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U Up?
In the follow up to her smart debut, The Ghost Network, Catie Disabato creates a vivid portrait of a young woman investigating her best friend's disappearance while navigating codependent friendships, toxic exes, and witchy rituals
Eve has a carefully curated online life, works occasionally, and texts constantly with her best friend, Ezra. Basically, she is an archetypal L.A. millennial. She has also been carrying on a year-long conversation with her deceased friend Miggy over text. But when Ezra goes missing on the anniversary weekend of Miggy's death, Eve feels like her world is shattering.
Over a frantic weekend Eve investigates Ezra's disappearance, scouring social media for clues, while drowning her anger and anxiety in drinks, drugs, and spiritual cleansing. Eve starts to spiral as her friends try to convince her that she's overreacting, and ghosts--both real and metaphorical--continue to haunt her. When she uncovers clues to a life Ezra kept hidden, Eve starts to question how much she really knows about her best friend... and herself.
In U UP? Catie Disabato holds a mirror to the ways the phantom selves we create online permeate our emotional lives and hide our worst traits from everyone, including ourselves.
Eve has a carefully curated online life, works occasionally, and texts constantly with her best friend, Ezra. Basically, she is an archetypal L.A. millennial. She has also been carrying on a year-long conversation with her deceased friend Miggy over text. But when Ezra goes missing on the anniversary weekend of Miggy's death, Eve feels like her world is shattering.
Over a frantic weekend Eve investigates Ezra's disappearance, scouring social media for clues, while drowning her anger and anxiety in drinks, drugs, and spiritual cleansing. Eve starts to spiral as her friends try to convince her that she's overreacting, and ghosts--both real and metaphorical--continue to haunt her. When she uncovers clues to a life Ezra kept hidden, Eve starts to question how much she really knows about her best friend... and herself.
In U UP? Catie Disabato holds a mirror to the ways the phantom selves we create online permeate our emotional lives and hide our worst traits from everyone, including ourselves.
308 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 2, 2021
36 people are currently reading
1,635 people want to read
About the author
Catie Disabato
3Ìýbooks106ÌýfollowersI am a stacked twenty-eight-year-old blonde on Sunset Boulevard. I am also a writer. Debut novel 'The Ghost Network' coming Spring 2015 from @MelvilleHouse.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews
February 28, 2021
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Picture Meg Cabot's Mediator or Dean Koontz's Odd Thomas as written through the lens of a BuzzFeed article. Eve is a millennial woman attracted to women living in LA. She works for a start up and recreationally abuses substances while going to clubs and pursuing the latest health food trend. In many ways, she embodies the typical stereotype of the age 20-to-30-something woman except for one crucial way: she receives texts from ghosts.
This is almost an entirely character driven book as we watch Eve track down one of her missing friends, Ezra, when he disappears post-breakup to his girlfriend, Noz. Assisted by her dead best friend, Miggy, she attempts to track him down while dealing with a litany of personal issues. I thought the way that Los Angeles is portrayed here in all of its glittering, sleazy detail was one of the best parts of the book, to be honest. I've only been to LA a handful of times, but it is a city of contrasts, and I think Disabato really captured its highs and lows.
What makes this a three-star read for me is the pacing. The text bubbles were distracting because SO MUCH dialogue was repeated. It would have been better if only the new dialogue was shown instead of the old. There was also way too much wandering. Eve was also an unlikable character, which makes her flawed and realistic but also hard to root for. She also uses offensive language many might take issue with, such as the D-word, although since Eve is, herself, a lesbian, one could argue that she is being self-effacing and reclaiming the word on her own terms.
This was a fun, breezy read. I'd call it a beach read but I don't think many of us are spending much time on beaches right now. Anyone who enjoys books like SIRI, WHO AM I? by Sam Tschia will love this.
Thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review!
