Wampus Rumpus

Bubba the Monster Hunter Novellas #37

by John G. Hartness

He's back, and he's lost in the woods.
Again.
You'd think that a dude who spends most of his life running around in the woods hunting monsters would be better at not getting lost. You'd be wrong. Bubba and crew head to Tennessee to hunt down their dream cryptid - a wampus cat. At least, Bubba and Skeeter's dream cryptid. Geri and Amy have never heard of it. But that's okay, because Skeeter has a PowerPoint ready to go, just waiting for the day they got the call to hunt a wampus and make a rumpus!
But there's a wrinkle in the plan - a new liaison from the Catholic Church, come to serve as Uncle Father Joe's replacement. Then there's the rednecks at the hotel who are spoiling for a fight, and the construction workers who don't like cryptids, and then there's Pest Control.
Who the hell is Pest Control?
That's exactly what Bubba and the team want to know. But they'll have to survive their first meeting to figure it out!

122 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 29, 2023

About the author

John G. Hartness is a teller of tales, a righter of wrong, defender of ladies’ virtues, and some people call him Maurice, for he speaks of the pompatus of love.

He is also the award-winning author of the urban fantasy series The Black Knight Chronicles (Bell Bridge Books), the Bubba the Monster Hunter comedic horror series, the Quincy Harker, Demon Hunter dark fantasy series, and many other projects.

In 2016, John teamed up with a pair of other publishing industry ne’er-do-wells and founded Falstaff Books, a small press dedicated to publishing the best of genre fictions “misfit toys.”
In his copious free time John enjoys long walks on the beach, rescuing kittens from trees and playing Magic: the Gathering.

For free short stories and to follow his activities and appearances on his newsletter, follow this link - http://eepurl.com/fV4In

Reviews

[Erin Penn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Soft kitty, warm kitty, little ball of fur. Happy kitty, playing kitty, purr purr GROWL!

Bubba finally gets a chance to hunt a wampus (a feline cryptid) -- if he is willing to be hired by the church again.

Hunting or standing on principle?

Like it was ever a question.

The problem is he isn't the only one hunting in the Tennessee woods.

(the book ends resolving everything from the start of the book, but some people might consider it a cliffhanger because the epilogue sets up for the third story of this Bubba Season)

[Philip J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve enjoyed every new installment of the Bubba series. I love the character of Bubba and the others that surround him, and this newest story was no different. The only reason I gave it 4 stars rather than 5 is the editing. With spell check and grammar check built into word processing software, there is no excuse for the number of errors in the text. But that is admittedly a minor aside. Personally I think these books would make for a fun television series.

[Randy Wertz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bubba is one of my favorite monster Hunters alongside Quincy Harker. Bubba's smart ass remarks never fail to bring on a good belly laugh and the story lines are always consistent. I'm 74 years old and I still haven't figured out if these books are for young adults or grown ups. I guess when I grow up I'll finally figure it out. No matter which bubba the monster Hunter book you choose it'll always leave you looking for more.

[Trevor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Team Bubba are back and looking for the mythical Wampus Rumpus, after a spate of sightings which are escalating. Good book as ever, the team are well established and the interaction is spot on.

[Rachel Brune · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic romp, with an intriguing set up for the next installment. Can’t wait!

[Loretta Edgar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great short story

As always really enjoyed Bubba,s latest adventure. Criptids to be found and saved. Lots of weapons. Can't wait until the next story.

[Diana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story!

All of Bubba’s stories are really good. I’ve missed Uncle Father Joe a lot but I may like this new liaison. Can’t wait til next story is out. Way to go , John!!!

[Lisa Palmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Want more

Looks like bubba and team are in for some trouble iris it the bad guys who are?? Good guys time to take out the trash!

[Brad Griffeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ended too soon

Well written but an abrupt ending...does anyone actually enjoy a cliff hanger? It needed about one more chapter of Bubba cursing a blue streak.

[Geoff Hetherington · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love John Harkness's characters and books.

And I really wanted to like this one...but... well it is a pointless adventure that telegraphs what is going to happen. Bubba, if anything seems more clueless than ever and his commentary has become less amusing with each outing.

For the sake of completeness I'm glad to have read it but overall it is forgettable and far from the Author's best work

[Tawnya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was so excited to get a new Bubba! I decided to finish while I was getting dental work done. The last book I read while there had a sad part (not one of John’s books), so I didn’t want a repeat of my tearing up. I figured Bubba would be a short fun read. And it was until the last few pages of the final chapter. ARG!!!! That was heartbreaking. Until that part I was loving the book. We get a new liaison from the church. His name is Father Matthew and he’s Episcopalian. I was worried that he was going to be a jerk, but nope. I hope we keep him. Meanwhile some other series were name-checked. I would love to get another “Mason Dixon”. It has been 2 years since Eric released a new one. There were some great one-liners such as, “I almost wanted to hold him down and vaccinate him, just to see if he’d burst into flames” and “Secret Catholic Satellites? Is that like Jewish Space Lasers?”. I know stories have to have some deaths in them and as long as it is the bad guys, I have no problem with it. I had been reading it while holding it above my head waiting for the Novocain to kick in. The dental assistant came back in the room and I am crying and also angry. Meanwhile I did chat up John’s works. I truly hope Amy doesn’t try and stop Bubba from doing what needs to be done. Hopefully, it will be quick since this was a cliff-hanger.