A review by ktothelau
Ghost Hunters Adventure Club and the Secret of the Grande Chateau, by Cecil H. H. Mills
3.0
I've been a fan of Dr. Cecil H.H. Mills's work since his debut novel, I Loved Infinity, released back in 2012. I'll spare the details on the reading of that 1,200+ page tome of a novel, but I still fondly recall coming across it on my 16th birthday as perhaps the greatest visit to Barnes & Noble. Dr. Mills was at my store for his book tour and I had just caught the tail end of it. The crowd was dwindling and I managed to have a short exchange with Dr. Mills on his journey as a writer and what I Loved Infinity was all about. It was then that he gave me what I once considered the best writing advice I had ever heard from any author:
"Writing isn't easy. It's hard as hell and sometimes it feels like you have to sacrifice the soul of a loved one just to have something you hope an agent will want to glance at. There are days where, as I'm writing my next novel, that I feel a cold, shadowy presence haunting me, reminding me of past sins, and it's all I can do to just keep my eyes on the blank page and force my fingers to press the keys. But remember this, kid: The page is the medium, but the truth is your ink. Find your truth, write it, and one day you'll sell millions."
At the time, I lived that advice. I found my truth, I wrote my novel, but it never sold. I didn't give up, though. I kept writing. I kept rewriting. Most importantly, I kept reading. Though Stephen King, Jim Butcher, and Katrina Leno all fueled my love of the medium and inspired how I wrote, the releases of Dr. Cecil H.H. Mills's bi-annual novels were always an event I looked forward to. I always pre-ordered and, once I received my copy, always dropped what I was doing and devoured the 1,000+ novels that explored what it meant to be human.
I never did see Dr. Mills since that day and I unfortunately missed out on his virtual book tour for this book's release. But upon reading his first foray into YA fiction, I can't help but wonder if he's become a sell-out of sorts.
Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the adventure of the mystery duo J.J. and Valentine Watts (who may or may not actually be brothers) and Trudi de la Rosa's inclusion seems to bring in a fresh spin on the "Hardy Boys" type genre. But... Well, whereas Dr. Mills's work were vast epics, this one barely clocks in at just above 200 pages. A lot of the themes that Dr. Mills explores deeply in his adult novels are barely detailed here, and I couldn't help but feel like Dr. Mills underestimates the intelligence of his audience. Yes, the mystery was clever, full of twists and turns, but I was hoping that at some point Dr. Mills was going to explore the relationship between J.J. and Valentine and how it relates to both their fathers abandoning them during their impressionable years and learning to be strong male role models for others despite knowing that nothing is permanent. And with Trudi involved, I wondered what her relationship with her father was like. Was it similar? Different? If different, how does this affect the group dynamic on a thematic level?
Hopefully we've reached the portion of the review where people have either given up because of the length or skimming over just to get to the end, so here is my actual review of the first Game Grumps novel!
In terms of craft, this is better than I expected. The plot is tight and keeps a brisk pace, but the characters fall flat and definitely fill roles instead of forging their own roles. In terms of comedy, it's not as good as you may hope. Sure, there are solid laughs to be had, but the ratio is about 1 solid joke every 7 pages. "Dr. Cecil H.H. Mills" only inserts himself into the book a total of 4 times, and though each time is the saving grace of the novel, it's nowhere near the same level nor amount other novels such as The Princess Bride have already done.
I liked it, though. It's a light read, but works more as novelty merch than a stand-alone book. Some of the humor of Game Grumps carries over, but it lacks the "anything goes" freestyle that keeps me, personally, watching the show. I always love Arin and Dan's sense of improv and "see what sticks" mentality, but, unfortunately, I didn't see it carry over here except for the few shining moments. I'd still be interested in what else they bring to the table, though, and hope they choose to challenge the form similar to Brandon Sanderson with Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians.
Now back to my fake review!
In conclusion, Dr. Mills has written a good book. It's just not a good Dr. Mills book. I know that I'm eventually going to receive comments from his rabid fanbase that I either missed the point or wasn't intellectual enough to see the bigger picture, but the problem is that I do. Dr. Mills made some shady deals, gambled a bit more than he was worth, and now he must write to a larger market to pay off his debts.
