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A review by michelle_leitheoir
The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey
2.5
I have to admit, I really hated this book at the outset. I mean, really hated it. But like so many times in the past, my patience was rewarded, though only to a certain extent.
For at least the first half, I found Dr. Warthrop to be completely and utterly unlikable. I could not imagine a single reason that Yancey could present that would make me care about what happened to his title character at all. He was cold and unfeeling and emotionally abusive to Will Henry, who had no choice but to put up with it, seeing as how he was a 12-year-old orphan. I thought that made Warthrop’s behavior especially reprehensible - not only that he would behave that way, but that he would behave that way to someone when he knew they had nowhere else to go. Plus, being harsh and insulting and making someone feel like you couldn’t care less about them, only to reel them back in with soothing words (like Warthrop’s favorite, “Your services are indispensable to me,”) is classic abuse. Even that line indicates Warthrop didn’t value him - it’s Will Henry’s services he valued, not Will Henry himself.
Oh! I almost forgot his constant insistence that Will should be thankful to him, and that he refused to accept any responsibility for mistakes that had quite a dear cost. My “abusive and manipulative” alarm bells were ringing loud and clear.
But at the same time, there wasn’t much about Will Henry that compelled me, either. Granted, I doubt I would be much more than a mopey doormat if I had been orphaned at a young age and taken in by my parents’ emotionally abusive employer, too, but I had a hard time finding a good connection point with him.
Honestly, the first half of the book just seemed like an excuse to get some super gory, massively gross monster attacks on paper. I did my best to find a story under all the dismemberments and blood, but I had a hard time finding one.
But then. THEN. Will Henry found his voice, stood up to Warthrop, and BAM, we had some compelling character development. I do wish that the relationship between Will Henry and Warthrop had gotten warmer than it did, but finally the emotional abuse was ending, and Will Henry showed that he could stand up for himself and set some boundaries. They finally started to seem like a team, which was important when the maverick Kearns shows up to upset the delicate balance of the investigation.
By the way, Kearns was the best thing about this book. Definitely a ghoul and a scumbag, but he managed to bring a dry levity that this book badly needed.
So I definitely saw improvements by the end of the book. It’s just . . . eh, I don’t know, not my brand of horror? I like things a little more on the “moody, atmospheric, and spooky” end of things. Or at least, much farther away from the “BOOGIDY BOO SCARY MONSTER EAT HUMANS OM NOM NOM” end of things than this book was. Between that and the emotional abuse that I can’t quite forgive or ignore, this is only a 2.5/5 for me, and I’m honestly kind of relieved that I didn’t care enough about these characters or this story to continue with the series. Felt like a good standalone anyway.
For at least the first half, I found Dr. Warthrop to be completely and utterly unlikable. I could not imagine a single reason that Yancey could present that would make me care about what happened to his title character at all. He was cold and unfeeling and emotionally abusive to Will Henry, who had no choice but to put up with it, seeing as how he was a 12-year-old orphan. I thought that made Warthrop’s behavior especially reprehensible - not only that he would behave that way, but that he would behave that way to someone when he knew they had nowhere else to go. Plus, being harsh and insulting and making someone feel like you couldn’t care less about them, only to reel them back in with soothing words (like Warthrop’s favorite, “Your services are indispensable to me,”) is classic abuse. Even that line indicates Warthrop didn’t value him - it’s Will Henry’s services he valued, not Will Henry himself.
Oh! I almost forgot his constant insistence that Will should be thankful to him, and that he refused to accept any responsibility for mistakes that had quite a dear cost. My “abusive and manipulative” alarm bells were ringing loud and clear.
But at the same time, there wasn’t much about Will Henry that compelled me, either. Granted, I doubt I would be much more than a mopey doormat if I had been orphaned at a young age and taken in by my parents’ emotionally abusive employer, too, but I had a hard time finding a good connection point with him.
Honestly, the first half of the book just seemed like an excuse to get some super gory, massively gross monster attacks on paper. I did my best to find a story under all the dismemberments and blood, but I had a hard time finding one.
But then. THEN. Will Henry found his voice, stood up to Warthrop, and BAM, we had some compelling character development. I do wish that the relationship between Will Henry and Warthrop had gotten warmer than it did, but finally the emotional abuse was ending, and Will Henry showed that he could stand up for himself and set some boundaries. They finally started to seem like a team, which was important when the maverick Kearns shows up to upset the delicate balance of the investigation.
By the way, Kearns was the best thing about this book. Definitely a ghoul and a scumbag, but he managed to bring a dry levity that this book badly needed.
So I definitely saw improvements by the end of the book. It’s just . . . eh, I don’t know, not my brand of horror? I like things a little more on the “moody, atmospheric, and spooky” end of things. Or at least, much farther away from the “BOOGIDY BOO SCARY MONSTER EAT HUMANS OM NOM NOM” end of things than this book was. Between that and the emotional abuse that I can’t quite forgive or ignore, this is only a 2.5/5 for me, and I’m honestly kind of relieved that I didn’t care enough about these characters or this story to continue with the series. Felt like a good standalone anyway.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore and Violence