3 stars
May 12, 2022
pulsing LA vibes, messy codependent queer relationships, ghosts and grief, drugs and sunshine, all at an urgent pace with a mystery at the core. i ate this up!
while the intriguing missing-best-friend premise and glittery LA setting are key elements of the book, i think the make-or-break factor is the casually frenzied narration. our protagonist, eve, is often unlikable. she's self destructive and manic and never pauses her quest to find ezra, even when she's hurting her friends. if you hate eve, you will most likely hate this book. she's extremely flawed; but i could understand her, her anxiety, how lost she is, so caught up in her selfishness and her grief.
unfortunately, one of eve's many flaws is that she's extremely biphobic. this isn't revealed until late in the book, and hey, it is a common issue among lesbians, gay men, and straight people alike. it's a believable flaw for a lesbian character to have. but the book sort of writes it off, takes it for granted that eve thinks bisexuality doesn't really exist, and even when this belief is challenged, she changes her mind without giving it much thought. i wish we'd gotten even a short passage about how hurtful her biphobia is (because it certainly is hurtful, in general and specifically to one of her best friends).
one of the things that instantly bonded me to this book is the web of messy queer relationships. the way friends communicate here feels natural to me and i understand it effortlessly. it's interesting because their actual lifestyles are so glamorous and reckless and unlike my own life; i have never done coke in a bar bathroom, or driven to the desert, or gotten fucked up and gone nightswimming, or greeted familiar faces as i hopped from bar to café to house party. but i have a deep understanding of the casual intimacy that comes from sharing so many messy moments with people you care about.
â–´â–´â–�
maybe the casual self-destructive behavior, queerplatonic energy, and here-and-now methods of communication are intrinsically millennial? maybe readers who can't relate to these things will detest this book. but it all felt extremely real and natural to me, and i loved it.
also, the spinning webs of queer relationships, theme of hedonistic overindulgence, and added taste of supernatural witchiness reminded me of . i bet michelle tea would absolutely adore u up?.
the supernatural is woven into the book in a very natural way, too. some people can talk to ghosts and some can't. eve's grief over the death of her friend miggy has been stunted by her ability to text him whenever she wants. (avoidance is irresistible, am i right?) i really enjoyed the smattering of thirsty ghosts who occasionally show up to chat and drink ghost cocktails and smoke ghost joints.
there's also a boppin soundtrack! eve and her friends listen to chairlift, lana del rey, priests, snail mail, miguel, and many other familiar artists. i'm tempted to make a playlist inspired by all the music that's mentioned!
early in the book eve talks about her "death instinct," which i want to remember for how painfully relatable it is:
â–´â–´â–�
slow self destruction, and the need to numb emotions in order to survive them. all to cope with grief and loss.
and at the core, this is a novel about grief and about relationships. the people we hurt even when we don't want to. loss, and finding a way to cope with it without burning everything down. dark themes are explored with a deceptively light and easy tone, and it's all clever and beautiful.
while the intriguing missing-best-friend premise and glittery LA setting are key elements of the book, i think the make-or-break factor is the casually frenzied narration. our protagonist, eve, is often unlikable. she's self destructive and manic and never pauses her quest to find ezra, even when she's hurting her friends. if you hate eve, you will most likely hate this book. she's extremely flawed; but i could understand her, her anxiety, how lost she is, so caught up in her selfishness and her grief.
unfortunately, one of eve's many flaws is that she's extremely biphobic. this isn't revealed until late in the book, and hey, it is a common issue among lesbians, gay men, and straight people alike. it's a believable flaw for a lesbian character to have. but the book sort of writes it off, takes it for granted that eve thinks bisexuality doesn't really exist, and even when this belief is challenged, she changes her mind without giving it much thought. i wish we'd gotten even a short passage about how hurtful her biphobia is (because it certainly is hurtful, in general and specifically to one of her best friends).
one of the things that instantly bonded me to this book is the web of messy queer relationships. the way friends communicate here feels natural to me and i understand it effortlessly. it's interesting because their actual lifestyles are so glamorous and reckless and unlike my own life; i have never done coke in a bar bathroom, or driven to the desert, or gotten fucked up and gone nightswimming, or greeted familiar faces as i hopped from bar to café to house party. but i have a deep understanding of the casual intimacy that comes from sharing so many messy moments with people you care about.
