A. Lee Martinez: Monster (2009, Orbit)
English language
Published Jan. 5, 2009 by Orbit.
Meet Monster. Meet Judy. Two humans who don't like each other much, but together must fight dragons, fire-breathing felines, trolls, Inuit walrus dogs, and a crazy cat lady - for the future of the universe.Monster runs a pest control agency. He's overworked and has domestic troubles - like having the girlfriend from hell.Judy works the night shift at the local Food Plus Mart. Not the most glamorous life, but Judy is happy. No one bothers her and if she has to spell things out for the night-manager every now and again, so be it.But when Judy finds a Yeti in the freezer aisle eating all the Rocky Road, her life collides with Monster's in a rather alarming fashion. Because Monster doesn't catch raccoons; he catches the things that go bump in the night. Things like ogres, trolls, and dragons.Oh, and his girlfriend from Hell? She actually is from Hell.
Amusing, quick and easy read, although I enjoyed A Lee Martinez' other books better. The fact his books differ that much pleads for the writer. I'm fairly sure I'll pick up another of his creations in the future.
Will make you think twice about your dead beat relatives. :)
Love the cover: 'Cryptobiological Containment and Rescue Services. We Capture Yetis! Call us for all your pest control needs.' [return]This is pure entertainment. You whisk along from one monster to the next, your laconic but fairly competent monster wrangler and his origami paper sidekick, Chester, trading wisecracks. I read it pretty quickly, and always wanted to know what would happen next (his girlfriend is a demon? The cutting board contains all the knowledge in the universe?). [return]I can't say it's a great book. The central characters' emotional depth is a few millimeters deep. They are the lowest affect group I can imagine, and that's seeing them while they're fighting for survival. You gotta love an origami character, though.
