Wild Ghost Chase

It’s been six years since readers last visited Fox Harbour, Nova Scotia, but it’s only been one year since a mysterious ghostly presence rowed Matt to safety (at the end of Toogood’s debut, Chasing the Phantom Ship. Matt’s cousin Adam is back from Ontario, and they are again spending a summer with Matt’s friends, Emma and Danny, exploring Fox Harbour. Matt is still fixated on finding the identity of the ghostly apparition who rescued him from the ocean last summer, and he feels like the answer lies with Mrs. Hatfield whose property he washed up on. On an unplanned visit, Matt, Adam, and Emma come into possession of a presumed treasure map that was hidden behind an old family photo of Mrs. Hatfield; this map sets the summer’s adventure in motion, with Matt being sure this stolen map is the key to not only riches, but to answers to his questions from last summer.

As the summer goes on and the kids get closer to solving the mystery of the map, spooky things start happening to Emma. She’s sure she sees the ghost of Ocean Lad, Matt’s old dog, when she’s out at night, and it seems like orange lilies are following her around everywhere. Could these be signs from beyond? She doesn’t want to believe it, but she is starting to doubt that there are fully rational explanations for everything she has been experiencing. Alongside this, Danny feels like he is drifting away, constantly busy with soccer practice and not around for the legwork Emma, Matt, and Adam are putting in to try and figure out where the treasure map will lead. Some important discoveries and a few bad choices along the way lead the kids to the answers they are looking for about the map and about what happened to Matt last summer.

Wild Ghost Chase is a strong sequel to Chasing the Phantom Ship, but readers won’t need to have read the first book to feel comfortably at home here. In this entry in the series, the narrative focus shifts to Emma who maintains a strong sense to skepticism towards all things that could be interpreted as supernatural. This is a smart move which allows the book to appeal both to readers who want to believe in ghosts and those who would rather not. Themes, such as growing up, having friend groups grow apart, and taking responsibility for bad decisions, are all woven through the story without ever feeling didactic. While Chasing the Phantom Ship had some pacing issues and flat villains, Wild Ghost Chase focuses on the friendships of Emma, Matt, Adam, and Danny, thereby allowing readers to feel more connection with the story and more satisfaction with the ending. The bad guys here aren’t mysterious strangers, but shifting priorities, jealousy, and impulsive choices, villains with which readers in this age group will be much more familiar.

Wild Ghost Chase is an engaging read with just the right balance of mystery and real-life conflict to appeal to a wide variety of readers. Deborah Toogood is coming into her own with this series which I hope brings us more mysteries to solve in the future.