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Ghostbusters II
Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters! The fearless ghost-chasing crew is back to save the world from the Stay-Puft marshmallow man in the sequel to the blockbuster Ghostbusters.
184 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1989
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October 6, 2018Celebrity Death Match Special: Ghostbusters versus Fowler's Modern English Usage
April 23, 2020
More emotionally mature than the first Ghostbusters (the Peter–Dana love story is appreciably deeper this time around) but narratively problematic (Vigo the Carpathian and the river of slime are unrelated magical manifestations, as if screenwriters Harold Ramis and Dan Aykroyd couldn't decide on a single, consistent source of paranormal antagonism, though author Ed Naha makes a valiant effort to provide more coherent connectivity here), this standard-issue novelization has nothing particularly new to offer that isn't in the movie itself; it's only distinguishing feature is that it's better written than Ghostbusters: The Supernatural Spectacular, which isn't saying all that much.
It's worth noting, however, that on page 167, the following passage can be viewed as a prophecy as prescient -- and retroactively terrifying -- as any Vigo himself ever issued: https://www.goodreads.com/photo/user/...
It's worth noting, however, that on page 167, the following passage can be viewed as a prophecy as prescient -- and retroactively terrifying -- as any Vigo himself ever issued: https://www.goodreads.com/photo/user/...
October 30, 2025
Review 33. Ghostbusters 2 by Ed Naha
Page Count : 184
As with the first Ghosbusters film, I've always enjoyed this one and found the book just as enjoyable.
Another short book, this book again slightly expands upon the story from the film with added dialogue and additional scenes.
I particularly love the scene where the New York Police Chief is told that the Titanic has just arrived in New York harbour and the only comment they use is "Better Late Than Never"
Like most film novelisations there are always differences between the film and the novelisation but I think that makes it more enjoyable.
Definitely a book I will reread again in the future and one that I recommend if you like the Ghostbusters films.
5*
*****
Page Count : 184
As with the first Ghosbusters film, I've always enjoyed this one and found the book just as enjoyable.
Another short book, this book again slightly expands upon the story from the film with added dialogue and additional scenes.
I particularly love the scene where the New York Police Chief is told that the Titanic has just arrived in New York harbour and the only comment they use is "Better Late Than Never"
Like most film novelisations there are always differences between the film and the novelisation but I think that makes it more enjoyable.
Definitely a book I will reread again in the future and one that I recommend if you like the Ghostbusters films.
5*
*****
April 26, 2021
I didn’t mind this novelization. There are a few added scenes and some dialogue differences. Check out the full discussion with the Paper Movies Book Club discussion. Ghostbusters & Ghostbusters II https://youtu.be/Tx8NxlnD5Eo
December 11, 2021
Loved the movie and the book
February 25, 2021
This actually straightened out a few things for me that I didn't understand from the movie. The novelization is based on the script, and not the finished movie, so all thr sub-threads for story arts were complete undress of chopped up in the editing bay. I think if this version of the movie had come out; while I seem to be in the minority that loves this movie, it probably would have faired better with regular audiences.
October 29, 2023
Esattamente come immaginate che possa essere il romanzo tratto dal sequel di un film di successo: tremendo.
Non me ne fate una colpa, l'ho letto quando ero in piena fase da culto dei Ghostbusters. E la copertina ha ancora il suo perché.
Non me ne fate una colpa, l'ho letto quando ero in piena fase da culto dei Ghostbusters. E la copertina ha ancora il suo perché.
March 22, 2024
A novelization is typically an opportunity for you to get a bit more than what was in the movie. This one, though, actually cut material from the movie instead. You can probably read it quicker than you can watch the actual film. It was alright, just not what I look for in a novelization.
September 20, 2017
Ho visto il film ieri sera e mi sono ricordata di aver letto il libro alle medie, quando ancora non sapevo dell'esistenza dello streaming.
June 25, 2020
i'm really disappointed there was never a spinoff where Louis and Slimer are in a bowling league
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 28, 2020
It was OK I guess. Breezy read, just wish there was more to it.
June 7, 2021
Not very different from the movie but the amount of deleted scenes that the movie could have make this book worth a look. A bit darker than the movie but everything is there
July 3, 2021
Better writer than the first novelisation. But a rushed ending.
August 13, 2021
Loved the book and movie, only disappointing thing was I was hoping the book was more in depth detail.
December 25, 2021
Es lo que es.
