Monster Hunter Alpha [Mass Market Paperback]

Larry Correia (Author)

Book Description

Release date: July 26, 2011 | Series: Monster Hunter

#3 in the break-out, best-selling Monster Hunter series.  Earl Harbinger, head of Monster Hunter International, faces down an old nemesis -- a very nasty former KGB werewolf who is working to create a new, unstoppable breed.

Dirty Harry meets Twilight.  #3 in the break-out series and a follow-up to Monster Hunter International and Monster Hunter Vendetta. 

Earl Harbinger may be the leader of Monster Hunter International, but he’s also got a secret. Nearly a century ago, Earl was cursed to be werewolf.  When Earl receives word that one of his oldest foes, a legendarily vicious werewolf that worked for the KGB, has mysteriously appeared in the remote woods of Michigan, he decides to take care of some unfinished business. But another force is working to bring about the creation of a whole new species of werewolf. When darkness falls, the final hunt begins, and the only thing standing in their way is a handful of locals, a lot of firepower, and Earl Harbinger’s stubborn refusal to roll over and play dead.

Here’s a sample of Larry Correia’s prose punch from series opener, Monster Hunter International:  “I didn’t wake up that morning and decide that I was going to kill my boss with my bare hands.  It was much more complicated than that.” 

About Monster Hunter International

“[A] no-holds-barred all-out page turner that is part science fiction, part horror, and an absolute blast to read.”–  Bookreporter.com

About the “Monster Hunter” series:

“If you love monsters and action, you’ll love this book.  If you love guns, you’ll love this book.  If you love fantasy, and especially horror fantasy, you’ll love this book.” – Knotclan.com

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 560 pages
• Publisher: Baen; Original edition (July 26, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1439134588
• ISBN-13: 978-1439134580
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (91 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #28,471 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Larry Coreia is an award-winning competitive shooter, a movie-prop-gun master and, yes, an accountant by day – but an urban noir adventure master by night.  He is very bald and lives in Utah.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 560 pages
• Publisher: Baen; Original edition (July 26, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1439134588
• ISBN-13: 978-1439134580
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (91 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #28,471 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Larry Correia is hopelessly addicted to two things, guns and B-horror movies. He lists his occupations: gun dealer, firearms instructor, accountant, and writer, and was until recently part-owner of a company specializing in firearms and movie props. He shoots competitively and is a certified concealed weapons instructor. Larry resides in Utah with his very patient wife and family.

Visit him on the Facebook Group, Monster Hunter International, Hunters Unite! or his blog, larrycorreia.wordpress.com.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#71 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy

#71 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Fantasy

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Whole New Benchmark for Awesome July 19, 2011

By Geoffrey Kidd

Format:Mass Market Paperback

Larry Correia is creating a trademark of ingenuity, innovation, and an absolutely wicked sense of humor. The same things that made the prior books in the series, "Monster Hunter International" (Not your standard elves.) and "Monster Hunter Vendetta" (Stand back! I'm going to fight magic with science.) return in hurricane force.

In this case, the book is more of a solo dip into hellfire for one of the major players in the first two books: Earl Harbinger, MHI's operations chief. He's the oldest living werewolf in the world, and one of the few who is NOT on the U.S. Government's "Kill On Sight" list.

The action in the novel shifts a bit between who Harbinger is now, and the events and people and monsters out of his past who have gathered in Michigan to try and kill him. There's a fine irony in the oldest living werewolf having to be the world's best werewolf destroyer, but Harbinger and the people of the besieged town in which he finds himself stranded must meet the challenge, or the plague of werewolves will spread...

I won't spoil the wonderfully ingenious ways they defend themselves, but I will say my jaw dropped when I realized just what Harbinger and party were up to, and Correia's magnificent two-word description of the results still has me laughing like hell, three months after I read the electronic ARC of this awesome book.

One warning, do not drink anything while actively reading. Stop, sip, swallow and THEN continue, or you risk a very soggy book.

Thank you, Larry. Please keep them coming.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Larry Correia's best MHI book yet July 20, 2011

By P. Gibbs VINE™ VOICE

Format:Mass Market Paperback

This is the "origins" story of Earl Harbinger, who was the chief hunter and leader of Monster Hunter International ("MHI") in the first two books. It is the story of the curse that created the first werewolf. The book is about a battle to save a town from an un-killable werewolf and his "progeny." With all that it's a great story that will keep you up at night to find out what happens next.

I'll leave most of the plot summary to the product description above, except for this: Earl must prevent an uber-werewolf from getting the one magical "device" needed in his plan to overwhelm the world with ravenous and unbeatable packs of werewolves. The struggle unites Earl, a proverbial lone wolf, with a gutsy female sheriff's deputy. To keep the fight from being fair, their adversary has the aid of a sorceress who is the daughter of the necromancer that Owen Pitt defeated in the first book.

This is an action thriller sort of narrative because all of the action takes place within a 48-hour period. In military terms it's purely a meeting engagement because neither side is able to call in reinforcements. This is after all the upper peninsula of Michigan in the middle of a magically enhanced winter storm with a magically induced blackout of all electronic communications.

