That Darn Squid God

by Nick Pollotta and James Clay

Book Overview

In the year 1881, the moon suddenly begins to turn around and reveal its long-hidden darker side to the startled world. While most of Humanity finds the event fascinating, two British explorers know... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1554045193
• ISBN13: 9781554045198
• Release Date: October 2015
• Publisher: Double Dragon Publishing
• Length: 308 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Jolly Good Show - Cheeky Fun

I've never read Pollotta before, but now I think I'll be seeking out his writing. This is all the old British derring do stories rolled into one, along with a healthy dose of Lovecraft. Exciting, adventurous and hilarious are only a few adjectives I could use for this book. Excellent work. A wonderful satire and a fantastically funny story.

It was a dark and misty (and very surreal) night in London

It is a dark and misty night in London and Professor Felix Einstein has just arrived at the London Explorers Club. A few minutes later Lord Benjamin Carstairs arrives carrying a small wooden ship. Following a small mishap involving an indoor fountain and a lot of broken wood the two explorers leave the club, secretly watched by a group of mysterious cloaked men. Soon the two adventurers begin to discuss a strange phenomenon that is taking place. The moon is slowly revolving to reveal its hidden face. As a result the world is being plagued by unseasonable weather. Professor Einstein wonders if the movement of the moon could be related to the mythology of an ancient race, the Duterian Empire as an ancient Duterian artefact indicates that the turning of the moon ushers in the returning Squid God. Soon Einstein and Carstairs find themselves in the middle of a fantastic adventure. Pursued by disciples of the Squid God they fight a desperate battle to save the world before the time of the god's return. However, while the adventurers are away, who will save London from the rampaging "squiddies"? At first this story reads like a classic Victorian melodrama, rather reminiscent of a Sherlock Holmes tale. However within a page or so it develops into a unique fantasy/comedy with a style of it's very own. The main characters are larger than life and brighter than technicolour. Professor Felix Einstein reads like an ageing Indiana Jones with less philanthropic tendencies. Einstein thinks nothing of breaking into the Vatican to steal an artefact or acquiring other priceless relics via less than reputable sources. Lord Carstairs is a boys-own hero. You can see his square jaw aneetred stiff upper lip clearly between the lines of the story. The story is truly fantastic (in both senses). It is necessary to take a step out of reality and accept certain things as fact, especially when learning of the artefacts held in Professor Einstein's museum. I found the whole novel utterly compelling. It was nigh on impossible to put the book down despite being in desperate need of sleep. In fact Steve (husband) must have grown totally sick of me digging him in the ribs just to read another section from the story. As an English woman I especially enjoyed the over-the-top characterisations of the Victorian gentry, in particular the Explorers Club's Ladies Auxiliary. This group of ladies show what makes an English gentlewoman - the ability to provide cups of tea, buttered crumpets and muffins whilst taking pot-shots at the enemy with an elephant gun and debating the various uses of barbed wire (don't ask me for more details - just read the book and you will understand). All in all this is a hell of a story. Funny, compelling and an absolute pleasure to read. The finest comedy/fantasy I have read this year.

Tongue-and-cheek humor and a fresh and fast-paced narrative

Set in Victorian England in the year 1881, That Darn Squid God is an hilarious parody of the otherworldly mythos of H. P. Lovecraft, strewn with delightful trappings of mystery and magic. Two British explorers must race against time before a prehistoric squid god rises again to destroy the world, which would after all be a ghastly inconvenience. Tongue-and-cheek humor and a fresh and fast-paced narrative style set apart That Darn Squid God as a fantastically funny end-of-the-world ride.

The year is 1881...

"...and moon is slowly revolving to reveal it's darkly hidden face. Soon Prof. Einstein and Lord Carstairs find themselves pursued by disciples of the Squid God. They fight a desperate battle to save the world before the time of the demon god's return. However, while the adventurers are away, who will save London from the rampaging "squiddies"? At first this story reads like a classic Victorian melodrama, rather reminiscent of a Sherlock Holmes tale. But within a page or so, it develops into a unique fantasy/comedy with a style of it's very own. The main characters are larger than life and brighter than technicolour. Professor Felix Einstein reads like an ageing Indiana Jones with less philanthropic tendencies. Einstein thinks nothing of breaking into the Vatican to steal an artifact or acquiring other priceless relics via less than reputable sources. Lord Carstairs is a boys-own hero. You can see his square jaw and stiff upper lip clearly between the lines of the story. The story is truly fantastic (in both senses). It is necessary to take a step out of reality and accept certain things as fact, especially when learning of the artifacts held in Professor Einstein's museum. I found the whole novel utterly compelling. It was nigh on impossible to put the book down despite being in desperate need of sleep. In fact Steve (my husband) must have grown totally sick of me digging him in the ribs just to read another section from the story. As an English woman I especially enjoyed the over-the-top characterizations of the Victorian gentry, in particular the Explorers Club's Ladies Auxiliary. This group of ladies show what makes an English gentlewoman - the ability to provide cups of tea, buttered crumpets and muffins whilst taking pot-shots at the enemy with an elephant gun and debating the various uses of barbed wire (don't ask me for more details - just read the book and you will understand). All in all, this is a hell of a story."