Though the emotional circumstances of our lives are as temporary as fast fashion trends and so the conditions of our drinking together are always changing, that shot was an echo of every single shot we've ever taken together, an amassing of our long friendship, an expression of our love for each other. Love, like alcohol, is something the body consumes.
â–´â–´â–�
maybe the casual self-destructive behavior, queerplatonic energy, and here-and-now methods of communication are intrinsically millennial? maybe readers who can't relate to these things will detest this book. but it all felt extremely real and natural to me, and i loved it.
also, the spinning webs of queer relationships, theme of hedonistic overindulgence, and added taste of supernatural witchiness reminded me of . i bet michelle tea would absolutely adore u up?.
the supernatural is woven into the book in a very natural way, too. some people can talk to ghosts and some can't. eve's grief over the death of her friend miggy has been stunted by her ability to text him whenever she wants. (avoidance is irresistible, am i right?) i really enjoyed the smattering of thirsty ghosts who occasionally show up to chat and drink ghost cocktails and smoke ghost joints.
there's also a boppin soundtrack! eve and her friends listen to chairlift, lana del rey, priests, snail mail, miguel, and many other familiar artists. i'm tempted to make a playlist inspired by all the music that's mentioned!
early in the book eve talks about her "death instinct," which i want to remember for how painfully relatable it is:
... my "death instinct," which didn't necessarily mean I was suicidal, just meant that I had the drive in me to self-destruct, but gradually, muting my suffering with "ritualized comfort-seeking behaviors," like drinking or making enemies or paying to soak a the Korean spa with the only money I had left to buy groceries.
â–´â–´â–�
slow self destruction, and the need to numb emotions in order to survive them. all to cope with grief and loss.
and at the core, this is a novel about grief and about relationships. the people we hurt even when we don't want to. loss, and finding a way to cope with it without burning everything down. dark themes are explored with a deceptively light and easy tone, and it's all clever and beautiful.
The coke had me feeling good, like the little blue Adderalls my best friend used to give me in college, like hiking the hard path of Runyon Canyon and all your effort rewarded by the stunning vista, like the moment in a horror movie when the haunted teenager finally destroys the ghost that killed all of her friends. I chase all the little euphorias that life offers, chemical or physical or recreational. No single joy is more valid, more objectively good, than any other. They are all available for us, and meant for us to feast on.
March 2, 2021
When I'm sick, it's hard to find a book to settle into. I go off my normal dense, tense, language oriented normal and find myself in new terrain. So I was extremely glad my husband had just bought Catie Disabato's new novel U Up? It absolutely hit the spot.
This book is the tale of a queer L.A. millennial, Eve, and her social circle, the web of which means everything to her. There is the tight inner circle, and all of the peripheral relationships. At first I was taken aback by Eve and her circle's compulsive dependence on text and Instagram for a moment by moment feedback on their emotions and relationships to the point that, like watching people smoking in a movie, it made me want to go smoke too.
A stylish portrait of the personal life of millennial hipster LA, which held for me more than a little resonance with Douglas Coupland's Generation X--a likely matter of indifference to current 20 and 30 year olds-- a portrait of urban millennial life immediately pre-pandemic (no mention of politics but gentrifying LA is presented in exact-to-the-moment detail--you could use the book as a tour guide to LA's East Side if you had a mind to trace all the bars and eateries, parks and walks).
What differentiated this book's era so clearly from its predecessor--something that at first put me off, but soon won me over--was the essential phone-dependency of the protagonist's life, moment by moment--and this is not an aberration, because it's true of all her cohort, and probably most of her readers too. I resisted and then accepted how the characters all lived in each others lives simultaneously and continuously through text and social app, so that if one fell silent--it was enough to throw up a wave of panic in the hyper-connected Eve. "U Up?" they text one another, and someone always is.