The whole point of good fantasy stories such as this is to explore moral issues. However it is not just good versus evil. That would be way too simplistic. With Earl Harbinger's "back story" putting a spotlight on the subject, we get into the issue of free will versus the predatory instincts of the werewolf. Even the fascinating story of the creation of the first werewolf is a morality tale.... In creating the first werewolf long ago a prehistoric tribe discovered that resorting to some measures in a war against your enemies carried too high a price in the unintended consequences.

Larry Correia has established himself as a first-rank SF writer with this book. He's a nominee for the John W. Campbell Award at this year's Worldcon for best new SF writer. Read more ›

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Summer Popcorn movie-in-a-book August 3, 2011

By robin brown

Format:Mass Market Paperback

When I was waiting for the latest MHI book to come out, I had a realization- Mr.Correia writes summer blockbuster movies, only in book form. You know that feeling you used to get, looking forward to a big, fun summer movie? Seeing the trailer months before and then eagerly awaiting the release date then sitting in a darkened theatre with a bag of popcorn and a coke, ready for some big fun? The movies that are like a great roller coaster ride that you smile all the way through? For me, that's what the MHI books are like. Great fun.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars It was a dark and stormy night... July 30, 2011

By Feud

Format:Mass Market Paperback

Monster Hunter Alpha takes the series in a new direction, from B-movie monsters and antics to a setting that's as dark as the Michigan winter's night it takes place on.

Guns, werewolves, explosions, and the best use of a snow blower since Fargo. Well worth the price!

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A great next installment !!!! July 26, 2011

By Jason

Format:Mass Market Paperback

Taken as a whole this book is really 2 novellas tossed together in a fantastic way. Larry once again brings his gritty down-to-earth characters out and spins a great yarn about the mysterious leader of MHI: Earl Harbinger. Combining a flashback type journal with a present time case involving an old enemy; this storyline results in some great fun and as usual... GREAT memorable lines. "Who do you think you ARE?!" "Who do i think i am?! I've been kicking monster a** longer than you've been alive, I'm Earl Harbinger Mother****er and don't you forget it." Classic Correia! This is a MUST READ for all MHI fans.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Top Dog August 31, 2011

By Nickolas X. P. Sharps VINE™ VOICE

Format:Mass Market Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Larry Correia's Monster Hunter series is a breath of fresh air in the stagnating genre that is urban fantasy. When a reader picks up a book by Correia he can expect several things. He can expect humor, deep characters, tight plotting, and intense action sequences. Correia's books can be considered B-movie pulp but the truth is that they are so much more intelligent and intricate than the monster movies of yesteryear. Monster Hunter Alpha propels the over-arcing plot of the series while managing to shed light on a fan favorite character.

Have you seen the movie 30 Days of Night? Then the premise of MHA will seem familiar on a very basic level. But then of course you have to take away the vampires and add werewolves. And then make the main character a several hundred year old werewolf himself, who is also a war vet and seasoned monster hunter. Now throw in a ruthless agent of a federal monster control bureau and a team of rival monster hunters. Add an ancient magical talisman, not one but two dastardly villains, and plenty of firepower and you have Monster Hunter Alpha.

Whereas the first two Monster Hunter books are told from the first person perspective of Owen Zastava Pitt, MHA is split into multiple third-person POV's. The main perspective is, of course, Earl Harbinger's. If you're not yet associated with the series Earl can best be described as a one-werewolf army. Other characters include the town sheriff, a federal agent, an ex-KGB werewolf, and an MHI drop out turned entrepreneur. To be honest, I had trouble getting into this book at first. The POV switching at the beginning of a book got to be a bit much, with the perspective shifting a little too quickly for my taste.... Once the stage is set for the confrontation however, Correia gets control of the POV's and the book becomes completely absorbing.

The plot of MHA is true Correia till the end. There are unexpected twists and the stakes are always high. My one complaint concerning the plot is that the big villain reveal lacks a bit of a punch but this was easy enough to look past. The moments that really shine are the bits where MHA is connected to the over-arcing plot of the series. Though the stakes for the individual Monster Hunter books are big, you can tell that Correia is building up to a truly epic finale down the road. Other parts about the novel that I really enjoyed were Earl's journal entries at the beginning of each chapter. These entries really help to flesh out everyone's favorite werewolf. I do wish that Correia had included more descriptions of Earl's time in Vietnam.

Now to the action. Look, it's Larry Correia. If you've read anything by Correia you know what an endorsement that is. They should make a Correia Certified label to throw on books where the action exceeds Hollywood blockbuster budget levels. If you haven't read anything by Correia let me put it this way. There is shooting. There are explosions. There is a giant snowblower used for some super creative werewolf killing. There are shotguns and submachine guns and even a recoilless rifle. Oh yeah. And then there are the close quarters werewolf on werewolf, claw rending fight scenes. It's brutal. And beautiful. No one writes action like Correia.

I had a few complaint about MHA, but nothing that would keep me from buying the book again if my copy went mysteriously missing. Shoot, I'd probably buy it a third or fourth time if my friends continued failing to return it. I do not recommend this book for the feint of heart. I also do not recommend this book as a starting point. Don't be cheap. Go buy Monster Hunter International and Vendetta first. You won't regret it. Read more ›