Dan Hanks
When Cisco Collins returns to his home town thirty years after saving it from being swallowed by a hell mouth opened by an ancient pirate ghost, he realizes that being a childhood hero isn’t like it was in the movies.
Especially when nobody remembers the heroic bits – even the friends who once fought alongside him.
Struggling with single parenting and treated as bit of a joke, Cisco isn’t really in the Christmas spirit like everyone else. A fact that’s made worse by the tendrils of the pirate’s powers creeping back into our world and people beginning to die in bizarre ways.
With the help of a talking fox, an enchanted forest, a long-lost friend haunting his dreams, and some 80s video game consoles turned into weapons, Cisco must now convince his friends to once again help him save the day. Yet they quickly discover that being a ghostbusting hero is so much easier when you don’t have schools runs, parent evenings, and nativity plays to attend. And even in the middle of a supernatural battle, you always need to bring snacks and wipes…
-Excerpt taken from Goodreads.
Check Goodreads to see the book’s ratings.
My Opinion
(4 / 5) What a crazy ride! This is fast-paced action. It’s a bit like Stranger Things with Ghostbusters, but 20 yrs in the future. Cisco helped fight off the evil Deadman’s Grin back when he was a teenager. Now he’s a dad with a young son and aching bones. But the pirate is back and Cisco and friends can help.
Between aches and pains and parenting woes, they fight the supernatural. It’s full of action, jokes, banter and is done well. It actually made me wish this was a sequel, because the story when they were kids sounds like it was an adventure too!
‘“I don’t feel much different to being younger. Just a bit more confident maybe. A bit more able to bullsh*t and pretend I know what I’m doing.” That’s the trick to everything, Cisco decided. Being an adult was all about bullsh*t and spin and trying to convince everyone else that you knew what you’re doing, when, really, everyone was in the same boat.’
The pacing slowed a bit in the middle, then picked right back up toward the end. I would have loved more piratey adventures on a ship with crazy shipmates with peg legs saying “aarrgh” and “matey,” but I digress! It was a fun adventure that kept me on my toes.
Content Summary: F words: 20+, Bloody details, gruesome deaths, two women are married, other worldly creatures, intense fighting, different realms/worlds, kidnapping, and more.
Thank you to Angry Robot for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.
The book releases November 9, 2021.
**As an Amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Fast paced is so fun! Happy to hear you enjoyed this one!
I love a good adventure! Most of the time these include a journey of some kind, which is one of my favorite storylines.
Oo I should have read this one but was focusing in backlist books!
I will pick up anything with Ghostbusters vibes.