The story itself is simple--Eve's inner circle is crumbling. First they lost Miguel to suicide --his first anniversary is nigh--and now Ezra has disappeared. Gone silent. Her panic over Ezra's silence fuels the book. Complicating things is her ability to see ghosts--Miguel continues to text her from the afterlife--which added interesting twists to the tale without pulling us away from it.
I found this book perfect for low spirits and a strangely unsettling look at the way we really do live now.
This book is the tale of a queer L.A. millennial, Eve, and her social circle, the web of which means everything to her. There is the tight inner circle, and all of the peripheral relationships. At first I was taken aback by Eve and her circle's compulsive dependence on text and Instagram for a moment by moment feedback on their emotions and relationships to the point that, like watching people smoking in a movie, it made me want to go smoke too.
A stylish portrait of the personal life of millennial hipster LA, which held for me more than a little resonance with Douglas Coupland's Generation X--a likely matter of indifference to current 20 and 30 year olds-- a portrait of urban millennial life immediately pre-pandemic (no mention of politics but gentrifying LA is presented in exact-to-the-moment detail--you could use the book as a tour guide to LA's East Side if you had a mind to trace all the bars and eateries, parks and walks).
What differentiated this book's era so clearly from its predecessor--something that at first put me off, but soon won me over--was the essential phone-dependency of the protagonist's life, moment by moment--and this is not an aberration, because it's true of all her cohort, and probably most of her readers too. I resisted and then accepted how the characters all lived in each others lives simultaneously and continuously through text and social app, so that if one fell silent--it was enough to throw up a wave of panic in the hyper-connected Eve. "U Up?" they text one another, and someone always is.
The story itself is simple--Eve's inner circle is crumbling. First they lost Miguel to suicide --his first anniversary is nigh--and now Ezra has disappeared. Gone silent. Her panic over Ezra's silence fuels the book. Complicating things is her ability to see ghosts--Miguel continues to text her from the afterlife--which added interesting twists to the tale without pulling us away from it.
I found this book perfect for low spirits and a strangely unsettling look at the way we really do live now.
January 2, 2022
it’s about sex and grief and forgiveness and anger and growth and friendship and los angeles and ghosts, and it’s about love. i loved it hugely. the narration is frenzied and feverish and glowing like driving into the sun in the late afternoon. i feel so so grateful to have gotten to float through the sparkling/gritty LA ether with eve & ezra & miggy & noz. i feel like a more fully realized person having read this book. GOD i just loved it.
December 7, 2020
U Up? is one of those books that does a fantastic job of looking at friendship from a millennial point of view-a highlight were the text messages, as that is how millennials love to communicate NOW, and how texting as communication can bolster or interfere with a friendship. I enjoyed reading about Eve, Ezra, and Nozlee, and I appreciated all of the characters' flaws within being humans in different types of friendships and relationships. This was set in a different time period of life than I maybe have ever been in, but it was nice to read. The ghosts in the story did a great metaphorical job of operating within the same realm as Eve, and helping to show Eve a mirror into herself.
The description of LA was great, and it made me miss LA; will I ever return there again?
Also, full disclosure, Catie is one of my very best friends for forever, but even if she had was not, this would have been my review. Hard recommend.
The description of LA was great, and it made me miss LA; will I ever return there again?
Also, full disclosure, Catie is one of my very best friends for forever, but even if she had was not, this would have been my review. Hard recommend.
January 20, 2022
[La mia videorecensione: ]
So good and also crazy af: texting,queer drama, witchcraft, ghosts set in the magic LA. Totally loved it. 100% recommended
So good and also crazy af: texting,queer drama, witchcraft, ghosts set in the magic LA. Totally loved it. 100% recommended
August 12, 2022
god this whipped
February 2, 2021
Six stars hard recommend.
This book is officially out and I recommend it highly.
This book is officially out and I recommend it highly.
