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Santa vs. Krampus #1
Santa vs. Krampus
What if wizards were real but we knew them as mall Santas?
Theywield a system of magic that draws on the power of swear words to battle the forces of the evil Krampus; words like "*&%$!" and "#$%^!"
Daniel is a college kid who needs a job. He finds work at the mall Santa kiosk but almost loses his life on his first day when Krampus's minionsattack. He learns magic is real, Santas are wizards, and swear wordshold great power.
There's an ongoing battle against evil for the fate of the world. Can Daniel take up the fight? Can he learn to domagic too? Will the Santas survive the onslaught of the forces ofKrampus? Find out in Santa vs. Krampus!
Theywield a system of magic that draws on the power of swear words to battle the forces of the evil Krampus; words like "*&%$!" and "#$%^!"
Daniel is a college kid who needs a job. He finds work at the mall Santa kiosk but almost loses his life on his first day when Krampus's minionsattack. He learns magic is real, Santas are wizards, and swear wordshold great power.
There's an ongoing battle against evil for the fate of the world. Can Daniel take up the fight? Can he learn to domagic too? Will the Santas survive the onslaught of the forces ofKrampus? Find out in Santa vs. Krampus!
- GenresFantasy
186 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 27, 2017
27 people are currently reading
63 people want to read
About the author
Jim Hodgson
23 books17 followersJim Hodgson started writing in the mid 90s, after high school. When his adoptive mother passed in 2006, he turned to his writing as a means of coping with her loss. From there it became an invaluable part of his life.
He’s the founder and editor of The Atlanta Banana, a satirical newspaper. He’s worked as a standup comic and as a sketch writer for Sketchworks. His work has been published in Georgia Music Magazine, Creative Loafing, The Art of Manliness, Dirge Magazine, Singletracks.com, tripleblaze.com, nerdfitness.com, Georgia.org and others.
He’s the author of Dangerous Dan, a humorous science fiction novel, How To Mount Aconcagua, a mostly serious guide to climbing the tallest mountain outside the Himalayas, and Hearts Racing, a romance novel published by Soul Mate Publishing.
He’s the founder and editor of The Atlanta Banana, a satirical newspaper. He’s worked as a standup comic and as a sketch writer for Sketchworks. His work has been published in Georgia Music Magazine, Creative Loafing, The Art of Manliness, Dirge Magazine, Singletracks.com, tripleblaze.com, nerdfitness.com, Georgia.org and others.
He’s the author of Dangerous Dan, a humorous science fiction novel, How To Mount Aconcagua, a mostly serious guide to climbing the tallest mountain outside the Himalayas, and Hearts Racing, a romance novel published by Soul Mate Publishing.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
December 20, 2018
I am going to die in my green tights and green elf costume.
Daniel's embarrassing gig as a Santa's helper down at the mall is interrupted by an attack of "horrible dog things." Turns out, they were sent by Krampus, who is, of course, up to no good. It's down to Santa, and his elite Santa Squad to put a stop to the goat-demon's shenanigans.
This one has some fun moments, but the book truly suffers from not enough Krampus . The Big K only pops up near the very end of the book, and it's really only a cameo appearance. And, to make matters worse - the big showdown is pretty much a let down. To make up for that, here are some scenes that didn't happen in this book, but, DAMN - it would have been awesome if they had:
Daniel's embarrassing gig as a Santa's helper down at the mall is interrupted by an attack of "horrible dog things." Turns out, they were sent by Krampus, who is, of course, up to no good. It's down to Santa, and his elite Santa Squad to put a stop to the goat-demon's shenanigans.
This one has some fun moments, but the book truly suffers from not enough Krampus . The Big K only pops up near the very end of the book, and it's really only a cameo appearance. And, to make matters worse - the big showdown is pretty much a let down. To make up for that, here are some scenes that didn't happen in this book, but, DAMN - it would have been awesome if they had:
October 10, 2023
Santa vs. Krampus by Jim Hodgson is a fun, quick-paced, light, Christmas read. It takes a Mall Santa and places him in an entire mythos that involves him as a magical wizard commando, leader of a unit of wizard helpers, that fight Krampus (another wizard, this one evil) and his demon-dog minions.
