I wasn't too sure about this story when I picked it up. The plot sounds interesting enough, and the book took off quickly. Around the middle though, I felt it slowed down, and in my original thought, had started events that I saw no connection to what was happening/needed to happen for the story. Once near the end, it all came together, and though it felt sluggish in the middle, it picked back up. Not a bad read for a slow day. ( )

Is that a crown in your pocket, or are you just happy to come and rule us?

That's not a quote from this novel, but really? It totally could be.

Marius Helles makes his living robbing the corpses of soldiers who have fallen in battle, a practice he has refined to an art -- until he has no living to make at all. Tee hee. What happens is, he robs the wrong corpse -- that of a fallen king -- and is observed holding a crown by one of the recently dead, who misreads the situation and next thing Marius knows, he's been sucked down to the world of the dead! Whom the gods are ignoring! Because, the dead think, they have no king! So they need a king! Marius has a crown, therefore he must be a king! So he can be their king! But of course, Marius doesn't want to be dead, even if he gets to be KING DEAD!

All of that sounds spoilery, but that's all just the first chapter of The Corpse-Rat King, in which the newly-dead Marius gets his mission: find the dead a king, or else. But like all good Heroes, Marius at first Refuses the Call, and runs away. As excuses for a tour of a funky fantasy world go, this is a highly original one.

Battersby, too, took some time making this more than just a generic fantasy world. There are a lot of nice touches, like a short discourse on a tradition of throwing corn dollies into the water at the beginning of an ocean voyage and the industry of dolly-making that has grown up around it, that, combined with Zombie Marius' antics, make this book a genuine pleasure to read.

There are some disturbingly funny moments, such as when Marius almost "rescues"* a drowned Mad King who is a dig-in-your ribs reference to Caligula (he even named his horse "Littleboot" which is roughly an English translation of "Caligula" -- the nickname bestowed on the beloved toddler son of the Roman commander Germanicus that stuck right on through the kid's rise to the imperial throne) and rides him like a horsey beneath the waves. Or when... but that would be spoilery. Eff off. But oh, how I giggled.

This is another novel that I started and let go by the wayside because of shiny things that came my way. This should not reflect on the book's quality, however. I'm just distractable that way. And though I had read many other things between the putting-aside and the taking-back-up-again (a span of three or four weeks), I did not have to refresh my memory as to what had been going on. And once I was reading it again, I kept on at a giddy pace, carried away by Battersby's wonderful world building (and cathedral building; the Cathedral of Bones licks the Iron Throne hollow as an enduring taunt/symbol of a founding ruler's conquests) and Marius' resourcefulness as he first runs away from and then embraces his quest, like every hero does.

The ending leaves room for a sequel, by the way. Hurrah for Mostly Dead Marius!

*For "rescue" read "spirits away so he can proceed to the land of the dead and become their king." ( )

Full Review: http://tenaciousreader.wordpress.com/2014/04/07/the-corpse-rat-king-by-lee-batte...

Corpse Rat King by Lee Battersby is full of wonderfully macabre atmosphere and attitude. Marius don Hellespont makes his gory living by wading through battlefields, liberating the dead of their valuables (in other words, he is a corpse rat). Our story begins as Marius and his lackwit assistant Gerd are interrupted as they are making their latest collection.

One thing that I need to make clear about this book, is Battersby writing skills are top notch. He is able to convey the disgusting and absurd in a stunningly grotesque way. I absolutely loved this and it just makes me smile. And Marius has a very dark, acerbic sense of humor. Also love that.

But, while I enjoyed the quips and descriptions, I just never really connected with Marius, and I never felt all that drawn into the story. And since I didn’t connect to Marius, that was a real issue because there are really no other prominent characters.

If I set this book down, I was completely fine not picking it back up again. It was rather strange, because I swear I can open up to almost any page and find some bit that I enjoy reading. I guess it’s a case of enjoying the details, but not really caring about the larger picture. Which is unfortunate because the details are so amusing.

But, for a first novel, I can see some serious potential here. With a bit more character development and plot, this book could be phenomenal because of Battersby’s ability for details. Despite its flaws, Corpse Rat King by is a mire of dead, undead, blood, gore and caustic prose and I am a bit surprised this book didn’t receive more attention when it was released. But I can also recognize it won’t be a book for everyone. It is very dark, but also one of those dark books that is just filled with humorously wrong moments. ( )

A hilarious journey with a not-quite dead and not-quite likeable main character.

We join Marius with his new found partner-in-crime as they are robbing corpses of their riches on a battlefield. One of the corpses happens to be the fallen King of Scorby, Marius has no trouble robbing the corpse of the King, crown and all.

Meanwhile, the free dead of the underworld are looking for a King...Marius gets transported the the world of the free dead to rule them; except, he is neither a King nor dead. For his trickery, the dead take his heartbeat and send him on a quest to find them a King, his newly dead fried Gerd is supposed to accompany him.

Marius' adventure is full of comedy and magic. Reminding me of a Captain Jack Sparrow character, Marius is a liar, thief, pickpocket and general con artist but I came to feel for him and his journey. An intriguing and unique plot, great for a Halloween-time read. ( )

I won this book through Goodreads First Reads giveaways in exchange for an honest review.

The first few pages of this book introduces you to the protagonist Marius dos Hellespont and you realize, hey this guy is a real jerk. So with this is mind, you read how Marius is on a quest to find a new King for the dead.

Marius turns out to be nothing but a pampered spoiled brat with too much money and time on his hands. Ungrateful of what he has, he resorts to being a con artist. You know the purpose of the novel is Marius's redemption but, I'm not sure as a reader I really cared.

Aside from being ambivalent regarding the main character, I found the writing of the novel to be laborious with scenes that seemed to drag on.

I didn't totally hate the book and it did have a few (and I mean a few) humorous moments but it just didn't grab me. ( )