Finalist - 2025 American Fiction Awards "A heartfelt but playful romp... with a clever, imaginative world." - Kirkus Reviews Meet Pearly Gates, the sassiest spirit guide in the afterlife-and maybe the least qualified. After dying and getting dumped by her supposedly eternal soulmate for being "emotionally unevolved," Pearly-a former drag queen with a flair for drama-lands the worst gig in the beyond: cosmic sanitation. But when she strikes a desperate deal to prove she's capable of growth (and love), she ends up as a spirit guide at Thunderbolt Books & Coffee-a cozy café with a ghost problem, a community in need, and a second chance she didn't see coming. As Pearly uses her charm (and a little celestial magic) to help a young widow risk new love, a trans baker rediscover her spark, and a dying accountant romance a ghost from the 1920s, she begins to find something she thought she'd lost forever: belonging. But when she realizes the café's owner is her reincarnated ex-and one of her charges is falling for them-things get complicated fast. Between saving the café, dodging afterlife detectives, and sorting out her own messy feelings, Pearly must decide what really matters most. Uplifting and full of heart, Pearly Gates is a wildly original cozy fantasy filled with glitter, grief, and healing, wrapped in hilarious celestial mishaps and the true magic of found family. Perfect for fans of Legends & Lattes and The Good Place. Bring tissues. And maybe a latte.