SOMEWHERE BETWEEN DANDELIONS

In Harmon’s paranormal YA romance, a teenage girl navigates love and heartbreak while uncovering family secrets with the help of her ghostly boyfriend.

In the small town of Palm Row, California, high school senior Claire Goodnight is excited that her lifelong crush, Finn Peterson, has finally noticed her. After a magical Saturday night date (including a passionate kiss), she shows up to school on Monday and gets shocking news: Finn died in his sleep of a brain hemorrhage. Her grief turns to shock when, during a schoolwide memorial service, she realizes that she can still see and talk to Finn, who appears to her as a floating, shimmery spirit: “Other than his white-socked feet, he wore a black hoodie and jeans. His brown hair was bed-head messy. My mouth dropped open as our eyes met.” Finn explains to her that, after he died, he followed a “bright light” until an old woman told him that his business on Earth wasn’t quite finished. Because Claire is the only living person who can see him, he concludes that it must be Claire who needs his help. She’s elated by their strange reunion and is determined to adjust to her new life with ghostly Finn by her side. But events quickly spiral out of control as Finn’s mom descends into all-consuming grief; Claire’s alcoholic mother unexpectedly checks in to rehab; Finn’s younger sister, Violet, falls in with a sketchy crowd; and Claire’s longtime friend, Tyler, declares his romantic feelings for her. Claire and Finn, as they attempt to help his distraught loved ones, uncover a connection between their respective families, as well as a shocking secret from Claire’s past that changes everything.

Claire is an immediately likable narrator and protagonist who earnestly, if imperfectly, tries to navigate great difficulties, which also include adult responsibilities, such as paying her family’s bills. Finn, while sweet, seems a bit too perfect at first, while he’s still alive; he becomes far more interesting after he becomes a ghost. The fact that he’s able to witness life without participating in it generates intriguing conflicts; for example, at one point, Finn forcibly (and briefly) possesses Tyler in a fit of jealousy—a violation that rightly infuriates Claire and injects a sense of dread into the situation. When Finn asks Claire to tell Violet about his ghostly nature, the teens have an exchange that paints an interesting picture of what reality looks like after a miracle occurs: “‘How can she move on when she knows you’re still here?’ My words came out harder than I’d intended. Finn reacted as if I’d slapped him.” Although the love story and the twists and turns of Claire’s family secret are the main focus of the narrative, there are quiet moments that raise engaging questions about how different types of people deal with grief and moving on. Throughout, Harmon’s pacing remains brisk without feeling rushed, which allows her to pack a lot of drama into the story; she also ties up all the narrative strands in a neatly satisfactory way.

A bittersweet tale that imaginatively explores themes of grief, loss, and first love.