REVIEW: Umboi Island

 Umboi Island
Author: J.J. Dupuis

I love monster stories. Cryptids. Kaiju. Legends. Any sort of monster and I'm gonna watch/read/listen to it! My podcast playlist is filled with bizarre tales, "true'' stories and all sorts of cryptoid goodness. Monster movies, books, comics, audio theater, podcasts....love it all! So when I came upon this series totally by accident, I had to read! I don't normally jump into a series at book 3, but -- Monsters! -- so I just jumped on the review copy I was offered and got to reading! 

Laura Regan is the host of a film series on Cryptids. This time the subject of the show is the Ropen, a flying creature with bioluminescence from Papua, New Guinea. Laura and her film crew travel to Umboi Island in hopes of spotting one of the legendary creatures. In the midst of interviewing locals for stories about sightings and input from believers and skeptics, a dead body turns up in camp. Laura and her crew end up chasing a killer as well as looking for a mysterious flying creature. 

I loved the blend of legend, action-adventure and mystery! The book wasn't too bogged down in Cryptid action -- no monster rampaging and tearing limbs off the film crew. This was a mix of humans doing bad things to each other and investigating a mysterious legend. The story is paced perfectly. I liked the characters and the setting. Very enjoyable read!

I'm definitely back-tracking and reading this series from the beginning. I wish there were audiobooks, but I do understand that they can be cost-prohibitive for authors. This is the first book by J.J. Dupuis that I have read. I've already added the rest of the Creature X series to my TBR, and can't wait to see what creature his characters investigate next!! 

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Dundurn Press. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**