Name: Shaq H's review of The Ghosts We Keep by Mason Deaver
Item: The Ghosts We Keep
Rating: 5
Author: Shaq H

Mason Deaver

Everything happens for a reason. At least that's what everyone keeps telling Liam Cooper after his older brother Ethan is killed suddenly in a hit-and-run. Feeling more alone and isolated than ever, Liam has to not only learn to face the world without one of the people he loved the most, but also face the fading relationships of his two best friends in the process. Soon, Liam finds themself spending time with Ethan's best friend, Marcus, who might just be the only person that seems to know exactly what they're going through-for better and for worse. The Ghosts We Keep is an achingly honest portrayal of grief. But it is also about why we live. Why we have to keep moving on, and why we should.

The Ghosts We Keep

emma merison

Perfect for fans of Adam Silvera and Becky Albertalli, this book will rip your heart out before showing you how to heal from tragedy and celebrate life in the process. On the night Liam Lawson's brother is killed in a hit-and-run accident, his entire world crumbles around him. But before he has a chance to process, Liam is faced with a barrage of people he hardly knows offering empty condolences and assorted casseroles. Despite being close to his mother -- and best friends, Joel and Vanessa -- he feels lost, isolated by grief, and completely out of control. Through group therapy, Liam learns how to be more open with his mother, about the night of the accident and the repressed emotions that have been causing his panic attacks and anxiety to get worse, and to have the courage to come out to Joel and Vanessa even as he's still in the process of figuring things out for himself. This book is about grief. But it's also about why we live. Why we have to keep moving on, and why we should.

Shaq H

4.5 stars! Spoiler-y ramble.

This book was a really easy read and I enjoyed it very much, even found myself relating to the main character a whole lot, from his music taste – soccer mommy, charli xcx, arca, carly rae... you're kidding – to the personal challenges – grief, gender dysmorphia etc. – he faced, I think this might be the most me-like character I've ever read.. ever. 

I went into the book thinking that it was going to be a nice, feel-good romance that was going to be centred around Ethan and his relationship with a boy (I really thought that Ethan and Marcus were going to get together from the synopsis). But boy was I absolutely wrong!! It turned out to be a beautiful book about grief and loss and how navigating life after such a precious loss is a wholly different experience for parents, siblings, and lovers. It was incredible to learn more about Ethan post-mortem at the same pace as Liam. I wouldn't say that EthanxMarcus was completely unexpected, but it was so beautiful to hear Marcus' account of the relationship and the letter... THE LETTER.... 

Above all else, the honest depiction of grief was the highlight of this book for me and my heart feels heavy knowing that such a beautiful person (though fictitious) has passed.

check tw’s before reading!!

this was such a heart-wrenching read that will undoubtedly stick with me for a long time. the portrayal of grief is so raw and does nothing to hide or omit the ugly side of it.

it was painful to read ( in a good way ) , but I basically cried through the entire book.

Flavia Louise

Gabriella LePage

The Ghosts We Keep is heartbreaking and beautiful; Liam’s hurt and hopelessness throughout were palpable. I wanted to reach into the pages and comfort them, provide solace in some way. Mason Deaver is a true talent in evoking emotion and I can’t wait to read more from them.

Olivia Mason

this book absolutely crushed me. (but in the best way possible!) i’ve been obsessed with deaver’s writing since i read i wish you all the best a year ago — the rawness and realness of their writing is so rare. one of my favorite 2021 read so far.

ash (smokedshelves)

wow. this was such a beautiful book about grief, closure, and learning to heal. truly, this hits so close to home. 

please please please read this list of content warnings if you are considering reading.

Lily D

(Haven't decided between a 4 and a 5 yet)

This book y'all, review coming probs later today

Salam Kabbani

CW: Strong grief, loss of brother via car accident, intensely toxic relationship dynamics, trauma, PTSD, anxiety, lack of understanding of correct pronouns

In this novel we follow Liam’s (they/them) grief journey as they navigate the sudden and traumatic loss of their brother Ethan in a car accident.

The story allows us to follow Liam to the core including their struggles with being non-binary and the fact that even their parents do not always address them properly. We learn about their continuous feelings of being misunderstood and not belonging which are further strained when their friendships begin to fall apart after the loss of their brother.

Despite the tremendous pain in this story we learn about the love that their brother had in his life and the paradoxical closure and healing that came with that for Liam.

We see how Liam’s relationship with their parents is torn to shreds and how they work to repair it when they recognize that the entire family is going through a hard time.

We learn how they were able to go through hell and still come out strong no matter the loss that they experienced.

This book may not be for everyone simply because of the grief in it; however, if you are able to read it, I would highly recommend it. It also helped me to get more exposure to proper pronouns as this is something I am still learning, and I think the author did a great job in doing that through this book.

Ocean

This is such a messy, heartbreaking story. The portrayal of grief is so accurate that it took me back to when my dad died 11 years ago. I sobbed while reading this book. Liam is a very relatable character, he doesn't deal with his grief very well which reminds me of myself when I was 15 and had just lost my dad. I really felt for Marcus, losing someone so important to him and the way it all went down was heart wrenching. I have so much to say about how I feel for Liam, for Marcus, for Liam's parents, but I just don't have the words. This book has really torn me up. It's devastating how a life was lost and other lives were forever changed. Friendships ended. Relationships stretched to breaking point. I really appreciated how this story addressed mental health, in particular Ethan's family going to therapy. That healing process after such an awful loss is a long and messy road, but Deaver did a great job addressing how grief can come out as anger, exhaustion, and losing interest in your hobbies, amongst other things. An excellent portrayal of loss and grief. The nonbinary rep and trans rep were well-written, none of it was super relevant to the story but I liked that - these characters could just exist as themselves without their identities being major plot points. To say I enjoyed this book would be a lie, it absolutely destroyed me, but it's such a powerful and important story and is unlike anything I've ever read before. I didn't enjoy the book, because it's too sad to be enjoyable, but I did love the book. It means a lot to me, and I'm sure anyone else who has lost a loved one will experience just as many emotions as I did while reading this. Mason Deaver is an incredible author.

TWs: death, car accident, self harm, suicidal thoughts, grief, mental illness, panic attacks, PTSD

Rep: nonbinary and queer main character, trans man side character, gay side characters

Kate

my heart hurts so much but like, in a good way, you know?

mason deaver has truly done it again and honestly, I'm just so incredibly exited about them as an author. their stories and characters are so authentic and full to the brim heart. just like with i wish you all the best, I couldn't put this beautiful book down. I loved it and am already anxiously awaiting mason's next release.

TW: self harm, suicidal ideation, misgendering, depression

emma merison &
The Ghosts We Keep by Mason Deaver

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emma merison &The Ghosts We Keep by Mason Deaver

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emma merison &
The Ghosts We Keep by Mason Deaver