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Ghost Town
From author Eric Colossal comes an exciting new middle-grade graphic novel about friendship, growing up, and catching ghosts
The sleepy seaside town of Crater is falling apart. The buildings are run-down, the streets are full of potholes, and the power is unreliable. However, it’s the only home Lily Cole has ever known, and despite her protests, Lily’s family will be moving away at the end of the summer.
Now Lily is determined to spend as much time as possible with her friends before she leaves, riding bikes, hanging out, and playing stickball.
When a foul ball leads the kids into an abandoned mansion on the edge of town, the gang is shocked to discover that Crater is haunted by thousands of ghosts, and they’ve stumbled upon the tools to hunt and trap them! With ghost traps fully charged and bikes at the ready, join Lily and her friends in the spookiest summer of their lives.
Funny and full of heart, Ghost Town is the perfect read for fans of Snapdragon, Beetle and the Hollowbones, and This Is Our Pact.
The sleepy seaside town of Crater is falling apart. The buildings are run-down, the streets are full of potholes, and the power is unreliable. However, it’s the only home Lily Cole has ever known, and despite her protests, Lily’s family will be moving away at the end of the summer.
Now Lily is determined to spend as much time as possible with her friends before she leaves, riding bikes, hanging out, and playing stickball.
When a foul ball leads the kids into an abandoned mansion on the edge of town, the gang is shocked to discover that Crater is haunted by thousands of ghosts, and they’ve stumbled upon the tools to hunt and trap them! With ghost traps fully charged and bikes at the ready, join Lily and her friends in the spookiest summer of their lives.
Funny and full of heart, Ghost Town is the perfect read for fans of Snapdragon, Beetle and the Hollowbones, and This Is Our Pact.
256 pages, Paperback
Published April 8, 2025
23 people are currently reading
89 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
April 29, 2025
Super fun! And more emotional than I was expecting. It's a good speculative fiction to wrap up in the emotional struggles of dealing with big change. And how sometimes fighting against that isn't the best path.
The art style was so funny and iconic.
The art style was so funny and iconic.
February 20, 2025
20/100 or 1.0 stars
Thank you to NetGalley for providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This was not what I was expecting. The kids were holding the ghost in their mouths and there are so many frames of the kids with their cheeks bluging and having the ghosts go in and out of their mouths almost constantly felt incredibly wrong on so many levels. I don't really care if it was intentional or not. It was gross. On top of this, the story really didn't have much tension for the kids to figure out what was happening, and they were all way too high energy and chaotic. I know I am not the target auidence, but I wouldn't recommend this for kids. I hate being aggressive, but this was not good.
The artwork was good, but besides that, everything else was not it.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This was not what I was expecting. The kids were holding the ghost in their mouths and there are so many frames of the kids with their cheeks bluging and having the ghosts go in and out of their mouths almost constantly felt incredibly wrong on so many levels. I don't really care if it was intentional or not. It was gross. On top of this, the story really didn't have much tension for the kids to figure out what was happening, and they were all way too high energy and chaotic. I know I am not the target auidence, but I wouldn't recommend this for kids. I hate being aggressive, but this was not good.
The artwork was good, but besides that, everything else was not it.
February 17, 2025
This is a graphic novel ghost story that will appeal to historical fiction fans and science fiction fans alike. The accidental ghost hunters become swept up in an old 19th century mystery and in the process learn about themselves and how to grow and change for the better. There are comical incidents, and the frights are innocuous until the end when it gets a bit more dark, but still shouldn't scare anyone too much.
This will be an engrossing read for graphic novel fans in middle grades, and I highly recommend it for schools and libraries.
This will be an engrossing read for graphic novel fans in middle grades, and I highly recommend it for schools and libraries.
