Bestiary

Usually, I read the reviews on Amazon before buying a book. Unfortunately, this time I didn't and I regret it. The prehistoric zoo idea was great, but the author didn't develop it to its potential. Many sub-plots were introduced, but then abandoned without explanation. The author also inserted a supernatural element (possible ghosts), which added nothing to the main plot. And I have one question: what happened to the dog? He appeared, saved one of the main characters from a pack of coyotes, moved in with the family and then disappeared without a word, just like the rest of the subplots.

Ah another great idea wasted. He has a mythological menagerie of monsters and the best he can come up with is a boring story about a cliched militia group mixed with a cliched arab millionaire and some cliched Indians.

Oh and add all the characters so predicatable its not worth mentioning, I cant even remember there names "Dashing Scientist wot I stole from Da Vinci Code who stole it from a ton of other novels" (is there a computer program that writes stock characters for these guys out there? I think there must be).

Another major problem is the lack of a point to many setups, I hear all about a tar pit that goes nowhere, a baby that goes nowhere, a book that goes nowhere, a spooky ghost man that goes nowhere, caged monsters that go nowhere!!!! For the love of God man, thats the whole point of the book, and you do nothing with them!

I kept reading and reading waiting for the payoff, forcing myself through all the annoying characters and dialogue, waiting for something to happen, and the more I read the less and less likely that became until the final crappy action scene where I realised I had just been burnt and burnt bad, like 1st degree, put me out of my misery cos I'm going to die anyway, burnt.

Finally, though I suppose its not the authors fault, it was in the horror section, had a horror back cover description of what happens, and has a quote about the author being the best horror writer ever. So . . .

I expected a horror novel!

It sounded like jurasic park but with a cheap (but fun) horror take. Needless to say it wasnt. To be fair though I dont really know how to lable it myself I'd say thriller, but theres no thrills, mystery? Again no mystery. Action? Well you get my drift.

I've often thought there should be a two literary markets, one for writers and one for ideas. Bestiary has a nice idea, now we just need a good writer to come along and do something with it.

When I learned that Robert Masello had a new book, I pre-ordered it, and it arrived just in time to be the highlight of an otherwise dull birthday.

I sometimes wonder why Masello is so appealing, especially as he writes in a genre that normally doesn't interest me. The quick response would be to say that his books are a guilty pleasure, but every paragraph seems to contain a surprisingly erudite throw-away fact or observation, or an unexpectedly lucid point of comparison that has no other reason to be in the story, but makes it a richer experience. All that aside, he gives us a fast-paced plot involving widely diverse, well-rounded characters in a variety of painstakingly researched environments, and takes us for a wild ride all over the west side of Los Angeles.

The real stars of this book are the monsters. And they are the coolest monsters. I have never lost my childhood fascination with prehistoric creatures, but with the exception of a rare documentary on the Learning Channel, my knowledge of paleontology hovers at the 5th grade level. Thank you for not doing dinosaurs, by the way - even the kid in me is getting tired of dinosaurs. So I was delighted to be introduced to, and provided with paleontological explanations of fantastic creatures I had always considered to be relegated to mythology - not to mention creatures I had only vaguely heard of. I adored Robertson Davies' novel "The Manticore," but I can assure you that paleontology was the last subject on his mind.

I thought we were in for a sequel to "Vigil" when I saw that Carter and Beth are back, a mysterious baby now making 3, but "Bestiary" stands on its own. A few appearances by Arius, from the previous novel are unexplained here, but hint at pleasures to come.

Mr. Masello appears to have moved to Los Angeles since we last heard from him. His descriptions of living on the west side feel remarkably real, both factually and atmospherically. This is a man who has clearly paid his dues sitting in traffic at Wilshire and the 405.

I was killing time in the bookstore, not really planning on buying a book, just waiting for my Pizza at Papa Ginos to finish cooking. Then I looked down and saw Bestiary. I absolutely loved Vigil and was surprised I didn't know Bestiary had been released. Without waiting or reading the cover material, I picked it up and started reading it that night.

Imagine my surprise when I started reading and realized, "Hey, this is a sequel to Vigil!" And it didn't disappoint. In fact I enjoyed it even more than Vigil. The sheer number of different beasties and the way he brings them all together in the modern world, while finding real, prehistoric connections for the creatures was thrilling.

