Unholy Ghosts

Downside Ghosts, Book 1

By: Stacia Kane

Narrated by: Bahni Turpin

Length: 11 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

The world is not the way it was. The dead have risen, and the living are under attack.

In a future world under attack from the undead, the powerful Church of Real Truth, in charge since the government fell, has sworn to reimburse citizens being harassed by the deceased. Consequently, there are many false claims of hauntings from those hoping to profit. Enter Chess Putnam, a fully-tattooed witch and freewheeling ghost hunter. She’s got a real talent for nailing human liars and banishing the wicked dead. But she’s keeping a dark secret from the Church: a little drug problem that’s landed her in hot water.

Chess owes a lot of money to a dangerous drug lord who wants immediate payback. All Chess has to do is dispatch a very nasty species of undead from an old airport. But the job involves black magic, human sacrifice, a nefarious demonic creature, and crossing swords with enough wicked energy to wipe out a city of souls. Toss in a dangerous attraction to the drug lord’s ruthless enforcer, and Chess begins to wonder if the rush is really worth it. Hell, yeah.

©2009 Stacey Fackler (P)2010 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

“[A] dark futuristic urban fantasy….atmospheric and well written.” ( Publishers Weekly)

“Gripping….Vivid characters and a wonderful sense of place….I was enthralled.” (Charlaine Harris, New York Times best-selling author of the Sookie Stackhouse novels)

“ Unholy Ghosts is a wonderful, weird, wild tale filled with gritty magic, punk rock, and macabre spirits. Kane’s world is dark, dangerous, and haunted, populated by hustlers, junkies and exorcists…and you’ll never want to leave. Simply the best book I’ve read this year.” (Caitlin Kittredge, author of Street Magic)

Amazing!!

I love that Chess isn't your typical heroin. In fact, she's a train wreck. Her whole life is a train wreck, and she can't see her worth, just keeps going cuz she has no other choice. How many can relate to that!? I also really like how much thought Stacia Kane put into her character. Not only is she a drug addict, and a victim to her crappy life, but she also has little quirks like germophobia. This series is just so amazing! I'm absolutely addicted! The lingo for the downsiders is always consistent and gives a much clearer picture of the demographic she's in. Altogether a well thought out story line and I commend Stacia Kane for her creativity and dedication!

gritty, captivating and original

couldn't put it down! the world you are thrown into will have you wanting to go back for more even after you've finished!!❤️

Creative!

This was a different take on a heroine that I got used to by the end. One who has so many faults but tries to do good. Got lost sometimes but always figured it out. Was fun and I’m on to the next in the series!

Certainly different

Great narration. I like to list this first as it can make or break a story.

Took some getting use too, to start with, due to the street slang and the drug addiction (which I can't relate too). But I have now become caught up in the series. Just finished the 4 book and can't wait for book 5. Best to follow series in order if possible.

I really enjoy it when readers with similar reading interests list their favourite authors and series. It really helps me find new authors too follow. Mine are Charlaine Harris, Jeaniene Frost, Jennifer Estep, Faith Hunter, Molly Harper, Ilona Andrews, Kresley Cole, Deborah Harkness, Nalini Singh, Coreene Callahan, Stacia Kane, Kelly Medding and Sherrilyn Kenyon.

Happy Reading

A drug addicted heroine that's... different.

Stepping into Stacia Kane’s Downside world was like walking into an alternate universe where the Church reigns supreme, ghosts have wiped out two thirds of the population and the residents speak a language that’s entirely their own. The magical rules are numerous and complex, the world-building is extremely heavy and the influx of new terminology is beyond confounding. To sum it up in one word I felt lost. Thank goodness for my GoodReads support group because otherwise I don’t think I would have been able to make it through this audiobook in its entirety. Then again, I felt similarly when I first started reading Karen Marie Moning’s Fever novels which now rank among my favourite Urban Fantasy series’ of all time so understandably, I’m going to stick this one out a bit longer. At least until I discover what all of the fuss over Terrible is about!

I really struggled to connect with the main heroine, Chess. Her drug addiction frustrated me to no end; although I can understand the whys behind it, I still had a difficult time comprehending her need to dull her senses, especially given how dangerous Downside really is. You’d think she’d want to have her wits about her in case a murderous ghost decides to cross her path. Chess is a debunker for the Church of Real Truth which means that she’s supposedly one of their most highly trained employees. I found this hard to believe considering she does her job high on most days. A large portion of the mistakes she makes and her delayed light bulb moments during an investigation are caused by her drug use. There were times when I just wanted to yell “if you’d stop doing lines for one freaking minute you might be able figure this sh*t out!” I liked that she’s a flawed heroine but I also would have liked to see her sober for at least one chapter.

The world-building and terminology are definitely going to take some getting used to. I can’t help but wonder if I’m being penalized once again for choosing to listen to this book over reading it because I’m thinking that the physical copy probably comes with a glossary. On the flip side, I think listening to the audiobook does have a few advantages, namely being able to better grasp the Downside lingo. I like that Kane invented her own language for this series; it helps to set it apart from the crowd. I’m not going to comment too much on Bahni Turpin’s narration in this review because I was more focused on grasping the world than on her overall performance so I’ll save my feedback on that for my second kick at the can when I check out Unholy Magic.

After feeling immense pressure from my fellow reviewers to LOVE this book I can’t help but be a little disappointed that I wasn’t immediately swept off my feet by Stacia Kane’s first Downside installment. The plot’s entertaining, the dialogue’s memorable and the world-building left me in awe but the drug addicted protagonist was difficult to swallow (pun intended). Heroine and druggie do not belong in the same sentence in my opinion. Here’s hoping that my second trip into Downside will be better than my first.

Not easily impressed, but was!

What made the experience of listening to Unholy Ghosts the most enjoyable?

A relatable character: to be more specific its not about her addictions its about her coping mechanisms that are so grungy, dark, cynical, and self-loathingly human. It seems to become more and more difficult these days to find a book in the fantasy/fiction category that doesn't fill its pages with a flimsy storyline and cheesier pornography. The story line isn't full of fluff, I am seriously happy I listened to this book.

What other book might you compare Unholy Ghosts to and why?

I found this book after being in a reader-rutt from the Fever series, it helped pull me out of it.

What about Bahni Turpin’s performance did you like?

She was great, I thought her characters were all well done.

Could be a guilty pleasure

It's always a pleasure to find a story that breaks a little new ground in its genre. Stacia Kane does so with Unholy Ghosts. Main character Chess is often annoying, addicted to drugs, and walks a fine line between competency and incompetency in her profession of Debunker. She is also a character with an appealing amount of determination to do what must be done. I hope Kane continues to build on Chess' character, and address her level of drug addiction in upcoming stories. Supporting characters were just beginning to jell by the end of Ghosts. Lex is a mystery. Terrible was wonderful and the most real after Chess . . . The structure and people of the Church need to be fleshed out. Lastly a word about the narrator: Wonderful!

Trashy

What did you like best about Unholy Ghosts? What did you like least?

I enjoyed some of the characters and the narration. What I liked least was the drug abuse and descriptive sex.

Would you recommend Unholy Ghosts to your friends? Why or why not?

No, The book makes drug abuse seem like the answer to everyone's problems and very descriptive sex. It is definitely not a book for teens.

Would you listen to another book narrated by Bahni Turpin?

Yes, I enjoyed her narration of "The Help".

Was Unholy Ghosts worth the listening time?

No, very dark. I feel like it brought down my soul.

great story and reader!

this was added to a story I was listening to. I am so very glad I gave it a chance and listened to the first story. this series was action packed with some love mixed in. I look forward to listening to the next book in the series. the reader is excellent, she makes me want to listen to some other books she reads... you don't even need to know what character is speaking . she has a great range of voices!

Bahni Turpin, my new favorite narrator!

I listen to a TON of paranormal stuff on Audible, and recently loved the Andrea Vernon series - a completely different and hilarious mood that couldn't be more different than this one - and both are narrated by Bahni Turpin. Her delivery absolutely MAKES both of these worlds pop. Other reviewers noted the patois in this one which I also love, and she nails them to sound like just normal speech so you really have to pay attention.

Other than that - I am only halfway thru the first book, and making excuses to be alone during holiday baking so I can listen. Very creative world building, fascinated by the patois, love Chess but do hope she kicks her drug habit at some point, can't wait to see what happens with Lex, Terrible, Doyle, Chess and the gang!