Dead scary: ghost guitar by T J Doom

Ghost Guitar is the debut title in the new “Dead Scary” series written by the author’s persona: TJ Doom. Well Mr Doom, your debut proves that self-praise is justified. I predict Dead Scary to be the new Goosebumps if indeed another series aspires to become equally ubiquitous. The action and tension is seriously next level as we witness Jake and Zoe perform jaw dropping stunts to escape the escalating supernatural encounters.  

Jake can’t afford a decent guitar to actualize his dream of founding a rock band so he is building a guitar out of old parts, much like ‘Frankenstein’s monster’. So far Zoe has refused his pleas to be the first to join his band on keyboards.  Imagine his surprise to find a rare Fender Telecaster guitar, while serving a detention to clean and stocktake the music room attic.

Jake can’t resist a test strum or two, but he summons up a whole rock band of teenage ghosts- Ricky and the Blue Jeans – all of whom tragically perished on stage 50yrs ago before finishing their last set at the school concert. They’re stuck in a kind of purgatory and need to move on. Jake agrees to help readily. As difficult as it is to arrange the requirements of the new performance in order to release their souls, Jake has inadvertently allowed a malevolent demon to follow through the open portal. The phantom is determined to stop Jake from helping Ricky's band. Jake is 'Dead Scared' but of course unlike Doom’s readers, Jake is a true hero!

This is a well-written episodic narrative and exemplar of children’s horror, capably complemented in the same genre by a scary red cover and several monochrome comic style illustrations by Nahum Ziersch. We hope the creative partnership endures as TJ Doom forewarns in the epilogue....“more dead scary books coming soon”.

158p

Themes: Horror, Action, Rock & Roll, School, Ghost Story.

Deborah Robins