December 27, 2021
I cannot even begin to describe how annoyed this book made me. The main character is so unlikable. I was originally drawn to the book because I’ve been trying to read more fiction with LGBTQ+ protagonists, but this felt like the author was trying to project all their negative feelings on the LGBTQ+ community into text. Multiple slurs used throughout the book, including the N word, and the author is white. Aside from the offensive text, the plot and character development was not for me. I never rate books this low because I truly believe ratings are subjective, but there were too many things I couldn’t overlook.
June 21, 2022
Oh I really wanted to give this book like at least 3 stars. But what was the point of it??
It’s marketed as a mystery thriller and I kept waiting for that and NOTHING HAPPENED
The author definitely flexed their knowledge of LA and the desert, but who cares? Especially when there are so many editing errors I wanted to scream every-time I had to re read a sentence to make it make sense.
Also the MC is soooo unlikeable. And I don’t know if that’s the point? But it really makes the reader disconnect from the story.
I’m so bummed, I was really hoping for a thriller and so much more tension
CW: mention of suicide, death, ghosts, excessive drugs and alcohol consumption
It’s marketed as a mystery thriller and I kept waiting for that and NOTHING HAPPENED
The author definitely flexed their knowledge of LA and the desert, but who cares? Especially when there are so many editing errors I wanted to scream every-time I had to re read a sentence to make it make sense.
Also the MC is soooo unlikeable. And I don’t know if that’s the point? But it really makes the reader disconnect from the story.
I’m so bummed, I was really hoping for a thriller and so much more tension
CW: mention of suicide, death, ghosts, excessive drugs and alcohol consumption
June 20, 2023
DNF. Terrible! Good thing that I didn't pay for this.
January 12, 2022
man this WHIPS. instant fave
June 6, 2022
This was pretty difficult to read. The number of characters is confusing and difficult to tell apart. Especially in the beginning of the book. They aren’t introduced in a way that makes sense. The first time she texts Miggy, she hasn’t specified that she can text her dead friend because she can see ghosts. So I spent a lot of the first part of the book confused.
It’s also terribly hard to read. There are little to no chapters or breaking parts. It drags on and on and there’s no easy way to pick up the book and put it down without pausing in the middle and having to remember what was happening when you come back to it.
I only finished it because I wanted to know where Ezra was and if he was as fed up with Eve being crazy as I was. I picked up this book for $0.25 at my library’s book sale because I lived in LA for 3 years so I thought it would be fun to read about places I had visited while I lived there. Apparently I never visited any of these dive bars haha
It’s also terribly hard to read. There are little to no chapters or breaking parts. It drags on and on and there’s no easy way to pick up the book and put it down without pausing in the middle and having to remember what was happening when you come back to it.
I only finished it because I wanted to know where Ezra was and if he was as fed up with Eve being crazy as I was. I picked up this book for $0.25 at my library’s book sale because I lived in LA for 3 years so I thought it would be fun to read about places I had visited while I lived there. Apparently I never visited any of these dive bars haha
May 10, 2022
2.5 or so? compelling and addicting read but i was mildly to moderately irritated the whole way through. Competently written but afterwards it felt me felt kind of empty and like I did something wrong, like watch a particularly trashy reality tv show. I don't think this book has necessarily no substance but whatever it was trying to do is lost on me. I was too busy being annoyed at every single character in this. And yes sure the main character is "flawed" but it's more than that I think every single character that called her out on it (heavyhandedly) was just as bad. I simply wasn't convinced of anyones friendship with each other, which the book hinges on. Gonna keep this at 2 or change it to 3 when I see how much it stays with me.
December 24, 2022
Unfortunately there was not a single likeable character in this book, and I mean that seriously. Nevertheless I found myself rooting for them. This read like an unedited fan fiction and ideas were simply not fully developed enough to be sensical. At one point I thought I could not finish this book because they were doing so much cocaine that I felt I had a secondhand high. It was cute tho
Want to read
May 14, 2020A new Catie Disabato book is the best news I've heard all day.
