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Gloomwood #2
Get Ted Dead
Teddington Rex is living his best life, star of the daily chat show and darling of the social elite. There's just one problem, his life is the only one there is... everyone else here is dead.
Augustan Blunt has been fired and humiliated in front of the whole city, but a mysterious stranger has a job for him. All Blunt has to do is find someone living in the afterlife. It's an impossible task, but he's got nothing better to do, and it isn't as if anyone else is going to employ him.
The Grim Reaper isn't feeling himself. He isn't feeling anyone else either, but he's never been accused of being 'handsy'. Something is wrong in the city of Gloomwood.
The dead are coming to life, toys are causing problems, and an old friend has turned up in town.
Whatever happens everyone seems to have the same goal.
Get Ted Dead.
Augustan Blunt has been fired and humiliated in front of the whole city, but a mysterious stranger has a job for him. All Blunt has to do is find someone living in the afterlife. It's an impossible task, but he's got nothing better to do, and it isn't as if anyone else is going to employ him.
The Grim Reaper isn't feeling himself. He isn't feeling anyone else either, but he's never been accused of being 'handsy'. Something is wrong in the city of Gloomwood.
The dead are coming to life, toys are causing problems, and an old friend has turned up in town.
Whatever happens everyone seems to have the same goal.
Get Ted Dead.
- GenresFantasy
350 pages, ebook
Published November 30, 2020
27 people are currently reading
44 people want to read
About the author
Ross Young
10 books63 followersRoss Young was born in Newcastle Upon Tyne in a hospital that has since been knocked down. He spent his childhood in a variety of international locales and uses this fact to affect an air of the windswept and interesting, badly. He enjoys diving and travelling and has lived and worked in various interesting places.
Dead Heads is his debut novel and forms part of a series of books set in the city of Gloomwood. He does not write from experience as, despite his appearance and demeanor, he is not dead.
Dead Heads is his debut novel and forms part of a series of books set in the city of Gloomwood. He does not write from experience as, despite his appearance and demeanor, he is not dead.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
February 2, 2021
When I die, I want to go to Gloomwood!
Seems easy enough to get into, as well.
We are finally told what the requirements are in this delightfully unique follow up to the excellent original!
No spoilers. New characters like Twist and Morgarth. Fall in step with familiar characters like Petal and Leighton. There really wasn’t enough Sarah VonFaber... hopefully that will be rectified in the third book!
Its a. Noir/mystery/dark humor mash up that leaves the reader constantly chuckling. I’m going to have a grin on my face for days thinking back on the jokes and puns, and the dryly related reality of bureaucracy.
Also T-Rex arms are never not funny!
For fans of Beetlejuice, The Good Place, Neil Gaiman and the like.
Bravo Mr. Young!
Seems easy enough to get into, as well.
We are finally told what the requirements are in this delightfully unique follow up to the excellent original!
No spoilers. New characters like Twist and Morgarth. Fall in step with familiar characters like Petal and Leighton. There really wasn’t enough Sarah VonFaber... hopefully that will be rectified in the third book!
Its a. Noir/mystery/dark humor mash up that leaves the reader constantly chuckling. I’m going to have a grin on my face for days thinking back on the jokes and puns, and the dryly related reality of bureaucracy.
Also T-Rex arms are never not funny!
For fans of Beetlejuice, The Good Place, Neil Gaiman and the like.
Bravo Mr. Young!
April 25, 2021
As Witty as the First Book
After enjoying the first book in the Gloomwood series, I quickly purchased and devoured this just as witty sequel.
I take my hat off to the author who manages to weave some brilliant twists into the tale without causing confusion among the various characters, each of whom are incredibly individual in their own quirky right.
Written with humour as dry as the Grim Reaper's humerus bone, Get Ted Dead has left me looking forward to more from Blunt, Grim, Beezy and their entourage of weird folk.
After enjoying the first book in the Gloomwood series, I quickly purchased and devoured this just as witty sequel.
I take my hat off to the author who manages to weave some brilliant twists into the tale without causing confusion among the various characters, each of whom are incredibly individual in their own quirky right.
Written with humour as dry as the Grim Reaper's humerus bone, Get Ted Dead has left me looking forward to more from Blunt, Grim, Beezy and their entourage of weird folk.
