Caleb: Return to Noodle

Mar 4

Caleb: Return to Noodle

By Jeff Menapace

The Sexton’s musings (spoilers ahead):

This is the third instalment of the Bad Games (highly recommend reading these as events from them are referenced and they are highly entertaining) offshoot following the young son, now all grown up, Caleb. The two proceeding books include: Caleb (2021) and Caleb: Atonement (2023). I highly recommend that you partake in these previous tomes before you sink your teeth into this one. Please feel free to discuss the previous two (and the Bad Games series) as they will not have their own plot here at the Boneyard. Some people have Batman, some people have Wonder Woman and some people have Ironman, I have Caleb Lambert! He is an amazing character! Even though many of the things that he does involve actions of extreme horrific violence it’s whom he is doing it to that counts! And quite frankly his compassion for animals give him a special place in this cold dead heart! This instalment is really only part one of a longer story. It ends in an extremely uncomfortable place that will indeed piss you off. Yes because now we have to wait for the second part of the story but also because you don’t get the satisfaction of having the antagonists put in their place…which for me, in the case of these stories, I prefer them to be 6 feet under. However there is one thing that Victoria Wheeler (the main antagonist) and myself agree on…her son was a useless waste of DNA. She is as well but at least one waste of space has been dealt with. Know that you will see reviews for this story where it states that there is a lack of character development for everyone but Caleb. This can be easily rectified by reading the other instalments. You are introduced to Sheriff Chip Parsons as well as Mia and Sampson in Caleb. All of them are very quick, entertaining reads. Honestly with this one I am wondering if Menapace was advised by his publisher to make the split. While I can understand that…anticipation can be a frustrating and brilliant publicity move that is a gamble in how it is going to be received. Regardless Menapace is a great writer who creates charters that you love to love and characters that you love to hate. There is a veritable feast here fellow book Ghouls! Enjoy!