Buddy Read: Swamp Monster Massacre by Hunter Shea

After an unfortunate run in with some drug dealers, Rooster Murphy finds himself stealing a boat full of tourists in the Florida swamps. To make matters worse, he mows down a Bigfoot, and it’s family are out for blood.

It’s turning out to be one heck of a bad day for Rooster.

When I suggested to Janine Pipe that I’d like to do a buddy read with her, she said fine, as long as the book was by Hunter Shea. At the time I hadn’t read any of his work and was eager to discover a new author, so we settled on Swamp Monster Massacre.

What a ride! Shea presents an unlikable protagonist in Rooster, yet gives him enough depth to make him human. He’s pretty tough, so he stands a good chance against a swamp full of vengeful Bigfoot.

The standout of the novel for me were the creatures. Longtime readers will know I was on a Bigfoot kick last year (it’s dinosaurs this year, fwiw). I know a lot about the lore of the big guy, and the different bipedal ape species that are found around the world (there are even marked differences in the US depending on region, although it’s hard to tell if they are different species or sub or ring species), and I appreciated how much work the author put into making the creature authentic. The Bigfoot in this book is a believable animal, with motive, and is a formidable enemy.

This is a short novel, with breakneck pacing and lots of action. It’s violent and fun, and would have been a five star read for me apart from a scene near the end that I felt jarred with the rest of the book, was gratuitous, and didn’t fit in with the behavior of the creature that had been presented up to that point.

I award Swamp Monster Massacre…