December 3, 2020
The Heir of Pratchett strikes again! I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. If dry British humor were a person, it’d be Ross Young.
GET TED DEAD is the second book in the remarkable Gloomwood series, and it’s even better than the first (and I obsessed over DEAD HEADS). This sequel is a dark, wry, surrealist satire saturated with social commentary and corporate mockery—part detective noir and part paranormal fantasy. It’s exceedingly clever and dangerously witty with multiple POVs that illustrate this urban afterlife. Young is too smart for his own good—and certainly for his characters’ own goods.
We return to Gloomwood, and the homecoming feels so freakin’ awesome. Augustan Blunt has a new case, but there’s animosity against him, and he’s as endearingly curmudgeonly as ever. See, Teddington Rex is a famous chat show star, but he’s also the one living soul in this city of the dead. When his “condition” is discovered, all hell breaks loose (quite literally).
Young includes a whole host of new characters—all excellent additions to the cast (Morgarth is my favorite). There’s also more of Grim (the Grim Reaper), which I LOVE. The dynamic between him and Beezy (Beelzebub, the Devil) is exquisite—akin to sibling rivalry with higher stakes and disastrous ramifications.
The story is hilarious and fastidiously realized. Quick darts of humor propel the most intricate portrayal of death that I’ve ever read. Think MONTY PYTHON × GOOD OMENS × OFFICE SPACE in terms of genre and style. I have never laughed so hard while reading before—nothing is sacred and everything’s fair game. Also, the ending is EXHILARATING! No spoilers, but it is every definition of epic. Suffice to say, it’s brilliant.
Viva la resurrection!
GET TED DEAD is the second book in the remarkable Gloomwood series, and it’s even better than the first (and I obsessed over DEAD HEADS). This sequel is a dark, wry, surrealist satire saturated with social commentary and corporate mockery—part detective noir and part paranormal fantasy. It’s exceedingly clever and dangerously witty with multiple POVs that illustrate this urban afterlife. Young is too smart for his own good—and certainly for his characters’ own goods.
We return to Gloomwood, and the homecoming feels so freakin’ awesome. Augustan Blunt has a new case, but there’s animosity against him, and he’s as endearingly curmudgeonly as ever. See, Teddington Rex is a famous chat show star, but he’s also the one living soul in this city of the dead. When his “condition” is discovered, all hell breaks loose (quite literally).
Young includes a whole host of new characters—all excellent additions to the cast (Morgarth is my favorite). There’s also more of Grim (the Grim Reaper), which I LOVE. The dynamic between him and Beezy (Beelzebub, the Devil) is exquisite—akin to sibling rivalry with higher stakes and disastrous ramifications.
The story is hilarious and fastidiously realized. Quick darts of humor propel the most intricate portrayal of death that I’ve ever read. Think MONTY PYTHON × GOOD OMENS × OFFICE SPACE in terms of genre and style. I have never laughed so hard while reading before—nothing is sacred and everything’s fair game. Also, the ending is EXHILARATING! No spoilers, but it is every definition of epic. Suffice to say, it’s brilliant.
Viva la resurrection!
June 12, 2021
A rare case of the sequel being better
If you enjoyed Dead Heads you’ll love the sequel Get Ted Dead. Detective Blunt returns to deal with an even thornier problem along with all your favorite characters from the original. Add in the devil himself and a collection of demons and hilarity ensues.
If you enjoyed Dead Heads you’ll love the sequel Get Ted Dead. Detective Blunt returns to deal with an even thornier problem along with all your favorite characters from the original. Add in the devil himself and a collection of demons and hilarity ensues.
January 23, 2021
Another great book by this author
If you read the first Gloomwood book amd you enjoyed it you'll like this one as well. All of the zany characters return in an adventure even more wild than the first.
I highly recommend this book to people who enjoy dark humor.
If you read the first Gloomwood book amd you enjoyed it you'll like this one as well. All of the zany characters return in an adventure even more wild than the first.
I highly recommend this book to people who enjoy dark humor.
January 29, 2021
He's not supposed to be there!
Ted is in Gloomwood but he's not dead. Ross young writes books that will make you laugh while you try to figure out the mystery. With Detective Blunt on the job helping Death what could go wrong or do I mean right?
Ted is in Gloomwood but he's not dead. Ross young writes books that will make you laugh while you try to figure out the mystery. With Detective Blunt on the job helping Death what could go wrong or do I mean right?
