Monster Hunter Nemesis (Monster Hunter International, #5) by Larry Correia

Monster Hunter Nemesis (Monster Hunter International, #5) Reviews

• 
  ✘✘ Sarah ✘✘ (former Nefarious Breeder of Murderous Crustaceans)

  ⚠️ The gif is strong in this one. Thou hast been warmed and stuff.
  
  So the MC for this instalment is one of the secondary characters in the series, agent Franks of the super extra secret U.S. Monster Control Bureau. I’d tell you stuff about him but I can’t because major spoiler spoiler spoiler for those who haven’t read book 2 in the series, so I won’t. You’re welcome and stuff. You don’t really need the details, anyway. I mean, all you really need to know about him is what he likes to do in his spare time:
  
  
  
  (Minus the hairy bits, which are so not Franks’ style.)
  
  And also this:
  
  
  
  And also this:
  
  
  
  And also this:
  
  
  
  Franks enjoys pretty much anything that involves chilling out and relaxing, really. Yeah, he’s a real zen, meditative kind of guy. It’s a whole different story when he has to go to work and hunt big, bad monsters, obviously: He (most reluctantly) leaves his yoga mat and scented candles at home, puts his Frankie’s Peace & Harmony Cottage YouTube channel on pause, and goes off to slightly butcher and slaughter anything and everything that dares move in his presence. Such a well-rounded guy he is.
  
  
  
  That’s not exactly what I meant by “well-rounded,” but yeah, sure, whatever and stuff.
  
  Anyhoo and stuff, in this instalment super serene and easygoing Agent Franks finds himself outrageously and most unacceptably framed by a bunch of evil scumbags (yay!), and forced to slaughter his way through them prove his innocence all by his lonesome. Poor Frankie, he really reminded me of a hapless, abandoned, defenseless little kitty in this one
  
  
  
  See what I mean?. But hey, at least he got reunited with an old evil nemesis buddy of his and even played a fun game of rip off my arm and I’ll sever your neck tag with him for a while, so I guess it’s not all bad.
  
  Anything else outside of Spoiler Spoiler Spoiler Territory (SSST™) I can tell you about, you ask? Well, let’s see, there’s talk of virgin sacrifices, which is always a plus. There are zany cultists, people with functioning moral compasses (aka boringly predictable crybabies), tentacles (yay!), a special task force named after unicorns whose members are the most kind-hearted, altruistic, benevolent ever, not nearly enough gangsta gnomes for my taste, soul-leeching sex demons and orc priestesses charming characters galore, mystical Catholic ninja monks, wannabe puffer fish, and muscular, super strong, tireless, focused Mr. Potato Heads. Oh, and there are things that go boom, too. And hacking and staking and chopping and dismemberment, oh my! It’s all Super Extra Fun Times (SEFT™), all the time! You know what this means, don’t you? That’s right, gotta dance and stuff!
  
  
  
  ➽ Nefarious Last Words (NLW™): this installment was gleefully entertaining and just somewhat very perfect for my no-longer-thinking-and-ever-slightly-dead grey cells. True it is, I kinda sorta missed the regular cast for this series here, aka Super Zen Agent Franks’ BFFs, aka his monster hunting foes peers over at Monster Hunter International. But I have it on good authority—the blurb for the next book, which I shouldn’t have read because it is a truth universally acknowledge that blurbs are dangerous as fish but I know no fear so I did—that they’ll be back post haste (hopefully in less time than it takes to say “Fleet Admiral DaShrimp, unleash the crustaceans!”) so all’s good and stuff.
  
  TL;DR As one of the greatest philosophers of our time once said:

  “You cut my legs! You blew me up with fire! You blew up my sister! You broke our good bodies. Franks is mean!”

  
  👋 To be continued and stuff.
  
  • Book 1:
  Monster Hunter International ★★★★
  • Book 2:
  Monster Hunter Vendetta ★★★★
  • Book 3:
  Monster Hunter Alpha ★★★
  • Book 3.5 (short story):
  A Halloween Public Service Announcement from MHI ★★★★
  • Book 4:
  Monster Hunter Legion ★★★★
  • Book 4.5 (short story):
  Tanya: Princess of the Elves ★★★★
  • Book 6:
  Monster Hunter Siege ★★★
  • Book 7:
  Monster Hunter Guardian ★
  
  
  
  [Pre-review nonsense]
  
  This is the perfect book for lovers of cute kitties, fluffy bunnies and pastel-colored rainbows.
  
  
  
  Awwww, just how adorable can you get?!
  
  ➽ Full review to come and stuff.
• 
  Mr. Matt

  This book was not what I had expected, but I don't care. I love the Monster Hunter Series. The books are action packed, fast moving and lots and lots of fun. Awesome, yes, but not high-brow literature by any leap of the imagination.
  
