7.5/10
I came across this book thanks to Library Things recommendation feature, a feature that I seldom use. But needing a break from entering ISBNS I had a look through it and spotted a cover of a large battle suit clad man wielding a mean looking shotgun. Who wouldnt be interested in that? So I clicked on said picture, read the blurb on the back of the book and the single review and found myself interested. Interested but not convinced. What convinced me was the fact that it was less than a fiver on Amazon.co.uk. A fiver that turned out to be very well spent.
MHI (Monster Hunter International) is an enjoyable paranormal action story that hits all the right spots for some relatively mindless pulpy fun. Like most books in this genre characters are often a little stereotypical and feature “by the numbers” character development. But thats part and parcel of the genre and doesnt bother me. The plot is actually pretty well developed and featured some nice twists and turns, not a huge amount of *gasp* plot twists but enough to keep the reader engaged. I really liked some of the characters and the way paranormal creatures were worked into the world was pretty well done. It did a nice job of staying true to each monsters core mythos while putting an interesting new spin on them.
At times the writing felt a little clumsy, not bad, just a little jarring. Still it is a first novel and about twice as long as most other books in the genre. At the end of the day when I finished the book the first thing I did was look to see when the sequel was coming out. And really what more does one require from a book then a few hours of entertainment and the urge for more?
Other books on the list are certainly more “weighty” or about “important issues”. But that doesnt make them better, just different. Lordy I sure do hate literature snobs.