Killing Rhinos

by Herb Hughes

Sometimes the good guys don't fight fair...

Agrilot, a planet where condemned prisoners were supposed to have a second chance at life, was abandoned by Earth from the start. They were all alone. Or so they thought. Horrific monsters began to burst from the ground. These creatures, quickly dubbed Rhinos, had one purpose, ripping humans to shreds. When people disappeared without a trace, the colonists assumed Rhinos had eaten them. As time passed, a “Rhino Hunter” culture grew. Jack Wheat was the greatest active hunter, but he harbored a secret as he followed his quest for the record. And Jack did not believe the slaughtering beasts ate people. He suspected there was something bizarre happening on Agrilot, something, perhaps, even worse than the great killing machines called Rhinos.

Genres: Science Fiction

360 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 16, 2017

About the author

As a teenager, I knew I wanted to write novels. Over two decades in the computer industry later, and after creating and selling a successful private business, I actually did.

Now, several novels later, I find the process of creation more compelling and more interesting than ever. I write in the present, but my stories are about the past and the future: historical fiction and science fiction. I find both fascinating.

My science fiction is not the typical galactic shoot-'em-up. I prefer to explore the paths less traveled. If you are looking for something a little different, and if your interests are as varied as mine, I invite you to join me on one or more of my adventures.

Reviews

[Ziggy Nixon · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 stars. "It was ok" is more than a fair description of my reading experience, particularly as goodreads takes 3 star reviews and makes them into weighted recommendations for further reading. The story itself has potential overall, but the writing level (below YA) and handling of the plot are amateurish at best. To be blunt: I have no interest whatsoever to read similar stories.

First, an author simply must be able to distinquish between 'your' and 'you're'. One occurence is too many, two cases is infuriating and three just leads me to believe the book wasn't proofread at all.

Secondly, the book starts off as a fairly good 'western ride-along on a distant alien planet' - a tale of a rugged man out hunting terrible beasts is intriquing for sure - but quickly deteriorates into a boring and unsurprising sci-fi-ish (+/-) tale. Hughes plays his more interesting cards far too soon and winds up with enough plotholes to steer a shuttle through, that is, where the story exhibits any originality at all. The writing itself becomes more and more stunted and resembles more a nameless pulp novel than something you'd like to spend good money on, particularly after we 'done did enter that thar' big city!'. With few surprises, it just slogs along without any hope of true excitement, especially during a brief and unnecessarily blunt lecture on the futility of destroying your environment and/or worshipping technology.

It really becomes even difficult to sympathize with anyone in the story as the sides between good and evil are painted so black and white it turns laughable. The characters become more and more clichéd (think 'Bonanza in Space') and you know a story is in trouble when you are actively hoping some of the main PROtagonists wind up dead. Even when we are treated to the 'exciting conclusion' as it were, the few real action scenes are sliced into mere sentences in length (the two Rhino Hunting rivals fight isn't even that long) and the ending is unsatisfying and incomplete.

I'll stop here before I re-rate it down to 1 star.

[Greg Vincent · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has it all!

I enjoyed this book on several levels. It was well thought out from the beginning and everything tied in correctly before the ending. I was definitely left feeling like I knew the characters. Their good, bad, hopes and dreams. This book brings old west heros and future galaxy villains together. Top notch sify noval left me wanting more. And I would love to visit that planet someday, if only in another book.

[Gary Thatcher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast paced

Good read. Kept me interested. Some things worked out to easily. But still interesting read. I would be interested in a sequel.

[Marc S.]

Very interesting read. The ending was not expected. This is an excellent book for adults, because of the subject matter.

[Otis Doss III · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting story. Neat characters. Definitely a unique story. I give it a 5 because 4 is too low and 4.5 is not available.