  Unlike the other books in the series, this book did not focus on one of the MHI agents. Instead, the author gave us a good, long look into Agent Franks of the U.S. Monster Control Bureau. Agent Franks is a one man wrecking ball. (Not the Miley Cyrus style wrecking ball. Franks is more of the rip your spleen out of your chest cavity style of wrecking ball.) Franks is such a bad-ass because he's not human. He's a flesh golem, powered by a consciousness that filled his vacant body. He is next to impossible to destroy and he is able to rebuild himself thanks to spare body parts and a special elixir.
  
  The book begins on the heels of the last book and the disaster in Vegas. Franks (not at all politically adept) finds himself being isolated by a sinister figure at the heart of government. Special Task Force Unicorn (STFU) has plans to use an improved version of Franks golem shell to track down and fight and destroy monsters. To do so, they need to get rid of Franks because Franks made a deal with Ben Franklin that the US would never, ever, under any condition try to replicate him. To do so makes his contract null and void.
  
  Of course the plan to take care of Franks goes awry and next thing you know there is a massive world wide man-hunt for him. The hunt is filled with patented Larry Correia action - lots of gun fights, and lots and lots of high-end military hardware. In the end there is an epic shoot out at a secret government facility where the bad guys get what's coming. Fun stuff.
  
  My knock on this book is the author himself. He is a very outspoken libertarian - which is totally cool with me. I'm fine with authors of all political stripes. What irks me is when that belief leaks through into the pages of the story. Larry's politics ooze into this story. He's not a fan of Obama. I get it. But do we really need to be hammered with examples of an ineffective (and corrupt) government administration? I think it detracts from an otherwise awesome story.
  
  "He was an unstoppable killing machine and she was a soul-leeching sex demon." This quote says all you need to know about the MHI series. If you like this quote, you'll probably like the MHI books. If you don't you probably won't.
  
  Four out of five stars.
• 
  Tim The Enchanter

  Posted to
  The Literary Lawyer.ca
  
  The Weakest Link is Still Strong - 3.5 Stars
  
  It appears that I am out of fresh Larry Correia material and I have to settle in for the long wait once again....
  
  Monster Hunter Nemesis takes the series down a side street of the overall story development. In a manner similar to Monster Hunter Alpha, this installments focuses on one character and reads more like #4.5 than #5 in the series. This was not the best in the series, in fact, it is my least favorite. That said, it is a still a darn good book and worthy of your time.
  
  Plot summary
  
  The story focuses on everyone's favorite government enforcer, Franks. After the fallout from the previous novel, the hunter finds himself the hunted. While running for his own life, he finds that he is the only obstacle between the secretive and deadly nemesis project and the destruction of mankind. At least there is no pressure. As the story unfolds we learn the true nature of Franks and the details and nature of the nemesis project are finally revealed. Old friends from earlier novels pop by for a visit and we are given clues to the true endgame of the creepy Stricken.
  
  The Good
  
  Bang, Squish, Boom
  
  You haven't read this far in the MHI series if you don't like gun fights, dead monsters and explosions. While the tale that Correia spins is a departure from the previous installments, he retains enough of the elements we have come to love so that we do not feel lost.
  
  This is the second book in the series that focus mainly on one character. In doing this, Correia does and excellent job in developing the characters and building the mythology of one of our favorite characters.
  
  The Bad
  
  Missing a Piece of the Puzzle
  
  This installment is quite different from the previous novels as it is the first to focus on a non MHI character. While it retained the much of the monster killing and general action elements, it felt more like a spin off novel. While is was good in its own right, I like it less than the previous books.
  
  If you follow Larry Correia on Facebook or Twitter (I would suggest you do so. It is quite entertaining) it becomes abundantly clear he is a political person, is NOT a "social justice crusader" and he undoubtedly for smaller government. These ideals were on full display in this novel. While "right wing" themes (anti gun control, small government, exposing government corruption) run in all of his novels, this book featured these themes more prominently. At some points, the book felt like message fiction, which I always assumed was the domain of the liberal writers...but I digress. While I don't mind a message that isn't "in your face" ( see my review of a book that does message fiction right
  The Windup Girl ) I felt that at time the message got in the way of the story. While I may have agreed with most of the message, the message should flow naturally from the story but not feel like a vehicle for a message. That said, it really is a minor complaint.
  
  Final Thoughts
  
  I have now read the entire Monster Hunter International series and the Grimnoir Chronicles. With the exception of this book (which I was lucky to obtain as an Advance Reader Copy), I have listened to the audio versions of each book. EVERY Larry Correia book I have listened to has been of exceptional quality. Sadly, I think I enjoy his books more as audio and will likely return to that format for his next novel.
  
