American Ghost

The concept of having a ghost investigate his own murder isn’t new, and Guernsey (Unhallowed Ground) doesn’t make his variation on the theme a memorable one. Daniel Starbird Rivera, who goes by Thumb in the afterlife, supported himself by growing pot before he was shot to death at the age of 22. After realizing that he continued to exist as a spirit, Thumb enlisted the aid of a spiritual medium named Ben to translate Thumb’s awkward code via a ouija board into the unengaging English narrative comprising this novel. That clumsy gimmick makes it harder to get emotionally invested in Thumb’s search for the truth, and his sophomoric persona (when he creates a ghostly body for himself, he uses the opportunity to make his penis “a little larger than it had been in life”) doesn’t help. Readers interested in the plot device will find it better done elsewhere. (Aug.)