November 3, 2024
E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus
Lily's parents both work for the electrical company in the slowly decaying town of Crater, New York. They are tired of working long hours trying to keep the power going despite ongoing "phantom drains" that they have decided to move away in order to find better jobs so they can spend more time with their daughter. Lily had a scholarship to Brightwick Academy, but this is in jeopardy after she gets a D in science. Instead of being able to spend her last summer in her beloved hometown hanging out with her friends Alex, Troy, Enid, Lyle, Kyle, and her crush, Jon, Lily has to spend her mornings at the public library, volunteering, in order to keep her place. She is so angry with her parents about the movie that she even sneaks out so she can bike around town with her friends at night. After one of their balls goes into the derelict Blackwood Manor, the kids have to go in to retrieve it and find strange things. The group figures out that the odd apparatus is a ghost catcher, powered by phantasmanite, and proceed to try to catch ghosts, which may be causing the power problems. The kids can "swallow" the ghosts, and see their former life; one of the ghosts, Mrs. Cutler, the owner of the mean dog they pass on the way to school. Lily and her friends know that ghosts often linger when they have unfinished business, and the biggest clue to the matter they have are the Blackwoods themselves. They rely on the library for finding out information about the family. The parents, Hemlock and Belladonna, and their two children, Oleander and his brother (whose name I forget; my e reader has been dying regularly, so I can't look it up right now) were instrumental in building the town, including a lighthouse, aquarium, greenhouse, and impressive clock tower. As Lily and the others make inroads in capturing the ghosts in glass bottles with the phantasmanite, the power seems to come back online. The lighthouse hasn't worked for years, but when they remove the phantasmanite, it once again shines brightly. It takes a while to figure out what has kept the town so immune to change for so many years, but once Lily and her friends figure this out, they are able to improve matters for both Crater and the ghosts, although Lily's family still moves away.
Strengths: Middle school students don't like change any more than most people, so Lily's reaction to having to Crater and go to a fancy new school is completely realistic. There's enough town history to keep things interesting, and I loved that the group went to the library and got help with the microfiche to read old newspaper articles. Even though swallowing the ghosts was a bit odd, it was helpful that the kids could see a glimpse into the ghosts' lives on earth. Parents are kept out of the way, so that the kids can bike all over town and get into the abandoned buildings in order to deal with the ghosts. There are som egood droup dynamics, and some expected drama. There aren't as many mystery or action graphic novels as there are introspective memoirs, so this was a nice change.
Weaknesses: The children's reactions are all a bit overwrought, and there are a lot of characters to keep track of. I wish there had been just Alex, Jon, and Lily; this would have allowed there to be more exploration of Lily's crush on Jon, and perhaps a little friend drama with Alex over the move.
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who liked Sedita, Seraydarian, and Hamaker's The Pathfinder's Society or TenNapel's Ghostopolis.
Lily's parents both work for the electrical company in the slowly decaying town of Crater, New York. They are tired of working long hours trying to keep the power going despite ongoing "phantom drains" that they have decided to move away in order to find better jobs so they can spend more time with their daughter. Lily had a scholarship to Brightwick Academy, but this is in jeopardy after she gets a D in science. Instead of being able to spend her last summer in her beloved hometown hanging out with her friends Alex, Troy, Enid, Lyle, Kyle, and her crush, Jon, Lily has to spend her mornings at the public library, volunteering, in order to keep her place. She is so angry with her parents about the movie that she even sneaks out so she can bike around town with her friends at night. After one of their balls goes into the derelict Blackwood Manor, the kids have to go in to retrieve it and find strange things. The group figures out that the odd apparatus is a ghost catcher, powered by phantasmanite, and proceed to try to catch ghosts, which may be causing the power problems. The kids can "swallow" the ghosts, and see their former life; one of the ghosts, Mrs. Cutler, the owner of the mean dog they pass on the way to school. Lily and her friends know that ghosts often linger when they have unfinished business, and the biggest clue to the matter they have are the Blackwoods themselves. They rely on the library for finding out information about the family. The parents, Hemlock and Belladonna, and their two children, Oleander and his brother (whose name I forget; my e reader has been dying regularly, so I can't look it up right now) were instrumental in building the town, including a lighthouse, aquarium, greenhouse, and impressive clock tower. As Lily and the others make inroads in capturing the ghosts in glass bottles with the phantasmanite, the power seems to come back online. The lighthouse hasn't worked for years, but when they remove the phantasmanite, it once again shines brightly. It takes a while to figure out what has kept the town so immune to change for so many years, but once Lily and her friends figure this out, they are able to improve matters for both Crater and the ghosts, although Lily's family still moves away.
