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Assassin Bug #1
Pest Control
PROFESSIONAL EXTERMINATOR FIFTEEN YEARS FIELD EXPERIENCE! GONE PRIVATE WITH LETHAL NEW CONCEPT! NO PEST LEFT ALIVE! Bob Dillon just can't get a break. A down-on-his-luck exterminator, all he wants is his own truck with a giant fiberglass bug on top--and success with his radical new, environmentally friendly pest killing technique. So Bob decides to advertise. Unfortunately, one of his flyers falls into the wrong hands. Marcel in Paris needs an assassin to handle a million dollar assignment, and he figures that Bob Dillon's his man. Through no fault--or participation--of his own, an unwitting bug-killer from Queens has become a major player in the shady world of contract murder. And now he's running for his life through the wormiest sections of the Big Apple--one step ahead of a Bolivian terminator, a homicidal transvestite dwarf, meat-headed CIA agents, cabbies packing serious heat...and the world's greatest hit man, who might just turn out to be the best friend Bob's got.
320 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1996
73 people are currently reading
3096 people want to read
About the author
Bill Fitzhugh
23 books110 followersBill Fitzhugh worked at several FM rock radio stations in the 1970s and 1980s. Born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi, he prefers The Band, Little Feat, and Van Morrison to Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, and Iron Butterfly. The author of numerous screenplays and five comic novels, he lives in Los Angeles with his wife and his record collection.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 241 reviews
April 30, 2024
3.5 stars
In this comic thriller New York City exterminator Bob Dillon loses his job when he refuses to use high concentrations of bug-killing chemicals, fearing they'll harm the environment.
Instead, Bob has a home lab where he experiments with 'assassin bugs' - natural predators of termites, roaches, etc. - in an attempt to find a strain that can wipe out pests naturally and efficiently.
Assassin bug and prey
Wanting to advertise his natural pest control business Bob distributes flyers with a photo of himself in a cap emblazoned 'Exterminator'.
This falls into the hands of Marcel, a middleman who connects hit men/women with people who want to hire them. Marcel, marveling that Bob advertises himself so freely, hires the NY exterminator to kill someone - thinking Bob's assertion that he only kills bugs is a 'wink wink' code.
Before long a couple of Bob's 'hits' are killed - without his participation or knowledge - and his lucrative payments for the jobs go astray. Thus, though Bob is a rising star in the assassin business, he remains completely oblivious to what's going on.
So Bob continues his experiments, breeding assassin bugs and placing them in roach-infested buildings to test them out. Meanwhile, Bob's usually devoted wife Mary - hoping to spur Bob into getting a real job that helps pay the bills - takes their daughter and leaves.
Things get even more confused when the CIA - which maintains a top ten list of the world's best assassins - becomes aware of Bob and hires him for a job.
Before long a Bolivian drug lord puts a ten million dollar bounty on Bob's head and things get really out of control. The world's best assassins - as well as a few amateurs - flood into New York searching for the exterminator. These assassins, each having a unique (sometimes quite unusual) appearance and technique, are hilarious.
There's a lot of action in the story, with people running around, shooting, stabbing, getting mobbed by savage insects, and so on. Even Mary, sympathetic but confused, returns to help out. The slew of characters in the story are amusing, exchanging plenty of fun dialog and remarks.
I liked the story as well as the descriptions of Bob's experiments. His attempts to breed bugs with specific roach-killing characteristics is interesting and informative. Good book, recommended for thriller fans who want a light, easy read that's 'out of the box'.
You can follow my reviews at http://reviewsbybarbsaffer.blogspot.com/
June 14, 2014
If you’re here for your latest life lesson, it’s this: Don’t ever answer an exterminator ad. You might find your life terminated, after the CIA takes a hit out on your ass. Sure, the money sounds good and all, but fifty grand ain’t what it used to be. And if I have a choice between life and death, I think I’ll go with life, Bob.
