Mick Bogerman's How to Rid Your Swimming Pool of a Bloodthirsty Mermaid is Hypnotic!

Yesterday I talked about Slug Pie story #1, How to Navigate Zombie Cave and Defeat Pirate Pete, so now we're ready for part 2 of my Apology For Playing Hooky on My Birthday Double Pack! Same author, same series.

Sea-Monkeys.

A simple concept, really...

As long as you don't misfeed the little guys, that is.

Cover art by Kat Powell

Slug Pie story #2, How to Rid Your Swimming Pool of a Bloodthirsty Mermaid, is a YA horror book written by Mick Bogerman.

So What's it about?

After his brother nearly drowns in the ocean, Mick decides that it's time to give Finley swimming lessons. As luck would have it, he knows the perfect place to teach him: The home of wealthy P.J., a boy that will happily agree to let the brothers use his pool... as long as Mick agrees to mow his ginormous yard for him. 

Things should have went well. Sure, the work is tiring, but the pool is amazing. Unfortunately, when the boys see a note from P.J. asking them to feed his Sea-Monkeys, telling them that the food is in his father's Bentley, they grab the packet out of a silver cylinder -  

From the wrong car. In goes the "food," which turns the Sea-Monkeys' water a strange, cobalt blue. 

And that's only the beginning of the changes that occur....

As with Slug Pie story #1, this ebook is written with sections broken into "steps" rather than chapters, written in first person, and includes a list of materials the boys will want to have the next time something like this happens.

And yes, I'm still in love with that overall story structure.

It makes it feel personal.

What I forgot to mention in the first ebook's review, however, is that there's one more bit thrown into these works at the very beginning that I thoroughly enjoy: Mick Bogerman's Warning Note to Parents. It includes fun statements such as, 

"As far as romance, you will find absolutely none in this story,

Because that would be stupid."

Both Slug Pie stories have these preview notes. How'd I possibly forget about that?! Well, all of you know that I'm incredibly scatter-brained, so let's just leave it there, shall we?

Bloodythirsty Mermaid flows even more smoothly than How to Navigate Zombie Cave did. The storyline grabbed ahold of me and kept me reading, and at an even faster rate than book 1. I thought a zombie infested cave with a rising water table was cool, but a bloodthirsty mermaid with hypnotic abilities, creepy red skin, and a strange case of overwhelming modesty? Priceless.

I was in love, I tell you. Love.

This one was a... 

Treasured Tome!!!

And I was aware that this would be the case by about 30% through the book. At least, I think that was the point that I became aware of the fact. You see, the mermaid had me so enthralled that I didn't really pay attention to how far I had gotten.

I was completely under her spell. 

Sure, she had razor sharp teeth and a mouth large enough to swallow a person's head in a single bite, and sure, she devoured rotten vegetables and loads of fish and spam. She pulled a few people under water and kept them there, and yes, the thick, brackish water that her mere presence caused was rather unattractive...

But I love her just the same.

She isn't your standard mermaid. Cruel, animalistic, and definitely not beautiful, she's a far cry from the normal idea of a mermaid that we're accustomed to. And that's ok.

Awesome, even.

Now, before you get too excited, please remember that this is a YA horror novel, and it's written for readers in around 4th to 6th grade. Don't expect something written for people accustomed to rated R horror movies, because you won't get it.

Even a bloodthirsty mermaid can turn out to be scary for young readers, but not too much so, and Bogerman did an excellent job of ensuring that it fit the age group. 

Indeed, I was so impressed with this ability that I'm planning on recommending that the librarian at my daughter's elementary school look into making a copy available for students. I think it's something that she'd like to add to the collection. This story is one that I would have pointed out to kids looking for scary books back when I worked in school libraries.

It feels like the kind of book that would get a reluctant reader interested in reading more of their own accord, and that goes a long way.

How to Rid Your Swimming Pool of a Bloodthirsty Mermaid can be found on Kindle and Nook.

