Early Review: Secret Santa (A Horror for the Holidays Novel) by Andrew Shaffer

 

GENRE: Horror • November 10, 2020 - Paperback/eBook
(UK pub date PB/eBook: November 17, 2020)
PAPERBACK ISBN 978-1683692058 • AUDIOBOOK OUT FEB 9, 2021
Quirk Books (Dist. by Penguin Random House) and Blackstone Audio

The Office meets Stephen King, dressed up in holiday tinsel, in this fun, festive, and frightening horror-comedy set during the horror publishing boom of the ’80s, by New York Times best-selling satirist Andrew Shaffer.

Out of work for months, Lussi Meyer is desperate to work anywhere in publishing. Prestigious Blackwood-Patterson isn’t the perfect fit, but a bizarre set of circumstances leads to her hire and a firm mandate: Lussi must find the next horror superstar to compete with Stephen King, Anne Rice, and Peter Straub. It’s the ’80s, after all, and horror is the hottest genre.

But as soon as she arrives, Lussi finds herself the target of her co-workers' mean-spirited pranks. The hazing reaches its peak during the company’s annual Secret Santa gift exchange, when Lussi receives a demonic-looking object that she recognizes but doesn't understand. Suddenly, her coworkers begin falling victim to a series of horrific accidents akin to a George Romero movie, and Lussi suspects that her gift is involved. With the help of her former author, the flamboyant Fabien Nightingale, Lussi must track down her anonymous Secret Santa and figure out the true meaning of the cursed object in her possession before it destroys the company—and her soul.  

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What I thought about Secret Santa

The synopsis does a good job of giving the main points, so I'm not going to give away any further details because that's most of the fun with horror -- it's all about the reveal of the story. It's those moments when you jump a little as you are reading the story make it a five star read.  Secret Santa did that to me a few times -- it made me want to scream at Lussi in a few different places -- what are you doing girl? Get out of there!

There's a folk tale associated with this story that made things interesting and a lesson if you are into that sort of thing.  The cultural references to the 1980's also brought some relief to the more sinister activities in the story and put a smile on my face.

The story is complete but on the shorter side, so it's something you can devour in an afternoon or two. It's easy to get involved in the story and keep turning those pages to see what was going to happen (and who would be left standing!). Secret Santa also validated my aversion toward the whole secret santa activity, in general.  I mean really, has anyone ever been happy with their Secret Santa gift? This story gives whole new meaning to that holiday ritual.

I liked this. The cover is amazing and made me want to read it.  The story kept me reading and it didn't drag things out.  It had just the right amount of horror, suspense and humor. Can't ask for anymore more.  

An ARC was provided by the publisher. This is my honest review.

About the Author

Andrew Shaffer is a New York Times bestselling humorist and screenwriter whose books include Hope Never Dies: An Obama Biden Mystery, the parody Fifty Shames of Earl Grey and the humorous survival guide How to Survive a Sharknado and Other Unnatural Disasters. His new book, Hope Rides Again: An Obama Biden Mystery, is available now wherever books are sold from Quirk Books and Audible. His next book, the horror-comedy Secret Santa, will be published in November 2020 by Quirk Books.

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Review: Hope Rides Again (Obama Biden Mysteries #2) by Andrew Shaffer

In the sequel to the New York Times best-selling novel Hope Never Dies, Obama and Biden reprise their roles as BFFs-turned-detectives as they chase Obama’s stolen cell phone through the mean streets of Chicago–and right into a vast conspiracy.
 
Following a long but successful book tour, Joe Biden has one more stop before he can return home: Chicago. His old pal Barack Obama has invited him to meet a wealthy benefactor whose endorsement could turn the tide for Joe if he decides to run for president.

The two friends barely have time to catch up before another mystery lands in their laps: Obama’s prized BlackBerry is stolen. When their number-one suspect winds up full of lead on the South Side, the police are content to write it off as just another gangland shooting. But Joe and Obama smell a rat…

Set against the backdrop of a raucous city on St. Patrick’s Day, Joe and Obama race to find the shooter, only to uncover a vast conspiracy that goes deeper than the waters of Lake Michigan—which is exactly where they’ll spend the rest of their retirement if they’re not careful.

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What I thought about Hope Rides Again

The mystery-solving team of Obama and Biden return in this second installment of the Obama Biden Mystery series from Andrew Shaffer.

