Review: Ghost Squad

Title: Ghost Squad
Author: Claribel A. Ortega
Genre: Middle Grade, Fantasy
Publisher: Scholastic
Source: Library
Format: Ebook
Release Date: April 7, 2020
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Coco meets Stranger Things with a hint of Ghostbusters in this action-packed supernatural fantasy.For Lucely Luna, ghosts are more than just the family business. Shortly before Halloween, Lucely and her best friend, Syd, cast a spell that accidentally awakens malicious spirits, wreaking havoc throughout St. Augustine. Together, they must join forces with Syd’s witch grandmother, Babette, and her tubby tabby, Chunk, to fight the haunting head-on and reverse the curse to save the town and Lucely’s firefly spirits before it’s too late. With the family dynamics of Coco and action-packed adventure of Ghostbusters, Claribel A. Ortega delivers both a thrillingly spooky and delightfully sweet debut novel.

Review:

Lucley Luna lives with her large family, including cousins, aunts, her grandmother, and her father. However, her father and her are the only living people in the house. The rest of her family are ghosts. One night before Halloween, Lucley and her best friend Syd cast a spell that wakes dangerous spirits in her town. Then, her ghostly relatives begin to fade. Lucley and Syd, along with Syd’s witch grandmother Babette, have to fight these ghosts to save their town.

There was a lot of Lucley’s Dominican heritage in this story. The family would sit down to big meals, even though most of them were ghosts. The food described made me so hungry! There were some words that I had to look up the translation for, such as her aunt’s “chancla” (slipper) that she threatened to throw at anyone. It made these characters memorable and I learned some new words along the way.

The spooky setting mixed with Lucley’s Dominican culture when they came across the historical witches group Las Brujas Moradas. There was a full history of the town developed in this fairly short story. Lucley and Syd were also well developed characters. They were strong girls, but they would admit when they were afraid.

This was a fun, spooky adventure story. I wish this book was around when I was a kid. It’s a great middle grade story, perfect for Halloween!

What to read next:

Have you read Ghost Squad? What did you think of it?