***And don't forget to check out the review of book 1!***

Mick Bogerman's How to Navigate Zombie Cave Teaches Us The Necessities Involved in Zombie Survival

Since I elected to take my birthday off, I promised to double up on the awesomeness I've found in my hunt for Treasured Tomes. Today is part one of that promise. Tomorrow you'll see part two.

Conveniently, this one fits right into the theme I've been working on this week: Horror for Halloween!!!

Pirate Treasure,

A zombie curse,

And an... old cheese cracker?

Welcome to a day in the life of Mick Bogerman: Big brother and wild adventurer!

How to navigate Zombie Cave and Defeat Pirate Pete is a YA horror, and story #1 of  the Slug Pie Stories, written by Mick Bogerman.

So what's it about?

After Mick gets his hands on the one and only map through Zombie Cave, the map that leads to Pirate Pete's treasure, he grabs his miner's hat and a pitchfork and heads off to make the discovery of a lifetime. 

But first he has to keep his little brother safely out of the way. And so, being the good big brother that he is, he ties young Finley to a stake on the beach to keep him from tagging along - above the high tide line. Don't worry. Good big brother, remember? - and heads out to search for the pirate gold. 

Unfortunately, once he gets there he discovers that trekking through a dark cave infested with zombies is rather difficult... especially when you forget to place the treasure map in a plastic baggie to protect it from the water, discover that Pirate Pete is stronger and smarter than the average zombie, and find the tide rising, thereby causing frigid water to rise around you. 

And then there's that zombie parrot...

Writing under the nom de plume of Mick Bogerman, the author tells these stories from the first person perspective - and it works beautifully.

Mick is a smart kid, and has enough curiosity and ingenuity to take us with him on several adventures. We see this from the very beginning, as he tells us about his very well thought out decision to tie his brother to a stake, as well as his ability to get a friend to allow him to borrow a treasure map from the museum that employs the boy's father.

The map written in the 1700s that basically disintegrated because he forgot to keep it watertight.

Oops.

Throughout this ebook, there's a wonderful blend of humor, horror, and quick thinking in the face of danger. From chapter one I knew this was a good one.

Mick felt real. 

He made decisions that were smart, but also decisions that were irrational, due to high stress. I mean... zombies! I don't know about you, but I'd probably make some really weird choices, too, if I was trying to keep from being mauled by the undead. 

And the structure of this story?

Definitely not the norm. You won't find "chapters" in this book. Instead, sections are called steps. The first chapter, for example, is 

Step 1 

Find Zombie Cave

If you ever need to survive a zombie infested treasure hunt, this would be a good ebook to have with you. And bonus! As an ebook, it has a backlight. Very useful in dark terrain.

What?! I'm just saying... it may be a good supply to have with you.

And speaking of supplies...

At the end - don't worry... I'm not giving out spoilers, here - there's a list of materials that Mick and his brother Finley came up with... you know, so that they know what to bring along the next time they have to get through Zombie Cave.

Next time? 

Well, you never know, right? I mean, they're a little older and wiser now...

This book feels like it would be a spectacular read for 4-6th grade readers. It's not long, having a page length roughly equivalent to a Goosebumps story.

Don't worry - I'm not comparing it to Goosebumps. 

Mick Bogerman's work is a unique entity that doesn't need to be compared to anything to stand out as something a young reader would enjoy... and ask for more of. I've even been flirting with the idea of buying the paperback version and holding onto it so that my daughter can read it when she's old enough.

While I didn't make this one a Treasured Tome, it was a breath away. 

And you really need to read this one, because it gives a lot of background knowledge that will be welcome when you decide you want to get the next story in the series: How to Rid your Swimming Pool of a Bloodthirty Mermaid, which you'll see the review for tomorrow... 

...and which just might get awarded Treasured Tome status... not that I'd actually be hinting or anything. Would I do that?  ::wink wink::

How to Navigate Zombie Cave and Defeat Pirate Pete can be found on Kindle and Nook.