Review: Ghost Girl by Ally Malinenko

I have always loved ghost stories. And so this was a book that I just had to read. But it ended up disappointing me, most of the time. I'm sad to say that I'm giving this book a two star. As there were just too many things that bothered me and that I didn't like. But I did not hate this one, and there were some good parts too.

So I'm glad I read it. And that cover is just beautiful. I love it so much. I liked the writing in this book, mostly. It was not perfect, but it was not bad either. It creeped me out a few times. Though it was often a bit too dramatic and seemed fake to me. But I did like this story. I also liked the friendship between Zee and Elijah. 

But I was a little bit unsure about this main girl. Zee was eleven years old. And I liked her at first. She seemed so adorable and awesome. But, well. She had a bully. Nellie. But she bullied her too. And she was not being nice to her either. And that bothered me. They spent so long hating each other. And being cruel and mean. I did not like this at all. And wish it had not been a part of this book. Then they share some type of trauma and start getting closer. And are suddenly best friends within hours. And, oh. That bothered me even more. They had been enemies for over a year. And now they are such good friends in such a short time. It felt too fake for me. Yes, I got why they started being friends, that they actually had things in common. But they had been horrible to each other for so long. I didn't like it. It was unnecessary.

But other than that, I did like Zee. She was a good person. I liked her older sister Abby, who took care of them both. I did not like how the book did not share for ages that both parents were not dead. It made it seem like they were. It took too long before we learned her mother had been dead since Zee was born. And her father had been missing for half a year, looking for work in a different town. But not calling them anymore. That bothered me too. He seemed like a great dad. But then he was gone for half a year. Yeah.

This book tells the story of Zee and her best friend Elijah. I liked him a whole lot, though. He had no flaws. He was just a kind and sweet boy and I loved how they were great friends. Zee loved telling ghost stories. I found that a little boring, but kind of cute too. But then she had the girl who bullied her. So Elijah was her only friend, which was a little depressing. Strange things start happening in town. Zee starts seeing huge dogs, more like wolves. She might even have seen a ghost or two. And there is a strange new principal.

I'm not sure how to describe the plot of this book. I'm going to mention a little, but not too much. I did not like the whole principal Scratch thing. First, weird name. Second, the way he looked. It was awkward. But yeah. This creepy guy got control of the whole town in just days, it seemed like. He was so not normal. It took Zee a bit too long to notice it, to be honest. I wish the ghost part had been a bigger part of the book. She can suddenly see ghosts. And her mom could before her. Like this was a normal thing. It was weird.

And I wish it had been written a little bit better. It was weird how her sister knew about it, since she was just ten years old when their mother died. And talking to ghosts was an awesome thing. But it was barely in the book at all, which was disappointing. Would have liked to see it more. Zee and Elijah spends this book trying to figure out what is going on in town. Figuring out how Scratch might be behind it. And Nellie starts working with them too. Now suddenly best friends with both of them. I just did not approve, haha.

But Nellie was a good person. And I did like reading about her. I just wish that whole bully part had been left out. Sigh. Since I do not think it was done very well. Both girls were honestly awful. Anyway. The book was a fast read. It should probably have been a little longer, had a bit more details. But this was a creepy story too, at times. I just did not find it scary at all, sadly. Should have had much more ghosts. Less of the weird guy. I wish I had loved this book more. But it was just a bit too weird for me. But I am glad I read it.

Then the ending of this book. It was not good at all. Spoilers coming, for those who do not want to know details. They defeated the bad guy doing what? It made no sense. Felt like half the story was missing. It was simply too rushed and without an actual plot. And then after the bad guy was gone, everything went back to normal. No one remembered anything. And suddenly the mother who was super sick was all fine. Well, mostly. The missing father was suddenly no longer missing. And stayed home. It made zero sense.

And so I cannot give this book more than two stars. I had hoped to love it more. As I adore middle grade books. And I love ghost stories. But this one had too few ghosts. Too little story. And the ending was too messy for me. Parts of the book were good. I liked the creepy parts, but sadly not all of them. I liked the friendships, yet not all of them. I suppose it is a book that is meant to tell you to trust in yourself and your friends. But I did not believe it. I wish it had been better. Ghost Girl was interesting, but sadly not for me.

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