The characters are one-dimensional, cardboard cutouts. The one character that is called flat and emotionless is the one interesting character. There were no real character arcs to speak of, and really the villain is only present at the end. The ending is anti-climactic, but there were some funny moments throughout.
Hodgson should have either made this a hard-core, deadly-serious, scary read or full-bore, rip-roaring silly. Since it is a middle of the road story, I will follow suit with a middle of the road rating. If you asked me whether I liked it; yes, I did, but I would have committed to the horror, gore festivities.
The characters are one-dimensional, cardboard cutouts. The one character that is called flat and emotionless is the one interesting character. There were no real character arcs to speak of, and really the villain is only present at the end. The ending is anti-climactic, but there were some funny moments throughout.
Hodgson should have either made this a hard-core, deadly-serious, scary read or full-bore, rip-roaring silly. Since it is a middle of the road story, I will follow suit with a middle of the road rating. If you asked me whether I liked it; yes, I did, but I would have committed to the horror, gore festivities.
December 24, 2017
The idea behind the storyline was good, but very poorly executed. If it weren’t for the swearing peppered throughout, I would place this at an ages 9-12 reading level. But even then, I’ve read much better books that ARE placed at that reading level.
December 28, 2017
An enjoyable read, not what I expected at all. This was filled with humor, very inappropriate, more like an "adult" version of what I envisioned this to be--a children's tale of Santa fighting against Krampus. Complete with characters with major issues, explosions, drugs, and much more this was a fun adventure.
July 28, 2018
If you want a light, random, fun read, this book could be right for you. How random? Very. There's a guy named Daniel, little to no direction in life and takes up a job as an elf in a mall working for a Santa's Workshop. What he doesn't realize is that not only is Santa real, but he fights against Krampus, which aren't the same thing. Btw, did I mention there's mummies, demon dogs, and geists. Oh and a giant gets punched in the nuts, but it works out in the end.
If a book about a Santa who swears to activate magical powers while trying to save the world sounds like fun, then A: you're right, and B: this book might be good for you.
If I had to give an accurate rating though, I'd say 3.5-3.75 stars and here's a breakdown of why:
Characters: fun, random, memorable. Although Randolph and Daniel are fun on their own, to me the highlight of the book has to be Justus and his "range" of emotions.
Concept: Santa exists, or more so, Santa-s, plural. Krampus also exists. They don't get along. Things get real random, real fast. Don't want to go into too much detail but let's say that Santa Claus is not a person, but a title :)
Dialogue: when it hits home, it's very funny and very fun. The score above would be mainly because there's a couple of typos that sometimes did make me stumble while reading, but comparable to quite a few traditional books I've read as well and wouldn't dwell on them.
Randomness: Here's the thing, I met Jim in person at Jordan Con and it was a delight. He's quick witted, random, genuine, and very funny. His book is fun, random, and funny though sometimes I felt like he kept it dialed down before dialing it up. Might be perception, but I met the guy and I would like to see what his writing would be like not holding back one bit. Luckily I have the sequel to this book and will probably dig into it before the year is done :D
All in all, a very fun, random, refreshing book. Nothing too deep or serious and sometimes you need something that makes you chuckle at the randomness.
If a book about a Santa who swears to activate magical powers while trying to save the world sounds like fun, then A: you're right, and B: this book might be good for you.
If I had to give an accurate rating though, I'd say 3.5-3.75 stars and here's a breakdown of why:
Characters: fun, random, memorable. Although Randolph and Daniel are fun on their own, to me the highlight of the book has to be Justus and his "range" of emotions.
Concept: Santa exists, or more so, Santa-s, plural. Krampus also exists. They don't get along. Things get real random, real fast. Don't want to go into too much detail but let's say that Santa Claus is not a person, but a title :)
Dialogue: when it hits home, it's very funny and very fun. The score above would be mainly because there's a couple of typos that sometimes did make me stumble while reading, but comparable to quite a few traditional books I've read as well and wouldn't dwell on them.
