The Ghost Files

For a FREE read it is well worth readingOk this book probably wouldn't earn a 5* rating if it was a serious contender for Crime and Paranormal fiction. But for a YA read that features crime, ghosts and a hint of romance - it's decent.I read this during the night (my boyfriend was away on business) and I actually had to sleep with the lights on ;-)There are plot holes, clichés, factual errors, and also the omnipresent Officer Dan appears to appear everywhere Mattie is. However, this doesn't detract from the overall enjoyment of the book - plus it's free so who cares.----------------------------------------------Characters:Mattie Louise Hathaway: 16yo, ghost-interacting heroine extraordinaire who is proficient with a fist, bratty, extrovert/ confident, a tad angst-y and apathetic, sarcastic (occasionally irritating), tries too hard to be the jaded-"I'm-so-cool" bada$$, however, also a sweet kid who has suffered sufficient trauma to warrant a lack of trust with the system and people (not to mention being vulnerable to attacks from the living and dead).Some of the things she stays is pretty nafff (although I imagine the author was going for profound and sophisticated) like "trust must earned Officer Dan" blah blah.She also appears to have almost every young male within eye-contact vicinity in lust or in love with her (her best friend's boyfriend Tommy, Jake her kind-of-boyfriend, Dan, Dan's friend Mason and even the ghosts aren't exempt from becoming infatuated with her stunning good-looks and riveting personality e.g. Eric Cameron).Officer Dan Richards: or Officer Dan (as Mattie *sarcastically* calls him) is a 20yo rookie (newly recruited) police officer and university student (studying forensic sciences), plays in a rock band and has a bimbo girlfriend (whom Mattie detests). I'm hoping he and Mattie eventually end up together but we shall see what happens when she's no longer "jailbait". I won't say too much about him as it'll give away too much of the story. He's the only person to be aware of Mattie's ghost-interaction abilities (although later on there is a Doc - but he's an expert not really a "friend").Supporting CharactersJake Owens: 18yo jock at Mattie's school, totally hot and her boyfriend. A very nice guy, however, he fizzles out towards the end (he's just too nice for Mattie). Unaware of Mattie's crime fighting and ghost actives (although he does visit her in hospital)Megan: 16yo rich girl (daddy is the Mayor) and Mattie's best friend. Makes a few appearances in the book. Unaware of Mattie's crime fighting and ghost actives (she doesn't even visit her in hospital).Tommy: 18 yo pervert and Magana's boyfriend. Has a roving eye and also has a thing for Mattie (this however afflicts most young men). Mattie detests him. Not much else going for him in this book.Eric Cameron: 17yo ghost who appears to have a thing for Mattie (no surprise there, seems to be a running theme).The Olsen: are Mattie's foster parents.Sally: is Mattie's foster sister whom she sees as a ghost gloating about with a bullet hole in her head which commences Mattie's crime-fighting and ghost-interacting activities.-----------------------------------------------PlotDecent plot, fast-paced enough to be interesting, but also rather erratic at times. Like researching ghosts suddenly after all these years of experiencing sightings was rather too convenient - I appreciate she did it because her murdered foster sister was making ghostly appearances but surely one would expect her to be a tad interested prior to that?Disenfranchised after a series of foster homes and abuse isn't a new theme and rather stereotypical of the Foster Care system, but the author manages to execute it without it turning into a tearjerker.There are plot holes, and the manner in which Mattie suddenly decides to trust Dan with her secrets seemed to quick and random. Something a but more meaningful (like him saving her or having met her previously and committed a good deed that she remembered years later) would have sufficed to bring some clarity as to her sudden confession.

I'm very mixed over my thoughts on this novel. The story idea (girl who sees ghosts and ends up getting involved, against her better judgement, in the solving of a case) was really interesting and had so much potential. I could really see how the writer had managed to produce another two novels, because the topic had lots of places it could go.The story structure and chapter structure was very well done. The key events and introduction of characters are spread out and there is a clear build up towards the ending. The pace, particularly in the second half of the book, is fast and exciting. Questions are planted in the first chapter that kept me wanting to read on. Unfortunately right near the end the plot seems to fall apart and we're left very unsatisfied by who turns out to be the murderer, because there are no clues at all to suggest it's that person. We feel left out of the loop and almost like the writer changed her mind right at the end. I believe it would have been much more powerful if clues had been planted and we'd maybe figured it out a second of two before Mattie. The writing itself is good, there's description when needed and the writer doesn't rely too heavily on it.The voice of the protagonist, Mattie Hathaway, is where things start to go wrong. The voice is very believable as a teenage girl, but the language can be so repetitive. Mattie stats early on that she doesn't swear, which is fine, I don't swear, but I also don't say 'fudgepops' when I'm in life and death situations. Even those of us who watch our language have stronger language (even if it's not swear words) in our ammo for more stressful situations. Mattie's repetition isn't just in her language but in her logic. One minute Mattie is friendly with Officer Dan, then she's angry with him, then she's friendly; and her reasoning for doing is unrealistic and makes her seem childish and even selfish at times.Characterisation in general is a big flaw in this novel. All of the male characters are physically perfect, overly confident and fancy Mattie. In my opinion it isn't realistic for teenage boys to be so obvious about fancying a girl, particularly when they know she has a girlfriend. Mattie didn't seem particularly surprised by this attention, and even stated at one point that she knew she was attractive. She also changed her mind every few seconds about who her 'soul mate' was. The whole romance aspect of the book made Mattie seems shallow and unlikable, especially when at times she seems to care more about who would be her boyfriend, rather than solving the murder.Similar to the issues with the guys, the girls had the opposite problem. All female characters introduced seemed to have very obvious flaws, except Mattie, and all of them had a strong rivalry against her. Officer Dan's girlfriend in particular was a caricature and I found it extremely unlikely that he would ever date someone that obnoxious.In conclusion. If you're a fan of supernatural young adult fiction, then this could be worth a read especially as it's free on Kindle. However, I won't be reading on in the series, which is a pity because I did enjoy the story, just not Mattie. And as the book is written in first person, this is quite a major issue.