December 27, 2023
Funnier than the first. Laughed lots.
March 23, 2022
A fun and often insanely conceived romp through the gray land of Gloomwood that is hurt by poor execution.
"Get Ted Dead" by Ross Young is definitely a better story than its predecessor, that goes without saying. Well, maybe it does need to be said which I, um, just did. It reads - if I'm allowed to put this into writing without being banned from all known realms - in a way like Discworld fan-fiction with a little bit of Red Dwarfian humo(u)r thrown in for good measure (just ask the Seventh Day Advent Hoppists, they'll tell you!). Unfortunately, it is a decidedly flawed book (I'll get to that in a little bit) despite, again, having a much more interesting and border-line insaneo-slash-bizarro plot!
The book starts off just a few scant weeks (months? years? who can tell in Gloomwood?) after Book 1 ended and we eventually even visit with most if not all of our previous acquaintances. Whereas the story perhaps does not start as quickly as before, it does eventually find its sea legs in terms of the strengths of these stories, which includes more really weird and unique world-building, mayhem and even murder most mysterious. There's even a couple of fairly decent jokes along the way (passing the Buck, oh ha ha!).
But poor Augustan Blunt does not have a good start in this one, oh no. He is definitely not living his best death (oh ha ha and one more ha, too, now I'm doing it!), losing his job as Chief Inspector at the OD, then having been labelled by the "media" as the worst person in all of Gloomwood. That definition being underlined to even declare Blunt to be less likeable than scoundrels who, quote, "chopped off people’s body parts when they were drunk and then sold them back to the same people when they sobered up." Harsh. Still, I am happy to report that my previous befuddlement about many things in Gloomwood was solved by one word: magic. Yeppers. No, really, that's fine, carry on (though I still want to note what's up with the hot dogs, even if it may scar me for life!).
As you may be able to tell by now - and again as with the first book - the strength of this tale here lies with the motley crew of characters and how they interact with each other and the unworld around them. And yes, I still believe that the WEAKEST of them all just happens to be our unloved and by this point self-pitying main protagonist (though the "main" label could be argued in this case). Still, his on-going ineptitude (he's truly not ept at anything) could be argued to be a benefit for how things turn out by the end. However, to moisten (ah, love hearing those screams!) your appetites for this chapter, kindly not that we meet among others:
• Morgath the destroyer (in either of her incarnations, meaning skippy leather BDSM outfit or, um, not);
• Helga the gender fluid coffee-serving cephalopod (not to be confused with Dr.Kovacs, the cephalopod that makes an appearance later for - obviously - medical reasons);
• Ted the teddy bear (full name Teddington Rex), who "even by the city of the dead’s standards… was odd" (with apologies to Universal Pictures that released the movie "Ted" almost a decade before);
• Artful Mooch, the masked (maybe) pest control man that provides Blunt with a maggot-controlled, err, pest finder (and a character I hope we see more of in coming tomes);
• Plus naturally, Beelzebub, Lord of Hell, licensed teacher and hater of all children. No, I kid you not, this version of the Devil, demon that he is, is a true bastard! Well, naturally so at least but still…
All of this is good fun and adds to the general humo(u)r of the book, which I found to be much better imagined for lack of a better word than its predecessor. Heck, when I read about Bitter, Hell’s own social media construct, and all the doom-scrolling and other problems it caused, I was tempted to literally roll on the floor laughing ... or as you hep users write it: ROFL. This in no small part because (a) now THAT was funny and (b) some of these acronyms should be examined a little more closely by those of us still technically 'living' on this side of the veil. Along these lines, I also found it was a big bonus that a large part of the yuck-it-up bits in this book took their cue from the Grim Reaper - he who was "far more interested in snow globes, bad poetry, and though it was a closely guarded secret, karaoke" - who played a much more significant role in this edition and thankfully so.