I really enjoyed Hope Never Dies, the first book in the series -- it had a nice fantasy sort of world, where Obama and Biden were no longer President and VP, but sort of super heroes just solving a murder for the good of it all.  It was a story that made me smile at times, and I was left looking for more of this world so I was thrilled to see Hope Rides Again.

The political climate is a bit different with the release of this book but that didn't impact my enjoyment of it.  The setting is Chicago (on St. Patricks day, no less), and the team gets embroiled in a bit of a situation that just begs for the bro-team to take it on. Hope Rides Again uses much of what Chicago is known for, good and bad in the telling of the story, but the fantasy team stays focuses (most of the time) on solving the crime and makes some interesting observations about some big issues while doing so. 

Hope Rides Again is an entertaining story, especially when it doesn't take itself too serious.  And there's Michelle Obama too! 

Overall, I enjoyed this.  The fun is in the details.  

An ARC was provided for review.

 

 About the Author

Andrew Shaffer is a New York Times bestselling humorist and screenwriter whose books include Hope Never Dies: An Obama Biden Mystery, the parody Fifty Shames of Earl Grey and the humorous survival guide How to Survive a Sharknado and Other Unnatural Disasters. His new book, Hope Rides Again: An Obama Biden Mystery, is available now wherever books are sold from Quirk Books and Audible. 

Release Day Review: Hope Never Dies by Andrew Shaffer

This mystery thriller reunites Vice President Joe Biden and President Barack Obama for a political mashup full of suspense, intrigue, and laugh out loud bromance.

Vice President Joe Biden is fresh out of the Obama White House and feeling adrift when his favorite railroad conductor dies in a suspicious accident, leaving behind an ailing wife and a trail of clues. To unravel the mystery, “Amtrak Joe” re-teams with the only man he’s ever fully trusted—the 44th president of the United States. Together they’ll plumb the darkest corners of Delaware, traveling from cheap motels to biker bars and beyond, as they uncover the sinister forces advancing America’s opioid epidemic.

Part noir thriller and part bromance novel, Hope Never Dies is essentially the first published work of Obama/Biden fanfiction—and a cathartic read for anyone distressed by the current state of affairs.

"[An] entertaining, offbeat whodunit... Fans of Carl Hiaasen’s comic crime novels will have fun." — Publishers Weekly

"Put on your aviators and grab an ice cream cone—you're in for a hell of an Amtrak ride...and that's no malarkey." — Jeff Wilser, author of The Book of Joe: The Life, Wit, and (Sometimes Accidental) Wisdom of Joe Biden

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What I thought about Hope Never Dies

Do you remember the Obama/Biden memes that were ever so popular and super funny?  Well, if you liked those, you are probably going to like Hope Never Dies, because Andrew Shaffer has taken everything that tickled the funny bone in those memes and translated that into a fanfiction buddy tale that has Joe Biden solving the mystery of "who killed Amtrak Joe's favorite conductor".

The story starts with an adorably insecure former vice president Joe Biden  missing his friend Barack Obama while being angry at him for seemingly deserting him now that they are both out of office.  But when Barack drops by in the dead of night to tell him about the death of his favorite conductor, it's the the evidence that points to Joe Biden that has him determined to find his friend's killer.

Written entirely in Joe Biden's first person point of view, what follows is a romp around Delaware in which Joe solves the murder with the help of Barack Obama.  There's all sorts of characters involved -- insurance investigators, motorcycle clubs and dirty cops.  This story touches upon every tidbit of Joe's and Barack's public personas, and I found myself either chuckling or groaning  over most of what Biden has to say in this fanfic.  Some of the bits made me laugh out loud, and I believe there was a gigglesnort of two along the way.  While the mystery keeps the story moving, it really is the one-liners that made this book an almost 5 star read for me.


If you are looking for some relief from the current political scene and just want a good head-shaking laugh, you will probably like Hope Never Dies.  I'll admit to buying a copy of this just for the cover that makes me smile every time I look at it.  I think Andrew Shaffer did an amazing job of capturing the personality of Joe Biden and Barack Obama, and I can only hope that their real relationship was akin to how they are portrayed in Hope Never Dies because it's pretty terrific.

An ARC was provided for review. 

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Andrew Shaffer is a New York Times bestselling author and screenwriter whose books include the parody Fifty Shames of Earl Grey and the humorous survival guide How to Survive a Sharknado and Other Unnatural Disasters. His new book, Hope Never Dies: An Obama Biden Mystery is now available wherever books are sold from Quirk Books and Audible.
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