  This book was a departure from the rest of the series. There was just less of everything you expect. Less action, Less Monsters, Less Gore, Less Guns but more Franks. While it was lacking compared to the rest, it is an excellent book and a good addition to the series.
  
  Content Advisories
  
  It is difficult to find commentary on the sex/violence/language content of book if you are interested. I make an effort to give you the information so you can make an informed decision before reading. *Disclaimer* I do not take note or count the occurrences of adult language as I read. I am simply giving approximations.
  
  Scale 1 - Lowest 5 - Highest
  
  Sex - 1.5
  
  None to speak of. Some discussion with a hooker/Succubus and few off hand comments about sex. As usually, Correa shies from any graphic content.
  
  Language - 3
  
  It seems the author muzzled the mouths of his characters this time around. The language is less that his other novels. There seems to be an ongoing decline in the adult language used in his novels. Either that or I am becoming desensitised.
  
  Violence - 3.5
  
  Don't worry. Monsters go boom. Unfortunately there are less dead monsters than normal. Fortunately, the monsters in this novel are much stronger than in the other. This results in some excellent battle scene with some major monster powers. The violence is less but the violence is more epic than earlier novels.
• 
  Mike (the Paladin)

  This is an excellent book, as are (so far) all the Monster Hunter International volumes. That is of course they are excellent "brain candy". This is not great literature with a deep insightful message that will change your philosophical view of life...well, probably not any way. Then again if you pick up a book titled Monster Hunter Nemesis expecting War and Peace there may be a problem anyway.
  
  The story is expanding here (as most UF series seem to) from simply the adventures of a group of Monster Hunters and Government agents to a cosmos/multiverse/"infernal" wide war.
  
  We also get a look at the history of one of the long running characters whom I assume most of us have put some things together about already.
  
  I think that I enjoyed the first in the series a bit more than some of the later ones. That said however these are all fun, exciting excellent reads and for some leisure time action I can highly recommend them
  
  Enjoy.
• 
  Clarissa Emiria

  Ooh, what to say of this book?.. xD
  
  I think this one is probably my favourite of the series..?.. But that is in large part due to the audiobook, I fracking adore Oliver Wyman's narration for these characters, that man can do no wrong in this Universe, from what I have heard so far... ^___^ Mind you, I have only heard the five original books, and not the two spin-offs... xD
  
  I think Franks is hilarious, but I probably have a sense of humour on the maybe slightly weird and terse side, growing up with a dad from Aalborg, whose sense of humour were as dry as a desert xD
  So yea, Franks' story was right up my alley ^__^
  
  And can we take a second to talk about Stricken? I know, I know, I should hate his guts, and I do, he's a capital A jackhole, but he's just so fascinating and intriguing... It's like, everytime I listen to this book again, my fascination grows, it's sickening, considering what he's done xD I hope we see more of him in later installments, because I want to know his secrets, is that bad?.. xD On the other hand, I am afraid that if he gets involved, my precious heroes will suffer... Eeh, who am I kidding? They'll probably suffer anyway.. xD
  But maybe that's not really surprising, considering me, I'm always curious about why people do what they do xD It's in an effort to understand myself better :-)
  
  The sixth book in the series, Monster Hunter Siege is supposedly coming out, I think, in August this year (2017)? ^__^ It'll be exciting returning to the World with a new story, I wonder if this will be the last one, or if there are any more planned..? Hmm...
  
  Anyway, I really like this series, and I highly recommend it, especially the audiobooks, if you can get your hands on them ^__^ Oliver Wyman narrates, and he gets all the stars from me! ^__^
• 
  UniquelyMoi ~ BlithelyBookish

  "There was no way you were behind that attack . . . There were way too many survivors.”
  
  Franks nodded. He appreciated the compliment.
  
  Just when I'm sure the series can't get any better, Larry Correia proves me wrong... this time with a little help from Franks. Talk about a man with a past! Talk about a man with no future! Talk about a man whose story is gut wrenching. Talk about all these men and you're talking about Franks. My feelings for him rank right up there with my undying love for Zsadist, and that's a high rank.
  
  That's a nose-bleed high rank.
  
  Monster Hunter Nemesis is non-stop action, non-stop adventure, and non-stop intensity of emotions. Start to finish Franks stole the story and took me on a roller coaster ride of epic proportions and I didn't want that ride to end.
  
  If you're looking for something different, something like little else in the genre, you absolutely must give this series a try. Book 1,
  Monster Hunter International, is often free, so please grab it and give it a try.
• 
  Kevin Baker

  This just came out as a Baen eARC (Electronic Advanced Reader Copy) - essentially an unproofed galley, still needing final editing before publishing. Baen sells these a few months before the dead-tree versions hit the market for those of us willing to pay a premium to not have to wait a few more months.
  
  Worth. Every. Penny.
  