But you'll see for yourself. There were some absolutely whack-a-doodle bits to this one and I would definitely recommend reading it without taking it too seriously… if ANY of it seriously at all (well, duh!). No, you won't find a majority of the questions you may still have at the end answered, but as it all seems to be going on with all the aplomb and bombasticness of a hastily prepared NETFLIX film, well, no one should mind at all (it would work, I swear!). My honest assessment at this stage? I am glad I read it and will continue on to Book 3 despite… well, ok, here goes:
Unfortunately, this is not a well-executed book. The editing is at times suspect and more often than not distracting. It could have obviously used a better editor and/or beta review as the too many glaring mistakes - including punctuation, missing/extra words and tense disagreements - just stood out like a sore and detached thumb in a bowl of things that you might eat that look like detached thumbs (hm, that might explain the hot dogs?). This is primarily the reason I can't rate this book any higher than the last one and feel compelled to round the number of stars down rather than up. It's a shame really because of the two, this chapter is the one that had the most potential.
Let's hope Chapter 3 rescues the day because these stories deserve it! Onward and Gloomwards oh ye of little face (sic)!
"Get Ted Dead" by Ross Young is definitely a better story than its predecessor, that goes without saying. Well, maybe it does need to be said which I, um, just did. It reads - if I'm allowed to put this into writing without being banned from all known realms - in a way like Discworld fan-fiction with a little bit of Red Dwarfian humo(u)r thrown in for good measure (just ask the Seventh Day Advent Hoppists, they'll tell you!). Unfortunately, it is a decidedly flawed book (I'll get to that in a little bit) despite, again, having a much more interesting and border-line insaneo-slash-bizarro plot!
The book starts off just a few scant weeks (months? years? who can tell in Gloomwood?) after Book 1 ended and we eventually even visit with most if not all of our previous acquaintances. Whereas the story perhaps does not start as quickly as before, it does eventually find its sea legs in terms of the strengths of these stories, which includes more really weird and unique world-building, mayhem and even murder most mysterious. There's even a couple of fairly decent jokes along the way (passing the Buck, oh ha ha!).
But poor Augustan Blunt does not have a good start in this one, oh no. He is definitely not living his best death (oh ha ha and one more ha, too, now I'm doing it!), losing his job as Chief Inspector at the OD, then having been labelled by the "media" as the worst person in all of Gloomwood. That definition being underlined to even declare Blunt to be less likeable than scoundrels who, quote, "chopped off people’s body parts when they were drunk and then sold them back to the same people when they sobered up." Harsh. Still, I am happy to report that my previous befuddlement about many things in Gloomwood was solved by one word: magic. Yeppers. No, really, that's fine, carry on (though I still want to note what's up with the hot dogs, even if it may scar me for life!).
As you may be able to tell by now - and again as with the first book - the strength of this tale here lies with the motley crew of characters and how they interact with each other and the unworld around them. And yes, I still believe that the WEAKEST of them all just happens to be our unloved and by this point self-pitying main protagonist (though the "main" label could be argued in this case). Still, his on-going ineptitude (he's truly not ept at anything) could be argued to be a benefit for how things turn out by the end. However, to moisten (ah, love hearing those screams!) your appetites for this chapter, kindly not that we meet among others:
• Morgath the destroyer (in either of her incarnations, meaning skippy leather BDSM outfit or, um, not);
• Helga the gender fluid coffee-serving cephalopod (not to be confused with Dr.Kovacs, the cephalopod that makes an appearance later for - obviously - medical reasons);
• Ted the teddy bear (full name Teddington Rex), who "even by the city of the dead’s standards… was odd" (with apologies to Universal Pictures that released the movie "Ted" almost a decade before);
• Artful Mooch, the masked (maybe) pest control man that provides Blunt with a maggot-controlled, err, pest finder (and a character I hope we see more of in coming tomes);
• Plus naturally, Beelzebub, Lord of Hell, licensed teacher and hater of all children. No, I kid you not, this version of the Devil, demon that he is, is a true bastard! Well, naturally so at least but still…
All of this is good fun and adds to the general humo(u)r of the book, which I found to be much better imagined for lack of a better word than its predecessor. Heck, when I read about Bitter, Hell’s own social media construct, and all the doom-scrolling and other problems it caused, I was tempted to literally roll on the floor laughing ... or as you hep users write it: ROFL. This in no small part because (a) now THAT was funny and (b) some of these acronyms should be examined a little more closely by those of us still technically 'living' on this side of the veil. Along these lines, I also found it was a big bonus that a large part of the yuck-it-up bits in this book took their cue from the Grim Reaper - he who was "far more interested in snow globes, bad poetry, and though it was a closely guarded secret, karaoke" - who played a much more significant role in this edition and thankfully so.
