Monster Hunter Vendetta

MONSTER HUNTER VENDETTA is over 600 pages long, but the intimidation factor promptly is dispersed once you get caught up in the book (which, for me, happened a few paragraphs in). Larry Correia is the writer of choice, if you hang your hat on urban horror fantasy stories. Think Nick Pollotta's BUREAU 13 series or Rich Shelley's THE VARAYAN MEMOIR trilogy. Think American Rifleman magazine. Yeah, there's a strong whiff of that, too. It may even be my favorite conceit in this series. More often than not, the nightmarish monsters don't get stymied by cute magical knick knacks as much as friggin' perforated by overwhelming firepower. The 2nd Amendment pops its collar.Monster Hunter International - founded in 1895 in the heart of Alabama and endorsed by President Teddy Roosevelt himself - is the world's premiere private firm when it comes to bagging and collecting bounty on murderous supernatural beasties and ghoulies. MHI works its mojo in secret, or at least the public at large is kept in the dark regarding this nasty otherworldly underbelly. It hasn't even been a year yet since accountant Owen Zastava Pitt (or "Z") slew a werewolf and so was recruited into Monster Hunter International. But life is good; Z's found his calling, putting the hurt on the creepy crawlies that come out at night and raking in the big money for it. Although, okay, he's now also doing MHI's bookkeeping.The story's frenzied pace makes coffee nervous. There's no let up from jump. It opens with Z and his team hunkering down in Mexico, laying a trap for a pack of chupacabras. From there, it's a short skip and a hop to a zombie infestation and a brief stint served at a Mexican prison, at which point the main plot thread is introduced. Correia does a good job in reintegrating plot points from the first book (MONSTER HUNTER INTERNATIONAL). We learn that there's a traitor within MHI who for decades had been pulling strings, shaping circumstances just so, in preparation for the coming of one of the world-crushing, full-on malevolent Old Ones lurking just a dimension away (because when you try to come up with the biggest Big Bad, you inevitably dig up H.P. Lovecraft and his Cthulhu). And, of course, our hero accountant/expert marksman plays a crucial part in the traitor's schemes.Z's past heroics have earned him the enmity of an Old One, and this is impressive because it isn't often an Old One deigns to notice one lowly human. Z becomes the target of a sinister death cult dedicated to ushering in the era of the Old One and the cult is headed up by a powerful necromancer. And because things have escalated to an extinction-level importance, Z finds himself being bodyguarded by the federal government's best monster-hunting agents, and this of course means the return of the utterly unlikable Special Agent Franks (although, Franks becomes really intriguing as the book goes on). For Z's own protection, he gets confined to MHI headquarters and reassigned to helping train the recruits. But what are the odds that our guy would opt to just stay safe at home base, cooling his heels? Especially when the bad guys, to get to him, go after those he cares about? Time to reload.Along the way, a revelation or three concerning Z's family surfaces.Correia's world runs the gamut of familiar supernatural creatures, but some of these are given a twist. Mr. Trash Bags, however, just may be an original. The writer occasionally injects a dash of frivolity, some tongue-in-cheek, roll-your-eyes stuff. It doesn't get more ridiculous than a passage in which Z brawls fiercely with ten gangsta lawn gnomes, except that all parties involved seem to take the fight so damn seriously. There's even a troll here that preys on the world wide web (thus making him... yep, an Internet troll). And Z still slings that mighty sarcasm around. I like the levity. The light touch keeps things from wandering into dreary, somber Robert Jordanesque territory.The book has heart; it's what grounds the fantastical story. And it's mostly because the central character comes across as a believable guy doing his best under very weird, very scary circumstances. The action is big on scale and non-stop and very cinematic. If you go with this book and its predecessor as signposts, then the humor will often stray towards the snarky and the action will always be couched in the deafening dissonance of heavy artillery. I mention that there's also a love story set on several levels, and hopefully that won't scare away all the hard core, got-no-time-for-romancin'-I-got-things-to-shoot gun enthusiasts. The generic artwork on the book cover doesn't matter. The over 600 pages of length don't matter. You may even wish that this story went on for longer than 600 pages. Awesomeness is a warm, spent firearm and a monster perished at your feet, riddled with bullets; the Cuddle Bunny, protected. (What does that mean? Read the book, yo.)

