Book Review: The Starter Villain, John Scalzi
Science Fiction: The Starter Villain, John Scalzi
John Scalzi’s serious novels are full of lighthearted moments. This book is more lighthearted, but has its serious moments. For this reader, either combination is good when the recipe is mixed by this author.
Charlie Fitzer has had a number of very bad years. He was laid off from his job as a reporter for the Chicago Tribune. His wife left him and moved to Boston. His father became sick, then died. So, Charlie was living in his father’s house (co-owned by his three half-siblings), working part-time as a substitute teacher, struggling to keep the lights on and water running. His only companion was a cat, Hera, who was in charge of picking out his ties and discouraging mice.
When Charlie’s billionaire uncle, Jake, dies, Charlie does not expect anything. After all, the last time they had seen each other was when Charlie was 5, at his mother’s funeral. There, his father and his uncle had a falling out, and Jake had been estranged from the family since. So it is an utter shock when a woman shows up on Charlie’s porch and tells him that he is his uncle’s heir, and all he has to do is stand for him at his funeral.
The funeral is held in the same place as his mother’s and father’s were, a place within walking distance of Charlie’s home. Oddly enough, when he gets there he finds very few mourners for anyone, let alone a billionaire. No friends, no staff, no other family. Just Charlie and the funeral director…and several very tough looking men, one of whom pulls out a knife with which to stab Jake’s body so he can make sure he is dead. Then as Charlie approaches his house after the funeral, it explodes.
That is just the entry into the strange world Uncle Jake lived in. Uncle Jake held an extraordinary place in the world, in the company of dangerous and extraordinary people, not all of whom were human. Jake was a villain, one of many who manipulated world events in ways to benefit themselves. He even had a secret lair, with lasers, scientists who worked for him, and technologically enhanced animals who could communicate with humans. The dolphins would do tasks for the humans, after much swearing and rebelling. When they weren’t on strike. The cats were among the leaders of the organization–including Hera, who had been keeping her eye on Charlie. And all Charlie has to do is figure out a way to keep the business running–and keep himself alive.
I have said this before, but John Scalzi is one of the authors who drew me out of a long reading slump. I had gone from reading between 200 and 300 books a year down to reading just a few dozen–admittedly more than many people choose to read, but a severe and lengthy drought for me. I was depressed, anxious, and mostly empty. Then my amazing wife suggested that I read Fuzzy Nation. That opened the door to more: Redshirts, the Old Man’s War series, the Emperox trilogy, Locked In, The Kaiu Preservation Society, and many other books by Scalzi and other authors. I likely will never get to meet him, but I owe him more than I could ever repay. He, along with a few others, reminded me why I love reading.
The Starter Villain is wry, full of dry wit and of warm human observations. It reflects on family, on the way we treat others, the way we treat the animals which share our planet and our homes, and the vagaries of life. Charlie Fitzer is nobody’s idea of a hero. Sometimes, though, being a hero just means standing up for someone else. Even if that someone is dead.
Book Review: The Starter Villain, John Scalzi