But you'll see for yourself. There were some absolutely whack-a-doodle bits to this one and I would definitely recommend reading it without taking it too seriously… if ANY of it seriously at all (well, duh!). No, you won't find a majority of the questions you may still have at the end answered, but as it all seems to be going on with all the aplomb and bombasticness of a hastily prepared NETFLIX film, well, no one should mind at all (it would work, I swear!). My honest assessment at this stage? I am glad I read it and will continue on to Book 3 despite… well, ok, here goes:
Unfortunately, this is not a well-executed book. The editing is at times suspect and more often than not distracting. It could have obviously used a better editor and/or beta review as the too many glaring mistakes - including punctuation, missing/extra words and tense disagreements - just stood out like a sore and detached thumb in a bowl of things that you might eat that look like detached thumbs (hm, that might explain the hot dogs?). This is primarily the reason I can't rate this book any higher than the last one and feel compelled to round the number of stars down rather than up. It's a shame really because of the two, this chapter is the one that had the most potential.
Let's hope Chapter 3 rescues the day because these stories deserve it! Onward and Gloomwards oh ye of little face (sic)!
February 20, 2022
Get Ted Dead is a post-mortal urban fantasy written by independent author Ross Young. This is the second book in the Gloomwood series and starts off a few months after Dead Heads ends.
All the old characters are back in play. Time has not stood still in Gloomwood, attracting the attention of outside forces. For those of you familiar with the Beezy and Grim comics, you may guess who's the lead instigator.
Like its predecessor, this novel covers multiple points of view. This story is more complex and nuanced, offering a fresh perspective on a dead world. Readers are rewarded with hints of other afterlives, more about the reapers, and what's the deal with that teddy bear.
Get Ted Dead is a quick read that maintains the comedic standard of its predecessor. Fans of the original story will get a kick of seeing the world they knew get turned upside down.
Thirsty for more? Dead Festive is out now!
All the old characters are back in play. Time has not stood still in Gloomwood, attracting the attention of outside forces. For those of you familiar with the Beezy and Grim comics, you may guess who's the lead instigator.
Like its predecessor, this novel covers multiple points of view. This story is more complex and nuanced, offering a fresh perspective on a dead world. Readers are rewarded with hints of other afterlives, more about the reapers, and what's the deal with that teddy bear.
Get Ted Dead is a quick read that maintains the comedic standard of its predecessor. Fans of the original story will get a kick of seeing the world they knew get turned upside down.
Thirsty for more? Dead Festive is out now!
June 21, 2021
Like the first book in the Gloomwood series (Dead Heads), Get Ted Dead is fun, dark, and delightfully snarky. In this book, a teddy bear with a popular talk show in the afterlife is hiding a secret. A disgraced Detective Blunt is hired to find the only living soul in Gloomwood. A demon torturer from hell named Morgrath dons a T-Rex costume and travels to a supermarket in Gloomwood with her own mission. As you can tell from these examples, this book is a riot with humor much like you’d find in Good Omens. Highly recommended for those who appreciate the zany.
February 9, 2022
Funny afterlife adventures
Another fun book set in Gloomwood. It's full of quirky characters and even quirkier situations that make Ross Young's fictional city in the afterlife an interesting and amusing place.
Another fun book set in Gloomwood. It's full of quirky characters and even quirkier situations that make Ross Young's fictional city in the afterlife an interesting and amusing place.
September 5, 2023
Uniquely entertaining
Unique world, interesting characters, entertaining and it mostly works.
Not perfect, but often amusing and it kept me engrossed. I will certainly read the next i the series.
Unique world, interesting characters, entertaining and it mostly works.
Not perfect, but often amusing and it kept me engrossed. I will certainly read the next i the series.
December 16, 2023
still needs editing
So many grammatical errors, wrong and missing words, etc. Ross needs an editor. But, his stories are wonderful. I won’t read anymore though because I can’t spend money on unedited writing. Please, Ross, get an editor!
So many grammatical errors, wrong and missing words, etc. Ross needs an editor. But, his stories are wonderful. I won’t read anymore though because I can’t spend money on unedited writing. Please, Ross, get an editor!
February 9, 2022
I enjoyed this book too, in between knitting and reading other books. Preffered the first one in the series .
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews