Monday, March 31, 2025

Review: The Potusgeists by Will Worsley


 Genre: Historical Fantasy/Satire

Description:

“The president is seeing ghosts!

Patty Pitypander is in way over her head. Somehow, she won the election—but the Oval Office is not what she expected. Neither are its grumpy ghosts, the Potusgeists, who view her as unqualified to be president.

When she refuses to heed their advice, dead presidents and first ladies spook her from the West Wing to the Blue Room. Blood drips down the walls, phantoms emerge out of nowhere, and William Howard Taft appears in her bathtub—naked!

The ghosts are not the only ones eager to foil her ambitious plans. Traitors lurk among the White House staff, dying to give her back a good stab—if Mrs. Lincoln doesn’t do it first.

Caught in a power struggle between the living and the dead, Patty must prove herself to both, or she’ll lose the presidency. Can she save herself in time?”

Author:

“Will Worsley began writing fiction full-time in 2016, after careers in publishing and investment management. As an editor at Time-Life Books, he wrote and edited articles on popular non-fiction topics ranging from history to home repair. As a money manager, he oversaw portfolios for large institutions and got the idea for his first satirical novel, Investing in Vain, named a top 10 business book of 2017 by Wealth Management magazine. He is a graduate of the University of Virginia, where he earned master’s degrees in English and business. Visit his website at willworsley.com”

Appraisal:

A different (at least from what I normally read), amusing, entertaining, and sometimes frustrating read. The frustrating part is that Patty Pitypander is, if not the most incompetent president ever (regardless of who you might think is next worst) then she’s got to be close. It’s not that she’s not capable. More that her priorities are messed up. But luckily the White House is full of spirits (okay, we’ll call them ghosts) of many presidents and first ladies who came before her. They’re there to help, whether she likes it or not. Will Patty get it together? Will she be able to deal with things, other than ghosts, who complicate things even more? It makes for a fun read that will keep you guessing.

Buy now from:            Amazon US        Amazon UK

Format/Typo Issues:

Review is based on an advance reviewer copy, so I can’t gauge the final product in this area.

Rating: **** Four Stars

Reviewed by: BigAl

Approximate word count: 75-80,000 words

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