Review: The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey

The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey

Published : Simon & Schuster, 2009

Series :  Book 1 of the Monstrumologist Series

Awards Won : Michael L. Printz Award

The Book :

” ‘These are the secrets I have kept. This is the trust I never betrayed. But he is dead now and has been for nearly ninety years, the one who gave me his trust, the one for whom I kept these secrets. The one who saved me . . . and the one who cursed me.’

So starts the diary of Will Henry, orphan and assistant to a doctor with a most unusual specialty: monster hunting. In the short time he has lived with the doctor, Will has grown accustomed to his late night callers and dangerous business. But when one visitor comes with the body of a young girl and the monster that was feeding on her, Will's world is about to change forever.

The doctor has discovered a baby Anthropophagi—a headless monster that feeds through the mouthfuls of teeth in its chest—and it signals a growing number of Anthropophagi. Now, Will and the doctor must face the horror threatening to overtake and consume our world before it is too late.” ~barnesandnoble.com

This was the March selection for Calico Reaction’s Theme Park Book Club for 2012.  I fully intend to keep up with this book club, but I’d already read (and reviewed) the January and February selections, Redemptionin Indigo and How to Live Safely in aScience Fictional Universe.  The Monstrumologist, as a young adult horror novel, is a little out of the ordinary for me. While this is marketed as a Young Adult novel, I want to point out that it is extremely graphically gory, more so than I could easily handle reading.  I would recommend parental discretion.  This novel clearly kicks off a series, but I think that it also stands alone well as a complete story.

My Thoughts :

The main part of The Monstrumologist was set within a framing story that was present only in the very beginning and very end of the novel.  The idea was that someone external to the story had come into possession of a set of journals written by the main character, Will Henry.  This reader was unclear as to whether the story set within was true or merely a fiction dreamed up by a madman.  It was an interesting idea, but it didn’t really work for me.  Since very little happened in the framing story, I felt like it didn’t add much beyond a depressing glimpse into Will Henry’s future.  To me, the text also didn’t feel convincing as a journal.  The narrative voice seemed like an adult Will Henry recounting the experiences of his childhood.  However, the journal contained, in perfect detail, exact conversations, very precise physical descriptions, and explorations of Will Henry’s state of mind from moment to moment.  As far as I know, Will Henry is not meant to have perfect memory, so it was difficult to suspend my disbelief and accept the novel as a ‘journal’.

The style of writing in the fictional journals that make up The Monstrumologist marked the narrator as an adult Will Henry, rather than Will Henry at his age in the story.  The style of the novel, in addition to its small town New England setting, seems kind of reminiscent of H.P. Lovecraft (which is interesting, since I read in an interview that Yancey hasn’t actually read any Lovecraft).  Personally, I found the style to be charming and occasionally amusing, though it did feel like a little bit like an affectation.  I think that the novel might be useful in building vocabulary for some teenagers, though I could see where some might find it a little too dry or overblown.  Here are a few examples of the writing style:

“Above me the stars seared the obsidian canopy of the sky…” (p. 35) 

“The morning light, streaming with glorious spring abundance through the open windows, flooded down the narrow stairway, yet it seemed as if the darkness at the bottom pushed back or acted as a seawall whereupon the light crashed and broke impotently against its unyielding edifice.” (p.70)

Despite its ornamented prose, The Monstrumologist was very much a monster novel.  By this, I mean that there were man-killing monsters of animal intelligence that needed to be exterminated by our courageous heroes, and this endeavor made up the majority of the plot.  As a result, the story was extremely gory.  I am not a usual reader of horror fiction, so it ended up being a little too much for me.  I wouldn’t say I found it terribly scary, but the descriptions definitely gave me a lasting queasy feeling.  In general, keep in mind that there will be many exquisitely detailed descriptions of men, women, and children being dismembered and eaten, and some detailed descriptions of people being eaten alive by parasites.  I believe I would say the gore level is higher than R.L. Stine, which is the only other young adult horror author I can think of for comparison. 

While the story was very focused on the monstrous Anthropophagi, the characters also became quite interesting through the course of the story. The main characters were Dr. Warthrop (a professor of Monstrumology) and his orphaned assistant, adolescent Will Henry.  They initially appeared to have a peculiarly cold, professional relationship, in which Will Henry was horribly neglected.   Their relationship develops quietly through the novel, and I was surprised to find it quite touching by the end.  Another interesting main character is John Kearns, an amoral monster hunter.   His vivid, devilish personality really brought his parts of the story to life. Overall, I can see that this story has a lot of room to expand, and there are interesting ways the characters’ relationships might develop over multiple novels.  Honestly, though, I can’t take the gore, so I probably won’t be continuing this series.  

My Rating : 3/5

The Monstrumologist is a particularly gory, slightly Lovecraftian monster novel, featuring Dr. Warthrop, of Monstrumology, and his often-neglected orphan assistant, young Will Henry. I didn’t really care for the novel’s framing device, or the conceit that the story was told from found journals.  However, I was charmed by the carefully crafted, deliberately over-ornamented prose.  It took me a while to warm up to most of the characters, but I was really interested in Will Henry and Dr. Warthrop by the end.   In my opinion, John Kearns, a cheerfully conscienceless monster hunter, was the most fascinating character.  In the end, though, I think the graphic goriness of the novel was just too much for me, so I probably won’t be reading the subsequent novels.  I think that The Monstrumologist would probably be most appreciated by teenage fans of creative monsters and extensive gore. 

Read-Along: The Lies of Locke Lamora, Part 4

This is the fourth post for my participation in a read-along of Scott Lynch's The Lies of Locke Lamora, hosted by Dark Cargo, @ohthatashley at SF Signal, My Awful Reviews, and the Little Red Reviewer.  What this means is...

Read-Along posts discuss a specific portion ofThe Lies of Locke Lamora and are therefore full of spoilers!  I will do a usual review post once the book is complete.

Today's section is from Chapter 9 to "Orchids and Assassins".  A lot happened during this section that completely changed the nature of the story.  I can't wait to see how Lynch pulls everything together in the last 5th of the story!

1.            In the chapter “A Curious Tale for Countess 

Amberglass” we learn of the tradition of the night 

tea in Camorr. I found that not so much fantastical 

as realistic – how about you?

I think that the tradition makes a lot of sense. The nobles seem to be constantly worried about “losing face”, and it seems that keeping all your worries bottled up inside could get incredibly stressful.  I imagine less people would be coming for night tea, if they actually knew the truth about that kindly old lady.  Thinking she has ways to contact the Midnighters is one thing, the truth is a whole other barrel of fish. 

Also, I just read Redhead’s responses, and now realize this question might be referring to the quirkiness of having tea in the middle of the night.  That apparently seemed totally normal to me, because it didn’t even occur to me that it might be considered fantastical.

2.      When Jean meets with what will become the Wicked Sisters for
the first time, the meeting is described very much like how people
feel when they find their true work or home. Agree? Disagree? Some of
both?

That’s never really happened to me, or anyone I know, so it’s hard to say.  I’ve always moved around a lot, so people who talk about “true” homes confuse me.  I feel like my true home is where my family lives.  They could move anywhere, and suddenly I’d have a new true home.  Work is more or less the same.  I love my work, most of the time.  High energy particle physics can be really exciting, but also really frustrating.  However, I don’t feel any deep visceral connection to my analysis code.  I may well just “not get it”, but I saw the encounter as the author defining Jean’s character class.

3.      Salt devils. Bug. Jean. The description is intense. Do you
find that description a help in visualizing the scene? Do you find
yourself wishing the description was occasionally – well – a little
less descriptive?

It definitely helped in visualizing the scene. There has been nothing so far that has made me wish for less detail.  There is a line of gory past which I can’t handle, but The Lies of Locke Lamora has not yet crossed it.  I felt very sorry for Locke, though.  For a while, it seemed that his only options were to drown in horse piss or be eaten by a giant spider.

4.      This section has so much action in it, it’s hard to find a
place to pause. But…but.. oh, Locke. Oh, Jean. On their return to the
House of Perelandro, their world is turned upside down. Did you see it
coming?

I can’t honestly say I saw this particular turn of events coming.  As most of us mentioned in the last set of questions, the death of Nazca made it clear that no one (except perhaps Locke) is immune from getting killed in this story.  I suspected Bug or the twins might die, but I did not expect both, and I did not expect it to happen exactly this way.  I was also surprised by Locke’s reaction.  I can’t say it wasn’t justice, but I think that was the first time Locke has deliberately killed someone. 

5.      Tavrin Callas’s service to the House of Aza Guilla is recalled
at an opportune moment, and may have something to do with saving a
life or three. Do you believe Chains knew what he set in motion? Why
or why not?

I don’t think he anticipated this exact turn of events, either.  In a general sense, I think he knew what he was setting in motion.  I believe that the whole point of learning the traditions of all twelve priesthoods was so that they could pass as a priest of any religion at need.  I think Jean and Locke are lucky that they had such an intelligent and thorough mentor.  On that note, Jean’s apprenticeship with the death goddess was incredibly creepy.  I fully support his timing in getting the hell out of that temple deathtrap.

6.      As Locke and Jean prepare for Capa Raza, Dona Vorchenza’s
remark that the Thorn of Camorr has never been violent – only greedy
and resorting to trickery – comes to mind again. Will this pattern
continue?

If one believes Locke, then it will not.  Locke is out for blood.  However, I don’t think he really has the temperament of a murderer.  I think he will probably kill the people who deserve it (like Capa Raza), but I highly doubt he will actually kill all of Capa Raza’s underlings.  I think trickery and cleverness will continue to be his main resource, but I don’t think he’ll shy away from violence as he has in the past. 

7.      Does Locke Lamora or the Thorn of Camorr enter Meraggio’s
Countinghouse that day? Is there a difference?

I think that was pure Locke Lamora.  The Thorn of Camorr plans his games    months in advance, and carefully weighs every possibility. Locke Lamora runs in with no planning and relies on charisma and quick-thinking.  Locke Lamora’s schemes also tend to end up with much more collateral damage (poor Benjavier!).

Other Notes:

On another note, I am a little disappointed with how the Grey King mystery was resolved.  His identity and goals were something of a let down. However, with the mysterious plague ship hanging around and all, I don’t think we have the full picture of his intentions yet.

Also, with all the deaths, I believe the only main characters remaining from the beginning of the book are Locke, Jean, and the Salvaras.  It’s a little hard to get worked up about major characters that are only now entering the story (Capa Raza, Dona Vorchenza, etc.).

Lastly, Locke’s Salvara game is stressing me out!  He and Jean are so desperate, and they’re going to such lengths to kick the game back into motion.  But it’s a trap!  I am wondering at this point if Locke will get caught, and then end up helping the nobles against Capa Raza.

Review: God's War by Kameron Hurley

God’s War by Kameron Hurley

Published :  Night Shade Books, 2011

Series : Book 1 of the Bel Dame Apocrypha

Awards Nominated : Nebula Award

The Book :

“Nyx had already been to hell. One prayer more or less wouldn t make any difference...

On a ravaged, contaminated world, a centuries-old holy war rages, fought by a bloody mix of mercenaries, magicians, and conscripted soldiers. Though the origins of the war are shady and complex, there's one thing everybody agrees on—There's not a chance in hell of ending it.

Nyx is a former government assassin who makes a living cutting off heads for cash. But when a dubious deal between her government and an alien gene pirate goes bad, Nyx's ugly past makes her the top pick for a covert recovery. The head they want her to bring home could end the war--but at what price?  The world is about to find out.” ~WWend.com

This is Kameron Hurley’s first novel, and I mostly picked it up due to the Nebula nomination.  I didn’t realize beforehand that God’s War is the first of a trilogy, but I think it also works well as a self-contained story.  The second novel, Infidel, is already published, and the third is in progress.