December 30, 2022
This movie novelization was great if I'm too be host. It made me feel nostalgic and I suppose that's all I was really looking for.
Thank you.
Thank you.
April 21, 2023
Read in The Ghostbusters Movie Novelization Omnibus.
This started out alright, but really went downhill fast at the end. This was based on the screenplay, and I suspect the deadline crept up on Naha faster than he anticipated, because the ending was really rushed. I like the movie Ghostbusters II though it can't hold a candle to the first one, and I recognize that it isn't all that great. Like with the first one, once you take away the actors, sets, effects, etc., the shortcomings are pretty glaring. The story is fine in the first one, but the story for this... phew. It doesn't make a great deal of sense, and a lot of it is just stupid. First off, the stuff with Slimer is downright retarded, and what the hell happened to Janine? Where did the slime under the city come from? Was it always there? Did Vigo call it forth? Or did the slime cause Vigo to become more powerful? How did the Ghostbusters get everything prepared for their Statue of Liberty gig in just a couple of hours? How did Louis know where to find the Ghostbusters when they were missing? There is so much in this that just doesn't add up. And as for the ending, all you have to do to beat the bad guy is to squirt him with some happy jizz you scooped out of the sewer?
Yeah, give me a break. Anyway, the other book was better written. This one reminded me of the novelizations I've read from Craig Shaw Gardner due to the conversational tone, and that ain't an endorsement. The dialogue was bad, the lines were bad, and the characters were messed up compared to their movie versions. Venkman is more of a buffoon, and Dana is just wrong; she's way too weak. I never realized how much the actors brought to these roles, and the guy who played Vigo brought even more than the others.
Turns out he was also allowed to be the janitor. I guess even he saw where his career was going with this ridiculous script and decided to look for another line of work. Actually, this is Wilhelm Von Homburg. His life story isn't exactly a happy one, and he spent the last several years of his life homeless, sleeping at the YMCA or in his van or couch surfing at friends' houses. I guess being a Carpathian didn't pay the bills for very long.
There is one redeeming quality in this book, though. The courtroom scene is easily the best one in the movie, and parts of it are even better in the book. A couple of Louis's extra exchanges with the judge are hilarious, and I wish they had put those in the movie as well. However, there were also a couple of parts of that scene in the movie that weren't in the book, and there could've been a better mashup.
A couple of scenes in the movie now make sense since I got some background information from the book. I always wondered why they were taking the slime out of the microwave in one scene. It turns out they keep it in the refrigerator when they're not testing it. The scene with the Ghostbusters doing some kind of light show that shatters a lot of crystal at a jewelry store never made sense to me because I couldn't figure out why they were allowed to put on a demonstration there. For that one, the crystals were being levitated by some spirit, and the Ghostbusters were using that device to restore gravity. I guess you can say it worked though they could've been better prepared with some pillows, or something.
All in all, don't bother with the book. Just watch the movie instead unless you want to see a couple of changes between the screenplay and the movie.
This started out alright, but really went downhill fast at the end. This was based on the screenplay, and I suspect the deadline crept up on Naha faster than he anticipated, because the ending was really rushed. I like the movie Ghostbusters II though it can't hold a candle to the first one, and I recognize that it isn't all that great. Like with the first one, once you take away the actors, sets, effects, etc., the shortcomings are pretty glaring. The story is fine in the first one, but the story for this... phew. It doesn't make a great deal of sense, and a lot of it is just stupid. First off, the stuff with Slimer is downright retarded, and what the hell happened to Janine? Where did the slime under the city come from? Was it always there? Did Vigo call it forth? Or did the slime cause Vigo to become more powerful? How did the Ghostbusters get everything prepared for their Statue of Liberty gig in just a couple of hours? How did Louis know where to find the Ghostbusters when they were missing? There is so much in this that just doesn't add up. And as for the ending, all you have to do to beat the bad guy is to squirt him with some happy jizz you scooped out of the sewer?
Yeah, give me a break. Anyway, the other book was better written. This one reminded me of the novelizations I've read from Craig Shaw Gardner due to the conversational tone, and that ain't an endorsement. The dialogue was bad, the lines were bad, and the characters were messed up compared to their movie versions. Venkman is more of a buffoon, and Dana is just wrong; she's way too weak. I never realized how much the actors brought to these roles, and the guy who played Vigo brought even more than the others.
