Ghosts of Harvard Review

“Just because it’s my choice to go doesn’t mean I’m not heartbroken to leave you.”

Let’s take a minute to acknowledge this cover. It’s stunning and appealing! I love it! I had first heard some buzz about this book a few months ago when people were thinking it could be a pick for Book of the Month. When it wasn’t a pick, I immediately reserved it at my library and was excited when it was my turn!

The story follows Cady as she ventures off to college at the prestigious Harvard, the school where her brother Eric, attended. Cady is searching for answers as to why her brother, who was paranoid schizophrenic, took his own life at the end of his junior year. All she has is one of his old notebooks and as she begins to try to decipher his scribbling and incoherent descriptions she begins to hear voice in her own head. Are these voices real or fake? Will they destroy her? Will she find out what really happened to Eric?

This book was pretty incredible for a lot of reasons. It did start a little slow for me but once it got going I couldn’t put it down. The thing that I loved most about this book is how accurate the portrayal of survivals guilt when a loved one has lost their battle to mental illness. I could feel all the emotions each member felt as they tried to come to terms with loss of their loved one. You could see each person on their own journey in how they dealt with the loss. Anyone who has lost a loved one in this way, can relate to these characters. I feel the author also did a fantastic job of showing how mental illness can effect a person and those closes to them. Not only that, but you have the mystery of the voices Cady is hearing and the investigation of Eric, her brother. I highly recommend this book! This might be the first time I cried during a thriller.