  Damn, that was a fun read.
  
  It looks like there will be one or two more books in the MH series, building to a pretty damned incredible climax that I cannot WAIT for. WRITE FASTER, LARRY!!! TAKE MY MONEY!!
  
  I bought the book over the weekend, but I'm currently reading two other books (one fiction, one non-fiction) and didn't want to start a third. But I'm on the road, and eBooks are easier to deal with than large hardbacks when traveling, so I started MHN early Monday.
  
  I stayed up WAY too late last night finishing it.
  
  If you enjoyed Monster Hunter International, read the rest.
  
  If you haven't read any of the Monster Hunter books, get Monster Hunter International.
  
  If you didn't like Monster Hunter International, whatthehelliswrongwithyou?
• 
  Daniel Burton

  No bones about it: I am a slow reader. Worse, I am a serial book buyer and starter, and years can pass after I buy a book before I actually start it, to say nothing of finish it.
  
  Except for anything by Larry Correia.
  
  Somehow, Correia has figured out the secret combination to writing novels that are fun, satisfying, and one hundred percent engrossing. If you're going to interrupt me while I'm in the middle of one of his novels, the house better be on fire. Not because I won't come otherwise, but because I may not notice the interruption at all. Correia hasn't not win any literary awards for his prose (at least not from the over-cultured classes of literary fart sniffers), but he's going to win the award that matters most: eyes on pages and dollars in the bank.
  
  Monster Hunter Nemesis is the fifth installment in the Monster Hunter International series, and like others in the series, the story can stand alone (although it does tie in to an arc that connects the entire series).
  
  Nemesis turns to the infamous Agent Franks, a reoccurring character in the previous novels. He is the US government's last resort for all monster related disturbances. If there's a monster sighting--be it vampire, zombie, or demon--Franks is sent into the field to, literally, crack a few heads, obliterate the monster, and restore order. He's the absolute worst combination of the best and the worst you can expect from the federal government: a very effective bureaucrat with single-minded purpose and no sense of morality, but the execution of his duty.
  
  As a personality, there's always something just a little off about him. Other characters treat him with a mixture of fear, respect, and hate, and Agent Franks does nothing to dissuade them of these. And, you can't really blame them. He's mean, he's ruthless, and he has all the personality of a low functioning sociopath. Franks' job is to fight the existential and supernatural threats to humanity, and it's not his fault that he lacks all the sympathies, qualities, and emotions that makes humanity redeemable.
  
  In short, he hasn't got many friends. It makes him an easy target when a shadowy rival government agency set out to replicate, and replace, Agent Franks. A big target, but not an easy one, I should say, if Agent Franks has anything to do with it.
  
  The thing is, the supernatural attacks are getting worse. As has been foreshadowed in previous Monster Hunter books, something is trying to break through, enslave the Earth, and harvest its inhabitants souls. Call it Cthulhu or shaggoth, it's a threat reminiscent of H.P. Lovecraft, and it's a danger to everything under God's creation. Indeed, God might have a word or two to say about making sure his Creation can avoid enslavement by other dimensional beings.
  
  With Nemesis, Correia takes this uncharitable and unlikable character and puts him at the center of the story as the protagonist.
  
  And boy does he protag (as Howard Tayler would say). This is Franks' origin story, and with it, Correia spins him into a sympathetic character, showing him competent and effective and active in controlling his destiny. The pages fly by, thick with action.
  
  If you're looking for an emotionally charged, literary soap opera, this is not the place to look. There are no weighty, emotionally charged passages about social inequality and unfairness. Rather, its escapist, pitting Frankenstein's monster, werewolves, assault weapons, and humans in the middle of the fight between heaven and hell and--
  
  Oh, yeah. Did I mention that the bad guy in Nemesis really is one of the original the Bad Guys that figure prominently in Milton's Paradise Lost? One of the best things about Correia's Monster Hunter International world is that no mythology, legend or religion is really out-of-bounds. From H.P. Lovecraft to modern Christianity (with a hat-tip to Mormonism, too, if you're paying attention), Correia works it in to his world. The boundless limits of his story telling gives him broad latitude, creates resonance that the tough-guy exterior of the novel belies, and carries nuggets of depth at unexpected moments.
  
  That's right. Monster Hunter Nemesis might make you think.
  
  Content Warning: I hate to include content warnings, but since not everyone who reads this site is over 18, I feel like Nemesis merits a warning. Be aware that there is occasional swearing and cussing in Correia's novels. I don't think it's necessary--I just finished John D. Brown's Bad Penny that had characters far tougher and rougher than anyone in Monster Hunter Nemesis, and I didn't see him resort to any cussing. However, it is Correia's prerogative. Just be aware, before you crack the cover, that if you are bothered by swearing you might find the occasional offensive word in the dialogue.
• 
  Keri

  LOVED LOVED LOVED!!! Frank's book and love where the story ARC is going. I was surprised at some of the reveals of Frank's background and can't wait for the next book!
• 
  Eric

  4.5 Stars
  
  Just missed out on a full five stars. Monster Hunter Nemesis switches things up, leaving MHI behind and spending the majority of the book telling the story from the POV of the sweet and lovable Agent Franks.
  
