Wendigo Rising by James A. Hunter

Yancy’s life sucks.  He’s the Fixer and that means that people are…

Always asking me to fix things, like I don’t have anything better to do.  Needlessly complicating my life with their problems.  I must have some kind of invisible sign hanging over my head that says Sucker Here, Please Ruin My Day.

Title:  Wendigo Rising
Author: James A. Hunter
Series: Yancy Lazarus Book 03
Publish Date: November 3, 2015
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Source: Provided by the author

Publisher’s Description: Bigfoot is real. Yancy Lazarus—mage, bluesman, and rambler—knows because there happens to be a nine-foot-tall, walking myth standing in the road, flagging him down.

Yancy just can’t escape his reputation as a supernatural Fix-it man even when cruising through the forgotten backwoods of Montana. Turns out Bigfoot has a serious problem on his hands: one of his own has gone rogue, developing a taste for the flesh of humans and Sasquatch alike. A greater Wendigo has risen for the first time in thousands of years and if Yancy can’t stop the creature it could be a slaughter for the residents of a rural Montana town.

But even with the monstrous threat looming on the horizon, Yancy has bigger fish to fry. He’s working as an agent of Fate, attempting to put the kibosh on a nefarious scheme, aimed at upsetting the tenuous balance between the supernatural nations. When your boss is Lady Luck, however, nothing is ever left to chance, and his two cases may have more in common than it appears. If he can’t figure out the missing link it could usher in a new world order: an age of inhuman creatures and walking nightmares … one where Yancy Lazarus doesn’t exist.

Nervous Nellie’s nervousness necessitates knowledge of the novel (in other words, SPOILERS!)

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Nervous Nellie says…

But a mustache like that only existed to be twirled in a dastardly fashion by a scheming scoundrel who ascribed to the Snidely Whiplash School of Villainry.  Now if I could only find his top had and black bad-guy cloak, I’d have him dead to rights.

If only finding the bad guy was that easy.  Yancy is still in the mix from the last book, searching for solutions for many problems that all seem to be connected.

Wow. I loved this book.  Everything was top shelf.  The descriptions of battle scenes, the monsters and the story line were very compelling.   Heck, the author even got me to feel sorry for the bad guys for goodness sake.  No one can make me do that….well…until now, I guess.

Yancy was in full snarky form and I wore out my highlight button noting all the fun quotes.  If you are a fan of Darynda Jones’s Charlie Davidson, then Yancy Lazarus would be right up your alley.  He might be able to get the senior discount at Denny’s, but he is The Fixer, one tough cookie and hard to beat.  His boss is Lady Luck and if that isn’t a weird turn, then finding out the rules that govern the Hands of Fate is something to behold.  “I can’t tell you this, but let me give you this super cryptic hint,” is par for the course.  Yancy doesn’t save the world this time around, but he does put the smackdown on some bad guys.  He also pulls in his friends to help with problem solving.  Nicole Ferraro, FBI agent, former Marine and major player in this book has got personality that will not quit.  She’s definitely not a shrinking violet or wilting flower, or whatever.  She will send the bad guys packing with just a look – and she’ll do it all in a suit.  Go Ferraro!!  Greg, Yancy’s lifetime friend, gets dragged into Yancy’s mess even though he never answered Yancy’s phone call.  I guess trying to avoid a mage is more difficult than one would think.  Now we come to James Sullivan.  Supreme high enforcer type/law enforcement muckety-muck in the Guild.  James was Yancy’s boss when Yancy worked for the Guild.  They worked ops together and Yancy trusts him.  Is it misplaced?  Is James the bad guy?  I am holding out for a firm and resounding “no” from the author, but I haven’t gotten it.  I’m pretty sure that James A. Hunter is un-bribable, so I guess I’ll just have to let things develop as they are to be. Darnit.

There isn’t a cliffhanger, but there is story lines that are alluded to and hinted at.  I don’t know where this story is going, but “grab your luggage and empty your bladder cuz it’s gonna be a wild ride!”

Invested Ivana says…

Wendigo Rising is a great addition to the Yancy Lazarus series and probably my favorite book so far. Not only are the two Bigfoot characters likable, but there are some awesome scenes in this book, like a haunted woods scene, a musical competition with the sirens, and a giant transformer fight.

I really enjoyed that Yancy wasn’t working alone. The four friends – Yancy, Ferrero, James, and Greg – made a really good team. The addition of Winona and her father made them unstoppable. I hope we see the four working together again in future books. I wouldn’t mind seeing Winona in future books either; she has a great sense of humor and is a lot of fun.

I’m curious about where the main plot is going. Is Dr. Arlen Hogg working with someone in the Guild? Is James a traitor or not? And what the heck is up with the Morrigan? She is a new addition to the mix of villains.

And I really do have to give kudos to the cover designer. The covers for all three novels and short story have been amazing.

Yep, this is my favorite book of the series so far. If you haven’t started reading the late Lazarus series yet, you really should.

Other reviews in this series…

• Strange Magic
• Cold Hearted
• Flashback: Siren Song

If you like this book…

…you might try:

• Daniel Faust series by Craig Schaefer
• Quincy Harker series by John G. Hartness
• Hellequin Chronicles by Steve McHugh
• Alex Verus series by Benedict Jacka