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geekwayne's review against another edition
4.0
'Escape from Yokai Land' by Charles Stross is a novella in the Laundry Files series that explains main character Bob Howard's absence from book 7.
Bob finds himself assigned to work with the Miyamoto Group in Tokyo to check wards to keep evil out. His hosts put him through a series of lower level tests fighting yokai. Bob puts up with this, then realizes there are bigger things afoot. Bob takes a trip to an amusement park and finds a gigantic yokai there, and now the fight is on.
I like this series and this side story was pretty fun. Bob is competent but always finds himself in situations that seem well out of his pay grade.
Bob finds himself assigned to work with the Miyamoto Group in Tokyo to check wards to keep evil out. His hosts put him through a series of lower level tests fighting yokai. Bob puts up with this, then realizes there are bigger things afoot. Bob takes a trip to an amusement park and finds a gigantic yokai there, and now the fight is on.
I like this series and this side story was pretty fun. Bob is competent but always finds himself in situations that seem well out of his pay grade.
nigellicus's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
5.0
Bob goes to Japan to fight an eldritch manifestuation of cuteness and sentimentality in the form of Hello Kitty and assorted other lesser avatars of predatory cuteness feeding on childish adoration. That's the joke, and it doesn't outstay its welcome, and its awlays nce to have acerbic cantankerous Bob back saving the world and filing expenses.
arcanumxiii's review against another edition
4.0
So, Bob is back. Well, maybe not with Mo, but you see what I mean... and it's a joy to behold. At least for the short time you'll spend with him — it's a novella after all.
I do appreciate that after the detour in super territory, vampire and elf, we follow again for a bit a loved character. I hope we'll have soon moar!
I do appreciate that after the detour in super territory, vampire and elf, we follow again for a bit a loved character. I hope we'll have soon moar!
annieb123's review against another edition
5.0
Originally posted on my blog: Nonstop Reader.
Escape from Yokai Land is a novella in the Laundry Files by Charles Stross. Released 1st March 2022 by Macmillan on their Tordotcom imprint, it's 96 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.
I love the sense of gonzo out-of-control wall-to-wall hysterical madness for which the Laundry Files are well known. This is more of the same, and featuring Bob (!!! YAY!). For readers who adore paranormal bureaucratic fantasy, this is the top shelf good stuff. For fans of Aaronovitch, Doctorow, Simon Green, and the other boys in the band - this is not derivative at all, but ticks the same boxes for me as the aforementioned. It's funny, full on chaos, darkly humorous, and absolutely full of malicious compliance and government incompetence. I also love the fact that there's deep nerdiness in the form of a math/physics/programming component to magic and that the agents are really smart (and very nerdy).
For readers who are not already invested in the series, it's convoluted, and this one won't work particularly well as a standalone. The series is up to 9 books plus tie ins in the form of the New Management series, so it's a great candidate for a very long weekend's binge read.
Four and a half stars. I recommend it to humorous SF fans unreservedly.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
Escape from Yokai Land is a novella in the Laundry Files by Charles Stross. Released 1st March 2022 by Macmillan on their Tordotcom imprint, it's 96 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.
I love the sense of gonzo out-of-control wall-to-wall hysterical madness for which the Laundry Files are well known. This is more of the same, and featuring Bob (!!! YAY!). For readers who adore paranormal bureaucratic fantasy, this is the top shelf good stuff. For fans of Aaronovitch, Doctorow, Simon Green, and the other boys in the band - this is not derivative at all, but ticks the same boxes for me as the aforementioned. It's funny, full on chaos, darkly humorous, and absolutely full of malicious compliance and government incompetence. I also love the fact that there's deep nerdiness in the form of a math/physics/programming component to magic and that the agents are really smart (and very nerdy).
For readers who are not already invested in the series, it's convoluted, and this one won't work particularly well as a standalone. The series is up to 9 books plus tie ins in the form of the New Management series, so it's a great candidate for a very long weekend's binge read.
Four and a half stars. I recommend it to humorous SF fans unreservedly.
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.
feoh's review
5.0
I think it's important to expectation set for my review of this book. This Novella does NOT have the gravitas of a Laundry Files classic like _The Atrocity Archives_. It is a fun romp through a Sanrio themed fantasy land with a deliciously dark and demonic character only Stross can provide.
This most definitely shouldn't be your first journey into the Laundry Files universe. For that I suggest starting at the beginning.
Those things out of the way, this novella was a heck of a lot of fun. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The little bits of quirky humor aimed squarely at both fans of the series and anime fans/Japanese culture fans are spot on.
Not every meal you eat needs to be a 5 star Michelin experience. Sometimes a tasty plate of shawarma or even a burger and fries can be good for the soul :)
This most definitely shouldn't be your first journey into the Laundry Files universe. For that I suggest starting at the beginning.
Those things out of the way, this novella was a heck of a lot of fun. I thoroughly enjoyed it. The little bits of quirky humor aimed squarely at both fans of the series and anime fans/Japanese culture fans are spot on.
Not every meal you eat needs to be a 5 star Michelin experience. Sometimes a tasty plate of shawarma or even a burger and fries can be good for the soul :)
ashtardeza's review against another edition
5.0
I missed Bob!
The newer books in the Laundry Files series are good... but it was so good to return to the tone and viewpoint of Bob and the Laundry.
Honestly I'd love to see more of how they are holding up under the New Management.
The newer books in the Laundry Files series are good... but it was so good to return to the tone and viewpoint of Bob and the Laundry.
Honestly I'd love to see more of how they are holding up under the New Management.
ineffablebob's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This is more of a story than a novel, a short piece to fill in the gap where Bob is missing from earlier novels. It's perfectly fine, I enjoyed it, but there's just not really enough here to mean much if you're not already deep in the Laundry Files universe. Read it if you already like the series; if you don't, this one isn't going to change how you feel.
voodude's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0