My Thoughts:

God’s War is yet another novel that tosses the reader into a complex world with little explanation.  While this made the beginning a little confusing, I felt that there was enough information distributed along the way to eventually build a fairly comprehensive understanding of the toxic, dangerous world of Umayma.  Umayma is a far-future world that was colonized by humans many years in the past.  In an interesting twist, the advanced technology of the story is entirely dependent on bugs, and on the “magicians” who have the ability to program them.  The magicians, in addition to human ‘shifters’ who can transform into animals, are not really explained in God’s War, but it is implied that there is some origination story buried in the history of Umayma. The environment, distinctive technology, and the disparate ideologies of the colonist nations combine to make the world a truly fascinating place.

Though several other colonist nations are briefly described, God’s War focuses mostly on the oldest and most powerful, Nasheen and Chenja.  These two nations follow different interpretations of an Islam-based religion, and have been embroiled in war with one another for centuries.  Though they arguably follow the same religion, the two nations are wildly different in terms of culture and societal structure.  The never-ending war effectively results in a government-sanctioned slaughter of men, who often either die at the front or are killed for deserting.  The sharp gender disparity is addressed very differently in Nasheen than it is in Chenja, and I enjoyed seeing the different takes on how societal gender roles and popular views of sexuality might shift under these stresses.

The characters of God’s War seem very simple at first, but they are developed throughout the novel.  The story focuses on the former bel-dame Nyx (a Nasheenian government assassin tasked with executing deserters), her mediocre Chenjan magician Rhys, and the rest of her bounty-hunting crew. Nyx and her team are all fairly competent, but none of them are the best at what they do.  I felt like the team’s fallibility added to the tension of the novel, since they are often out of their depth and not at all guaranteed success.  Rhys and Nyx are the viewpoint characters for most of the novel, and, as a result, they are by far the most fully developed. Other members of Nyx’s team show up briefly as viewpoint characters later in the novel, giving them some much-needed depth.  The sudden switch to minor characters’ viewpoints felt a little clumsy, but I’m not sure how else Hurley could have given insight into characters that are so necessarily stoic and paranoid.

I loved Nyx as a protagonist, but I can see where many people might not.  She’s not exactly a sympathetic character—from another point of view, she could easily be the villain.  However, Nyx suffers from no delusions of moral superiority, and she typically considers her wellbeing and that of others with a certain cold practicality. Nyx is a very dangerous woman to be around, both due to the enemies she’s made and her own tendencies towards violence.  All the same, she’s certainly not emotionless, and events often affect her more deeply than she can adequately communicate. As a reader who loves seriously flawed heroines who encounter real failure and guilt, Nyx was a perfect fit for me.

I loved the world and the characters, but the basic plot is a pretty typical bloody action story.  This is one of the most violent novels I’ve read in quite a while, full of combat, murder, dismemberment, and even torture.  Between the violence, the substance abuse, the language, and the references to sex, it’s a pretty R-rated novel.  The story begins with a very long introductory segment for Rhys and Nyx, after which it jumps ahead several years to the bounty hunt that comprises most of the novel.  The actual stakes of the hunt aren’t really clear until the end, so it’s difficult to really feel invested in the team’s success or failure to catch their prey.  More than the hunt, I was fascinated by the resulting character interactions and acknowledgements of Nyx’s mistakes, flaws and past crimes through encounters with people from her past and present.

My Rating: 4/5

After reading God’s War, I’m pretty eager to read more of Hurley’s work.  The basic plot is a pretty typical, very bloody action story—Nyx and her team are chasing a dangerous bounty, trying to stay one step ahead of other dangerous interested parties—but the world building and the characters really made the story work for me. However, Nyx is not a particularly good person or sympathetic character, and I’m sure reader reactions to her will vary wildly.  I found the strange technology and various societies of Umayma fascinating, and I enjoyed the engagement with how society shapes views of gender and sexuality.  I loved how deeply flawed and imperfectly skilled the characters were, and how real the possibility of failure was in their lives. I’m looking forward to seeing how Hurley will expand on this world in her future novels!