REVIEW: The Henchperson’s Guide to Unionizing by Marshall J. Moore
As the laboratory assistant to the brilliant but demanding Doctor, Igor spends his nights robbing graves, stitching together body parts, and ensuring that his master doesn’t electrocute himself (too badly).
When a mob of peasants wielding torches and pitchforks drives them out of town (again), Igor and the Doctor relocate to the isolated Ravenwald Manor to resume their experiments creating new life from dead flesh. But Igor and the Doctor are not the only ones seeking refuge within the walls of Ravenwald. The manor is already home to a vampiric Count and his highly dissatisfied bride, Cornelia—and an enigmatic witch and her feline familiar, Grimalkin, intend to use it as the site of a magical ritual.
At Igor’s suggestion, the three pairs come to an uneasy agreement to cohabitate in Ravenwald, lest they attract the suspicion of the nearby village. In the wake of this truce, Igor, Cornelia, and Grimalkin soon begin to realize that they might have more common with one another than their respective masters. When the trio discovers that they’ve been unwitting participants in a horrible plan to destroy the world as they know it, they must work together to stop their masters from bringing on Armageddon . . . and stop the increasingly suspicious villagers from reaching for their pitchforks and torches.
Igor, Grim, and Cornelia must unite to cast off the chains of their masters and embrace life on their own terms in the hilarious, heartwarming, and just-scary-enough The Henchperson’s Guide to Unionizing.
Dear Mr. Marshall,
This was more sweet than standout for me. Igor, Grim, and Cornelia are all very nice characters and each of them have been beaten down emotionally by their respective masters. It’s going to take someone else showing them their self worth in order to believe it after being told so long that they’re next to worthless.
So three put-upon hench people, two of whom know they’re being taken advantage of and one slowly (really, really slowly) realizing this. Then they discover they can throw off the chains that have kept them tied to basically one-note oppressors. The minions rise up! Over the course of the story, I caught hints and statements that Igor is aro/ace, Cornelia the vampire is a lesbian, Grim is a transcat, and Spare is NB.
But I needed more bite to get fully invested here. In this book, the henchmen, despite actually doing some bad stuff, are all more pure of heart and all of the villains/masters are one note bad people. Igor is stealing bodies but it’s for the Great Work, Cornelia drains people of their blood but it’s mainly oppressive men, Grim doesn’t want to go back to her old self so she does what she’s told, and Spare is the adorable genitalless “construct” that Igor made. I’m glad that eventually Igor stops to think about his role in bringing Spare to life. The book cover and blurb didn’t give me cozy vibes but that is what this book is. It was okay when I was reading it, but ultimately I wasn’t that connected to the characters and I don’t think it will stick with me.
It’s cute, it’s queer, it’s full of all the found family vibes I could have wanted from a premise like this. Yet, this found family doesn’t really have as much development. Cornelia wants out of her marriage, Igor wants to live by the beach, and Grim just wants to be a cat. That’s pretty much it. You’ll also see most plot points coming from a mile away and the pacing sometimes feels too slow.
Overall, the characterization is relatively one note and none of the plot threads are subtle. I could see every point being set up and made. There’s no surprise and a great deal of repetition. I wanted more bite, too, as well as humor. About the only thing I really laughed at was Igor’s summing up of the behavior of mobs with pitchforks and torches and his “wet work” while gathering “supplies” for the Doctor.
So … simplistic, low stakes, and predictable, and a little bit too preachy. The ending is exactly what I was expecting. It reminds me of how a lot of middle grade books end, a little too perfect, and spelled out with presenting the message the author is trying to get across. C
~Jayne
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