Strengths: Middle school students don't like change any more than most people, so Lily's reaction to having to Crater and go to a fancy new school is completely realistic. There's enough town history to keep things interesting, and I loved that the group went to the library and got help with the microfiche to read old newspaper articles. Even though swallowing the ghosts was a bit odd, it was helpful that the kids could see a glimpse into the ghosts' lives on earth. Parents are kept out of the way, so that the kids can bike all over town and get into the abandoned buildings in order to deal with the ghosts. There are som egood droup dynamics, and some expected drama. There aren't as many mystery or action graphic novels as there are introspective memoirs, so this was a nice change.
Weaknesses: The children's reactions are all a bit overwrought, and there are a lot of characters to keep track of. I wish there had been just Alex, Jon, and Lily; this would have allowed there to be more exploration of Lily's crush on Jon, and perhaps a little friend drama with Alex over the move.
What I really think: This is a good choice for readers who liked Sedita, Seraydarian, and Hamaker's The Pathfinder's Society or TenNapel's Ghostopolis.
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June 17, 2025How? Besides cats, I will also get anything on the shelves with ghosts or skeletons, as that's a topic that the boy will be excited to read.
What? The small town of Crater has a problem: the power company can't keep enough power in the system AND it's all a historical site, so they can't upgrade. But even so, this is Lily's home and she doesn't want to leave, even if it means new jobs for her exhausted power-company parents and going to a fancy new science high school.
So when she discovers (a) that literal ghosts are draining the power, (b) that she can capture the ghosts, and (c) that she can relive the ghosts' memories for a moment, then she thinks she's got a way to solve both problems: if she fixes the town, she'll get to stay, and nothing will ever change!
Which is, just by coincidence, the same feeling that one of the ghosts has -- the architect of this whole thing who is trying to catch all the ghosts of his family so he never has to say goodbye. Of course, and no spoilers, though Lily leads her friends on a kids-on-bikes adventure to catch the ghosts and lay them to rest, what she really discovers is that change is OK.
Yeah, so? I... kinda love this book. The adventure is fun (and just begs for an RPG/game), the humor is fun, and there are some deep messages here for the characters, from Lily's acceptance of change to the main ghost's acceptance that what happened (when his father died because of an experiment) was an accident and that his family doesn't hate him or need him to put them back together.
What? The small town of Crater has a problem: the power company can't keep enough power in the system AND it's all a historical site, so they can't upgrade. But even so, this is Lily's home and she doesn't want to leave, even if it means new jobs for her exhausted power-company parents and going to a fancy new science high school.
So when she discovers (a) that literal ghosts are draining the power, (b) that she can capture the ghosts, and (c) that she can relive the ghosts' memories for a moment, then she thinks she's got a way to solve both problems: if she fixes the town, she'll get to stay, and nothing will ever change!
Which is, just by coincidence, the same feeling that one of the ghosts has -- the architect of this whole thing who is trying to catch all the ghosts of his family so he never has to say goodbye. Of course, and no spoilers, though Lily leads her friends on a kids-on-bikes adventure to catch the ghosts and lay them to rest, what she really discovers is that change is OK.
Yeah, so? I... kinda love this book. The adventure is fun (and just begs for an RPG/game), the humor is fun, and there are some deep messages here for the characters, from Lily's acceptance of change to the main ghost's acceptance that what happened (when his father died because of an experiment) was an accident and that his family doesn't hate him or need him to put them back together.
September 24, 2025
This is probably the most fun ghost story I've ever read! It's about a group of friends and their last summer together before Lily has to move, and how they accidentally uncover the reason for the mysterious power outages throughout town (ghosts!) AND how to solve them (catching the ghosts! ...and ). It's also, at its heart, about the fear of change, which I admit I can't really identify with so much, having been the one left behind when *others* were the ones who moved away, until I finally moved to be where my loved ones were.
(Most of them again moved away, but that's life. It's a sad fact that very young people can make friends simply based on proximity, but as we get older, priorities change, so work/school/family/money can make moving an unfortunate necessity.)
Recommended for fans of the paranormal and stories about friendship!
(Most of them again moved away, but that's life. It's a sad fact that very young people can make friends simply based on proximity, but as we get older, priorities change, so work/school/family/money can make moving an unfortunate necessity.)
Recommended for fans of the paranormal and stories about friendship!
