and drunken evenings spent parked at the local Walmart, Metallica and Fleetwood Mac and David Bowie soundtracking their lives. The way it shifts into something less corporeal, something solid, during a blackout in Manhattan. It’s difficult not to preemptively trace the path of their involvement in one another’s lives – though it’s predictable, it doesn’t bore. I sat up and read the second half of this book over the course of four hours, cried my way through the final part, laid awake at 1:30 in the morning, unsure of how I was supposed to just…go to sleep after all of that.

To say that this book was good would be an understatement. It’s more like it completely rearranged me. Its reflections on love, on power imbalances, on grieving what you still have, on hesitancy to act for fear you’ll lose it all – all of it was so, so powerful. Theron’s internal strife, his inability in his youth to come to terms with what he feels for Jake, only later in life able to call it what it really is. It’s all what makes Anyone’s Ghost beautiful.

In the acknowledgements, Thompson thanks Metallica, The National (from whom I believe he nabbed the book’s title), Kacey Musgraces, even “Call Me By Your Name” director Luca Guadagnino, but it was the mention of Charlotte Wells, who wrote and directed the 2022 film “Aftersun,” that stopped me in my tracks and led me down (yet another) “Aftersun” rabbit hole. I know this book had to have been written before the film came out, but it’s not a stretch, I think, to be able to draw a connection – the protagonists of each living on borrowed time with their loved ones without really knowing it. I stumbled across an interview between the filmmaker, The xx’s Romy Madley Croft, and Document writer Megan Hullander, in which she writes that, for Wells, “joy and grief are inextricable,” and I think the same can be said for August Thompson. Many times throughout the novel, Theron ruminates on something similar, a string that ties it all together, that you can’t lose without having loved, that you can’t love without the promise of losing.

This also led me to a lot of listening while I was writing this review – to Metallica’s “Orion,” and to The National’s album High Violet, in particular. Almost every song on that album was a punch to the chest when I thought about it in connection with this book and its characters. From “Anyone’s Ghost”: “Didn’t wanna be your ghost / Didn’t wanna be anyone’s ghost / But I don’t want anybody else.”

Jonathan Safran Foer said this book will make you cry – and he was right. It’s impossible not to feel the emotion seeping out of these pages. The intimacy between the characters becomes an intimacy between author and reader. Their joy, rage, sorrow, wildness, all of it becomes ours. Anyone’s Ghost will haunt me for a long time to come. It’s out in July, and though I’ve recently become more and more hesitant to recommend books – I know we all have limited time, energy, and resources to devote to books we might not like, but fuck it. This book was so incredible, and I see it releasing in the summer to triumphant praise. It’s extraordinary, exactly as the summary of the book says. I’ve never read anything that made me feel quite like I did when I read this.

* Content warnings include: suicidal thoughts, suicide attempt, drug use/abuse, death of parent, and cancer.

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

what a knockout of a debut from Thompson! I was so hooked on Davey’s story as he comes to terms with his identity. we follow his relationship with his best friend (kinda?) Jake over the course of 3 separate periods in their lives. it mostly reads as a coming-of-age type of story but the writing is full of so much emotion and friction that sets it apart. there was even a particularly sweet scene with Davey and his father that made me tear up a little. I don’t wanna give too much away about the story but lovers of queer litfic / coming of age type stories will enjoy this.

[That One Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am trying, and failing, to find the words to describe how great a writer Thompson is. Likely because I am not so gifted a writer as he.

There is a way in which Thompson was able to articulate all the emotions of each moment, that felt so visceral and raw. I do not think I have experienced many writers who are able to capture these emotions in so powerful a way. You feel captivated while reading his prose, but also, you feel seen.
All the emotions of someone struggling with falling for someone they are not supposed to, in a world where you are told all those emotions are wrong, will resonate with every person who ever struggled with sexuality or queerness. How Thompson is able to navigate all of that, and put it onto paper in a way that feels both nuanced and oddly simple, will stick with me for a long time as a reader. I think I highlighted more passages in this novel than any other recent read.

I found this heartbreaking, and beautiful.

The first part of the novel, where Theron is grappling with his attraction to Jake and what that means about his sexuality is written in a way that feels tangible. It took me right back to my youth when I was Theron, being attracted to a guy and having no idea how to unpack any of those thoughts and feelings. The reading experience here felt similar to when I first read "Call Me By Your Name." The novels are not the same, but the way both authors are able to articulate the feelings both small and big, feel equally powerful and profound.

While this is of course a love story, I felt also, equally drawn to the story underneath that of Theron and Jake, which was the story of Theron. From the moment he chooses to no longer accept "Davey" as his name, and embrace Theron, to when he is 24, allowing himself to feel and express himself in ways he'd kept bottle up for so long. We get to watch Theron grow, and get to see how his relationship with and without Jake throughout the years is a part of the pieces that ultimately shape him.

