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Ghosted

Emily Barr
Chapters (61)
  1. COVER
  2. About the Author
  3. Books by Emily Barr
  4. DEDICATION
  5. Prologue
  6. 1
  7. 2
  8. 3
  9. 4
  10. 5
  11. 6
  12. 7
  13. 8
  14. 9
  15. 10
  16. 11
  17. 12
  18. 13
  19. 14
  20. 15
  21. 16
  22. 17
  23. 18
  24. 19
  25. 20
  26. 21
  27. 22
  28. 23
  29. 24
  30. 25
  31. 26
  32. 27
  33. 28
  34. 29
  35. 30
  36. 31
  37. 32
  38. 33
  39. 34
  40. 35
  41. 36
  42. 37
  43. 38
  44. 39
  45. 40
  46. 41
  47. 42
  48. 43
  49. 44
  50. 45
  51. 46
  52. 47
  53. 48
  54. 49
  55. 50
  56. 51
  57. Epilogue
  58. Acknowledgements
  59. Read on for an extract from …
  60. 12 December
  61. THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING

COVER

Ghosted
Penguin Random House

About the Author

Emily Barr worked as a journalist in London but always hankered after a quiet room and a book to write. She went travelling for a year, which gave her an idea for a novel set in the world of backpackers in Asia. This became Backpack, a thriller that won the WHSmith New Talent Award. Her first YA thriller, The One Memory of Flora Banks, has been published in twenty-seven countries and was shortlisted for the YA Book Prize. Emily’s third YA thriller, The Girl Who Came Out of the Woods, was published in 2019 and nominated for the Carnegie Award. Ghosted is her fifth YA novel. Emily lives in Cornwall with her husband and their children.

Follow Emily Barr

on Twitter @emily_barr

and Instagram @emilybarr01

#Ghosted

Books by Emily Barr

THE ONE MEMORY OF FLORA BANKS

THE TRUTH AND LIES OF ELLA BLACK

THE GIRL WHO CAME OUT OF THE WOODS

THINGS TO DO BEFORE THE END OF THE WORLD

GHOSTED

DEDICATION

For Craig

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Prologue

11 March

Mia was in hospital for a routine operation on her knee, and everyone said it had gone well. On Thursday morning she was still woozy from the anaesthetic and found that she quite enjoyed the enforced bed rest. Hospital tea was surprisingly nice, and the toast was comforting. She had magazines to read. The ward was quiet. It was fine.

Her boyfriend missed her; they hadn’t been living together long and it was still all honeymoon. She knew she’d be home tomorrow and that he’d help her around on her crutches for a week or two, and then everything would be back to normal.

Mia hadn’t been in danger at all, right up until, all of a sudden, she fell asleep and never woke up. Nobody knew why. Her records showed she’d had the right amount of painkillers at the right times, and nothing had given any cause for alarm.

Her family refused an autopsy because the idea was too upsetting. The consultant produced some paperwork and told them that Mia had probably had a heart condition, that this would have happened at some point, and it was just by chance that it had tragically occurred when she was in hospital. It was nobody’s fault: it was one of those things.

Life had to move on without her.

Mia couldn’t move on, though. She wasn’t ready.

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1

12 February 2019

‘Wake up.’ He was shaking my shoulder. ‘Get up and get dressed. Time to go. Fresh start.’

I blinked awake and tried to make sense of the words. It was weird for him to be in my room and it was pitch-dark, with just the glow of my clock shining green on his face – 4:52.

I’d been so deeply asleep. Was this a dream? It felt like a dream.