"Adventures are supposed to be Great Big Fun". That's the opinion of Flip, the young lad who is due to inherit the legacy of his family, in protecting his home village from all things nasty, nightmarish and badly magical, from the lighthouse just outside it. This adventure will prove that supposition wrong, however, as it will start with his best ghost friends and their humongous spider made homeless, and then one of the small party will be snatched away – before his whole life finds a – well, a flip he never saw coming.

This struck me as markedly different from the vaguest of memories I had of the first pleasurable read in this series. I didn't remember the chapters being split between two different characters – I didn't remember the characters, I just see the notes I made about the strong, if guessable, story and the solid conviction of the fantasy. This has all of that, then, and a pretty distinctive feel throughout.

Here, a host of different people have a motive to interact with the baddies of the piece, whether for good or for bad, from greed or desperation. The pace at which they try their best to fulfil their missions really makes for a page-turning drama, and the seaside setting is strongly used. What I still think wins over the reader the most though is the anything-can-happen aspect of this fantasy, where whatever does happen just makes perfect sense, unlike with so many weird-for-weird-sake stories in similar books elsewhere. There is a touch of "white man = bad" about the whole piece, but there is a strong sense of firm assuredness – there is more to come, but this never feels like a bit of writing with the sole purpose of getting the series from A to C. It's a very strong B on the way, and a strong four stars once again.

I actually didn't realize this was book 2, totally my own mistake, but it wasn't a big issue I could still read this and enjoy it without reading book 1. I found this story was fun and mysterious and I think it was the first time I've seen multiple POVs in a kids book

A super-fun follow-up to A Girl Called Corpse, but also works well as a stand-alone. Packed with mystery and whimsy, with the added interest of alternating points of view. Ends on a wonderful cliffhanger, so can't wait for book 3!

A great sequel to the first book. It teaches children the value of true friendship. I did find the alternating narrative both interesting and confusing at times though. I think that could be a problem for younger children.

When you mix a boy, two ghosts and a giant spider with Seafoam Sprites and poltergusts (ghouls), the result is an amazing adventure that teaches trust, telling the truth and doing the right thing result in happy endings.
As an adult, I really enjoyed The Lonely Lighthouse of Elston-Fright, and think that all children will as well.
Thank you to Netgalley, the Publishers and author for letting me read this book in return for my honest review