The Original Ginny Moon by Benjamin Ludwig | Rating: ★★★☆☆ (3.5)

As a note, a printed galley of this novel was sent to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not effect my opinions in any way.

Ginny Moon is a highly intriguing novel that hit a lot of high and low notes. I don't want my rating to fool you--I did appreciate this novel and thought it was very important to its genre. There were a few things I didn't like about it, which were what landed it between 3 and 4 stars, I may update it to 4 of 5 stars at the end of the day, like the ending.

For the most part Benjamin Ludwig crafts an unforgettable tale that combines innocence and a little heartbreak. I can't explain how I felt while reading it without spoiling and that's the opposite of what I want to do. It shines light on a character that is vastly underrepresented in modern and classic literature, and its prose is thoughtful--elegant and thought provoking. Ludwig managed to impress me deeply with the way the plotline is captured and you can feel everything as you are reading. I do mean everything.

Full of solid relationships (family and all its confusions) and sprinkled in are a lot of mixed genres; Ginny Moon is charming. I do think that even the most reluctant of readers will appreciate this novel and the characters in it. The tone is such a compelling one that you can't really put it down.


Ludwig ties the story together in a way that is beautiful and unexpected, leaving the readers fully invested in the outcome--which while I found abrupt and maybe a little disappointing, I still can't say terrible things about it.

There is something in the ending that really just put me off. I didn't think it felt the same as the rest of the novel and was so open-ended I wasn't sure how to feel about it, unless there's a sequel in the works? I don't know, regardless, it is what ultimately made me knock a bit off the rating because it just didn't hold the same spark that the rest of it did.

Ultimately, it's a tale that will keep readers captivated and if you can push aside the less-than-clean ending, you're going to love this.

Ginny Moon is definitely one of the novels you should be looking out in 2017 and one that you are going to hear plenty about. I should also stress that it has a very movie-friendly tone to it, which makes the reading experience all the more vivid and delightful.