February 10, 2021
Ghosts as conscious. Flawed heroine. Queer babes. Best friends. Old LA architecture and businesses. Did I mention ghosts?
September 28, 2021
aw fuck this was so good. easily easily easily one of my favourite books i’ve read this year. having feelings about it!
April 22, 2022
not great not what i expected tbh it was a boring plot and i kept waiting for the good part but it never came.
May 15, 2022
Warning! This book has the most misleading dust jacket summary I have read in a long time.
January 8, 2022
I love a good story about growth and processing anger and becoming a fuller version of yourself � and I wish I had read this in college when I was parsing through toxic friendships and boundary issues of my own. But reading this now feels nostalgic. The ending really is beautiful, even if Eve’s journey getting there was rough and sometimes hurt others. I’ve been where Eve was in terms of lacking self awareness and losing friends because of it, but that makes me appreciate the person I am now and the friends that stick around so much more.
I’m so happy Miggy was able to ~ be ~ let go. I’m happy that Noz felt seen and loved, that Ezra was finally given the truth, and that Georgie expressed her need for better treatment and didn’t settle for less. I’m happy that Eve began the long process of healing and letting people in. I’m happy she allowed herself to be loved.
This book was so lovely and real! 4.5 💫
I’m so happy Miggy was able to ~ be ~ let go. I’m happy that Noz felt seen and loved, that Ezra was finally given the truth, and that Georgie expressed her need for better treatment and didn’t settle for less. I’m happy that Eve began the long process of healing and letting people in. I’m happy she allowed herself to be loved.
This book was so lovely and real! 4.5 💫
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 11, 2021
All my reviews can be found at:
~~~~
This review will appear on my site on April 14, 2021.
~~~~
I am not the target reader for this novel, in fact this one did not work for me at all. I received a copy from Amazon Vine for review, otherwise I would have put it down much earlier than I did. When sent something from the Vine, yes you must review it. Yes, I did ultimately DNF this one, with just 50 pages left which I will go into that later.
Eve is our narrator and speaks to us directly in addition to texting her friends which include Miggy who is a ghost. Yes, an actual ghost. He committed suicide, and we are at the one year weekend anniversary of his death and Eve is experiencing a variety of emotions. And then her best friend Ezra disappears after his girlfriend Noz breaks up with him. So goes Eve’s search for finding Ezra. Sounds interesting right? Yes, but the delivery of this novel did not work for me at all.
Eve is very unlikable; she and her friends use offensive language (The f word) and cocaine throughout the novel. She also uses the word d*ke repeatedly describing herself and other lesbians. This is a world I am not a part of and maybe it is ok to call yourself and others this word, but I just did not agree with the constant usage of it. And yes, Eve is a lesbian herself. I did not know going in to the novel that she is, and I did not have an issue with that, but we do go into that world of nightclubs and more. There are female on female sex scenes as well.
Another issue I had with the novel was with the text messages. The messages start and then a few pages later the messages continue but previous texts are shown again. The length of the novel could have gone down with just continuing the message stream versus repeating the texts.
The novel does go into showing how the excessive use of social media can affect a person. I do realize that we are at the anniversary of Miggy’s death, which brings up a variety of emotions and Eve’s grief, but Eve just comes off as shallow, so I did not connect with her character at all.
Once we find out what happens to Ezra is where I ended up DNFing the novel. There was just so much anger and more going on that at that point with just 50 pages left I just did not care about the ending and could not bring myself to read anymore. I was hoping in some way the novel would redeem itself. Maybe it does, but I just could not finish it. As I previously mentioned this one would have been put down much earlier, but I have to review it since it came from Amazon Vine, and I hate that it is a negative review.
All books are not for everyone and this one is not for me. I cannot recommend this one at all.
~~~~
This review will appear on my site on April 14, 2021.
~~~~
I am not the target reader for this novel, in fact this one did not work for me at all. I received a copy from Amazon Vine for review, otherwise I would have put it down much earlier than I did. When sent something from the Vine, yes you must review it. Yes, I did ultimately DNF this one, with just 50 pages left which I will go into that later.
Eve is our narrator and speaks to us directly in addition to texting her friends which include Miggy who is a ghost. Yes, an actual ghost. He committed suicide, and we are at the one year weekend anniversary of his death and Eve is experiencing a variety of emotions. And then her best friend Ezra disappears after his girlfriend Noz breaks up with him. So goes Eve’s search for finding Ezra. Sounds interesting right? Yes, but the delivery of this novel did not work for me at all.
Eve is very unlikable; she and her friends use offensive language (The f word) and cocaine throughout the novel. She also uses the word d*ke repeatedly describing herself and other lesbians. This is a world I am not a part of and maybe it is ok to call yourself and others this word, but I just did not agree with the constant usage of it. And yes, Eve is a lesbian herself. I did not know going in to the novel that she is, and I did not have an issue with that, but we do go into that world of nightclubs and more. There are female on female sex scenes as well.
Another issue I had with the novel was with the text messages. The messages start and then a few pages later the messages continue but previous texts are shown again. The length of the novel could have gone down with just continuing the message stream versus repeating the texts.
The novel does go into showing how the excessive use of social media can affect a person. I do realize that we are at the anniversary of Miggy’s death, which brings up a variety of emotions and Eve’s grief, but Eve just comes off as shallow, so I did not connect with her character at all.
Once we find out what happens to Ezra is where I ended up DNFing the novel. There was just so much anger and more going on that at that point with just 50 pages left I just did not care about the ending and could not bring myself to read anymore. I was hoping in some way the novel would redeem itself. Maybe it does, but I just could not finish it. As I previously mentioned this one would have been put down much earlier, but I have to review it since it came from Amazon Vine, and I hate that it is a negative review.
All books are not for everyone and this one is not for me. I cannot recommend this one at all.
April 5, 2021
I was expecting this to be more of a thriller and less of a friend misunderstanding (with ghosts!). I enjoyed it though. I could feel the hot, sweaty LA air through Disabato's writing. I don't know that I would say I "really liked" any of the characters; they're all too cool for me, but the dynamics between them were really believable and relatable.
I do have to say that depictions of the kind of casual drug use that is on display here make me really uncomfortable (all the time, not just here), and while it's clear that Eve is a hot mess, the drugs and alcohol are never condemned as perhaps exacerbating her issues.
I do have to say that depictions of the kind of casual drug use that is on display here make me really uncomfortable (all the time, not just here), and while it's clear that Eve is a hot mess, the drugs and alcohol are never condemned as perhaps exacerbating her issues.
March 22, 2021
A beautiful story about love, friendship and grief. At first I had a hard time getting behind the medium/witch aspect of the story, but it ended up being a beautiful way to allow Eve, the main character to grieve the loss of her best friend who committed suicide.
September 2, 2021
I wanted more ghosts and less L.A.
January 19, 2024
I added this book to my get-at-library list thanks to its inclusion on the NYT's list. Unavailable at Portsmouth Public Library, I used an Interlibrary Loan pick at the University Near Here to get a copy from Brandeis University.
The narrating protagonist is Eve. She's a cocaine-snorting lesbian witch, who sees ghosts, and communicates with a dead friend via text. And, although it was in that "best mysteries" list, there's very little mysterious content here. The friend was a suicide, not a murder faked to look that way. Another friend goes missing, and that worries Eve, but is eventually tracked down unharmed, he just wanted to get away. There's no criminal activity, save for whatever is involved in Los Angeles illicit drug consumption these days.
Honest summary: Eve has a difficult time with relationships, and this book recounts her efforts to sort things out over the space of a few days.
Eve talks about everything. On page 118, a waiter brings her enchiladas, warning her: "Hot plate". And:
When he turned away, I touched the plate with the sides of both of my hands. Whenever a waiter tells me a plate is hot, I have to touch it. I want whatever heat anything is giving off.
