Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
Monster Hunter Memoirs: Grunge  By  cover art

Monster Hunter Memoirs: Grunge

By: John Ringo,Larry Correia
Narrated by: Oliver Wyman
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $24.95

Buy for $24.95

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

Two multiple New York Times best-selling authors team up to expand Larry Correia's Monster Hunter universe!

When marine private Oliver Chadwick Gardenier is killed in the marine barrack bombing in Beirut, somebody who might be Saint Peter gives him a choice: Go to heaven, which, while nice, might be a little boring, or return to earth. The Boss has a mission for him, and he's to look for a sign. He's a marine: He'll choose the mission.

Unfortunately, the sign he's to look for is "57". Which, given the food services contract in Bethesda Hospital, creates some difficulty. Eventually it appears that God's will is for Chad to join a group called Monster Hunters International and protect people from things that go bump in the night. From there, things trend downhill.

Monster Hunter Memoirs is the (mostly) true story of the life and times of one of MHI's most effective - and flamboyant - hunters. Protips for up-and-coming hunters range from how to dress appropriately for jogging (low-profile body armor and multiple weapons) to how to develop contacts among the Japanese yakuza to why it's not a good idea to make billy goat jokes to trolls.

Grunge harkens back to the Golden Days of Monster Hunting, when Reagan was in office, Ray and Susan Shackleford were top hunters, and Seattle sushi was authentic.

©2016 Larry Correia and John Ringo (P)2016 Audible, Inc.

What listeners say about Monster Hunter Memoirs: Grunge

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    5,150
  • 4 Stars
    1,367
  • 3 Stars
    398
  • 2 Stars
    125
  • 1 Stars
    96
Performance
  • 5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    5,554
  • 4 Stars
    887
  • 3 Stars
    123
  • 2 Stars
    25
  • 1 Stars
    19
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    4,584
  • 4 Stars
    1,280
  • 3 Stars
    440
  • 2 Stars
    143
  • 1 Stars
    140

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

My first in the monster hunter series


This was not a very interesting book. The main character was very one demential and so full of himself, that it was a constant distraction from the book. The entire storyline of monster hunting sounded like it would be fun, and I will probably try a different one that Larry Correia wrote alone.

I think the reader did a good job on this book considering he was being paid to read such drivel. I hope to hear him again in another book soon.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

119 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Stop. Just Stop. Do Not Pass Go. Do Not Collect $$

Potential Reader. Stop. Do not purchase this steaming pile of crap.

I own all the other books in this series and have thoroughly enjoyed every single one of them. I was very excited to see a new one coming out so close to my birthday. So it is with a very heavy heart that I give this book a very bad review. Nothing against the reader. He does an amazing performance and I look forward to seeing more books read by him.

We all know and love Larry Correia's work from all of his previous books. I find it very interesting that he's opened the world of MHI for other authors to put in their own works. This is very rarely done, if ever, and allows fresh works to come in. However, it also allows steaming rotten garbage filth like Ringo to pollute the waters.

Monster Hunter Memoirs is told from the perspective of a possibly dead hunters journal. This book has something like seven to eight different short stories in it. Touching on important events throughout the main characters life, with no real connection between any of them.
The main character Chad is raised during the late 50's, 60's, and 70's by a College Professor father and a mother who, while being a notable anthropologist spends most of her time mingling in political circles advocating for rights and notoriously against any form of violence. Chad's dad dishes out grades based on how good the sex was, and his mother disapproved of everything Chad does. By preschool he was so smart he was doing algebra. By the time he was nine years old he had taught himself fluency in close to 9 different languages; at-least two of which are considered dead or lost languages. He's a savant violinist, has an IQ greater than Einstein, Master of at least two different martial arts, A Top-Tier Marksman, and a Custom Gun Engineer.

That my fellow readers is literally, Text-Book Definition of a "Mary Sue" Character.

Characters like this belong at the bottom pile of fan fiction stories. These are the kinds of characters you create when you are just learning how to write short stories. It's easily one of the first No-No's of any higher education classes. The character is simply unbelievable. Seriously. In this book you will hear how he single-handedly defeated a Master Vampire, in a cramped hallway with all of his teammates trying to get up after being paralyzed by Wights... with a Katana. He ends up with "good connections" in the Yakuza, CIA, Special Agent Stricken, and many others.

Yeah, I'm spoiling the book. Because I'm trying to show you how shit-tastic this book is.
And Mr. Ringo has Book 2 coming out this Winter! Do not support this!

If you have no qualms with reading a story that literally takes a steaming pile of shit on everything Mr. Correia has built up over the past 5 books. Then by all means. Get this. The only reason I am not returning this, is because I have family that wants to read this one. If they can finish it before September, I will be dropping this one and I will not be getting the next one.

Honestly, I'm surprised Mr. Correia and his Publisher even let this one get through. It's like he couldn't be bothered to read it and just signed the okay to let Mr. Ringo run away with it. if you want an author that will do you justice for this series/world. get almost any other author except John Ringo.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

96 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars
  • KP
  • 08-05-16

Definitely Not Correia

Simply put, just not as good as the regular series. Sorta like listening to 8 hours of some drunk guy bragging about how awesome he is, how many girls he's had and how much of a badass he is. Just not as good as the regular series.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

68 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Subtraction by addition

What would have made Monster Hunter Memoirs: Grunge better?

Written by someone other than Ringo.

What do you think your next listen will be?

Not a book by Ringo.

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

Narrator did a decent job.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

I like Correia's world and characters (MHI and others), and I will read the next by Correia as long as Ringo isn't involved.

Any additional comments?

