Peeking Between the Pages

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Book Review: The Ghost of Greenwich Village by Lorna Graham & Giveaway

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The Ghost of Greenwich Village is the debut novel of Lorna Graham and it is a sweet and charming read and I really enjoyed it! Seriously if I was in the bookstore I would pick this book up based on the title alone and would have bought it on the description. I can’t resist books that have ghosties in them and Lorna Graham has whipped up a great tale about a woman trying to find her way and the ghost who helps her.

Eve Weldon moves to Greenwich Village as a way to feel closer to her mother who had lived there during the sixties and who had passed away when she was a young girl. Eve’s father wants her to become a lawyer but Eve’s real dream is to be a writer and where better to achieve that goal than Greenwich Village. Unfortunately for Eve she doesn’t meet too many writers upon arriving but she does happen to move into an apartment that she gets for a steal which is a most unusual thing to happen in New York. Once again, unfortunately for Eve the reason she gets this apartment so cheap is because it comes with a ghost.

Donald, a writer who died before his time in the seventies at the age of forty-three is Eve’s in house ghost – he had once lived in Eve’s apartment. He’s not the type of ghost to hover around though, he’s the type of ghost who takes up residence in a person’s brain and talks to them in there. At first Eve thought she was going crazy but once she got used to the idea, they actually got a long for the most part. Donald is a pretty cantankerous ghost and can get quite unmanageable at times but Eve is intrigued by him. Eve is an old soul – she loves things from times past so when Donald wants her to write his stories for him, she agrees. The problem is that they don’t seem to be all that interesting. She tries to steer Donald towards a memoir but as I said Donald can be pretty uncooperative.

Eve’s biggest problem is finding a job. While her apartment may be cheaper than most, it’s still not free. Finally she gets a job writing segments for a morning news show. It’s not her dream job but it’s a paycheck. For some reason though Eve keeps screwing things up and well a job doesn’t last too long when that happens. The good thing that came of the job though was some of the people she got to meet, one being meeting the legendary fashion designer Matthias Klieg who she admires greatly and that her mother had loved. He’s apparently a solitary old man now but Eve manages to wear him down and they become friends, both finding something in each other that they need.

Eve spends her time juggling a job, job hunting, and trying to make friends while keeping her ghost reasonably happy. In the meantime she keeps learning more and more about her friend Matthais Klieg and his past and it turns out it has some interesting connections to where Eve is in the present. As Eve delves into trying to find out more about Donald she also stumbles into information that leads her to learn more about her own mother. The people she meets and the things she learns all lead her to find out more about who she is as well and what she wants out of her life.

I thought Eve was a great character. I felt a connection with her right from the beginning of the story and I think that always helps a person to enjoy a book. She was a character with a heart who truly cared about people and I also loved her puppy Highball. Highball is her first puppy and there are some pretty cute scenes with the dog and we all know how much I love dogs! As for other characters in the story another one I really liked was Matthais Klieg. He was an older man already who had thought, because of past mistakes he had made that there was no moving forward and yet he opened himself up to Eve and found that there was still a life to be had.

This was another novel that I started late Saturday, stayed up late reading and zipped through the rest on Sunday. I love when a book captures my attention like that and keeps me reading and more importantly makes me not want to put it down. I really look forward to more from Lorna Graham. I’d certainly be sure to read it!

I read The Ghost of Greenwich Village by Lorna Graham for her book tour with TLC Book Tours. You can see what others thought of the novel at these tour stops. Be sure to visit Lorna’s website and you can find her on Twitter as well! You can pick up your very own copy of The Ghost of Greenwich Village here in the US and here in Canada.

GIVEAWAY DETAILS

I have one copy of The Ghost of Greenwich Village by Lorna Graham to share with my readers. To enter…

  • For 1 entry leave me a comment with an email address to contact you in the event that you win.
  • For 2 entries, follow my blog. If you already do, thank you, and please let me know in your comment so that I can pass on the extra entry to you as well.
  • For 3 entries, blog or tweet this giveaway and spread the word!

This giveaway is open to US and Canadian residents only (no PO boxes) and I will draw for a winner on Saturday, August 6/11. Good luck everyone!