Maybe Dr. Mills's journey as an author serves more as a cautionary tale. I, as a budding writer, hope that I can resist the same temptations that lured Dr. Mills into the situation he is in now. After all, what greater hell is there than writing young adult fiction?
"Writing isn't easy. It's hard as hell and sometimes it feels like you have to sacrifice the soul of a loved one just to have something you hope an agent will want to glance at. There are days where, as I'm writing my next novel, that I feel a cold, shadowy presence haunting me, reminding me of past sins, and it's all I can do to just keep my eyes on the blank page and force my fingers to press the keys. But remember this, kid: The page is the medium, but the truth is your ink. Find your truth, write it, and one day you'll sell millions."
At the time, I lived that advice. I found my truth, I wrote my novel, but it never sold. I didn't give up, though. I kept writing. I kept rewriting. Most importantly, I kept reading. Though Stephen King, Jim Butcher, and Katrina Leno all fueled my love of the medium and inspired how I wrote, the releases of Dr. Cecil H.H. Mills's bi-annual novels were always an event I looked forward to. I always pre-ordered and, once I received my copy, always dropped what I was doing and devoured the 1,000+ novels that explored what it meant to be human.
I never did see Dr. Mills since that day and I unfortunately missed out on his virtual book tour for this book's release. But upon reading his first foray into YA fiction, I can't help but wonder if he's become a sell-out of sorts.
Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the adventure of the mystery duo J.J. and Valentine Watts (who may or may not actually be brothers) and Trudi de la Rosa's inclusion seems to bring in a fresh spin on the "Hardy Boys" type genre. But... Well, whereas Dr. Mills's work were vast epics, this one barely clocks in at just above 200 pages. A lot of the themes that Dr. Mills explores deeply in his adult novels are barely detailed here, and I couldn't help but feel like Dr. Mills underestimates the intelligence of his audience. Yes, the mystery was clever, full of twists and turns, but I was hoping that at some point Dr. Mills was going to explore the relationship between J.J. and Valentine and how it relates to both their fathers abandoning them during their impressionable years and learning to be strong male role models for others despite knowing that nothing is permanent. And with Trudi involved, I wondered what her relationship with her father was like. Was it similar? Different? If different, how does this affect the group dynamic on a thematic level?
Hopefully we've reached the portion of the review where people have either given up because of the length or skimming over just to get to the end, so here is my actual review of the first Game Grumps novel!
In terms of craft, this is better than I expected. The plot is tight and keeps a brisk pace, but the characters fall flat and definitely fill roles instead of forging their own roles. In terms of comedy, it's not as good as you may hope. Sure, there are solid laughs to be had, but the ratio is about 1 solid joke every 7 pages. "Dr. Cecil H.H. Mills" only inserts himself into the book a total of 4 times, and though each time is the saving grace of the novel, it's nowhere near the same level nor amount other novels such as The Princess Bride have already done.
I liked it, though. It's a light read, but works more as novelty merch than a stand-alone book. Some of the humor of Game Grumps carries over, but it lacks the "anything goes" freestyle that keeps me, personally, watching the show. I always love Arin and Dan's sense of improv and "see what sticks" mentality, but, unfortunately, I didn't see it carry over here except for the few shining moments. I'd still be interested in what else they bring to the table, though, and hope they choose to challenge the form similar to Brandon Sanderson with Alcatraz vs. the Evil Librarians.
Now back to my fake review!
In conclusion, Dr. Mills has written a good book. It's just not a good Dr. Mills book. I know that I'm eventually going to receive comments from his rabid fanbase that I either missed the point or wasn't intellectual enough to see the bigger picture, but the problem is that I do. Dr. Mills made some shady deals, gambled a bit more than he was worth, and now he must write to a larger market to pay off his debts.
Maybe Dr. Mills's journey as an author serves more as a cautionary tale. I, as a budding writer, hope that I can resist the same temptations that lured Dr. Mills into the situation he is in now. After all, what greater hell is there than writing young adult fiction?