Rating: ★★★★☆ (4.5/5)
Brosgol’s black, white, and soft green-gray illustrations perfectly match the tone. The linework is clean and expressive, with a slightly cartoonish quality that makes the darker moments land harder. Emily’s ghost is drawn with haunting, hollow eyes and a fluid, boneless posture that contrasts with Anya’s solid, awkward teenage frame. The use of shadows and negative space in the underground scenes is particularly effective. In PDF format, the art remains crisp, though some readers prefer print for the full grayscale tone range. anya's ghost pdf
Contains mild language, underage smoking, a non-graphic make-out scene, and themes of death/manipulation. Best for ages 12+. Rating: ★★★★☆ (4
The story moves briskly, clocking in at about 224 pages. The first act sets up Anya’s relatable struggles: body image issues, a crush on a popular boy, embarrassment over her Russian heritage, and a rocky friendship with the nerdy but kind Siobhan. The ghost’s introduction feels like a dark wish-fulfillment—Emily helps Anya cheat on tests, spy on her crush, and gain confidence. But Brosgol masterfully subverts the "friendly ghost" trope. The second half reveals Emily’s possessive, manipulative, and ultimately murderous nature. The tension escalates into a genuinely suspenseful climax that doesn’t pull punches for a younger audience. The use of shadows and negative space in