The Ferryman Institute by Colin Gigl on September 27th, 2016
Pages: 432
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In this stunning, fantastical debut novel from a bold new voice in the bestselling traditions of Christopher Moore and Jasper Fforde, a ferryman for the dead finds his existence unraveling after making either the best decision or the biggest mistake of his immortal life.
Ferryman Charlie Dawson saves dead people—somebody has to convince them to move on to the afterlife, after all. Having never failed a single assignment, he's acquired a reputation for success that’s as legendary as it is unwanted. It turns out that serving as a Ferryman is causing Charlie to slowly lose his mind.
Deemed too valuable by the Ferryman Institute to be let go and too stubborn to just give up in his own right, Charlie’s pretty much abandoned all hope of escaping his grim existence. Or he had, anyway, until he saved Alice Spiegel. To be fair, Charlie never planned on stopping Alice from taking her own life—that sort of thing is strictly forbidden by the Institute—but he never planned on the President secretly giving him the choice to, either. Charlie’s not quite sure what to make of it, but Alice is alive, and it’s the first time he’s felt right in more than two hundred years.
When word of the incident reaches Inspector Javrouche, the Ferryman Institute's resident internal affairs liaison, Charlie finds he's in a world of trouble. But Charlie’s not about to lose the only living, breathing person he’s ever saved without a fight. He’s ready to protect her from Javrouche and save Alice from herself, and he’s willing to put the entire continued existence of mankind at risk to do it.
Written in the same vein as bestselling modern classics such as The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde and A Dirty Job by Christopher Moore, The Ferryman Institute is a thrilling supernatural adventure packed with wit and humor.
Lisa’s Review: I received a copy of this book for review from the publisher via Netgalley.
Totally loved this book. The concept, the characters, the action and the emotions…… Loved it all!
Ferrymen assist people’s spirits to go to the other side so their spirits are not trapped and aimlessly wandering the world. The life of a ferryman though is tough; seeing all the death wears down a person. Charlie has been a ferryman for 250 years. It’s taken a toll on him and he’s pretty much burnt out. One day he is given a choice, a choice that he’s never had before. Save the girl or be a ferryman. Charlie makes his choice and his entire life changes.
I really loved Charlie’s character. His sense of humor, sarcasm and bluntness is awesome. Charlie totally made me laugh out loud. Although Charlie hides his feelings you could sense how things had taken a toll on him. I probably would have made the same choice in his situation. 250 years is a long time to be living and to be around so much death. I was surprised he still had a good sense of humor.
This book is well paced and kept my attention. I totally loved the ending. It was exactly what I wanted for Charlie.
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