  Agents Franks of the Monster Control Bureau is the US government’s top agent, their own monster they use to hunt down the other monsters. Nearly indestructible, Franks is a killing machine who the government points in the direction of whatever monster is trying to eat someone at that particular time and he goes to work. His only condition is that the government never attempt to develop any more creatures like him. So when the government violates his one condition, Franks declares war.
  
  Just like Monster Hunter Alpha, Nemesis is a pretty significant departure from the usual MHI story format. Gone are many of the familiar characters, though a few pop up here and there. There are a couple other POVs used throughout the book, but this is unequivocally the Agent Franks show. And, despite my initial reservations, it worked very well.
  
  Turns out there is more going on with Franks than one would have initially assumed from his first few appearances in the series. Woven throughout the current events of the book are short flashbacks that flesh out his history, which I found very interesting. Correia does a good job giving Franks a unique voice, making it distinct from other POV characters.
  
  As always, the action is fast and furious. I’d even venture to say that it eclipses much of the previous action in the prior books, which is saying something. It’s not all action though, with interesting character development for Franks and a couple others.
  
  Overall, another excellent volume in the stellar Monster Hunter International series.
• 
  Jen

  Absolutely LOVED it! I really like Franks and we get a LOT of his backstory here. The book was funny, but in a different way than one that follows Pitt. I'm glad we got a different POV in this one, though it was odd seeing Owen through Franks' eyes.
  
  I still HATE Stricken. Kinda miffed his boss wasn't named, even though a character knew who she was. Same with Strayhorn's mom. She was mentioned, but her actual name wasn't in the text, even though a character said her name. I guess it's classified, as Franks would say.
  
  If you like the preceding books, you will like this one. 5, action packed, stars! Highly recommended.
• 
  Seth Skorkowsky

  Refreshing change in the series where MHI is given the back seat and instead we follow Agent Franks and the Monster Control Bureau. One of the annoyances I've has with the series is how when it follows MHI, everyone else is portrayed as a complete moron or evil. They behave moronically and it's up to MHI to be the only competent non-evil people in the room. That skewed a bit in Book #4, as other hunter companies were introduced and shown as good people. Now it's the Bureau's turn.
  They're not all bad, but there's a serious level of corruption and misplaced intentions. The book follows Franks who started off as sort of a giant muscle-bound thug in Book 1 and has slowly been revealed as something far cooler. This is his book. Franks is awesome and I loved what Correia did with him.
  It's still popcorn fiction, but it's extremely great popcorn fiction. I had trouble putting it down and was always looking for an excuse to pick it back up again.
• 
  Beanbag Love

  This is the fifth book in the Monster Hunter International series and it's another like Monster Hunter Alpha where we step away from the main group and the main character and focus on others. The main focus of this one is Agent Franks, but several POVs are represented.
  
  As always, I love how Corriea handles third person POV. His characters' voices are unique to each individual which is refreshing. I often find other authors' characters sound so much alike that POV switches are more confusing than anything. Upon hearing he was going to make Agent Franks a main character in a book I cocked my head like a puppy and thought, "how's that going to work?" Answer: splendidly!
  
  Corriea has a gift with characters. I care about them. Sometimes they die, so I care even more. But they are always given a good death. Heroism abounds in his books.
  
  I can't say much without giving a bunch of spoilers. Franks is a character that was introduced in the first book and that has played a strong role in all but MH Alpha. He's an enigma, a monster, a government cog, and everything in between. But now we know he's so much more.
  
  There's a lot of pew!pew!pew!, "grawwwww", "nooooooo!", fists going through walls (steel, stone, wood, drywall, whatever), necks snapping and bones protruding through flesh. Weaponry! Lots of weaponry! Bad guys! Really evil bad guys! There is almost no part of a body (human or otherwise) that doesn't gush blood at some point or other in this story. In short, it's action-packed.
  
