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yodamom's review
4.0
New York rats have a bad reputation, and this book is not going to win them any positive vibes. The long asked question may finally be answered-Who is the king of the cement jungle ? Man or rat, the battle is on ! Welcome to fight club, rat vs man, all rules off the table, only one can win.
It's all fun and games till the rat pops out of the mouth. Oh yeh expect to cringe, chuckle and shutter as you read along. Keep a hockey stick close, and be ready to run. Oh my, I loved the ending the skittering sound...so Carrie with once last EEKK or squeak depending on your humanity level.
Thanks NetGalley and publishers for the review copy.
debtat2's review
4.0
I picked this up with the hindsight that it was going to be a tongue in cheek b-horror kind of story and it certainly was that! But it is a quick entertaining read which kept me steaming through it and it's a perfect Sunday lazy afternoon kind of book.
I doubt it will leave many people scared unless you have a severe phobia of rats! If you do you best avoid this one
I wish I had saved some of the great lines peppered throughout it, my memory is terrible but I do remember one of them had something to do with tails being like satans ariels maybe? I'm going to have to flick back through it to find it as it amused me!
“Possibly a thousand rats were on our tail, their own tails bobbing like Satan’s spaghetti.”
Now that has got to go down as a classic surely?!! :-)
Throughly enjoyed this book and I will be hunting out more of Hunter Shea's books.
Rattus New Yorkus was published yesterday 21st August 2018 and can be purchased for the amazing price of £1.81 now from Amazon
I doubt it will leave many people scared unless you have a severe phobia of rats! If you do you best avoid this one
I wish I had saved some of the great lines peppered throughout it, my memory is terrible but I do remember one of them had something to do with tails being like satans ariels maybe? I'm going to have to flick back through it to find it as it amused me!
“Possibly a thousand rats were on our tail, their own tails bobbing like Satan’s spaghetti.”
Now that has got to go down as a classic surely?!! :-)
Throughly enjoyed this book and I will be hunting out more of Hunter Shea's books.
Rattus New Yorkus was published yesterday 21st August 2018 and can be purchased for the amazing price of £1.81 now from Amazon
mellabella's review
4.0
Hunter Shea, you could have made this a little longer for us!
What a fun read! The premise seems realistic if you've ever come across an NYC rat. They are big, bold, brazen and will attack. But most importably, they're smart (as rats tend to be).
Which honestly, makes this a cautionary tale of sorts.
The MC and his wife are awesome as is the action. Its very well written.
If you love creature feature horror. Loved either of the Willard movies? This is for you.
What a fun read! The premise seems realistic if you've ever come across an NYC rat. They are big, bold, brazen and will attack. But most importably, they're smart (as rats tend to be).
Which honestly, makes this a cautionary tale of sorts.
The MC and his wife are awesome as is the action. Its very well written.
If you love creature feature horror. Loved either of the Willard movies? This is for you.
vikingwolf's review
3.0
Two exterminators have realised that the rats in the city have started to get smarter and avoiding their traps, as other catchers in the business are also reporting. Benny and Chris are amongst those given a new poison which aims to make the rats sterile and unable to breed but it soon becomes clear that it is turning them more aggressive and not preventing breeding. Now the rats are starting to overrun the entire city and attack any humans they encounter. The inventor of the poison Dr 'Ratticus' Finch is sure that his drug is not to blame and wants to see the rats for himself but by now they are a threat to anything living.
This was the typical creature feature where something nasty is on the loose and killing people while the heroes try to stop it. You can't go far wrong with that kind of thing and this one proves to be a decent horror story. Benny and Chris have split up but still maintain a good working relationship as they try to work out what is changing the rats. They are characters that you can like and root for. There are some good action sequences with rat attacks for the horror fans to enjoy and there are the usual characters that you don't mind being chomped! It's hard to say much else without giving away all the plot but if you like the author and creature features, you'll probably like this short horror read.
This was the typical creature feature where something nasty is on the loose and killing people while the heroes try to stop it. You can't go far wrong with that kind of thing and this one proves to be a decent horror story. Benny and Chris have split up but still maintain a good working relationship as they try to work out what is changing the rats. They are characters that you can like and root for. There are some good action sequences with rat attacks for the horror fans to enjoy and there are the usual characters that you don't mind being chomped! It's hard to say much else without giving away all the plot but if you like the author and creature features, you'll probably like this short horror read.
dnemec's review
4.0
I know rats are supposed to be smart, but I have no idea if they are this smart. Good god, I hope not!
Chris and Benny (short for Benita) are contract exterminators for NYC. Despite going through a divorce, they are partners in their pest removal business. Dr. Randolph Finch (AKA Ratticus) has created a new rodenticide called Degenesis. While it does not kill the rats, it sterilizes them. The city has decided that all their exterminators will use the new Degenesis.
After baiting the traps with Degenesis, Chris and Benny return to a local Italian restaurant with a pest problem. Turns out, the problem is even worse now. Not only are the rats multiplying, but they are becoming more aggressive. Desperate to believe that this is an aberration, Dr. Finch accompanies Chris into an abandoned building to check the traps. In the basement, they find hundreds of rats tripping over each other to reach them. Having locked themselves in the building to keep out the dangerous humans, the cowardly doctor and Chris end up forcing their way out of a second story window and down the fire escape. After their near-death escape, they can see the rats piled in the windows and watching them.
Then after the population explosion, the rats mysteriously disappear. But where did they go? And what are they planning?
