What's a Ghoul to Do?

A Ghost Hunter Mystery

By: Victoria Laurie

Narrated by: Eileen Stevens

Length: 9 hrs and 40 mins

Publisher's summary

M.J., her partner Gilley, and their client, the wealthy, de-lish Dr. Steven Sable, are at his family's lodge, where his grandfather allegedly jumped to his death from the roof-although Sable says it was foul play. But the patriarch's isn't the only ghost around. The place is lousy with souls, all with something to get off their ghoulish chests. Now M.J. will have to quell the clamor-and listen for a voice with the answers...

Keep chilled: listen to another Ghost Hunter Mystery.

©2007 Victoria Laurie (P)2009 Audible, Inc.

nice and funny

What did you love best about What's a Ghoul to Do??

Good story, a little predictable in spots but a good solid story. Also rather funny, the ghost hunting is interspersed with comments from a parrot, bungled words from Dr. De-lish, and jibes from her friend Gilley. All in all a good fairly light hearted book.

What did you like best about this story?

the comedy

What about Eileen Stevens’s performance did you like?

her voice isn't too monotonous

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

there's a new medium in town, and she's not talking about her clothing size.

I really tried to like this.

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

No, I couldn't get past the first half of the book

Would you be willing to try another book from Victoria Laurie? Why or why not?

Not sure

Would you be willing to try another one of Eileen Stevens’s performances?

Yes, I have listened to other books she's narrated and I enjoyed them.

Do you think What's a Ghoul to Do? needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Maybe, but I wouldn't listen to it

Any additional comments?

I just couldn't get into this book. I don't know why.

Just a touch predictable

Would you listen to What's a Ghoul to Do? again? Why?

I seldom listen to audio books more than once. I doubt that I would do so with this book. I might read or listen to more titles in the series.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

This book wasn't written to be moving. It was written for entertainment purposes only. And there is nothing wrong with some simple escapism.

Unfortunate Choice of Behavior

While the author was trying to make it seem funny to make fun of someone who doesn't speak perfect English, it really came across as being mean spirited. MJ sounds like someone who makes fun of people. This type of writing was also found in the Abby Cooper books. Very unfortunate that the author thinks making fun of people is funny.

Fun, Quirkey, and with just enough sarcasm to make

Who was your favorite character and why?

Gilly - he was the comic relief through the story and kept the main characters on track. A great supporting character.

Have you listened to any of Eileen Stevens’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

No. This book made me hope she continued with the series

Any additional comments?

This book was fun and enjoyable. At times laugh out loud and at other times made you yell at the main characters for not listenting to thier own advice. Definitely characters you can get interested in reading about what comes next.

Have a ghoulishly delicious ghost hunt

What’s a Ghoul to Do?
By Victoria Laurie
C 2007, released on audio 1/5/10
Audiobook published by Audible, narrated by Eileen Stevens

Victoria Laurie brings us a fascinating series in this first book featuring MJ Holliday (yes, Doc Holliday was her great, great uncle) and Gilley Gillespie. MJ is a psychic medium who can communicate with the dead; Gilley is a techno geek who helps her with all the machinery that goes with a ghost hunt, the night vision goggles, thermal cameras, walkie talkies for them to stay in touch. MJ works alone while Gilley usually stays in the van monitoring all those instruments she uses or have been strategically placed ahead of time.

The two have been friends for a long time and consider each other BFFs (best friends forever). Gilley is gay so there’s no possibility of a romantic duo here. Each lives in their own condo in Boston but share an office, where they are sitting doing mostly nothing since they haven’t exactly had loads of jobs lately, when Dr. Steven Sable walks in.

Dr. Sable’s grandfather recently passed away in what most are calling a suicide. He can’t believe his grandfather would jump from the roof of his hunting lodge in upstate Massachusetts that had been owned by the family for quite some time. The doctor needs to know because ownership of the lodge and surrounding land will change depending whether it was a suicide or not. Steven needs MJ’s help in communicating with his grandfather to determine why he fell from the roof and died.

It wasn’t until a blind date set up by the local coffee shop’s owner went completely awry that MJ softened to Dr. Sable, now known as Dr. Delicious due to his being very handsome. One of MJ’s hard and fast rules had been that she worked alone. Dr. Sable was insisting on being there when she found his grandfather so he could chat with him. MJ finally agreed when the fee went high enough.

Using all their high tech equipment and MJ’s instincts, they set off on a journey to find one ghost. However, they ended up finding several. In the process, many aspects of ghost busting are explained, such as what the various pieces of equipment did, what MJ did when she’d found a ghost, how she crossed them over when willing and also when not willing.

Without giving you any more plot to spoil this exciting story, I can tell you this mystery really did turn into a mystery, not only a ghost story. The plot took several twists and unexpected turns and brought other characters into the story, both dead and alive. The ghostbusters never expected to need Dr. Sable’s medical help, too! Steven becomes an integral part of solving the many mysteries that they discover trying to solve the first one.

I very much enjoyed the first book in this ghoulish series. It was fascinating to watch and learn how a true medium works. It was extremely funny to listen to Dr. Sable try to use up-to-date slang but not having English as his primary language for such a long time, he tends to botch sentences up. It is almost annoying after a while, but then the author cuts back a bit on the reactions of others listening to him, and the fun and charm return.
MJ and Gilley start as best friends and remain that way at the end. They squabble and disagree but always make up in the end. They know firsthand all the stressors involved in ghost busting and give each other credit for surviving them. Steven fit in nicely with his novice hunting skills, finding himself enjoying the process and grateful for the conclusion.

I am impressed by how much this story grabbed my attention. I found myself reading a lot all of a sudden. I didn’t want the book to end, really, but now I look forward to the remainder of the series. Next up is DEMONS ARE A GHOUL’S BEST FRIEND.

Got my attention in the first chapter

Would you consider the audio edition of What's a Ghoul to Do? to be better than the print version?

The performer had the perfect voice for the series. I haven't read the printed version but I must say I did enjoy this version.

Any additional comments?

The book kept my attention from the first chapter until all the way to the end.

What an interesting story

This was a very enjoyable book for me. It was mysterious and interesting with the ghost factor and it had just the right amount of humorous relief. I really enjoyed the main characters and found the character of Gilley very funny. It was just very fun to listen to.

Not as good as Sophie Katz' series

I loved her other series, this was definitely not in the same league. It was difficult to finish.

Gillies character over the top annoying

The character gillie was extremely annoying. The vocal only added to it.
That was the only thing I didn't like. But it was enough to make me not want to listen through anymore of the series.