  As I said in an earlier status, Correia doesn't put out a new MHI book every year. It's more like a year and a half which is painful. He's got a lot of other projects in the works and he's really prolific, but you do have to wait a bit for series installments. Not to worry, IMO it's worth it. :)
  
  ETA: I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
  
• 
  [Name Redacted]

  An okay read, but easily the worst in the series. Terrible plot; thin characterizations; repetitive character idiocy resulting from "plot requires it"; riddled with cliches; thoroughly predictable; worth reading only for the details about Franks' nature and past (which was generally pretty surprising and earned it 1 additional star) and the fact that it will be necessary to understand any future books. If I re-read the series, I'll just skip this one in the future.
• 
  Veronika Sebechlebská

  Agent Franks, to sú tie najvýkonnejšie orgány činné v trestnom konaní, aké si viete predstaviť a nič na tom nemení ani fakt, že ide o orgány z druhej ruky. Zošité zošívačkou. Bez predošlého súhlasu pôvodných majiteľov.
• 
  Benjamin Thomas

  The fifth novel in the Monster Hunter International series departs from the main team and focuses on Agent Franks. This is the second time this has occurred, the first being book 3,
  Monster Hunter Alpha which focused on MHI boss, Earl Harbinger. We do get a couple of cameo appearances here by Owen Pitt and others of the main MHI story but, for the most part, it’s all about Franks.
  
  The plot surrounds Agent Franks being framed as a rogue terrorist killing machine who’s suddenly “lost it” and turned against his government. We get some interesting back story on Franks’ creation back in the 1700’s, but mostly, this entire book is about his multiple battles against the array of enemies pitted against him.
  
  I enjoyed this departure from the main series. Mainly, I suppose, because Agent Franks is such a unique character. Really, he is one-dimensional: mission first. Above all else. He has one speed which is full force total war. Kill the target by any means necessary and if you can have fun doing it, all the better. And destruction of the enemy is always fun. For an author to write such a one-dimensional character, make him interesting, make us care about him and what happens to him, requires genuine writing skill. Larry Correia has displayed such skill before so I’m not surprised to see it here again. I will say that it's best to read these books in order. Correia doesn't spend a lot of time bringing the reader up to speed so it's best if you already know terms like MHI, MCB, PUFF, and perhaps my favorite, Special Task Force Unicorn (STFU). I would bet money on the author using 'unicorn' just so he could type that acronym over and over.
  
  As all MHI books before, and undoubtedly all to come, this is pretty much non-stop action. To say it’s “over-the-top” would be a vast understatement. If you like your battles filled with hulking monsters (and monster hunters) with guns, axes to the forehead, fully-automatic shotguns, guts ripped out, RPGs, bullets flying, hand grenades, bigger guns, broken spines, legs cut off, claymore mine explosions, and even bigger guns…(and all that could happen in one scene) well, then this series is for you.
• 
  Caleb CW

  This was a fun book. There were plenty of good monster action and the dialogue was fair. I don't know man... I think what brought down my rating was after awhile it all felt tedious. Like it just repeated itself and eventually I stopped caring about characters dying maybe I need to read some of the others and come back to this one. But one of the deaths felt like when Paul's son died in Dune, it just didn't matter. There wasn't enough there to make you care and the emotional reaction was pretty empty, I guess considering the main character isn't technically a man I should let this go but also, meh. It was a b-movie effort and that's still a good time for me.
  
  I'm pretty sure I'll read some more of these later down the line because it was fun to shut off my brain for awhile and see some monsters get the shit kicked out of them, but its gonna be awhile.
  
  There it is and there you have it.
• 
  MLC

  Reading this book threw me off a bit because the characters in MHI were not prominent in this. It seemed like more of a spinoff book about Franks. Looking forward on the storyline I am pretty sure the author wanted us to know about where he came from and who exactly he is. A small plot twist I was not expecting at the end. I am eager to start the next book.
• 
  Kat Hooper

  There is no way that any review I write about Monster Hunter Nemesis is going to have any sort of effect on anybody’s decision to read it. If you’re a fan of the extremely popular MONSTER HUNTER series, then you’re going to read Monster Hunter Nemesis, the fifth book. If you’re not, you won’t. And if you’re not in one of those two camps, you have no reason to be reading this review. But still I have to write it, because that’s my job.
  So, for those of you who ARE fans, what you can expect here is exactly what Correia has given us so far: great characters, a fascinating story, witty dialogue, and brutal violence. This particular installment features my favorite character: AGENT FRANKS! He’s a huge indestructible man(?) who works for the U.S. Monster Control Bureau, a government agency that fights monsters and sometimes works with or against Monster Hunter International. In Monster Hunter Nemesis we get his backstory. How old is he? Where did he come from? Why does he work for MCB? Why is he so loyal to the United States? How is he indestructible? You’ll find out in Monster Hunter Nemesis as Agent Franks takes on a bureaucrat who’s also a mad scientist. I have to say that I was completely surprised by the revelations and what they may mean for the ongoing MONSTER HUNTER story.
  Originally posted at Fantasy Literature. We review SFF, horror, and comics for adults and kids, in print and audio daily.
  http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi...
  