I adore Hunter Shea and his creature features. I recently watched an extraordinarily cheesy old creature feature from the 50s, and I couldn't help but think that Shea does this, only makes it believable for today's audience. It's not hard to believe that a lab rat (see what I did there?) could create a "new and better" rat eradicator and royally mess it up. And I love the humor. After some police kept the rats back with their sidearms, Chris says: "Guess they don't like guns...Good thing the little monsters are liberals." Later on, Dr. Finch calls to say that the rats that had been captured and studied had killed themselves. Chris asks: "So, how did they die?...Was it pills? Did they make out with the business end of a thirty-eight special?" The end was a little darker than I thought it would be, but not unexpected and very fitting. Definitely an enjoyable Shea creature feature!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
Chris and Benny (short for Benita) are contract exterminators for NYC. Despite going through a divorce, they are partners in their pest removal business. Dr. Randolph Finch (AKA Ratticus) has created a new rodenticide called Degenesis. While it does not kill the rats, it sterilizes them. The city has decided that all their exterminators will use the new Degenesis.
After baiting the traps with Degenesis, Chris and Benny return to a local Italian restaurant with a pest problem. Turns out, the problem is even worse now. Not only are the rats multiplying, but they are becoming more aggressive. Desperate to believe that this is an aberration, Dr. Finch accompanies Chris into an abandoned building to check the traps. In the basement, they find hundreds of rats tripping over each other to reach them. Having locked themselves in the building to keep out the dangerous humans, the cowardly doctor and Chris end up forcing their way out of a second story window and down the fire escape. After their near-death escape, they can see the rats piled in the windows and watching them.
Then after the population explosion, the rats mysteriously disappear. But where did they go? And what are they planning?
I adore Hunter Shea and his creature features. I recently watched an extraordinarily cheesy old creature feature from the 50s, and I couldn't help but think that Shea does this, only makes it believable for today's audience. It's not hard to believe that a lab rat (see what I did there?) could create a "new and better" rat eradicator and royally mess it up. And I love the humor. After some police kept the rats back with their sidearms, Chris says: "Guess they don't like guns...Good thing the little monsters are liberals." Later on, Dr. Finch calls to say that the rats that had been captured and studied had killed themselves. Chris asks: "So, how did they die?...Was it pills? Did they make out with the business end of a thirty-eight special?" The end was a little darker than I thought it would be, but not unexpected and very fitting. Definitely an enjoyable Shea creature feature!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.
jo_in_bookland's review
4.0
I listened to the audio of this story, 1 of 3 included the One Size Eats All compilation. The narration was done by a full cast and there were plenty of sound effects. This really added to the experience of this creature feature although at times they got to be a bit much.
This was my first time reading Hunter Shea and I liked it! The story was well done, horror mixed with funny bits and the characters were well developed.
I look forward to the other two stories in this audio compilation.
This was my first time reading Hunter Shea and I liked it! The story was well done, horror mixed with funny bits and the characters were well developed.
I look forward to the other two stories in this audio compilation.
n0rmann's review
5.0
Man, this one was fun. A lot of people may be grossed out by this, but the action was wonderfully violent and the idea is terrifying. My favorite Hunter Shea story yet.
catsluvcoffee's review
5.0
"I'd seen a lot of crazy shit in my day, but this one took the cake, the plate, and the fork right out from under me."
Exterminators Chris and soon-to-be ex-wife, Benny (short for Benita), handle pest management, saving New York one rodent at a time. Even though they mid-divorce, they are still in the business together. When a new rodenticide is developed to sterilize the urban ratties, the lucky pair start doling it out to the not-so-lucky city rats. Except as they quickly discover, it's not doing what it's marketed to do. The rats are becoming something else...
Read my review at Cats Luv Coffee
Exterminators Chris and soon-to-be ex-wife, Benny (short for Benita), handle pest management, saving New York one rodent at a time. Even though they mid-divorce, they are still in the business together. When a new rodenticide is developed to sterilize the urban ratties, the lucky pair start doling it out to the not-so-lucky city rats. Except as they quickly discover, it's not doing what it's marketed to do. The rats are becoming something else...
Read my review at Cats Luv Coffee
trish204's review
5.0
Hunter Shea, by now, is a sure win for me. Well, not always but almost always. The previous book was about giant iguanas running rampant in Florida. This one had New York rats. *shudders*
It always fascinated me how pet rats were so incredibly clean and downright friendly while the wild variety is carrying almost every disease known to man. What they always are is smart as hell. And in this short book, that is exactly what's the problem.
A scientist is tinkering with whatever chemical formula in order to help exterminators in New York City to handle the rat problem better. However, that has unexpected side-effects and soon people are dying left and right and whole gangs of rats are cleaning out the neighbourhoods.
This would make an excellent b-movie. Seriously. It's just the right mix of monstrous creatures, mad science, military action, and ordinary people caught in the middle.
So much blood, so many "fireworks" ... so goooood. *evil grin*
It always fascinated me how pet rats were so incredibly clean and downright friendly while the wild variety is carrying almost every disease known to man. What they always are is smart as hell. And in this short book, that is exactly what's the problem.
A scientist is tinkering with whatever chemical formula in order to help exterminators in New York City to handle the rat problem better. However, that has unexpected side-effects and soon people are dying left and right and whole gangs of rats are cleaning out the neighbourhoods.
This would make an excellent b-movie. Seriously. It's just the right mix of monstrous creatures, mad science, military action, and ordinary people caught in the middle.
So much blood, so many "fireworks" ... so goooood. *evil grin*
djerra's review
4.0
"If you can't kill the rats, get the hell out of the kitchen" - Old exterminator saying