Turns out he was also allowed to be the janitor. I guess even he saw where his career was going with this ridiculous script and decided to look for another line of work. Actually, this is Wilhelm Von Homburg. His life story isn't exactly a happy one, and he spent the last several years of his life homeless, sleeping at the YMCA or in his van or couch surfing at friends' houses. I guess being a Carpathian didn't pay the bills for very long.
There is one redeeming quality in this book, though. The courtroom scene is easily the best one in the movie, and parts of it are even better in the book. A couple of Louis's extra exchanges with the judge are hilarious, and I wish they had put those in the movie as well. However, there were also a couple of parts of that scene in the movie that weren't in the book, and there could've been a better mashup.
A couple of scenes in the movie now make sense since I got some background information from the book. I always wondered why they were taking the slime out of the microwave in one scene. It turns out they keep it in the refrigerator when they're not testing it. The scene with the Ghostbusters doing some kind of light show that shatters a lot of crystal at a jewelry store never made sense to me because I couldn't figure out why they were allowed to put on a demonstration there. For that one, the crystals were being levitated by some spirit, and the Ghostbusters were using that device to restore gravity. I guess you can say it worked though they could've been better prepared with some pillows, or something.
All in all, don't bother with the book. Just watch the movie instead unless you want to see a couple of changes between the screenplay and the movie.
June 24, 2022
Great book awesome movie
February 20, 2015
Why read the novelization when you can watch the film? Well, it's quicker for starters. This took less than the film's running time to read. They were often ridiculed for being incomplete or different to the film, mostly because they were rushed out to be in time for the film's release. Some of the courtroom scene, Lewis turning up and appearing to single handily get rid of the slime, and the dramatic "Where's Vigo hiding?" tension at the end are missing from this version, but there's some other bits instead.
We're treated to more of Lewis and Slimer throughout the story. In the film they get one scene during the ghost montage and then Slimer is driving the bus towards the end. In this book we get more dialoge from Lewis as he tried to catch Slimer with a fish line of chicken, and then try to trick him into appearing by loudly declaring he's had two pizzas delivered instead of one.
Janoz is also exceptionally creepier in text than in the film. We're treated to his thoughts and feelings that could only be done in film by narration. Instead of glowing white eyes, an admittedly creepy effect in the film, he has bright light with a red hue at the edges which is described as crackly and powerful.
Some other bits:
After the scene with Ray staring at the painting he tries to crash the car along with all the Ghostbusters.
More details of the ghost catching montage, including an un-filmed scene with a an angry office worker who keeps setting things on fire and water turns to slime around him.
The angry/nice slime scene with the toaster are split into to two separate scenes, and the part with the fire in the photo room is missing (my fave bit but I only noticed it was missing now).
There';s a running joke at the end about the titanic arriving, and the callers to the police station are all sectioned to the same place as the Ghostbusters.
Lewis gets them out rather than the mayor.
Well worth a read if you love the film.
We're treated to more of Lewis and Slimer throughout the story. In the film they get one scene during the ghost montage and then Slimer is driving the bus towards the end. In this book we get more dialoge from Lewis as he tried to catch Slimer with a fish line of chicken, and then try to trick him into appearing by loudly declaring he's had two pizzas delivered instead of one.
Janoz is also exceptionally creepier in text than in the film. We're treated to his thoughts and feelings that could only be done in film by narration. Instead of glowing white eyes, an admittedly creepy effect in the film, he has bright light with a red hue at the edges which is described as crackly and powerful.
Some other bits:
After the scene with Ray staring at the painting he tries to crash the car along with all the Ghostbusters.
More details of the ghost catching montage, including an un-filmed scene with a an angry office worker who keeps setting things on fire and water turns to slime around him.
The angry/nice slime scene with the toaster are split into to two separate scenes, and the part with the fire in the photo room is missing (my fave bit but I only noticed it was missing now).
There';s a running joke at the end about the titanic arriving, and the callers to the police station are all sectioned to the same place as the Ghostbusters.
Lewis gets them out rather than the mayor.
Well worth a read if you love the film.
January 24, 2016
It's a book of the movie but the author seems to rush the end. It simplifies the finale, I suppose to make it easier to write. Probably only really irritating to big fans... but then probably only big fans would be reading the book.
October 23, 2014
Generic novelisation.
March 11, 2016
A decent novelization. It including scenes I have read about that were cut from the movie.
March 21, 2014
What the hell can I say? It's Ghostbuster 2 in book form. How is that not awesome?
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews