Monster Hunting, Management Style

Alexys in HR works daily to manage her Wardens (monster hunters). However, it is now mandated that HR individuals have to do a field test to experience what their Wardens do to better protect them. One of Alexys’ Wardens, Elliot, goes off script to chase after an unknown creature without her permission. Can Alexys face the supernatural on her own while on her mission to rescue Elliot?  

This book honestly reminded me of the workplace. I had managers who didn’t know the products the company was selling or how they worked. It often made me wonder how they got their job in the first place. That is what Alexys kind of reminds me of. Her father was a famous Warden who died in battle against the supernatural. Alexys wants to be like her dad, but she's afraid of the risks.  So Alexys monitors Wardens without having the knowledge or the skills needed to fight the mythical creatures. I think it is smart of her company to realize that people learn by doing. Some of the monsters they face are downright horrifying (the jackalopes, rabbits with horns, scared the crap out of me in this book). 

While I am glad that Alexys is doing training with one of her Wardens to improve, I felt sorry for her that her plans were thwarted by Nic in research. Nic accidentally leads Elliot on a wild goose chase for a newly discovered monster. He didn’t mean for that to happen, but he got overly excited about the possibility of a new creature that the company has never seen before. To make up for that fact, he joins forces with Alexys to find Elliot. 

It is kind of tragic because Nic put his fascination with discovering a new species over the well-being of a coworker.  It was extremely reckless on his part to send Elliot to fight a creature that no one has interacted with before, especially since there are no official documents on the creature’s strengths and weaknesses. 

It is very poor planning, but it makes Alexys and Nic’s journey more interesting because they have to put aside their differences to work together to find Elliot. Their journey also proved the importance of having knowledge about these mythical creatures. There were multiple times that Alexys would have been killed if it weren’t for Nic’s knowledge. 

Nic’s knowledge also brings up another point. Alexys knows that she is having nightmares because of a supernatural creature, but she disregards the company’s protocol. She is supposed to pull herself from assignments when affected by a supernatural creature. She ignores her symptoms to continue her work. It was a very naive move on her part, because the supernatural creature attached to her at all times could have corrupted someone else. 

Overall, I found the story pretty good. It reminds me of The X-Files with how they sometimes did the monster of the week. The main difference the book has from The X-Files is that neither of the characters is a skeptic. They definitely believe that something goes bump in the night. 

The book was also a fun read. It was a riot seeing two inexperienced people trying their hand at monster hunting. Their adventure made Nic and Alexys realize that they need to know more about the creatures they fight and work together with the partners they have. If you like workplace shenanigans mixed with elements of horror, then I recommend giving this book a try. In the spirit of the story, do you think monsters are real? If so, have you ever spotted any? Let me know in the comments!