Randomness: Here's the thing, I met Jim in person at Jordan Con and it was a delight. He's quick witted, random, genuine, and very funny. His book is fun, random, and funny though sometimes I felt like he kept it dialed down before dialing it up. Might be perception, but I met the guy and I would like to see what his writing would be like not holding back one bit. Luckily I have the sequel to this book and will probably dig into it before the year is done :D
All in all, a very fun, random, refreshing book. Nothing too deep or serious and sometimes you need something that makes you chuckle at the randomness.
July 22, 2018
Loved it! New respect for mall Santas!!
December 23, 2017
Santa vs. Krampus
by Jim Hodgson
A light fun Christmas read. In this edition the Mall Santa is the real thing -- well one of them. Seen through the eyes of Daniel, a young wizard who didn't know he was a wizard, the novel chronicles the struggle between two Christmas characters: Santa Claus and Krampus. If the Santa faction wins, Christmas goes on as usual. If the Krampus faction wins, it doesn't.
Told with a lot of humor and irreverence, the struggle between the good and evil Christmas characters packs in lots of action, wizardry, danger, and fun into one wrapped-in-language Christmas package. Good characterizations, good plotting and flow, good editing and proofreading (I only found one error), and, of course, important to me -- no cliff hanger ending!
So if you're looking for a fun seasonal read, look at this one!
by Jim Hodgson
A light fun Christmas read. In this edition the Mall Santa is the real thing -- well one of them. Seen through the eyes of Daniel, a young wizard who didn't know he was a wizard, the novel chronicles the struggle between two Christmas characters: Santa Claus and Krampus. If the Santa faction wins, Christmas goes on as usual. If the Krampus faction wins, it doesn't.
Told with a lot of humor and irreverence, the struggle between the good and evil Christmas characters packs in lots of action, wizardry, danger, and fun into one wrapped-in-language Christmas package. Good characterizations, good plotting and flow, good editing and proofreading (I only found one error), and, of course, important to me -- no cliff hanger ending!
So if you're looking for a fun seasonal read, look at this one!
December 20, 2017
I loved this book! I love stories about Santa! This was such a great idea for Santa to be a wizard and trying to protect humans. Daniel finding out he has special powers was a great add to the story. This will be a great series. I just have to locate the second book.
March 4, 2018
Loved it
Humor, magic, and cussing. I loved it. Very imaginative and well written. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author.
Humor, magic, and cussing. I loved it. Very imaginative and well written. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author.
November 4, 2023
Funny & exciting.
If you enjoy humor, action, and a the underdog stepping up to overwhelming odds. This is a great book to add to your collection.
If you enjoy humor, action, and a the underdog stepping up to overwhelming odds. This is a great book to add to your collection.
December 7, 2022
This was a great laugh. Some crude language, infantile humour, elements of magic and urban fantasy, and a light, fast paced fun story from start to finish.
Take a Christmas temp with low self esteem, dress him as an elf and get him to try to help out in a crappy seasonal job. Throw in some monsters that resemble the anti hero Venom, Santa's evil other half and a host of other strange characters that fight pitched battles and swear to activate spells and you have a rough idea what to expect!
This is the first book by this author that I have read but I will definitely read more. One for Fans of Urban fantasy that doesn't take itself too seriously, fart jokes and good old juvenile fun.
Take a Christmas temp with low self esteem, dress him as an elf and get him to try to help out in a crappy seasonal job. Throw in some monsters that resemble the anti hero Venom, Santa's evil other half and a host of other strange characters that fight pitched battles and swear to activate spells and you have a rough idea what to expect!
This is the first book by this author that I have read but I will definitely read more. One for Fans of Urban fantasy that doesn't take itself too seriously, fart jokes and good old juvenile fun.
December 27, 2019
Fun read earned this an extra star.
December 5, 2023
Silly fun, with whimsical obscenities thrown in—plus AWEsome narration
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My Full Review →
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews