Ghost Planet by Sharon Lynn Fisher

-->

Science Fiction/Science Fiction Romance

Goodreads Summary:

"Psychologist Elizabeth Cole prepared for the worst when she accepted a job on a newly discovered world—a world where every colonist is tethered to an alien who manifests in the form of a dead loved one. But she never expected she'd struggle with the requirement to shun these "ghosts." She never expected to be so attracted to the charming Irishman assigned as her supervisor. And she certainly never expected to discover she died in a transport crash en route to the planet.

As a ghost, Elizabeth is symbiotically linked to her supervisor, Murphy—creator of the Ghost Protocol, which forbids him to acknowledge or interact with her. Confused and alone—oppressed by her ghost status and tormented by forbidden love—Elizabeth works to unlock the secrets of her own existence. 

But her quest for answers lands her in a tug-of-war between powerful interests, and she soon finds herself a pawn in the struggle for control of the planet…a struggle that could separate her forever from the man that she loves"

Oh my goodness.  All I can say is Ghost Planet is great, great, great.  I loved the concept, the story, the characters and the writing.  This is Science Fiction Romance at its best.

The twist at the beginning of the book sets the tone for the rest of the story.  Elizabeth does not realize she is a ghost.  She feels the same, looks the same and reacts the same as before.  Here are the two beginning sentences:

"The tarmac was deserted.  Foggy and disoriented, I wondered how long I’d been standing there, listening to the evergreens groan in the wind and dreading my first encounter on this new world."

When you read this after reading the book you can see the foreshadowing of Elizabeth’s real status.  Then you meet Grayson Murphy and see the interaction between the two before he realizes that Elizabeth is a ghost.  It is a great set up for the rest of the story.

The world building is unusual and very realistic.  You can see the connection between the Ghost Planet and Earth.  You can also see how everything is changing because of the interaction or lack thereof between the colonists and the ghosts.  All of this matches the plot and helps keep the story moving.

Science Fiction Romance fans buy this book.  I checked Sharon Lynn Fisher’s web page to see what she had in store for us next.  This seems to be her first published book.  It could be a stand-alone or it could lead to more stories about the Ghost Planet and Elizabeth and Murphy.  I for one would love to see both of them again. She is working on another book but it seems to be in an entirely new universe.

Tor Science Fiction published Ghost Planet by Sharon Fisher in 2012.

I received an ARC of Ghost Planet from Netgalley.