January 3, 2026
Having just finished the Stranger Things final episode I'm feeling very friendship forward fighting supernatural creatures and this one would be for the younger fans of Stranger Things needing an entertainment boost as the main character is going to be moving away from Crater but realizes that there's a treasure trove of ghosts to uncover in their sleepy town but that has a historical twist.
I was a fan of the humor tucked inside the book from start to finish like the Blackwell family's markers or the kids themselves. And I wonder where Colossal grew up because there's a page featuring Gazebos of Schenectady County (though I don't necessarily think there are a lot of gazebos, there is certainly a Schenectady which is a neighboring city to me).
This is a quirky graphic novel and I was a fan of the changes in illustration to help a reader understand what's happening (color shifts, visuals, etc.)
I was a fan of the humor tucked inside the book from start to finish like the Blackwell family's markers or the kids themselves. And I wonder where Colossal grew up because there's a page featuring Gazebos of Schenectady County (though I don't necessarily think there are a lot of gazebos, there is certainly a Schenectady which is a neighboring city to me).
This is a quirky graphic novel and I was a fan of the changes in illustration to help a reader understand what's happening (color shifts, visuals, etc.)
July 3, 2025
3.5 stars
This was a bit different than I was expecting, but still a fun time! What's not to like about a group of kids who accidentally fall into ghost hunting for the summer. Lily, our main character, is also trying to cope with the fact that she's moving to a new school the following school year, away from all her friends. Fighting the ghosts helps her to realize that maybe change isn't as bad as it seems, and living stuck in the past can be dangerous.
The art style worked well for the story, and I liked the friend group that Lily had around her. If you're looking for a fun middle grade graphic novel adventure, definitley pick this one up!
This was a bit different than I was expecting, but still a fun time! What's not to like about a group of kids who accidentally fall into ghost hunting for the summer. Lily, our main character, is also trying to cope with the fact that she's moving to a new school the following school year, away from all her friends. Fighting the ghosts helps her to realize that maybe change isn't as bad as it seems, and living stuck in the past can be dangerous.
The art style worked well for the story, and I liked the friend group that Lily had around her. If you're looking for a fun middle grade graphic novel adventure, definitley pick this one up!
April 10, 2025
My students are always in search of scary books, but not too scary, and this fits the bill. The group of friends are smart and scrappy, and their dialogue is fun to read. The art was fun and the ghosts are illuminated with bright colors, making them stand out great. I found a few panels a bit hard to decipher, but most of them were then narrated by characters, so things cleared up pretty well. The main characters learns a lesson alongside the antagonist, and it felt organic and smart, not stilted and clunky. All in all, this was a good entry in the scary but not too scary genre.
June 2, 2025
"No one knows what's going to happen next ... But life is about having the courage to find out."
This was such a great narrative about letting go/accepting change. The humor was chaotic and fun, and the drinking ghosts' dynamic is one I hadn’t seen before. I enjoyed this from beginning to end.
A minor nitpick, I thought Lily and her friends seemed older than ten. It would have made more sense to me for them to be middle schoolers going to high school than elementary schoolers going to middle school. Either way, that’s minor and subjective on my part.
Read this!
This was such a great narrative about letting go/accepting change. The humor was chaotic and fun, and the drinking ghosts' dynamic is one I hadn’t seen before. I enjoyed this from beginning to end.
A minor nitpick, I thought Lily and her friends seemed older than ten. It would have made more sense to me for them to be middle schoolers going to high school than elementary schoolers going to middle school. Either way, that’s minor and subjective on my part.
Read this!
October 29, 2025
Crater is falling apart, and Lily's parents are always working to keep the electricity running. So they are determined to sell their house and move away. Lily is just as determined to stop that from happening. But if she can't stop it, at least she can spend as much time as possible with her friends. Then her little group starts to see ghosts everywhere. It turns out that Crater is haunted and the ghosts are causing the problems with the town. If Lily and her friends can catch the ghosts--can they fix everything? Silly and fun.
November 17, 2025
I enjoyed the creativity of the story. A bunch of kids discover a ghost trapped in a haunted house, and learn how to capture it in a bottle with the help of a magical stone. They soon discover that their town is FULL of ghosts who are trapped in the town and waiting to deal with unfinished business and then move on. The kids are able to swallow the ghost for a few minutes to learn who they are and how they need to be helped. Its pretty funny in a lot of places and I found myself laughing out loud. Happy ending! Town is saved and the ghosts happily move on to the next thing.