The characters continued where they left off in NY, but in LA. I've lived in LA and it was a great flashback for me, reading about all the places I'd been...there's even a large brush fire in the book, which I experienced first hand while in LA.

Overall, I found Bestiary to be a wonderful read and a great addition to the genre. I'm looking forward to his next book, and hope it continues the saga and answers the question...what is Arius up to??

-- Jeremy Robinson, author of [[ASIN:0312540280 Pulse (A Chess Team Adventure)]] and [[ASIN:1935142011 Kronos]]

After I bought this book I saw it was described as HORROR. I don't like horror, but since I had the book I decided to read it anyway. Not to worry - if there is horror in this book I couldn't find it at all! Many plot devices are abandoned without explanation and the book was very unsatisfying. While he definitely has writing skills, for me he is not a very good story teller. Too many loose ends, unexplained things, and in the end a very thin story. I will not read any more of his books.

The Bestiary is the sequel to "The Vigil" I actually read this book first and realized there was a prequel with the references to another story. The Bestiary is a thrilling read!!

Something you would see on a movie screen by Speilberg!

The Bestiary is a story that takes a Paleontologist working at the Labria Tar Pits in Los Angeles....

through his wifes affiliation with a museum....

to the discovery of private dangerous collection of mythical animals that are actually alive in the Los Angeles hills today!!

Their family includes a their young infant son, an adopted mutt and is filled with vibrant descriptions of their surroundings in Los Angeles.

The story is filled with humor, terror, and carries alot of actual information about these animals who through ancient texts are said to actually have lived on earth!!

Its been a long time since a book actually drew my interest to research the facts in the book!

If you liked "ET", "Stargate", you will love both "The Vigil" and "Bestiary".
I am patiently waiting for the sequel and the movie!!

The story started off well, but then the subplots really started to fragment. By the middle of the book, I was no longer sure what the primary story was. Masello tries to tie everything together at the end, but it was a stretch. Like the subplots, it wasn't really clear who the good guys were and who the bad guys were. And the few references to Arius almost force you to read (buy) the other book.

one of the slowest books I have ever read....I tend to enjoy books with creature elments and by reading the discription this fit the bill......WRONG....book is more about everyday life and a "ghost", still do not understand that part. The ending is not worth giving away...so no spolier warning here. If looking for great action and some type of animal element check out Matthew Reilly, great author.

Imagine if the dinosaurs in Jurassic Park didn't show up until the last third of the story, and before that the book consisted of the characters going on dates, taking hikes in the hills, and going to parties -- in other words, doing ordinary, everyday things. Then you would have Bestiary.

Bestiary is a book with a good idea hidden in an extremely poor book. A noble family from the Middle East has guarded a zoo of the some of the rarest creatures on earth for generations. In skilled hands this would have been great popcorn entertainment, but Masello didn't seem to know what do with the idea he came up with. At a hefty 450 pages, nothing really happens until page 300. Not because the author is using the time to build tension or slowly unravel a mystery. The story simply has no direction, with plot threads that go nowhere. Masello dangles a few threads that seem like they may go somewhere -- a strange discovery in the La Brea Tar Pits, the reappearance of some supernatural entity from an earlier book (Bestiary apparently is a sequel), a possible affair with a grad student -- but they're just filler meant to drag out an already bloated book.

Bestiary is a book in desperate need of a good editor. Cut out 150 pages, focus the plot on the fantastic zoo and throw in a dash of mystery about what the Tar Pits hold, and this work could have been so much more. Instead, it is perhaps the biggest mess of a novel that I have read in some time.

After thoroughly enjoying (in one delicious sitting) Mr. Masello's previous novel VIGIL, I have been looking forward to its sequel. BESTIARY exceeded my expectations. More than just another "horror" paperback this continuation of the saga of the star-crossed Cox family is a finely wrought work of fiction featuring an Iraqi villian whose collection of truly bestial beasts will send chills down the firmest spines. Masello manages to take the reader on a literary trek filled with unexpected twists and curves as we discover that the ancient secrets of the Al-Kalli family are allive, and menacing, in present day Los Angeles. Thankfully my plane spent some time circling the San Francisco airport so I could finish BESTIARY. Otherwise the ground crew would have had to pry me out of my seat. I look forward to the next adventure of the Cox family. Judging by the hints of the nature of their baby, I am already ashiver.