Sunday, May 3, 2009

Monster by A. Lee Martinez

I've been following A. Lee Martinez since I ran across a book by him titled: The Automatic Detective. It was about a robot detective and was a fun read. I've read a few others of his and have not been disappointed by any of them. So I was happy to have a chance to read this one.

Monster specializes in Cryptobiological Containment and Rescue Services. It seems magic is forgotten by most and is only accessible by a few, but if you end up with a Yeti in your refrigeration unit at the grocery store, you need to have someone to call for help. Monster gets paid by what he retrieves, so he's Johnny-on-the-spot for you.

However, his usual monster retrieval turns into a bit more of a challenge when the number of monsters starts increasing. Rather than one Yeti, there are four. Of course, part of that is Judy's fault. She has no idea that she has magic, but she does attract odd animals. After all, the next thing that happens is that she gets trolls in her closet...

Monster does his best to help her, but when his van gets totalled and the monsters begin overwhelming him, he's about ready to leave her and her problems alone. Unfortunately, his paper gnome companion is not about to let him do that. And then there's the problem with his girlfriend - who is a succubus.

Add to that mix a little bit of a problem with who gets to control the world's magic power, and it gets even more far out.

But I consumed it in a couple of hours last night and really enjoyed the romp. You ought to try this one, too. Even if you haven't read anything else by this author, it will be a good taste of talents. And I'll bet you buy more.

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