Memoirs of a Monster Hunter: A Five-Year Journey in Search of the Unknown (Paperback)

~ Nick Redfern (Author)
Key Phrases: body snatchers, lake monsters, Puerto Rico, Big Thicket, White Rock Lake (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

For centuries, people across the world have had a fascination with monsters and strange creatures. They marvel at the tales and legends of the Bigfoot of the Pacific Northwest; of the Abominable Snowman of the Himalayas; of the infamous and diabolical Moth-Man of West Virginia; of fire-breathing dragons; and of those dark denizens of the deep: lake monsters and sea serpents. But do such creatures really exist? Can it be true that our planet is home to fantastic beasts that lurk deep within its forests and waters? Memoirs of a Monster Hunter proves the answer is a resounding yes!

In this follow-up to his wildly successful Three Men Chasing Monsters, paranormal investigator and author Nick Redfern chronicles his surreal road-trip through the United States and beyond in search of all-things monstrous. His strange adventures lasted five years and saw him doggedly pursuing a menagerie of creatures, including gargoyles, giant birds, and what some believe are living dinosaurs. Follow Redfern as he:

* Explores the El Yunque rainforest of Puerto Rico in search of the terrifying Chupacabras: a razor-clawed, glowing-eyed beast that is part giant bat and part vampire.

* Seeks out the Goat Man: a menacing creature that evokes imagery of both demons and the fabled cloven-hoofed Centaurs of ancient mythology, and is said to inhabit the forests of East Texas.

* Chases after what many people believe are real-life, flesh-and-blood werewolves that surface from hidden lairs and prowl the countryside when the Moon is full.

Part X-Files, part Crocodile Hunter with a mix of Jurassic Park and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Memoirs of a Monster Hunter takes you on a roller-coaster ride into the unknown. Read personal accounts of the monsters that inhabit your wildest imagination and your worst nightmares. The creatures you were told couldn't possibly exist, really do.

From the Back Cover

"This is one of the best books I've read in years. Redfern sweeps you away on his personal adventure. Around the world, from romance, to ghastly beasts, to the cosmos, Redfern has candidly shared the wonders of his young life."

--Joshua P. Warren, author of Pet Ghosts and How to Hunt Ghosts

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Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: New Page Books; illustrated edition edition (September 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1564149765
• ISBN-13: 978-1564149763
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #105,271 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Where the Redfern Goes, October 1, 2008

By	R. Howell "boriskhan" (Medford, OR) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Nick Redfern travels the world giving speeches at conferences dealing with UFOs, the paranormal, and cryptozoology. He is a self-employed writer and has several books out. You find this out because he constantly promotes and plugs them in this book. This self-proclaimed monster hunter looks back over a five year period and presents his memoirs which entail meeting a woman at a UFO conference whom he tries to bed down that night but ends up marrying later on, his `investigations' of various phenomenon, and his attachments to several paranormal television shows. There's also an abundant coverage of him hanging out with his fellows and lots of drinking. And let's not forget his lengthy chapter about the family dog which dies and they deal with its lingering spirit.

The book itself is easy to read as there is little prolonged in-depth coverage of much of anything except their dog. Redfern covers lightly some UFO stuff, largely plugging one of his books and various UFO conferences he attends, talks at, drinks at, and gets all his expenses covered along with a nice speaking payment. He travels to Puerto Rico (again all expenses paid) three separate times looking into the Chupacabras legend. And he also travels throughout Texas (where he lives after getting married and moving from his native England) going to the Big Thicket region filled with ghost lights and wildmen, seeks out the Goat-Man in several areas, as well as a ghost of a drowned girl and some surreally large fish and water beasties. And to add to the mix he speaks with a lady in Wisconsin about the Beast of Bray Road which may or may not be a werewolf (another fascination of his along with zombie movies and his apparent love of the word 'diabolical'). Redfern then explains how he feels that all these purported cryptids are not natural occuring creatures but extra-dimensional, spirits, or possibly alien leftovers or government experiments.

Redfern covers lots of material but in such fragmented and disorganized anecdotes that the book seems more like what he would chat about if you sat down with him and knocked back a few beers and had a meandering conversation of rapid topic changes. The book would have benefited from some better organization of the material. He travels a lot at other people's expenses and seems to only be involved in this type of stuff so that he can do just that, travel and not have to pay for it. He gives a presentation and then `has a night on the town'. For all he talks about such phenomenon, at points he doesn't even appear to buy his own shilling of material. To me, he apparently likes being called a `monster hunter', doing the travelling, and getting paid but doesn't truly `believe' in this stuff himself... just my opinion, I've never met the guy.

Overall, light reading but there's nothing in depth, no conclusions, and the stories are too short to get you interested in them. You'll get lots of plugging of his own books, learn his favorite adult beverages, and get more than you care to about his buddy Jon Downes. I doubt I'll be spending my money on anything else of his.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Very Disappointed, August 14, 2008

By	Skeptical but open to facts "The truth is out... (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews

If you are interested in a serious discussion of cryptids, do not buy this book. Redfern spends the majority of the book describing his personal life. The information on monster hunting is limited and ancedotal at best. He comes across as a smug,self-serving free-loader who doesn't feel the need to bother with serious research into a very interesting topic. I'm surprised this got published, it is that bad. To use a very British term to describe Nick's work, bollocks!

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Juvenile and disappointing if you are looking for monster facts and fun, September 2, 2007

By	Rachel Cole "RC Cole-a...RC Cola, get it?" (Savannah, Georgia) - See all my reviews

This book reads like the diary of a kid who wants to either 1. ) impress people with his "occupation" as Monster Hunter or 2.) irritate people with page after page of info about himself that we don't want when we buy a book like this. When you buy a book like this you want excitement and depth of purpose. He seems to fancy himself an Indiana Jones type, when in reality, he seems to be a guy whose wife pays the bills so he can run around having pretend adventures. Not very good. Not very good AT ALL. I'm actually quite unhappy I shelled out the money for this vacuous book, and I buy 30-40 books a year and take the good with the bad, as you must. Wish I hadn't bought it.