PEST CONTROL finds us in the midst of a painful existence of one Bob Dillon (not to be confused with the Bob Dylan) who has some trouble with bugs after he shoves a garden hose up his boss’s nose. Yes, the man has anger management issues, and he’s probably breathed in his share of toxic fumes (which doesn’t really help his cause). What he lacks in employment, though, he more than makes up for in spirit. Or you could just call it gusto. He hops up on desks and shouts to the heavens and breeds beetles in his spare room and deals with one pissed off landlord on a semi-regular basis.
If that isn’t bad enough, he also has a hit man named Klaus (not to be confused with Santa) breathing down his neck. There’s also a little person who has a penchant for pink panties, which wouldn’t be so bad except the she is a he; a hit woman (after all we’re equal opportunity employers here) with a fondness for shoving white truffles down the gullet of her latest victim; a cowboy with his own rodeo and a fondness for killing; and other nefarious individuals who shall not be named.
If you’re looking for the straight and narrow, you won’t find it here. What you will find are enough strange individuals to fill an entire city block, an over-the-top plot that at times had trouble maintaining believability, dialogue that shuddered, a narrative that might have had a loophole or two in logic and a bit of a jump in time, and pages plastered with dead insects in every possible manner known to the pest community.
If you can believe it, this was even musical material. While I’m not sure I understand that particular angle, I did find myself amused at what took place over the course of this tale. If you have a penchant for half-baked tales that could have been composed on the back of a napkin after you (and possibly the author) surrounded yourselves in a smoke-filled haze, then this story’s for you. Just make sure you wash your hands first and then possibly after.
Cross-posted at Robert's Reads
PEST CONTROL finds us in the midst of a painful existence of one Bob Dillon (not to be confused with the Bob Dylan) who has some trouble with bugs after he shoves a garden hose up his boss’s nose. Yes, the man has anger management issues, and he’s probably breathed in his share of toxic fumes (which doesn’t really help his cause). What he lacks in employment, though, he more than makes up for in spirit. Or you could just call it gusto. He hops up on desks and shouts to the heavens and breeds beetles in his spare room and deals with one pissed off landlord on a semi-regular basis.
If that isn’t bad enough, he also has a hit man named Klaus (not to be confused with Santa) breathing down his neck. There’s also a little person who has a penchant for pink panties, which wouldn’t be so bad except the she is a he; a hit woman (after all we’re equal opportunity employers here) with a fondness for shoving white truffles down the gullet of her latest victim; a cowboy with his own rodeo and a fondness for killing; and other nefarious individuals who shall not be named.
If you’re looking for the straight and narrow, you won’t find it here. What you will find are enough strange individuals to fill an entire city block, an over-the-top plot that at times had trouble maintaining believability, dialogue that shuddered, a narrative that might have had a loophole or two in logic and a bit of a jump in time, and pages plastered with dead insects in every possible manner known to the pest community.
If you can believe it, this was even musical material. While I’m not sure I understand that particular angle, I did find myself amused at what took place over the course of this tale. If you have a penchant for half-baked tales that could have been composed on the back of a napkin after you (and possibly the author) surrounded yourselves in a smoke-filled haze, then this story’s for you. Just make sure you wash your hands first and then possibly after.
Cross-posted at Robert's Reads
July 16, 2014
Reading this book was a struggle. It is definitive proof that humor is subjective. After seeing so many reviews comparing this favorably to Christopher Moore, I figured I'd love it, but man was I wrong.
The endless insect asides, complete with Latin names and detailed descriptions, distracted from what should have been a fast paced, light read. The writing was subpar in an amateurish way. Neither the tone, nor the humor worked for me, although the story did pick up toward the end as the assassins converged on New York City, so maybe it deserves 2.5 stars -- but not enough to round up to 3 stars.
