Reviewed by Carissa
TITLE: The Ghost Slept Over
AUTHOR: Marshall Thornton
PUBLISHER: MLR Press
LENGTH: 236 pages
BLURB: When failed actor Cal Parsons travels to rural New York to claim the estate of his famous and estranged ex-partner he discovers something he wasn’t expecting…the ghost of his ex! And, worse, his ex invites Cal to join him for all eternity. Now. As Cal attempts to rid himself of the ghost by any means he begins to fall for the attractive attorney representing the estate. Will Cal be able to begin a new relationship or will he be seduced into the ever after?
REVIEW:
“Yes, the show must go on, but it’s also important to survive until the curtain calls”
Cal Parsons has a lot of things to say about the renowned playwright McCormack Williams, and none of them are ‘god bless.’ Which is to be expected, after all, since Mac went and dumped his ass hours before removing himself to New York, to be all famous and shit. And then there was that whole kerfuffle with the play that Mac wrote, concerning one Hal Perkins (like no one was going to figure that one out), and his attempts to sabotage his brilliant playwright lover. So it is a bit of a shock to find out that dearly-departed (*snort*) Mac (who hasn’t deigned to speak/write/or generally acknowledge Cal’s existence since the whole moving out fiasco) has left him everything in his rather extensive estate. And while Cal might have loathed the man, he is not going to pass up the chance to finally move out of his current home (a ten-year-old Ford Ranger Extended Cab) and into something with a bit more leg room. And maybe a bed.
There is just one little problem: Mac hasn’t exactly moved on to his eternal reward (probably ‘cause the afterlife finds him annoying as Cal does). And if Cal had issues with Mac when he was alive…well let’s just say that being dead hasn’t improved him any (exceptmaybe his looks). Especially when Mac seems determined to have Cal join him in the great hereafter.
First of all: I truly and absolutely love the cover of this book. It is just so cute. And adorable. And fun. A great fit for the story.
The beginning of this story was a bit of a slow build, and it took me a while to warm up to Cal. But after a few chapters he became one of my favorite parts of this book. I love how he handles Mac, and even if he does have a bit of a blind spot when it comes to his acting (or at least, to his ability to pull off off-Broadway productions), he never lets life, or those around him pull him down. Yes, life never seems to work out the way he expects, or wants, but he keeps trying, and that is something that I greatly admire.
I was also a big fan of Mac. Well, ok, not a fan of Mac, per say (because the guy was a bit of a stalker/douche), but some of the funniest parts of this book happen when Mac is in the picture. Usually causing mayhem of one type or another. The funeral scene was just great (though I do wish we found out what Mac was saying during it) and the opening night of the play was fun to watch, if a bit dangerous for all involved. I did find his antics in the…um…bedroom bordering on a little rape-y, though. And not entirely sure if I am comfortable with how easily Cal just let the whole thing go, ‘cause it crossed all sorts of lines.
Dewey was perhaps my least favorite of the three, mostly because he came across as a bit lawyer-y (probably due to the fact that he is, in fact, a lawyer). He does loosen up a bit over the course of the story though, so that helps a lot. I guess it is more like it took a while for him to grow on me, but he did…eventually. He and Cal were great together, and when not having to deal with ghostly interruptions, the romance was quite nice.
The tempo of the book was a bit floundering at times. The beginning was a tad slow, and at random points in the book it tends to drag. Mostly when Mac is out of the picture and it is just Cal and Dewey dealing with their emotional stuff. I’m also unsure if I care for how the ending sort-of just puttered out. I like the twist, and I have to say I didn’t see it coming, but it seemed like Mac gave in way too easily. The dude had been trying to convince (/kill) Cal for a large portion of the book, so I am unsure why he just decided to go.
Still, this book was a lot fun, and I really enjoyed Mac’s ghostly antics (if not his ghostly person). And I am really glad that Cal came to his senses. The secondary characters were very well written, and I liked the parallels between the play being put on and the ghostly plotline of the story. I would love to see a sequel to this story, to find out how everything does progress with everyone (there was an epilogue, so there is a chance I’m not going to get this, but I kinda want Mac to come back and wreak a little more havoc on Cal and Dewey, just for the fun of it).
RATING: 