© 2010, Darlene of Peeking Between the Pages. All Rights Reserved. If you’re reading this on a site other than Peeking Between the Pages or Darlene’s Feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.
My copy of The Ghost of Greenwich Village by Lorna Graham was received by TLC Book Tours and the Publisher.

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Comments

  3. This does sound like a good one; I'd love to win:

    biblophilebythesea AT gmail DOT com

  4. I'd like to read this one for the location alone. I experience Greenwich Village for the first time this year.

    I subscribe in Google Reader.

    kathy(at)bermudaonion.net

  5. We lived with a ghost for many years. He came with our first home. He had been our friend before his untimely death at the age of 21 and we bought the house from his widow. He had bright red hair and I put touches of red in all the rooms in his honor. Sounds like this is a book for me!

  6. You sound like me…I love books with ghosts in them and would have picked this book up based on that fact alone. Sounds like an enjoyable read and I'm looking forward to reading it at some point 🙂

  7. I remember reading about this a while ago, and then forgot about it (an all too frequent occurrence these days I'm afraid, lol). It does sound good; glad to see that you enjoyed it.

  8. No need to enter me, but great review! You've really made me want to pick this book up.

  10. I am interested in this book and would enjoy it greatly. Thanks for this giveaway. elliotbencan(at)hotmail(sot)com

  19. I'd love to read this one. Thanks for the giveaway! I'm a follower.

    HoffmanLiterary [at] insightbb [dot] com

  22. This sounds so interesting. I'm putting at the top of my reading list.
    mamabunny13 at gmail dot com

  24. i dont think I ever read a story with a ghost in it. sounds good

    amhengstATverizonDOTnet

  29. Sounds like a good read. I love those ghost stories. Thanks for the giveaway.

    savvyverseandwit at gmail

    i follow

  35. Thank you for introducing me to another great read! Adding it to my wish list right now. Thank you for the chance at winning a copy 🙂

    jaidahsmommy(at)comcast(dot)net

  43. The premise and cover has caught my attention and I am intrigued. I love this different sort of a ghost story, not the usual scary but a ghost who helps a woman find her way.

    GFC follower,
    Cambonified[at]yahoo[dot]com

  45. I like the premise of this one, and don't think I have read anything like this before. I am glad to hear that you enjoyed it, Dar! I's love a chance to win as well, so please do add my name to your list!

    zibilee(at)figearo(dot)net

  48. Can't imagine how hard it would be to write your own book while at the same time a ghost is relaying his own stories through you. This does sound like an interestingly fun read, please include my name for a chance to win, thanks Dar!

    wanda_waiting[@]hotmail.com

    I follow and will post here.

  58. I enjoy ghost stories, too, and I'm intrigued by this writer ghost. I'm a follower, and I posted the giveaway in my sidebar.

    diaryofaneccentric at hotmail dot com

  59. This one sounds really good. I've seen it start to pop up around the blogosphere and the reviews are pretty good so far. I'd love to win!

    je2kids(at)gmail(dot)com
    I follow in google reader

    2 Kids and Tired Books

  60. Sounds like some great characters. I'd love to be entered. Thanks.

    I'm already a follower.

    carolsnotebook at yahoo dot com

  61. This one sounds like a great read. Thanks for the wonderful review. I will be adding it to my list of must reads. Thanks for the giveaway, and I am already a follower.

    suzebomb(at)gmail.com

  62. Sounds like a sweet read!Thanks for the giveaway!

    +1 GFC=mk261274

    mk261274 at gmail dot com

  66. No need to enter me.

    This is quite different than what I would normally think of with a ghost. A bit creepy actually. But you liked it and I trust you, so thanks for the recommendation.

  67. Sounds really interesting, thank you for the giveaway
    faefever25(at)hotmail(dot)com

  70. I have never heard of this book before but I love the sound of this book. I can’t wait to read it.

    hootowl1978 at gmail dot com

  73. I love books with ghosts too. Sounds really good, I would love to read this book and find out the rest of the story. Please enter me. Thanks!

    Anita Y
    ayancey(at)dishmail(dot)net