  Fans will be happy to see a little bit of our old friends at MHI, the gangsta gnomes, and Heather the werewolf. Several new intriguing characters are introduced, too, and I look forward to seeing them in future installments. One main character is tragically killed and there is a delightfully promising plot twist at the end.
  
  For those of you who haven’t yet started the MONSTER HUNTER series, I can highly recommend it if you love monsters, guns, engaging heroes, tons of action, clever plotting, and just the right amount of humor. I must warn you that it’s gory and violent (a little too much for me, honestly) and that Larry Correia’s libertarian views are occasionally on display, especially when he disrespects the government and the president of the United States (who is obviously President Obama).
  
  If you’re going to try MONSTER HUNTER, start with the first book (Monster Hunter International) and continue in publication order. I also highly recommend Audible Studios’ versions which are brilliantly narrated by Oliver Wyman who totally “gets” this series and gives us a perfect performance for each character, and especially for Agent Franks. If you’re not an audio reader, this one could definitely change your mind.
• 
  Bradley

  This straightforward read brings frankenstein's monster against a werewolf; including special guest stars that includes the son of frankenstein's monster, cthulhu types, a host of fallen angels. There's even a very special accountant that drops in on the fun.
  I hope you like guns! And pain! Lots and lots of pain!
  More than anything, I was struck by how very patriotic the whole novel was. It was one of the most literal mind-bending "For God and Country" pastiches I've ever read, but it wasn't hokey. Or at least it was so over the top hokey that it found its equilibrium on the far side.
  The tongue in cheek was sometimes on the other side, too.
  Fun stuff, peeps.
• 
  Geoff

  A rare five-star review.
  This series is awesome.
  Read it.
  Read it NOW!
  
• 
  Martha

  This is a fun listen with lots of action and monster battles, as usual with this series. This book is focused on US Monster Control Bureau Agent Franks and I found the history and faith connections really interesting. I stayed awake a few hours longer than I should have to keep going in the story. I did miss the characters from the Monster Hunter International who only make a small appearance deep into the story. Still, there is plenty of entertainment with Agent Franks, a few supportive MCB characters and the high threat enemies - demon and human.
  
  There is more profanity than I care for which tempered my enjoyment a bit. If you are interested in this genre and series, I recommend starting at the beginning. My rating 4.25.
  
  Audio Notes: Oliver Wyman does a superb job with the narration. I am impressed how well he presents the different voices so that you recognize the known characters right away. He also gives the new characters distinct and fitting voices. The listening is wonderful entertainment.
• 
  Book-a-holic Fairies

  I received an eARC (Electronic Advance Reader Copy) via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
  
  Review:
  
  "Franks is like the definition of does not give a sh*t. He’s cold. He’s got extra hearts, but he doesn’t have a heart." -Archer
  
  When I heard that the MHI#5 will be Frank's story, I wasn't really excited. We all know him as the MCB's number one weapon and that he isn't actually a human. So, I thought his story is going to be boring, but I was wrong. Sure, Frank rarely talk about his past and emotion (he sometimes have them, I think) but Monster Hunter Nemesis sort of humanized Frank. It recounts Frank's creation, his years learning the human ways with his creator (Dr. Dippel), his agreement with Benjamin Franklin, his love life (I'm not kidding, he actually had one) etc... Obviously it has a different tone from the usual MHI books because Frank doesn't have Owen's humor, but it was still a very good read. I absolutely enjoyed the action and there are twists in the plot that could blow your mind.
  
  The book is written in multiple POV's which can be a little confusing, but I liked it because it's easier to understand the motivation of each characters. If you are looking for the MHI gang, they do have a brief appearance in this book. Also, If you remember who Heather "Red" Kerkonen was, she had an encounter with Franks. Even though she's a pretty good fighter and I truly admire her skills, she's no match to Franks. Earl on the other hand... let's just say it's a fight you should look forward to. ㋡
  
  I gave this book a 4.5-Fairy Wings rating (instead of the usual 5) because the book started slow, it took me a while to get into it. However, when the action started, I was hooked until the end! Monster Hunter Nemesis is your typical Correia book, it's loaded with action, supernatural creatures, guns and ammos, monster hunters, explosions, blood, politics, and deaths. The ending though, sjdhfaksjhdfskdjh, I just can't... it was a total mind f*ck. I really REALLY need the next book now!
  
  This book is highly recommended to Action and Urban Fantasy readers. If you haven't read the first book yet, you should totally get a copy now!
  
  -Midnight Fairy
• 
  Jenna

  I enjoyed seeing things from Agent Franks' point of view. There were quite a few surprises! Larry Correia continues to entertain with shoot-em-up good guy versus bad guy pulpy goodness with pretty even-handed anti-government-incompetence snark. I look forward to reading the next book in the series written solely by LC.
  
  Now, this next part is about the preview for the next book (Grunge written by John Ringo), because wow. That sucked HARD.
  
