Ties that Bind the Living and the Dead in Ghosted By Rosie Walsh

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My 25 year old daughter bought a copy of Ghosted by Rosie Walsh and was reading it. I was in the early stages of listening to The Guest List, was weary of the narrator’s voice, and the confusion of many characters I was trying to get up to speed with, so on a whim checked to see if my library had Ghosted on audio book. It did, I borrowed it, and started listening without knowing much about it. I found it very interesting, and the story intriguing. It flowed so well and suspense built to the point that in the last half of the book I hated leaving it to go back to real life duties. 

Ghosting is a new phenomenon, dating back to the advent of cell phones and social media, but there is nothing more devastating for a tween or teen to think someone likes them, engaging frequently, only to be slammed by a sudden wall of silence, as their supposed friend goes incommunicado. It’s not pleasant for anyone, and in this story 37 year old Sarah recently divorced and temporarily returned from America to England for the anniversary of a family loss, meets a slightly older man Eddie (“with eyes the color of foreign oceans”) when out walking. They chat, go for a pint, hit it off, and talk for hours. When parting, a future is promised by what’s transpired, and his making sure he has every way to possibly reach her. 

Sarah leaves Eddie, confident and excited at the prospect of continuing communication with a man who makes her own heart feel real love and joy, as he prepares for his upcoming week’s vacation in Spain. What happens next is unexpected, stunning and concerning, leaving readers wondering if Eddie’s been hacked, or his phone accessed to silently monitor activity. 

There was only one thing in the unfolding story I guessed ahead of time, but so much that was developed skillfully, the reader is compelled to quickly turn to the next page or chapter to see what happens next. It is a book about our relationships as family members, in friendships, in intimate bonds, and how the most sustaining connections can be altered by tragic circumstance, by serendipity, and by the individual psychological blueprints of the players, all impacting the life sustaining threads of conversation binding lives together.

I really enjoyed the ride this book took me on, and was thankful it wasn’t as dangerous as one in the story.
 

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