I was locked in. I was glued to the Kindle. I started reading and didn't stop until I finished the book at 3am. I was scared to go to the bathroom in the dark. lol An EXCELLENT supernatural thriller.

After Anita loses her husband, Dan, she is devastated. Then Dan starts appearing to her. But it isn't the Dan that she knew in life. He is taunting, cruel, and seems bent on destroying her. The weird thing is, this is happening to people all over the world. News of these "ghosts", called Negative Images, or NIs, is all over television and the internet. Why should anyone who doesn't have one care? Because they can see their friends and family's Negative Images, although what they see and hear is distorted. People with NIs are ostracized as their NIs break them down emotionally and make work and community life impossible. 

Anita teams up with Joshua, whose late fiancée passed about the same time as her husband, to try to determine why this is happening and if there is any way to rid themselves of their NIs. As their NIs become more and more aggressive, a charismatic man rallies the scared masses against people who have Negative Images. You know, to protect our children and communities.

There is definitely some heavy allegory here that was not lost on me. The story had me thinking about the pandemic and about groups in America that have been and/or are being "othered" by our government. It is timely and thought provoking.

My interpretations aside, this suspenseful ghost story is great at face value. It had me hooked from page one. I was emotionally connected to the characters and felt their grief, frustration, anger, outrage, sadness, and in happier moments, their hope. I needed to know why they had these Negative Images and what would ultimately happen to them.

I can confidently recommend this one. Do consider your emotional state, given that the book deals heavily with loss and grief.

Thank you Rising Action Publishing Co. and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for my review.