For Starters

I've blogged before about the writing of John Scalzi. Some of his books have worked great for me; others less so. But you're always going to get a story from Scalzi that you wouldn't get from anyone else. His latest is a great example of this: Starter Villain.

This is the story of Charlie Fitzer, who is roped into unexpected action when a long-estranged uncle dies, leaving behind a request that Charlie should arrange the funeral. When that turns out to be something of a test (which Charlie seemingly passes), he receives a most unexpected inheritance: the massive evil empire run by Charlie's uncle, complete with volcano lair, killer satellites, a rival conglomerate... and talking spy cats.

Like another of Scalzi's recent books, The Kaiju Preservation Society, Starter Villain makes for a great elevator pitch. "Hapless nobody inherits an evil empire" sounds fun. And even though conventional wisdom says you can't judge a book by its cover, this book simply has too great a cover not to judge it delightful: it features a scowling cat in a business suit. This book was all but screaming at me to read it.

Once you get under the surface, there isn't as much going on as I would have liked. There is a story here, and the book overall never stops being fun. But entertainment is very much the only item on the agenda here; telling a deeply satisfying story doesn't really make the list. If it's enough for you that this book is mainly about playing with James Bond cliches, and will pause in the middle of anything to follow a comedic side note (say, unionizing dolphins), then this book will be enough for you. If you need to become invested in the protagonist's journey? You're probably not going to get there.

I think listening to this on audiobook may have affected my perceptions of it too. Frequent Scalzi collaborator Wil Wheaton narrates -- and does a great job of heightening both everything I loved about the book and everything that I had reservations about. Oftentimes, when reviewing an actor's performance in something, a reviewer will say "you can tell they were having fun." (I've done it myself, I'm sure.) You can tell Wil Wheaton was having fun. He reads this book, clearly as delighted by everything that amused Scalzi when he wrote it. And that intensifies the laughs. But it also magnifies the too-unflappable tone of the protagonist, who always seems outside himself and the circumstances rather than fully drawn into them.

Don't get me wrong: I still liked Starter Villain. I'd give it a B, and if the description sounds at all entertaining to you, I'd definitely recommend it. But also, it's a fluffy confection of a book that melts on your brain like cotton candy on your tongue. It should be approached like dessert, and not the main course.