John Ringo created a completely unlikable Mary Sue character who is instantly expert at everything, yet petty, cruel, vindictive, and childish. This book also reads like a libertarian recruiting pamphlet with heavy doses of anti-liberal hate mongering diatribes. While Correia's politics can bleed into his stories, with his main POV characters often reflecting his personal beliefs, they are nonetheless well conceived, nuanced, and usually likable, and his stories are also populated by other characters with varied beliefs, also well conceived and written. Correia also has a wry, enjoyable sense of humor. All in all I feel Correia's politics are obvious in his stories, but his writing is done skillfully enough to not limit his audience to only die-hard libertarian wish-fulfillment man-boys. Not so Ringo. This book felt like being trapped at a family dinner by your divorced Libertarian Uncle ranting about all the libtards who are destroying the country while he desperately tries to explain why no-one understands just how smart he really is. In short, Ringo and Correia might have similar politics, but they are worlds apart in writing talent. This book is only worth reading if you want conclusive proof of that fact.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

59 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

This is barely an MHI story

The protagonist is one of the most annoying characters I have read since Holden Caulfield; every chance he gets we are reminded that he is a genius and really likes sex ... Whether it serves the story or not.

I haven't read any of John Ringo's stories (and I most likely won't after this) but I wonder if he has a fetish? The character "Iron Hand" is a braggart and comes of like a sad little man embellishing stories for the kids he hangs around to make himself feel cool.

I also wonder if Mr. Ringo's read any of the other MHI stories; there is a disturbing lack of evidence that he has. Earl Harbinger would punch "Iron Hand" in the mouth and then fire him.

I love being back in that work I just didn't care for my guide.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

47 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Nowhere near as good as MHI

This book is every bit as misogynistic as some people wrongly accuse the MHI series of being. The gun-nerd details are way more intrusive and boring to non-gun-nerds than anything in the MHI series. And the main character is a textbook (seriously, seriously textbook) Mary Sue who is not remotely likable or interesting. (The most irritating aspect of his Mary-Sue-ness is how he's just SO MUCH AWESOMER than the actual, canon MHI characters, as stated by this author's versions of those canon characters.)

This book is fanfic, pure and simple, including that most basic and common of beginner fanfic errors: the Mary Sue. The fact that it's got the stamp of approval from the original author and publisher doesn't change this fact.

While Larry Correia remains one of my favorite authors, this book has convinced me never to read anything else by John Ringo.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

47 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Torn on this one

As a fan of the RPG I really loved the additional background information about the world of Monster Hunter that was found in the book. I assume that this material that was created by Mr. Correia. Unfortunately again and again throughout the book the character of Oliver Gardenier ruined much of my enjoyment. Mr. Ringo's character is a poorly conceived, 2 dimensional Mary Sue that was bluntly boring. It doesn't help that Garenier is constantly interacting with a lot of Mr. Correia's well developed characters and always comes off looking second best.

I applaud Mr. Correia's decision on allowing others to play in his fantastic world. Certainly there is a lot of room for this to happen. It's just too bad that this first attempt had such a poor designed main character.

As for Mr. Wyman's performance: He does an excellent job as always with the material. I was easily able to follow flow of the story based upon character accents alone. Just one minor quibble; Spokane is pronounced Spo-can not Spo-cane. In this the Google age I was surprised that such a mistake made it through to the final copy.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

45 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
  • TL
  • 10-02-16

This Abomination Broke My Heart

What would have made Monster Hunter Memoirs: Grunge better?

If Larry Correia had written it on his own.

What do you think your next listen will be?

A re-listen of the previous MHI books so I can remember how good this series can be.

What does Oliver Wyman bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Oliver Wyman is a wonderful performer and has always done an excellent job with the MHI books.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Monster Hunter Memoirs: Grunge?

Pretty much everything with and about Chad.

Any additional comments?

I am a huge fan of the MHI series but I was very disappointed with this book. One of my favorite things about Larry Correia's writing is his character development. The characters of MHI and The Grimnoir Chronicles are awesome and developed to the point where you feel like they're real people. The characters in this book were not. The main character is annoying most of the time and I wasn't able to get on his side. He spends a good portion of the book whining about his mother who is supposed to be someone you hate, but is so one dimensional I found myself rolling my eyes whenever she popped up. Larry Correia has always written amazing, strong female characters (even the villains) and I was disheartened to see that in this book all the other female characters are merely plot devices for the main character; someone for him to sleep with or think about sleeping with. Also, for this to be a MHI book, there is very little monster hunting taking place. The main character spends so much time talking about how great he is that he doesn't really have time to tell about the cases he has worked. With respect to both authors, I hope this partnership is short lived. I would love to see Mr. Correia write more MHI.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

42 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Absolutely horrid!

Unbelievably, I stopped listening to this novel after only about 45 minutes into it. Unbelievable since each of these authors past works have earned them a special place into my "Go To" list when searching for new books based on their past accomplishments.

Not only was almost every paragraph profanity strewn but the protagonist constantly harangued on about hating his family, especially his mother. He even often reveled into thoughts of killing her. Then, the rest of the paragraphs went on and on about how absolutely exceptional he was in terms of intelligence and just about every other pursuit he set his mind onto.

Blech!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

34 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Oof!

Have you listened to any of Oliver Wyman’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Wyman's narration is the only good thing about this abomination.

Any additional comments?

Loved the MHI books. The main character in this book is the whiniest, douchiest a-hole I've ever endured. It seems unlikely that the author was trying to write a character that would make me root for the monsters but if he was and I have completely misunderstood this book, bravo.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

31 people found this helpful