Title: The Ghostwriters
Published: 2nd September 2016
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Author: Mickey J. Corrigan
Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/5828647.Mickey_J_Corrigan
Synopsis:
She’s funny, cynical, and kinda crazy, but she knows how to tell a story.
A struggling writer living in Manhattan, Jacy McMasters is the first to admit she’s a terrific liar and a screw-up. Then the ghost of the famous novelist JD Balinger asks her to “channel” a follow-up to his classic coming of age book, The Watcher in the Sky. Along with her new boyfriend, a bear of a man who has no patience for mind games, the ghost in Jacy’s head forces her to confront a lifetime of secrets—dark secrets. Secrets she’s been keeping from herself.
Review:
So our girl Jacy has kind of hit rock bottom in a drunken wasteland of despair. While on another drunken night out she gets a helping hand by a friendly older guy called JD. It seems he has a proposition for her. A way to get her out of the rut she has found herself in and try to make something of her life. He wants her to help him write the sequel to his first worldwide hit. He just so happens to be the author of her all time favourite book. She is to ghostwrite the book for JD, as he can’t do it himself. You see well, he’s dead, so is contacting her through his spirit self. Seems her drunken stupor opened a way for her to connect with those on the other side. Now Jacy is either going to have to believe the ghost in front of her or she’s got to think of herself as crazy and having a mental break. It wouldn’t be the first time but this feels different and she really does want help. Wanting it and getting it are two different things and at the beginning it doesn’t take long before she falls back on old habits. Namely getting drunk and letting her ex Austin use her for only one thing. Talk about being an utter dick! You are glad when she sees the light but not everything is rosy for her.
To create the story she needs to fully embrace JD and let him write through her. They might clash on lots of things but he is trying to get her to see that she does have something to say. She has a lot of material to work with – the crazy antics of her family being top of the list. He just needs her to embrace it to see it.
Not quite over her drunken ways though she ends up meeting a nice guy while out, Firth. I say when out but she remembers nothing of the night, just the morning after at his place. He seems to think he knows her somehow and whenever they meet again suggests that he wants her to open up like she did before. He doesn’t want games, he wants the real thing and he thinks that might be her. Only problem is she holds too much back for fear the pain will take over. Everyone has always tried to control her so she pushes back and rebels – drinking and sleeping around being the main players. But with Firth it’s different. He’s nice and that’s something she isn’t used to. He understands she is writing a book with someone but doesn’t know the whole ghost part. Trust me its not going to go down well when she starts talking about it. I liked that when he had a cat that needed help he thought of her, as every writer should have a cat by their side – or you know on their laps, over their arms so they can’t write – when typing away at a computer. The story is coming along but her life seems to take a turn. Family troubles are key but what are they really? A health spa retreat to help or could it hinder when you need some alone time? Can she find her way back to who she was or try to be a better version of herself? The self those close to her saw in her potential.
Loved the back and forth antics between JD and Jacy. They seemed to click in a weird way, which was fun. The twist can be seen fairly soon but its still interesting to see how everything comes full circle. Connection with Firth was real and only when she let him in did she get what she truly wanted. Does grip you quite quickly with the style of writing and story itself. Once I started I couldn’t seem to put it down so it’s well worth a look. A ghost writer helping her ghostwrite a masterpiece to help her move on. Helps others too.
4 out of 5 stars
I received a copy of this book from the author for my honest review.
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