I do love me some gritty urban fantasy, so when The Man Eating Bookworm reviewed this novella by up-and-coming Canadian author, Ian Rogers, it caught my eye.

Set in a world in which monsters do exist and the borders between our dimension and a hellish one known as the Black Lands exists as well, Felix is a burned-out private eye with an ex-wife and bills to pay. His latest job has him looking into the background of a movie star who went on a psychotic rampage, in the guise of a vampir More...

While I'll admit that during the first chapter of this quick chapbook I rolled my eyes and said, "No! NOT another vampire story!," Ian Rogers had me hooked by the middle of the second and keeps things fresh till the end.

Private Investigator Felix comes across a vampire at a restaurant and manages to off him with a makeshift stake. When he finds an actor's guild card after frisking the deceased vamp, Felix decides to check things out and soon finds himself dealing with " More...

I don't, normally, read short stories but for only having 37 pages, this little chapbook had me turning them as fast as I could.

The writing is tight and fairly fast paced; the author is comfortable writing in the short story genre and it shows... there is no purple prose or extrenous drivel on these pages. Everything is there for a reason and it all works to move the story forward. The dialogue is snappy and doesn't feel forced or contrite and the action scenes are well choreogra More...

Rogers' world of movie stars and far-off lands rings with the wit of Chandler and the balls of Matheson. He has a knack for the perfect turn of phrase, whether it's a bon-mot from Ren's mouth or the staggering sensation the horrors he encounters inflicts on him. "Temporary Monsters" has all the markings of a best-selling concept, and to see it here on the ground floor is exciting. Rogers' has such sights to show us, and I for one cannot wait to get a look.

Fun monster mash-up with noir.

Right from the 1st line, “The waiter got killed before he could drop off the bill”, which is so stark, it immediately plunges you into the heart of the action, readers are thrown into a world where monsters are the norm and the Paranormal Intelligence Agency (PIA) and the paranormal itself acts as a dangling carrot that entices both readers and Renn alike.

For my full review, check out Bloody Bookish.