If you had told me at the beginning of last year that one of the writers I would discover in 2014 wrote urban fantasy, telling stories of a heavyset man who blows away monsters with high-tech weaponry, I would have scoffed. Yeah, monster-hunting is a lot of fun and has entertained audiences at least since Gilgamesh and his pal Enkidu fought Humbaba in the Cedar Forest, but you're supposed to fight legendary beasts with your hands, enchanted weapons and other tools from an ancient or medieval armory, not with refurbished firearms.Well, thanks to Glenn Reynolds, I discovered Larry Correia. And thanks to Sarah Hoyt, I got to meet the guy. Last year, I read his first Monster Hunter book, Monster Hunter International in paperback. This evening, I finished this book, the second in the series, on kindle. And yea, it's all about a private organization, Monster Hunter International (MHI) that fights the menace of monsters with firearms.So much for Beowulf and Heracles wrestling beasts with their bare hands. Or Perseus slicing off the head of a demoness whose looks really kill with the help of a female deity and skill with a sharp sword.This book is even better than the first in the series. Or, maybe I'm just saying because I just finished it. The story is fresh in my mind. It was a delight to read. And it's got a fun little twist at the end. (Just remember Mr. Trash Bags.)Since I read my kindle at the gym, this book helped me burn a few extra calories.Not only does Correia have some great action-packed monster-killing scenes, he's got some really great quips too. They're half the fun of the book. So, if you're reading this in public, be prepared to laugh out loud (quite literally) and to have your neighbors on the cardio machines look up at the television monitors and wonder what Anderson Cooper said that was so funny.There are very few breaks in the action of this book. From fighting chupacabras in the opening of book to fending off a zombie horde once those beasts are dispatched, Correia's hero Owen Zastava Pitt leaps from one monster battle to another, with little time to probe the life lessons he learns as he blasts the evil things to bits. Perhaps the most entertaining of the battles was when he prevented Bia and Cratos from kidnapping his brother at a rock concert -- and then had to face those oversized critters not just backstage, but also on the highway.At the same time, Pitt had to submit (quite reluctantly) to federal protection, given that the crazed necromancer heading the Church of the Temporary Mortal Condition, a bizarre cult with numerous human acolytes (not to mention allied undead beasts) wishes to sacrifice Pitt to an Old One, a creature from another dimension whose plots our hero had foiled in Monster Hunter International.On the way to finding -- and facing -- this necromancer, they seek assistance from cantankerous gnomes in rooting out a spy -- and try to gain some intelligence from a rubbery troll. And they encounter a few werewolves (not all evil), a zombie elephant beast and even a shoggoth.Our hero even attempts to make alliance with a powerful vampire. This one may have been "evil incarnate," Pitt quips, "but the enemy of my enemy is my friend." One thing he will learn is that you should "never trust the undead."The book is in short a lot of fun, an ideal read if you want to add some excitement to your relaxation or a few steps to your cardio workout.And when you read this book, make sure to pay close attention to Gretchen's wedding blessing.

One thing I love about the Monster Hunter series is just how easy they are to read. They are very fast paced and full of dark humour which makes them perfect for relaxing with, as you don't need to spend any time remembering plot elements or decoding the meaning of certain sentences.The monsters themselves are done brilliantly in both books, including many details from different myths - something I found particularly satisfying as it strays away from many typical Hollywood monster tropes. This book definitely has much more of a Lovecraftian feel to it, incorporating some of his monsters and some associated beings, but this just makes things all the more interesting.This book reveals much about the characters we are introduced to in the first, which is definitely a welcome addition - you begin to gain a sense of understanding with these characters as you see them grow and develop in the space between and within the novels.My one gripe is that, for me, this book doesn't quite reach the heights of the first - it might just be a little too fast paced for my liking. Whereas the first slowly built up to a dramatic climax, the main character is already an established force going on a sort of manhunt in this title. Whereas this would normally be expected in a series, the climax this time was over far too quickly and I found myself a little dissatisfied, compared to the 250-page monstrosity of suicide mission in the first where the villains provided an extreme challenge to finally defeat, which was definitely one of the most intense passages I have read in a while.All in all, a solid output - Welcome to Monster Hunter International.

3.5 stars or an Amazon 4 star.Had this in my to-read for a while after I read the first one. Interesting take and I guess I enjoyed this book a little more than the last one because now I was used to the characters.The book was also a little bit more "believable"... insofar as a MHI book is believable.Fun characters, and I particularly liked the exploration of Agent Franks.If you're on a train journey this is a great book.Gavin

The empathetic nature of even the meanest of characters unveiled throughout the book in a way that doesn't for a second suspend ones belief in them as killing machines, to name but one of the great devices used by the author gives anyone reading a yearning for more involvement in each of their stories. Alongside a great tale, brilliantly done. The one criticism being a couple too many false endings for my liking.

Very good story but not as great as the first I really enjoyed this but it went into a bit too much depth and had lost some of the magic of the first book I will continue to read this series as I think it's brilliant.

Am now on book 3 of this series and loving them. Stories are great and well written. The characters are developing really well the further into the series I get. Really enjoying the series and looking forward to more