When I first saw this on the shelf, I assumed that this would be very much like so many other similar looking graphic novels about teenagers. Our main heroine would run into a ghost that would teach her about life, love, and in the process of various shenanigans she'd learn a valuable life lesson and there would be hugging and tears. Yeah, it's not really that type of book. In fact, it's surprisingly dark for this type of read. No worries parents, there's no bloody murders or little boys running around screaming "redrum". It's dark, but it's not that dark. 
 One of the first things I always notice when it comes to graphic novels is the artwork. This one is rather simple looking at first glance, but this works to the story's advantage. It's why I initially thought it was going to be one of those touchy feely books with cute and quirky characters. Brosgol is a very talented artist and one that I hope to see more from in the future. She's got a nice way about her drawings that makes her characters somewhat endearing. 
 The story is also fairly nice. Our main character of Anya is a young woman who goes through many of the issues that your average teenage girl goes through. She worries about her weight, has a crush on guys out of her league, and assumes that everyone else has it so much better than her. She's not entirely likeable, as she also goes out of her way to ignore the bullying of a young Russian boy for his intelligence and accent. This helps explain why she'd eventually take to the ghostly Emily's efforts to give Anya everything she thinks she wants. Anya has given up so much of her own personal and cultural identity in a desperate attempt to fit in with someone other than her grating friend Siobhan that it's understandable that she'd allow a long dead girl to tell her what to do. It also showcases exactly how lonely Anya really is. The story really picks up towards the end when certain revelations come to light about all of those glittering perfect kids and Emily herself. I can't elaborate more without spoiling the story, but it really was nicely done. 
 It's easy for a lot of people to write this off as a ghost story, but I truly enjoyed the messages in this about staying true to yourself and not sacrificing your culture. Sometimes what you think you're getting in return isn't worth losing sight of yourself over and what you might become might be truly frightening. My only gripe would be that the ending felt a little abrupt. I like that it wasn't all sunshine and kittens shooting rainbows out of their furry derrieres, but I just wish there'd been just that one more page to wrap things up a little more. 
 Overall though, this is an excellent read and one I'd definitely recommend to fans of books such as Faith Erin Hicks's Friends with Boys or Jen Wang's Koko Be Good.