Monster Hunter Memoirs: Sinners

Ran out of gas.

Good book, but the conclusion seemed to run out of gas. Better ending chapter is needed.

17 of 20 people found this review helpful

Very Disappointed

Some other reviewers have said this is not really boring but not as developed or gripping as the original, I will go a bit further and say boring and unimaginative. Oh, don't get me wrong, the sheer numbers and variety of monsters is impressive, but the story is without significant plot, character development or tension. Its a sophomoric effort. Hundreds of people killed by dozens of different kinds of monsters and its all covered up with a simple blurb in a local newspaper, written off to hysteria or drug wars, Pleeeeease! This series asks us not just to suspend belief (as is fair for any fantasy story) but to also to suspend thinking entirely and lower your level of sophistication to that of a 14 year old. Very disappointing.

7 of 8 people found this review helpful

disparagement of the original series

Any additional comments?

This book is a disparagement of the original series. Apart from the main protagonist’s sexual exploits and all the hunters dying in New Orleans, nothing happens. The main protagonist is a misogynist misanthrope with delusions of grandeur. He is the best at everything and more. Extremely annoying.

7 of 8 people found this review helpful

Kind of disappointing, when compared to the other MIH books.

The good: The book is still fun and there is a lot of action. Narration is great.

The bad: The main character really is not that interesting and the plot is not compelling. No depth to the protagonist and it is more like a series of vignettes as opposed to a story.

Caveat: I think that this is a good effort and I appreciate the challenge of writing an ancillary novel to an established franchise. I just didn't find the main character to be genuine or interesting, more of a stereotype or a caricature as opposed to a character. So fans of the series, I recommend you consider experiencing it, but with reduced expectations.

7 of 8 people found this review helpful

There is no story here

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

If there was an actual storyline or plot for the book. It reads like a random serial comic where the hero busts in, kills the monster, has sex with a grateful buxom local girl, then bounds away on his next adventure. Over and over, until the book ends. There is no story arc, there is no villain, there is nothing to tie together these random events.

Has Monster Hunter Memoirs: Sinners turned you off from other books in this genre?

I have listened to and loved all 5 Monster Hunter books, but I am getting really frustrated with this spin-off "series." It is just awful. If Larry Correia doesn't go back to finish his original storyline with Owen and Franks and Earl, and all the characters we actually LIKE, I will not want to listen to any of his books anymore. I do think that readers coming to this series for the first time with this book (and the one before it) may never pick up the originals because of a bad experience.

Which scene was your favorite?

No.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

No.

Any additional comments?

This book isn't my cup of tea, and that's okay in general. I don't like stories about a macho guy who thinks he's an unstoppable badass and sleeps with every girl in the book. However, what I do object to is turning a series I loved, with characters I loved, into a story that I hate with characters that I hate. It makes me sad and frustrated. I'm fine with putting down a book I don't like and not finishing it. I rarely write negative reviews. But I make an exception here because I hate the direction this series is taking, and as a loyal fan, I feel like I need to get my voice out there and let the author know that he is disappointing me. I hope other readers who feel the way I do will as well.

One thing I will say is that Oliver Wyman is an amazing narrator and does just as well with this book as with the original Monster Hunter books.

7 of 8 people found this review helpful

Humph

Up until this story I have enjoyed the MHI books. This one didn't really seem to go anywhere or have anything to do with much of anything in the MHI universe. Either it's just me or this story seemed more of a filler.

15 of 18 people found this review helpful

Love the series, disappointed in this one

Would you try another book from Larry Correia and John Ringo and/or Oliver Wyman?

I've loved all the Monster Hunter books by Larry Correia & have loved the narration by Oliver Wyman. I can only assume that the addition of the co-writer, John Ringo, this time, has led to vastly reduced quality of this story compared to the others.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

Add depth to the supporting characters so we care about them sometime before the finale. Stay consistent to the world built in the other books- suddenly in this installment werewolves & vampires are super simple to kill whereas they've been very challenging foes in the other books. Wrap up the major underlying plot line, as he has in every previous book in the series. This book sets up a big boss, only to leave it unresolved for, I assume, the next book. Previous books have wrapped up all the big bosses within the book. Either swear or don't, but suddenly throwing in a bunch of f-cks in this book is terribly inconsistent with the series & the character as established in the previous book & is inconsistent within this story as well, coming & going sporadically as if it's being thrown in, rather than a part of who the character is.

Have you listened to any of Oliver Wyman’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Yes, he's read all the MH books & does terrific work! His work on this is equally impressive & the main saving grace for this installment in my opinion.

Any additional comments?

I've read all of the Monster Hunter series, so was excited for the release of another one. Unfortunately, this one doesn't live up to the quality of the others. The 1st real emotions in the book don't come until you're 1/4 of the way in, reserving the best parts of the book for after the rest of the MHI team joins Chad's team in New Orleans, deep into the book. This story doesn't follow the continuity of previous MH stories in that it makes vampires & werewolves super easy to kill, where the other books have established just how difficult these are to kill. It also spends most of the book building up to a mysterious boss, then ends the book without resolving that plot line. Previous MH books have resolved plenty of big bosses (Elder Gods for goodness sake!) within the book, not leaving them for a sequel. Additionally, previous MH books have avoided swearing. whereas this one jumps in with a string of f-cks from the main character at the very start, but then drops back into clean language for the vast majority of the book; again showing a lack of continuity to the other books &, particularly, to this character, who didn't swear in the previous book about his adventures. I don't mind swearing at all, I just want character & series continuity, which this particular installment lacks. I was seriously bummed. On the upside, I listed to this on audio book, as I have all the other MH books, & the narrator, Oliver Wyman, remains excellent.

11 of 13 people found this review helpful

well... at least its better than the last one...

not as incredibly horrible as the last john ringo mhi book, but still just meh... the main character is about 40% less douchey this time around, but he's still luke a 14 year old's table top gaming character. zero depth, all cheese.

on wyman's performance? man, if you're going to be voice acting a story that takes place in a location with several very distinct accents, do some research. this guy is the worst. almost as bad as the guy that did martin's fire and ice audio books. yes. that bad.

6 of 7 people found this review helpful

Okay, but nothing special

Any additional comments?

Story was okay, but seems like more of the same as the last one. Hunt monster, kill monster. Rinse and repeat.

6 of 7 people found this review helpful

Mary Sue if there ever was one

First off the main character is a flawless saint/savant that is the very definition of a Mary Sue character. If you though Rey from SW's was a Mary Sue, I can assure Chad Oliver Gardenier surpasses her on every metric. This is one very unlikable character. I won't spoil anything, but I can say that this books pretty much shits all over the established lore of the MH Universe. If I was you I would skip anything written by John Ringo in relation to MH mythos. Sad that these books are cannon, since they reference Chad in MH: Siege.

9 of 11 people found this review helpful