Hey, me too! Except I just use one finger, not the sides of my hands. And not for some weird attraction to heat, I just consider what the waiter said to be a dare. Similarly, I watch the blood donation needle go into my arm even after—nay, especially after—the Red Cross phlebotomist tells me that I might not want to.
If you found that last paragraph uninteresting and irrelevant, I don't blame you. And that's the way I felt all through this book, because Eve tells you every single thing that goes through her brain, without regard for relevance or interest.
Eve, and all the other major characters in the book are perpetually on emotional hair-triggers, ready to take offense at each others' actions or remarks. Nobody has a detectable sense of humor. (Although the word "sardonically" appears twice on the back cover description, sorry, that's not the same thing.) Everyone's online, all the time. Except for that missing guy. All in all, the book is not a great advertisement for the Southern California lesbian lifestyle. Eve is not "gay" at all.
But there are a couple explicit lesbian sex scenes. Is that what it takes to get a book banned at Portsmouth Public Library?
So: it's clear that many people like this sort of thing; ratings at Amazon and Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ are pretty high. And that NYT reviewer liked it too. But it wasn't my cup of tea.
June 20, 2021
It should be noted that this book was definitely not written for me and was not really something I could relate to.
I didn't really connect with Eve and her panic over Ezra going radio silent didn't quite hit the right notes. I guess she was supposed to come off as super selfish, but I don't think the relationships between her and the other characters were delved into nearly enough to fully understand how the author was trying to portray her. Maybe there were just too many side characters to rush through to get to the nuances of Eve's personality. I don't even think the way the author described her mourning for her best friend was clearly described. Also, do millennials do that much drinking and bar hopping? (See, this book was not written with me in mind. I honestly don't know.) However, I do understand the need to constantly post on Instagram and go back and check for likes. I just don't do it.
The way the ghosts were described was unique. I kind of hate thinking about ghosts thirsting after human drama. I felt like I got a better description of Bonnie and Babs than Eve.
Personal peeves - the pages didn't all end at the same line on the page. Some ended further up the page than others. I didn't notice it until later in the book. It certainly doesn't take away from the story, but apparently I like that continuity.
Also, why were text messages rehashed and lines of text we previously read are repeated? It was unnecessary and took me out of the story annoyed that I had to reread lines of text.
I didn't really connect with Eve and her panic over Ezra going radio silent didn't quite hit the right notes. I guess she was supposed to come off as super selfish, but I don't think the relationships between her and the other characters were delved into nearly enough to fully understand how the author was trying to portray her. Maybe there were just too many side characters to rush through to get to the nuances of Eve's personality. I don't even think the way the author described her mourning for her best friend was clearly described. Also, do millennials do that much drinking and bar hopping? (See, this book was not written with me in mind. I honestly don't know.) However, I do understand the need to constantly post on Instagram and go back and check for likes. I just don't do it.
The way the ghosts were described was unique. I kind of hate thinking about ghosts thirsting after human drama. I felt like I got a better description of Bonnie and Babs than Eve.
Personal peeves - the pages didn't all end at the same line on the page. Some ended further up the page than others. I didn't notice it until later in the book. It certainly doesn't take away from the story, but apparently I like that continuity.
Also, why were text messages rehashed and lines of text we previously read are repeated? It was unnecessary and took me out of the story annoyed that I had to reread lines of text.
October 15, 2022
I really tried forcing myself to get into this book but I just couldn't like it. 24% into the story and I still didn't grasp what's going on and couldn't find the plot interesting at all. I feel guilty for not finishing it and hopefully someday I'll try completing it, but for now I'm letting it go.
October 17, 2021
loved this! it reminded me a lot of the regrets but i much preferred this for its deceptively light tone, i loved the almost filmic way that it unfolds and it had elements of basically all my favourite things
Read
April 30, 2022DNF
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