As a reader I have always been drawn to coming of age novels, because i love how they can capture the human spirit so well, and teach us about humanity by capturing individual lives and growth. They feel all at once both super personal, and wholly unique. This novel, will forever be from now on, one of my favorite coming of age novels.

[Kj · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was eager to root for and embrace the chaotic longing that drives this story. Instead, was left wondering if this was meant to be a celebration, condemnation, or merely a resigned report of a kind of selfishness bred from self-contempt that destroys everyone around it long before it destroys the self-destructive one.

The adolescent mire of inebriation and carelessness is presented as charming and nostalgic, which, one can almost accept when the narrator is fifteen, though it begins to grate even then. But as years pass, the narrative doubles down and fractals out into an almost unquestioning and banal destructiveness that yields little insight and never questions its inherent violence and abuses, be it substance, emotional, or physical. The moments that linger are overshadowed by the palpable narcissism holding the story's anemic threads and populating a New York City that has one woman and zero BIPOC people.

The farther I got and after finishing the novel, the more frustrated I was about the culmination of what was drawn together here: depression without compassion, love without honesty, desire without vulnerability, oblivion without lament. I took the whole ride and then wondered why.

[luce (cry bebè's back from hiatus) · Rating 2 out of 5]

nora sakavic girlies will love it. sadly, i did not click with the writing...review to come

[Tiernan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This gutted me.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC gifted by a publisher. Everyone please go read it ❤️‍🔥

"It's all here, it's now if we want it to be. Time, distance, they're no longer the problem. The problem is courage. The courage I need and the courage you want. We can find it in each other, I swear. I swear, if you'll just let me show you."

When I asked for "ways to describe the courage to show your heart, even when there could be heartbreak," ChatGPT gave me answers like intrepid openness, gallant sincerity, courageous empathy, fearless honesty, and bravery in vulnerability. These phrases perfectly sum up ANYONE'S GHOST, a coming-of-age story following 15-year-old Theron "Davey" Alde and his friendship with Jake over a decade. With breathtaking prose, Thompson takes the readers through two boys' teenage years: their silly jokes, pranks, loneliness, and their search for belonging through a friendship that evolves into something more as they age.

"It took three car crashes to kill Jake."

There's something so powerful in knowing how a story ends in the first line of a novel. I was so captivated by Thompson's storytelling and Davey's vivid character that knowing the ending didn't spoil the book at all. Instead, it gave me the freedom to be fully immersed in Davey's journey from teenager to young adulthood—even though I know his story ends in heartbreak, there's so much love and joy throughout. While we often read about how tragedies define a person, I love this reverse chronology in allowing the readers to see a character's multiple dimensions, not just how death marks them.

"I'm sorry that life is this difficult. I'm sorry that there's so much harm to be found. I would give anything to change the nature of the world, even if I could change it just for you."

I love how Thompson infuses profound dialogues and monologues into such a "masculine" story. From father-son relationships, friendships forged in boyhood, and romantic relationships, ANYONE'S GHOST vividly portrays different facets of men's relationships throughout their lives. It's rare to read about men having heart-to-heart conversations with each other, let alone with those with whom they have a complex relationship. Still, Thompson excels in building a profoundly empathetic yet realistic character through Davey as he has difficult discussions about happiness, family, love, mental illness, etc., that aren't always represented in media.

"I said loneliness was the emotion I knew best."

I adore how queerness is portrayed in ANYONE'S GHOST and how it's intertwined with survival following Davey's loneliness in the beginning, his forming a friendship with Jake, his trepidation of a budding friendship that forces him to act cool, and his later development of finding his voice in asking for what he wants and offering his heart. Davey's queerness is never defined verbally in ANYONE'S GHOST. Instead, the readers witness his relationships morph and evolve to find solace. Similarly, those around Davey make room for him to explore and grow.

"I never know if storytelling is reanimation or exorcism, but I hope this time it will be both. I'll tell her how there are too many lives that exist now, only in me. Too many men who have made me in their image and then left."

We live our lives carrying all those who have passed. Davey's conversations with his dad about generational trauma and the fear of carrying/passing mental illness are illuminating. And yet, Thompson refuses to give in to melodramatic descriptions of teenage tantrums. Instead, we see Davey redefine inheritance as the reanimation of those who have perished and made an imprint on his life, as well as his commitment to keeping their memories alive by living the fullest of his own life.

There's so much more I love about ANYONE'S GHOST that I could talk about this book forever. It's a masterful exploration of love, loss, and the courage to form bonds, even when there could be heartbreak.

[aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

absolutely masterful, a work of art & the easiest 5 stars ever!

[Miki_reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was assured I would cry and alas I did not. Which is a feat bc I am a fucking cry baby but these 2 did absolutely nothing for me.

Above all else this is a tale of why you don't give your loser first love a second chance.

Proper RTC when it isn't 2am

[Amy Biggart · Rating 4 out of 5]

sad!!