diff --git a/debian/init-functions.d/40-systemd b/debian/init-functions.d/40-systemd
index 3260d84..1e6ca11 100644
--- a/debian/init-functions.d/40-systemd
+++ b/debian/init-functions.d/40-systemd
@@ -33,6 +33,7 @@ fi
 systemctl_redirect () {
     local s
     local rc
+    local args
     local prog=${1##*/}
     local command=$2
 
@@ -53,6 +54,11 @@ systemctl_redirect () {
 
     service="${prog%.sh}.service"
 
+    # This is a workaround for users which start services via hook scripts
+    # during early boot which can lead to deadlocks.
+    if systemctl list-jobs | grep -q -E "(network|sysinit)\.target" ; then
+        args="--no-block"
+    fi
     # Don't try to run masked services. Don't check for errors, if
     # this errors, we'll just call systemctl and possibly explode
     # there.
@@ -60,7 +66,7 @@ systemctl_redirect () {
     [ "$state" = "LoadState=masked" ] && return 0
 
     [ "$command" = status ] || log_daemon_msg "$s" "$service"
-    /bin/systemctl $command "$service"
+    /bin/systemctl $args $command "$service"
     rc=$?
     [ "$command" = status ] || log_end_msg $rc