Alex Price is a cryptozoologist from a family of cuckoos and former corpses. When his girlfriend, Shelby Tanner, asks him to come home with her to Australia, it's not just to meet the family: there's a werewolf outbreak and they need his expertise. Every last member of the Tanner clan despises Alex from the moment they lay eyes on him. The secret society the Tanners lead also hates Alex, but they are depending on his knowledge. He has to rely on Shelby to defend his presence and on his mouse acolytes to help determine who is infected. When he is bitten and there turns out to be a traitor among the society, he must race against the clock before everyone gets turned.

POCKET APOCALYPSE is the latest in Seanan McGuire's InCryptid novels and it is an absolute delight. The pace and the prose are fast and full of action. Every moment is a surprise. The surprises are delivered with all the punch you need in a mythical-creature hunt. The family dynamics fit so nicely with the action you don't feel they're separate from the themes of the book. It's a really great look at what families do when they feel threatened by an outsider, and at what werewolves can do to Australia's ecosystem. I never thought I'd want to know what werewolves could do to Australia, but I am glad I found out.

The characters are all very divided and interesting. There's some challenge associated with making varied and fun characters within the same family. Seanan McGuire has taken this challenge and given us the Tanners. All stubborn, all a little angry, all intelligent, but with wonderful differences. Three sisters, all with fun interests. Two parents, one with a major attitude problem and one with a minor, who have no intention of letting their daughter marry an American. The memory of a brave brother who was lost long ago. Top that off with the new arrival, the eldest sister's future husband, and you get a cocktail of hilarity. They're all so amazing that you're never once concerned that there are too many characters.

POCKET APOCALYPSE is so full of fun and action. I absolutely loved every moment of it. The characters are interesting, the dialogue is clever, and the prose is absolutely beautiful. I think this is an amazing story well put to paper by a fantastic author. I'd recommend this to anyone looking for a new, fantastic story with amazing creatures. You will not regret opening this novel, and I'd be willing to bet you'd be happier for finishing it.

Book Summary

Alexander Price has survived gorgons, basilisks, and his own family—no small feat, considering that his family includes two telepaths, a reanimated corpse, and a colony of talking, pantheistic mice. Still, he’s starting to feel like he’s got the hang of things - at least until his girlfriend, Shelby Tanner, shows up asking pointed questions about werewolves and the state of his passport. From there, it’s just a hop, skip, and a jump to Australia, a continent filled with new challenges, new dangers, and yes, rival cryptozoologists who don’t like their “visiting expert” very much.

Australia is a cryptozoologist’s dream, filled with unique species and unique challenges. Unfortunately, it’s also filled with Shelby’s family, who aren’t delighted by the length of her staSy in America. And then there are the werewolves to consider: infected killing machines who would like nothing more than to claim the continent as their own. The continent which currently includes Alex.

Survival is hard enough when you’re on familiar ground. Alex Price is very far from home, but there’s one thing he knows for sure: he’s not going down without a fight.