  It reminds me of when a super left-wing writer on a show just has a character monologue at another character about why he's not a good enough feminist ally and how he's bad for having a penis while he stands there stunned at her brilliance and sufficiently chastened for wrong-think. You know? Like, ridiculous bs? But this came from the other side of the political spectrum. Just preaching to his perceived choir SO HARD.
  
  It's so bad. Terribly preachy about how terrible non-conservatives are and the protagonist is *so much better than everyone ever, but so misunderstood and unappreciated*. He's super heterosexual. Like, he tells you how incredibly heterosexual he is. A lot. He's anti-academic, smarter than any genius the world has ever produced ("Einstein would have said, 'whoa!'"), bullied by his hateful hypocritical hippy academic atheist parents and super abusive older brother, loves sports & guns (but not soccer because that's for lefties), and his penis loves ladies - again, super straight, everyone. Real quote: "Obsessive heterosexual. That means so straight, you can use me to adjust lasers." I mean, this guy is definitely a giant tool.
  
  Anyway, I guess John Ringo isn't for me and I'll skip it. Hopefully it doesn't feature too much in the rest of the series. I hate skipping books in a series, but this one seems like it's just another author buddy writing in his universe. Now, if Jim Butcher ever decided to write in the MHI universe, I'd be all about it. Just puttin' that out there.
• 
  Jessica

  So, this one was more than usually crazy pants.
  
  Correia finally delves into the history of Franks, the man, the myth, the monster, and explores how he came to be and why he's doing what he's doing. I was . . . not expecting Franks' backstory, shall we say. And I enjoyed it, but Franks being humorless and surrounded by people even more lacking in witty banter, this book didn't have quite the zing of his other Monster Hunter books for me. It was nice to see the team for a brief time, and good to see how Heather Kerkonen was doing working toward her PUFF exemption, but mostly this was Franks' show. And it's not a bad show, and it not only added to the Monster Hunter mythology in general, but answered questions from previous books and dropped hints for future books. So it definitely wasn't a side story that can be ignored. But a lot of descriptions of body parts being severed and reattached can wear on a girl after a few hundred pages.
  
  On a side note, when I went to shelve this I discovered that I'm missing the first few books in the series, and I'd like to know where they went! I mean, I've loaned them to someone, but who? Either my dad or my sister . . . gotta figure that out. I need to reread the first one soonish, for . . . reasons. *cough*elves*cough*
  
  On another side not, if you're reading this review and thinking, What's a PUFF? Who's Heather? What's wrong with the elves? Don't start the series with this book. Monster Hunter International is the first one, and it's fab.
• 
  Bridget

  Excellent series as always. Action packed page turner. Not the best in the series but very good. Finally Agent Franks the stoic and nearly indestructible character get his own book. He's a relentless hard*ss which I happen to love about him. He goes after the bad guys and monsters with no apologizes or equivocating. Very cool to final get his backstory and worth the read. However while you can start here if you haven't read these before you should get the first in the Monster Hunters international series. Once you start you'll be hooked by the laugh out loud moments, well written action & sheer volume of good guys mostly kicking butt to save the world. However the characters are so good you really come to care about them. Enjoy
• 
  Dan Guajars

  Es ligeramente menos interesante que los anteriores, aunque mantiene el nivel de calidad que me gusta de Larry Correia. Y lo que más me gusta es que se trata de un "side-quest" que sienta precedente para los siguientes libros de la serie.
  
  Es una manera inteligente de seguir adelante con la historia, poniéndonos al día con el estatus de los protagonistas del resto de los libros pero sin hacerlos protagonistas de éste.
  
  Si te gustan los libros donde el armamento y el humor son primordiales, junto con una trama compleja y malditamente épica, pero que es bien clara, pues recomiendo a Larry Correia.
  
  Tiene otra serie steampunk que estoy tentado de leer. Tal vez en diciembre lo haga.
• 
  Diane

  Oh My GODS that was amazing. Remember how Earl had his own book adventure? Well this time it's all about FRANKS, that likeable unstoppable government psycho. What IS he?! Well we find out EVERYTHING as Frank fights to save humanity from monsters whilst being framed and hunted himself. I won't say anymore. Fans of this series, rejoice if you love Franks. I have LOVED everything Correia has written!
  
  You might like this if you like Harry Dresden, Iron Druid, or Nathaniel Cade.
  
  *fan girl scream*
• 
  Martine

  I usually don't like the MH books. I was introduced to Larry Corriea's writing through the Grimnoir Chronicles. I loved those, but the MH were just a bit too rambunctious and thoughtless for my taste. However, this book I do like. I could have given it four stars, but figured that I'd go with five because of tha vast improvement, and because the idea behind Frank's creation was so novel.