Emperor Mollusk Versus the Sinister Brain

By: A. Lee Martinez

Narrated by: Scott Aiello

Length: 7 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's summary

Emperor Mollusk. Intergalactic Menace. Destroyer of Worlds. Conqueror of Other Worlds. Mad Genius. Ex-Warlord of Earth. Not bad for a guy without a spine. But what's a villain to do after he's done... everything.

With no new ambitions, he's happy to pitch in and solve the energy crisis or repel aliens invaders should the need arise, but if he had his way, he'd prefer to be left alone to explore the boundaries of dangerous science. Just as a hobby, of course. Retirement isn't easy though. If the boredom doesn't get him, there's always the Venusians. Or the Saturnites. Or the Mercurials. Or... well, you get the idea. If that wasn't bad enough, there's also the assassins of a legendary death cult and an up-and-coming megalomaniac (as brilliant as he is bodiless) who have marked Emperor for their own nefarious purposes.

But Mollusk isn't about to let the Earth slip out of his own tentacles and into the less capable clutches of another. So it's time to dust off the old death ray and come out of retirement. Except this time, he's not out to rule the world. He's out to save it from the peril of the Sinister Brain!

©2012 A. Lee Martinez (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Hilariously wacky!

Any additional comments?

Everyone knows that that the invertebrates of Neptune are the most intelligent minds in the galaxy. That’s how, years ago, a bored mollusk from Neptune was able to conquer the Earth and set himself up as Warlord. To subdue the planet he had to use a few nasty tricks such as doping the water supply with anti-aggression drugs, but now that he has all of humanity under his tentacle, Emperor Mollusk is actually a pretty swell guy and he has even developed a soft spot (or should I say “softer spot”) for planet Earth, though he’ll be quick to tell you that he’s not reformed — just retired. Nowadays, he spends most of his time tinkering in his laboratory and coming up with ways to solve Earth’s numerous problems. He fixed the energy crisis long ago and so far he’s been able to protect Earth from aliens from Mars, Venus, and Saturn. Pretty good for a slimy cephalopod that you could easily squash under the heel of your boot.

Unfortunately, most of Emperor Mollusk’s experiments on Earth tend to cause unexpected and dastardly consequences, and the emperor usually ends up needing to develop even more brilliant solutions to the problems he created. Emperor Mollusk Versus the Sinister Brain is an account of the Emperor’s various adventures as he attempts to save humans from all the disasters that would not have befallen them if the Emperor had never set his slippery tentacle on the planet in the first place. Disasters such as an island of radioactive dinosaurs, giant fireants, missing countries, an anti-time radio, and the rampaging brain of Madam Curie. He even has to deal with assassins from Atlantis, killer scorpions, a clone of himself, and the sinister brain who wants to challenge him for world domination.

Emperor Mollusk Versus the Sinister Brain, A. Lee Martinez’s newest novel, is a hilariously wacky story with a preposterous premise, impossible characters, and an absurd plot. I’m rather picky about humorous fantasy so I’m surprised that I enjoyed the non-stop comedy here, but Martinez has his pacing down and he knows exactly when to stop. I like Martinez’s bizarre situations and droll sense of humor, and he balances all of it with a well-developed protagonist who we can’t help but love, even though he’s slimy (literally) and he keeps telling us he’s an evil overlord.

Fans of Douglas Adams’ THE HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO THE GALAXY shouldn’t miss Emperor Mollusk Versus the Sinister Brain. Let me highly recommend the audio version produced by Audible Frontiers and performed by actor Scott Aiello. This was the first time I’d heard Mr. Aiello (he is a new narrator) and I was extremely impressed with his performance — he made the novel even funnier. He was absolutely perfect for this role and I look forward to hearing more from him in the future.

Worthy sci-fi / pulp trope humor. I loved it.

I wrote a remarkably similar review for one of this author's other novels, but the same holds true here...

If you like Neil Gaiman, Douglas Adams, Robert Asprin, Christopher Moore or Terry Pratchett, then this is a mug of ale or glass of wine from the same brewery my friend. Some good ol' light-hearted fun.

Sci-fi/fantasy Comedy

This is a delightfully funny tale about a former super villain and super genius, Emperor Mollusk, who is so incredibly brilliant, he becomes bored and creates dooms day inventions that he then must save the earth from. Very entertaining. Great narration. The story wandered a little but still delivered a great listen.

You Won Because You Won

APOLOGIZING FOR CONDESCENSION IS USUALLY CONDESCENSION ITSELF.
Almost every planet and moon in the solar system has intelligent life. About the only planets not mentioned where Mercury and Uranus. We also have people from Atlantis, the Bermuda Triangle, Mole People, Dinosaur Island, etc...

This is a light fun listen. It is smartly written. It is amazing all the characters and places, Martinez is able to squeeze into it. It is not LOL, but mostly a feel good smile type of book.

I liked it, but did not love it like I have Christopher Moore or John Scalzi.

The narrator did an amazing job. He did several characters, all done well. He understood the material and portrayed it just as the author should have wanted.

THERE ARE ENOUGH BOOKS LIKE THIS!

If you get this book and like it then try "Confessions of a D List Supervillain" 1st and then get "Soon I Will Be Invincible". Try them because I loved them just like this book. We need more books like these. These stories are just FUN!! that's the best way to describe it.....they may not win some snooty literary award but they will put a big fat smile on your face.

A fun tale about an alien squid!

I always enjoy a story told from the viewpoint of an egotistical villainous super-genius. The tone is refreshingly free of angst and worry; just cold, calculated, clever, and often overly polite, dialogue. Emperor Mollusk is just so damn intelligent - and he knows it - and yet relate-able, I could not help listening to the entire book with a smirk or a chuckle just waiting to come out. That is a credit to A Lee Martinez; straddling the line between likable and dastardly can be tricky.

Perhaps much of my enjoyment from this book is delivered by Scott Aiello and his masterful performance. His range of voices is rather large and none of them sounded forced or out of place. And he absolutely nailed Mollusk. I felt I could actually hear the facial expressions through his performance - which is kind of ironic given the character himself states that his species' features are notoriously difficult to read.

The story itself was good, well told, and enjoyable. It wasn't particularly original, though, so I took some points off. I thought it was interesting that, despite the fact the story takes place on Earth (known as Terra in this book), there was almost a complete lack of human characters in it. There were Neptunians, Venusians, giant robots of all sizes, pterodactyls with lazer-vision, and a rather adorable cybernetically enhanced, giant killer-centipede and all of them were well-crafted by the author. So, while I do feel like this was a rather simplistic adventure, hopping from one sinister death trap to the next, I think that is exactly what the author intended it to be. It is what it is, and the author embraced every bit of it.

This was a funny, enjoyable, worthwhile listen and I would recommend it to anyone who likes Sci-fi.

FANTASTIC narrator !!!

What made the experience of listening to Emperor Mollusk Versus the Sinister Brain the most enjoyable?

The narrator was FANTASTIC. His tone, accents, use of voices, etc. made the experience

What did you like best about this story?

The attitude of the bored super-genius villain was a nice change of pace.

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

This is the first of his I have heard but I will put him on top of my list.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

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Any additional comments?

LOVED the narrator.

Absolute Fun!

This book was so much fun to listen to. The narration is top-notch and really brings the story to life. One of A. Lee Martinez's best so far, second only to Divine Misfortune. I highly recommend, absolutely worth the credit.

Light with Enough Depth To Engage

"Emperor Mollusk" is a typical A. Lee Martinez lighthearted comedy performed brilliantly. I understand this was Scott Aiello's rookie outing on Audible. And he made the book for me-- and I'm a tough critic of faux British accents (as much as an American who grew up listening to Monty Python and lived in England can claim to be). He nailed it.

Tons of Fun!

This audiobook is, quite simply, a ton of fun! I can hardly imagine actually reading it - that is just how strong of a performance Scott Aiello, the narrator, gives! Like Martinez’s other novels, this is a rather mad-cap adventure full of hilarity, witty humour and some quite likable - not to mention unforgettable - characters. The novel is set primarily on Earth (or Terra as it is referred to here) and seems inspired by 1950s-60s type space dramas. The titular character, Emperor Mollusk, hails from Neptune (though they don’t care for him much back there). Mollusk has conquered Terra (without a single gunshot fired!), but has retired from the world-conquering business after some recent unpleasantness with Saturn.

When a Venutian warrior with a grudge attempts to take Mollusk under protective custody (to later try him for his crimes committed on Venus), she ends up falling in with Mollusk and his faithful ultra-pede (a centipede from Hell) as they track down the assassination plot to its perpetrator. Their adventures range from Atlantis, a Lost World type island in the Bermuda triangle, a visit to the moon and some epic battles with the radioactive brain of Madame Curie. The tale is filled with adventure, excitement and plenty of laughs.

The performance, though, really sets the book apart. The voices Aiello creates for each character are wonderful and quite distinct. He makes Mollusk sound like a cross between the Dread Pirate Roberts and Stewie Griffin. The Brain also sounds quite like Vizzini and there are many other convincing and entertaining voices throughout. Not only will I continue to follow Martinez’s work, but I will definitely be keeping an eye out for this very talented narrator as well!

Scott Aiello does it again!

Really, it’s a fun and interesting book, full of whimsy and ironic humour, but it’s the extraordinary talent and character range of Aiello that brings this audiobook to life. His ability to seamlessly shift between characters and accents is worthy of Oscar recognition. Worth one of my long-awaited monthly credits, which is the best honour I can do any audiobook. Cheers!

One of my favourite books

Clever, campy sci-fi comedy at its best. Would love to see a sequel please!

techy

I loved listening to this book, a good book if you're a geek like me!

Effortlessly funny, couldn't stop listening!

Although there were occasional flaws in the performance and story, the overall effect of this wonderful combination of author and narrator was something I had to finish in three big gulps. Genuinely laugh-out-loud funny in many places, stylish, creative, absurd and ridiculous in equal measures. I was honestly down in the dumps when I realised I'd finished it so quickly. With elements that reminded me of Adams and Rankin, this was a great find. I'm off to seek out more.

Very funny tall tale.

So, here we have a fantastic combination of Megamind and Dispicable Me.
It's a funny romp through the solar system with a lot of heart and great set pieces.
The characters are all the right side of silly, and the plot wraps up nicely.
Another good book from the author of Monster.

Great book, well read.

I took a chance on this based on the sample, not having read anything by Martinez before, and came away impressed. It's a very fun book, quite unusual, and with a great lead character.