After a close encounter with a bus, Alona Dare goes from homecoming queen to Queen of the Dead. She’s stuck as a ghost in the land of the living with no sign of the big, bright light to take her to a better place. To make matters worse, the only person who might be able to help her is Will Killian, a total loser outcast. More than anything, Will wishes he didn’t have the rare ability to communicate with the dead, especially the former mean girl of Groundsboro High. He’s not filling out any volunteer forms to help her cross to the other side, though it would bring him some welcome peace and quiet. Can they get over their mutual distrust -- and quasi-attraction -- to work together? Readers of this spirited paranormal comedy won't want this odd couple to ever part. Gr 8 Up–Alona Dare was the most popular girl in her high school class, or at least she was until she was run over by a school bus. Returning to the scene of her death as a ghost, she anticipates overwhelming grief at her untimely death. To her surprise, her classmates quickly move on. Not only that, but weird outcast Will Killian can see and hear her. Alona, used to getting her own way, haunts Will until he agrees to help her figure out how to progress from ghosthood to the big white light that she keeps expecting. Will has problems of his own; namely that every ghost in Groundsboro High, including a seething black mass of energy, now knows that he can see them, and they all want him to carry out their last wishes. Will and Alona have to work together to get the ghosts to stop tormenting Will, and to figure out exactly what Alona has to do in order to move on from this world. Their new relationship is full of surprises as they each experience a side of the other that neither expected. This tale of friendship from unexpected corners shows how two people can grow tremendously over time. The tale is absorbing, and Kade successfully portrays a typical present-day high school. This novel will appeal to fans of romances and ghost stories alike. Laura Amos, Newport News Public Library, VA © Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. Alona Dare has it all—a cute boyfriend, elite social status, and a three-year reign as homecoming queen—until she is killed by a school bus. Now she is stuck (with several other ghosts) in some sort of middle ground, and her only apparent hope for moving into the afterlife is social outcast and goth Will Killian. Will needs to tune out the ghosts so his shrink doesn’t lock him up for good, but Alona’s beauty and persistence make her hard to ignore. Factor in a strange love triangle, a dangerous spirit determined to hurt Will, and an angry, belligerent principal, and it’s obvious that Will needs some serious help just to survive, much less graduate. With plenty of humor, this quirky debut will appeal to both genders. The characters are fully dimensional and appealing in spite of their hang-ups, and the sexual tension and alternating narrators are reminiscent of Maggie Stievater’s Shiver (2009). Despite a few implausible plot devices, the story succeeds as an exploration of high-school culture and the benefits of sacrificing yourself for another. Grades 9-12. --Melissa Moore Stacey Kade is an award-winning corporate copywriter. The Ghost and the Goth is her first YA novel. You can find her on Facebook and Twitter as well as www.staceykade.com. She lives in the Chicago suburbs. Used Book in Good Condition