December 4, 2024
Lily will be moving at the end of summer but before she goes, her and her friends work together to figure out why the town is full of ghosts and what they can do to fix it. A fun read that felt a bit like ghostbusters with a younger more diverse cast. I liked the illustration too and read through it pretty quick so enjoyed the pacing.
Thank you netgalley for a free arc in exchange for an honest review
Thank you netgalley for a free arc in exchange for an honest review
May 25, 2025
This middle school graphic novel was obviously not meant for me. It had several positive aspects and would be appreciated by someone who enjoys ghosts and horror stories. That stuff isn’t for me though. It does dabble in some stuff that some would not necessarily want their kids to read: ghosts, discussions about what happens after you die, and some weird possessions when the kids swallow the ghosts.
November 4, 2025
My kids grabbed this at the library and I decided to read it. Will be returning it immediately. Lying to her parents and sneaking out, calling everything stupid, purposefully failing a class and lying about it - there are zero redeeming qualities about the MC. They’re supposed to be in 5/6th grade? They acted much older than they were supposed to be. The ghosts were weird and swallowing the ghosts was incredibly weird and seemed inappropriate. Would not recommend. To anyone.
December 31, 2025
I am not sure what to think about this title. The graphics were very cool looking. I loved the unique look of the characters as well as the colors of the graphics. The colors were bold and fun. However, the storyline fell flat and at times seemed all over the place. Some of the plot didn't even make sense which made me lose interest at times. Colossal also tried to spin a moral within the story about how changes happen in life which also fell flat.
December 17, 2024
3.5
overall the story was fine but not the best as far as ghost stories and graphic novels for young readers are concerned. I found the art at times a little bit dit dated esp when it came to the expressions of Lily's facial expressions since she is coded as Black girl. It looks almost caricature-ish.
overall the story was fine but not the best as far as ghost stories and graphic novels for young readers are concerned. I found the art at times a little bit dit dated esp when it came to the expressions of Lily's facial expressions since she is coded as Black girl. It looks almost caricature-ish.
May 31, 2025
I thought this was so fun and charming, with a nice message and a quirky art style that grew on me. Felt a little weird that they were fifth graders (they seemed a bit older) and some of the characters don’t have much unique about them, but overall it was a creative story with much to enjoy. The whole drinking ghosts out of bottles and power grid and stuff was unique!
October 31, 2024
This book seems OK. Kids might enjoy it. I shall be DNF thing as I just find it annoying. It feels like every single character is constantly anxious and no one can be calm and we haven’t even really gotten into a lot of the ghosts yet.
February 1, 2025
What a spooky fun ride! If you love graphic novels and ghostly adventures in small towns, this one’s for you. I literally could not put this book down. The art is awesome, the plot is fun and punchy and the characters are great. Highly recommend this to anyone who loves a good graphic novel.
April 12, 2025
Lily Cole and her family are about to move away from the town of Crater, the only home she's ever known. A well hit baseball lands inside of an abandoned mansion and leads Lily and her friends trapping ghosts in hopes of saving the town and possibly keeping Lily and her family from moving away.
August 17, 2025
As a fan of Colossal's other works, I was happy to see a new book out. I thoroughly enjoyed this graphic novel, a beautiful story about accepting change even when facing the unknown. Highly recommend.
April 22, 2025
Very cute story. Lots of learning and lots of love.
“Life is about finding out what happens next. So let’s find out, TOGETHER!”
“Life is about finding out what happens next. So let’s find out, TOGETHER!”
May 3, 2025
this was so cute
May 16, 2025
3.5 - I love all things ghost.
June 17, 2025
Virkelig flot, anderledes og kreativ graphic novel med et plot der er et videospil værdigt
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July 4, 2025Really good book
August 6, 2025
Solid juvie graphic novel. A little long and and a little wordy for my taste. That said, Will liked it more than I did, and he's my juvie graphic novel guru.
And the ghost art was cool.
And the ghost art was cool.
August 12, 2025
Something very strange is happening in the city of Crater. And Lily and her gang become ghost hunters to figure out what it is - and stop it before it destroys the whole town!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews