13 DAYS OF MIDNIGHT by Leo Hunt

Luke's just inherited 6 million... And eight ghosts who want him dead.

 

When Luke Manchett's estranged father dies suddenly, he leaves his son a dark inheritance. Luke has been left in charge of his father's ghost collection: eight restless spirits. They want revenge for their long enslavement, and in the absence of the father, they're more than happy to take his son. It isn't fair, but you try and reason with the vengeful dead.

Halloween, the night when the ghosts reach the height of their power, is fast approaching. With the help of school witchlet Elza Moss, and his cowardly dog Ham, Luke has just thirteen days to uncover the closely guarded secrets of black magic, and send the unquiet spirits to their eternal rest. The alternative doesn't bear thinking about.

 

 

As soon as I received this book and read the back, I knew I would be interested in this story. I mean, it mentions necromancer and murderous ghosts and revenge! Besides, check out that cover, it's so cool. I couldn't wait to get started...

 

Luke Manchett is an average 16-year-old boy who's on the rugby team, hangs out with the right guys, and has a crush on the popular girl. Well, everything on the surface seems normal, because at home things aren't so average. His mother suffers from terrible migraines that keep her tucked into bed every other day, and his father has been MIA for years.

 

So the day he receives a letter telling him that his father--the man who's known for a variety of paranormal shows--is dead and he's inherited a large sum of money, he meets with his father's lawyer and... pretty much signs his life away.

 

Luke's focus was on the money and what it would mean for his mother and him. He wasn't expecting all the other things that come along with the inheritance from his estranged father. Like the creepy old book he can't open, some weird rings, and a bunch of ghosts! Yep. He's now got what is called a Host attached to him, and although all he wants to do is get rid of them, it soon becomes obvious that these freaky spirits want to be released from their bindings.

 

And to do that, they plan to kill Luke.

 

Now Luke has to come to terms with the fact that his father's left him with a paranormal mess. Actually, his Dad wasn't a very nice man at all. He abandoned his family on his quest for supernatural power, and then enslaved eight ghosts that now plan to get revenge by hurting Luke and the people he cares about. So he becomes determined to find a way to stop them.

 

The only person who can help him is a not-very popular girl from school. Elza Moss has the second sight and can see ghosts, plus she has some other witchy talents. But can two teenagers outsmart a bunch of old and very creepy ghosts led by an ancient dead necromancer before Halloween?

 

I had a total blast reading this book! It's packed with supernatural goodness, some very creepy situations, a main character who starts out very self-absorbed and ends up being anything but, a very cool and quirky girl who isn't scared of anything, and an adorable dog called Ham. I also loved how necromancy was portrayed in this book.

 

13 Days of Midnight is an awesome and wickedly imaginative YA urban fantasy book that now has a permanent place on my Keeper Shelf. It's a fun adventure that'll hook you in right away and keep you glued to the page until you reach the thrilling end. And then you'll want more. I definitely want to read more Luke, Elza and Ham adventures, because Mr. Berkley will be back.

 

This turned out to be such a cool book. Fun, fun, fun! Loved it.

13 Days of Midnight, July 2015, ISBN 9781408337462, Orchard Books