I received an advanced digital copy of this book from the author, publisher and Netgalley.com. Thanks to all for the opportunity to read and review. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

The Secret Life of Sam Holloway is a quirky and fun read. The story drags at times, but you will find yourself cheering for Sam who feels called on to help his fellow man.

4 out of 5 stars. Entertaining read.

Oh Sam Holloway where do I start? I love quirky characters and books about quirky characters. I think too often we try to fit everyone in to the perfect box which many of us do not fit. I wanted to love this book and I did enjoy it but it felt so long. At times I just wanted the author to speed up the pace. There was so much about the different comic books and characters and Phantasm's exploits that I had to force myself to read. But on a lighter note, I did really enjoy Sam and Sarah's story.

3.5 stars for The Secret Life of Sam Holloway..

Note: Sorry for the delay in the review. I had unexpected complications from an eye surgery.

Sam is a lonely character, with friends that are as nerdy as he is. Sam lives alone with many secrets, and a few obsessions, when he meets Sarah. Sarah has just moved to town , know nobody, but becomes close to Sam. The quirky characters were interesting, and the story unique, but it wasn’t one of my favorites. I liked the concept of goodness in some people, meant to help others.

The Secret Life of Sam Holloway is a cute story of a super nice guy, with super talents who finds love in the end.
Sam Holloway is one of those kids who was picked on as a child. When his mother gave him a used copy of the first Harry Potter book, and his father bought him his first Batman comic, life as he knew it changed. Knowing that Bruce Wayne was a man without any super hero powers, but a man who had an amazing costume with incredible strength and talent, he was hooked. For Sam, having interests with an alternate reality had allowed him to emotionally escape and feel less alone.
Years later, adult Sam divides his time between his Monday to Friday day job and his evening job as the superhero, Phantasm. As Sam, his life is quiet and organized, and dating is not a regular occurrence. As Phantasm, he spends three evenings/week looking for someone or something who appears to be in danger and in need of saving.
Enter Sarah, the new girl in town who quickly attaches herself to Sam who is all nerves and helplessly tongue-tied. He soon finds that his life appears a lot more complicated, but a lot less lonely.

I downloaded to review to decide whether to purchase for our collection - which I did! Though not my personal taste in reading, I am sure it will find its readers. Thanks for the opportunity to preview this one.

As the world grows gradually more cynical, there remains an unwavering communal hope that one individual is enough to carry humanity through its darkest moments. In popular culture, we know these people as superheroes, and over the past decade this wish fulfillment has permeated our movies, television, and literature. Rhys Thomas’ novel ‘The Secret Life of Sam Holloway’ takes a stab at reframing this search for hope through the lens of a grieving, comic-book obsessed young man, and though it takes its exploration to some moving places, its ensemble of weak characters holds it back from fully embracing the subversiveness that it aims for.

Following the unexpected demise of his entire family several years ago, our titular character Sam decides to turn his anguish into a tragic superhero backstory by becoming the Phantasm – a mysterious figure who lurks through the night, looking for opportunities to perform small acts of kindness for strangers. Taking on the role of the Phantasm is a therapeutic release from the stresses of his personal life, and yet its roots are in his own desire to become the person that others find hope in.

For the most part, two things largely define Sam: his love for comic books, and his depressive state that detaches him from the rest of the world. The former is a quirk that may only garner superficial empathy from likeminded superhero lovers, as his efforts to do good seem to be more closely linked to his escapist fantasies than any real desire to change the world. By process of elimination, the rest of Sam’s general likeability is thus hinged on his lack of self-esteem. This supposition that the reader will automatically give him love simply because he does not give any to himself is poorly misjudged. It lets Sam get away with an extraordinary number of things that are frustrating, if not downright selfish, and yet it brushes over these actions under the assumption we will never think less of him for it. Though his poor mental state allows us to develop sympathy for him, the writing does not make any effort beyond that to show us why he is worth emotionally investing in.

All the other people in Sam’s life forgive him a ridiculous number of times regardless of the trouble he causes, and even when Sam does eventually start to feel remorse over his actions it takes the form of gratuitous self-pity. It seems that, like Sam’s friends and colleagues, we are expected to continually get behind him, be let down by his lack of thoughtfulness, and then immediately move past his mistake. Even if these characters have unlimited patience, as a reader we are given little reason to continue amending our broken belief in him. At a certain point it’s easier to just disconnect from Sam altogether.

As it turns out, Sam’s friends and colleagues turn out to be far more interesting characters than we expect, though this isn’t immediately obvious. For a large portion of the novel, Sam’s love interest, Sarah, is painted in the broadest strokes possible as the girl-next-door archetype. In the early stages of their relationship she perseveres through several red flags that indicate Sam is not emotionally stable, and her placidity seems to be an attempt to present her as the perfect girlfriend. In fact, for much of the story most of the side characters, such as Blotchy and Mr Okamatsu, are only defined by their basic relationship to Sam, and have little depth outside of their most obvious character traits.

As ‘The Secret Life of Sam Holloway’ progresses though, Thomas starts to shine a light on the deeper motivations of these people. Sarah is revealed to be at a turning point in her life, and when her past bubbles to the surface we begin to see her as a much more complex character than we initially suspected. It is a shame that these developments do not come much earlier, because in the end almost every side character becomes far more compelling than Sam himself.

Rhys Thomas’ understanding of the superhero genre as an escapist fantasy is clearly grounded in its cultural history, though in ‘The Secret Life of Sam Holloway’ he struggles to base this in the reality of modern day England with fully developed characters. Using Sam’s depression as a vessel through which we can examine the need for hope in a world overloaded with misery is the most interesting thing this novel does, as it sketches out the psychological undercurrent that has recently launched the Marvel and DC franchises into the mainstream. Unfortunately it never quite manages to fully make that connection, as it ultimately lets the idealistic tendencies of its source inspiration impede on its attempts to subvert its genre conventions.