Also, I cannot wrap my mind around a critical question with Bob's plan to start an all-natural pest control business. He plans to use assassin bugs to kill the roaches and other insects infesting restaurants and businesses, but then how are the assassin bugs killed? It is mentioned that they need to breed in order to work, so they aren't sterile. It just makes no sense, the business would just then have an infestation of infinitely more terrifying hybrid assassin bugs.
The endless insect asides, complete with Latin names and detailed descriptions, distracted from what should have been a fast paced, light read. The writing was subpar in an amateurish way. Neither the tone, nor the humor worked for me, although the story did pick up toward the end as the assassins converged on New York City, so maybe it deserves 2.5 stars -- but not enough to round up to 3 stars.
Also, I cannot wrap my mind around a critical question with Bob's plan to start an all-natural pest control business. He plans to use assassin bugs to kill the roaches and other insects infesting restaurants and businesses, but then how are the assassin bugs killed? It is mentioned that they need to breed in order to work, so they aren't sterile. It just makes no sense, the business would just then have an infestation of infinitely more terrifying hybrid assassin bugs.
August 18, 2017
3.5 stars.
Persistence paid off...
I'll be honest, at the 20% mark I was wondering what all the fuss was about, but I kept at it and I'm glad I did. The book becomes funnier as you go along.
Look, I can see that this author did a shit-load research on bugs (which is admirable), but then he also gave a shitload worth of information about the bugs to the reader (which bored me). I'm one of those readers who wants to read every single word in a book, to make sure the picture in my head doesn't become distorted if I miss something. I found myself skipping some paragraphs of insect descriptions.
I think this was his first published novel and, despite my criticism, he was funny enough that I would want to read him again.
Persistence paid off...
I'll be honest, at the 20% mark I was wondering what all the fuss was about, but I kept at it and I'm glad I did. The book becomes funnier as you go along.
Look, I can see that this author did a shit-load research on bugs (which is admirable), but then he also gave a shitload worth of information about the bugs to the reader (which bored me). I'm one of those readers who wants to read every single word in a book, to make sure the picture in my head doesn't become distorted if I miss something. I found myself skipping some paragraphs of insect descriptions.
I think this was his first published novel and, despite my criticism, he was funny enough that I would want to read him again.
April 29, 2021
I enjoyed Pest Control. It is well written and amusing, if bonkers. It has some of the wit and craziness of Carl Hiaasen about it and I suspect if you like Hiaasen, you’ll like this.
Bob Dillon (!) is an entomologist who is somewhat obsessed with bugs and dreams of starting an environmentally-friendly pest extermination business. By a somewhat ridiculous chain of misunderstandings he is hired as a hit man (although he doesn’t realise it) and then becomes the target of the world’s top assassins. It’s a good story if you don’t expect grim realism and it is full of comic episodes. Some are very funny, some a little less so, but I found it very entertaining overall.
Bill Fitzhugh uses his character’s name to sneak in a huge array of references to Dylan titles and lyrics. Again, some are neat and smile-inducing, while the unsubtle gratuitousness of others does grate a bit. For example, I liked one trapped character saying to another “There must be some way out of here,” and a reminiscence about being lost one time in Juarez in the rain, both of which fitted the narrative, but I could have done without a wholly gratuitous description of a passer-by wearing a leopardskin pillbox hat or character shooting someone and then yelling, “Those were shots of love! Infidel!”
Minor reservations aside, I did find this a very entertaining read overall and I’ll definitely try some more of Bill Fitzhugh’s books. Recommended.
(My thanks to Farrago for an ARC via NetGalley.)
Bob Dillon (!) is an entomologist who is somewhat obsessed with bugs and dreams of starting an environmentally-friendly pest extermination business. By a somewhat ridiculous chain of misunderstandings he is hired as a hit man (although he doesn’t realise it) and then becomes the target of the world’s top assassins. It’s a good story if you don’t expect grim realism and it is full of comic episodes. Some are very funny, some a little less so, but I found it very entertaining overall.
Bill Fitzhugh uses his character’s name to sneak in a huge array of references to Dylan titles and lyrics. Again, some are neat and smile-inducing, while the unsubtle gratuitousness of others does grate a bit. For example, I liked one trapped character saying to another “There must be some way out of here,” and a reminiscence about being lost one time in Juarez in the rain, both of which fitted the narrative, but I could have done without a wholly gratuitous description of a passer-by wearing a leopardskin pillbox hat or character shooting someone and then yelling, “Those were shots of love! Infidel!”
Minor reservations aside, I did find this a very entertaining read overall and I’ll definitely try some more of Bill Fitzhugh’s books. Recommended.
(My thanks to Farrago for an ARC via NetGalley.)
January 27, 2009
This is one strange story, somewhat akin to a Pink Panther meets Jason Bourne story that, ohbytheway, is filled with more details about bugs and roaches than you'd ever want to read. After 50 or so pages, I really was wondering if this was going to be worth finishing, but the last 100 pages were hard to put down as the touching family story met the assassin story head on, still focused on various types of beetles. If this review doesn't make much sense, it's much like the book in a way...but the book does wrap everything up well at least.
March 27, 2011
What is a five-star book? Pest Control ain't fine literature. Pest Control is exactly what I needed after finishing the immensely DARK The Road. My first thought, in trying to remove the pall left on me by The Road, turned to Christopher Moore as my possible salvation, but I've read all of his (wish he would write faster!) So I Googled "I like Christopher Moore so I should read" and came up with Bill Fitzhugh as a suggestion. Highly entertaining. Looking forward to reading more of his work.
September 7, 2015
This was so corny, with so many bad puns!
This is definitely not something I'd normally read, but the story was such a farce, it felt like an old Marx Brothers movie. The story is pretty simple: down-on-his-luck "bug guy" Bob is mistaken for an assassin by several agencies and cartels.
The writing is pretty good, and I'll definitely be reading the sequel.
This is definitely not something I'd normally read, but the story was such a farce, it felt like an old Marx Brothers movie. The story is pretty simple: down-on-his-luck "bug guy" Bob is mistaken for an assassin by several agencies and cartels.
The writing is pretty good, and I'll definitely be reading the sequel.
September 9, 2020
Pest Control by Bill Fitzhugh is the first book in the Assassin Bug series. Pest exterminator, Bob Dillon, dreams of opening his own environmentally friendly pest control business using assassin beetles when he is mistaken for a professional assassin. An extremely entertaining and funny book. There is a lot of information and stories about insects which I found interesting. I loved the characters. An enjoyable crime book for when you need some light comical relief.
November 21, 2015
Pest Control reminded me of an outrageous Mel Brooks movie. The events are absolutely improbable, but you just have to suspend your disbelief long enough to end up chuckling and shaking your head in wonder. At one point, I was expecting a modern apocalyptic drama where genetic engineering went wrong and, at another point, I was expecting the protagonist to assume the “mistaken identity” implicit in the story. Neither happened and the results turned out to be even more worthwhile than my erroneous expectations.
Imagine a world of super-assassins where everyone keeps score of who is making the most money via mercenary contracts for both national and personal interests. Then, imagine an assassin with a conscience (oxymoronic, I know) who refuses a big job only to have a group seek out new talent. Then, imagine an innocent blundering into that talent search and the wildest chain of coincidences imaginable allowing others to believe that his innocence is a cover-up, a front, a blind, a beard(?), etc. When “The Exterminator” proves to be exactly what he claims to be (not an assassin? Or a wrestler?), both hilarity and a reasonable modicum of suspense takes over the plot.
[Spoiler Alert] I can’t help but share my absolute favorite scene in the book. Unarmed and facing an armed assassin, “The Exterminator” realizes that all of Manhattan is the world’s most efficient killing machine. He starts running and leads the assassin (with gun in hand) to my very favorite Manhattan restaurant (Angelo’s on Mulberry Street). Now, if you know what is alleged to be in the back room at Angelo’s (and I’m not sayin’…), you won’t be surprised at what happens to the assassin when he comes running in with a gun. Even if you understand this spoiler, it’s going to be funny when you read it.
In terms of humor, Pest Control is the absolute best I’ve read since the days of Douglas Adams. To be sure, Adams’ humor had a foundational sophistication in the chaos where Bill Fitzhugh is more slapstick—the late author’s Woody Allen to Fitzhugh’s Mel Brooks. But this reviewer likes both, depending on mood, so the chaos in Pest Control was marvelous. Unless you’re one of those people who wants verisimilitude in all things, this is a largely undiscovered and underrated book that I recommend most highly. Thanks to my brother’s generosity, I was able to “discover” it. Don’t miss it.
Imagine a world of super-assassins where everyone keeps score of who is making the most money via mercenary contracts for both national and personal interests. Then, imagine an assassin with a conscience (oxymoronic, I know) who refuses a big job only to have a group seek out new talent. Then, imagine an innocent blundering into that talent search and the wildest chain of coincidences imaginable allowing others to believe that his innocence is a cover-up, a front, a blind, a beard(?), etc. When “The Exterminator” proves to be exactly what he claims to be (not an assassin? Or a wrestler?), both hilarity and a reasonable modicum of suspense takes over the plot.
[Spoiler Alert] I can’t help but share my absolute favorite scene in the book. Unarmed and facing an armed assassin, “The Exterminator” realizes that all of Manhattan is the world’s most efficient killing machine. He starts running and leads the assassin (with gun in hand) to my very favorite Manhattan restaurant (Angelo’s on Mulberry Street). Now, if you know what is alleged to be in the back room at Angelo’s (and I’m not sayin’…), you won’t be surprised at what happens to the assassin when he comes running in with a gun. Even if you understand this spoiler, it’s going to be funny when you read it.
In terms of humor, Pest Control is the absolute best I’ve read since the days of Douglas Adams. To be sure, Adams’ humor had a foundational sophistication in the chaos where Bill Fitzhugh is more slapstick—the late author’s Woody Allen to Fitzhugh’s Mel Brooks. But this reviewer likes both, depending on mood, so the chaos in Pest Control was marvelous. Unless you’re one of those people who wants verisimilitude in all things, this is a largely undiscovered and underrated book that I recommend most highly. Thanks to my brother’s generosity, I was able to “discover” it. Don’t miss it.
August 22, 2013
I'm astonished at the enthusiasm other readers have for "Pest Control," since it is probably the least satisfying book I have read this year. I'm even a little embarrassed to have read it, but it was not totally inappropriate for airplane reading, I guess.
I did not find anything I liked about this book. I picked it because a list, probably from Nancy Pearl's book, said it was in the genre of "humorous mysteries." I just did not find it funny. Zany, yes, but in a tedious way. The gags are at a junior high school level (I taught kids that age, though long ago), though some sexual content (especially involving Reginald, the British small person) might preclude this book from a recommendation for that age level.
The writing is clumsy, and I am no linguist, but think Fitzhugh mangles some of the foreign phrases which turn up frequently (especially some from the U.K.). Characterization is minimal, in that most of the people in this story are two-dimensional and each is developed around a single gag. The plot was pretty ho-hum, to me anyway, and is easy to guess in most cases how things will develop.
I might have rated this a 1, really, but give it the benefit of the doubt since I did finish it.
I did not find anything I liked about this book. I picked it because a list, probably from Nancy Pearl's book, said it was in the genre of "humorous mysteries." I just did not find it funny. Zany, yes, but in a tedious way. The gags are at a junior high school level (I taught kids that age, though long ago), though some sexual content (especially involving Reginald, the British small person) might preclude this book from a recommendation for that age level.
The writing is clumsy, and I am no linguist, but think Fitzhugh mangles some of the foreign phrases which turn up frequently (especially some from the U.K.). Characterization is minimal, in that most of the people in this story are two-dimensional and each is developed around a single gag. The plot was pretty ho-hum, to me anyway, and is easy to guess in most cases how things will develop.
I might have rated this a 1, really, but give it the benefit of the doubt since I did finish it.
October 5, 2014
Pest Control is a screwball noir caper set in New York that plays off a confusion of two forms of extermination -- the killing of insect infestations and contract killing by hitman -- with Bob Dillon, the hapless hero of the story working as the former but being confused with the latter. The setup is very nicely done and Fitzhugh keeps up the lightly comic riff to the final page. What I liked so much about the story is its warm, upbeat slant despite all the mayhem and madness taking place. Bob Dillon and his family are a genuinely likeable bunch and the baddies are cartoonish and fun. Fitzhugh also peppers the text with nice entomological detail about the various bugs that appear. The plot is nicely constructed and well paced, with a succession of confusions, setups, twists and turns that keep the pages turning. Sure, it’s a little overly contrived in places, but that’s the nature of screwball noirs. Overall, one of my favourite reads of the year so far and I’ll definitely be tracking other Fitzhugh books down.
January 18, 2009
This is the first Fitzhugh novel I read, and immediately searched out the rest!
Bob Dillon is an insect exterminator at odds with the chemical extermination techniques. He is breeding a series of "assassin bugs" for a greener, friendlier extermination process. Sticking the wand of a chemical spray up the nose of your boss isn't really conducive to keeping a job! He answers a job for an exterminator position and is hired before discovering that there are many definitions of exterminator.
Through a series of misadventures, he finds himself on the wrong end of other exterminator.
A fun, quick read, I recently read it for the second time, just because I was between books!
Bob Dillon is an insect exterminator at odds with the chemical extermination techniques. He is breeding a series of "assassin bugs" for a greener, friendlier extermination process. Sticking the wand of a chemical spray up the nose of your boss isn't really conducive to keeping a job! He answers a job for an exterminator position and is hired before discovering that there are many definitions of exterminator.
Through a series of misadventures, he finds himself on the wrong end of other exterminator.
A fun, quick read, I recently read it for the second time, just because I was between books!
August 4, 2013
Bob Dillon is a great character and you just can’t help but empathize with him. He’s like a cross between Homer Simpson and Mister Magoo. On the Homer Simpson side, you have a man who tries and tries to be a good husband and father, but things just never seem to go his way. On the Mister Magoo side, he is a man who sort of blunders along, without ever realizing that there are high-priced hit men trying to kill him, and government agencies trying to hire him.
When someone tries to hire Bob as an assassin, having completely misunderstood his exterminator-for-hire flyers, Bob is never quite able to convince them that he only kills bugs. Then the man Bob was hired to kill goes and drives his car off a mountain road, making it look like Bob has completed the hit. In another scene, Bob is on the verge of proving that his assassin bugs really work, and someone blows up the building in an attempt to kill him, but only succeeds in destroying the evidence of Bob’s success. Through a whole series of similar Three’s Company-ish scenarios, Bob’s name ends up at the top of a list of the best assassins in the world.
Pest Control is just one hilarious misunderstanding after another, and Bill Fitzhugh plays it out perfectly. He is funny and witty and has a real knack for metaphors and similes. In one scene, Bob’s wife is reading some of the old love letters he wrote while they were dating. He is describing one of his favorite bugs when he says, “it’s dark metallic blue and dangerous, like your eyes.” I think Fitzhugh is a great writer and I’m a little surprised that I’ve never heard of him. I’ll be on the lookout for his name from now on.
Pest Control is the second Colby Elliott narration that I’ve heard, and I like him more all the time. The first one was a non-fiction audiobook with little dialogue, and not much room for interpretation. Pest Control was a better forum for Elliott. There were some foreign characters to read, and Elliott did convincing French and British accents, and he read with a good deal of enthusiasm when the story called for it.
I would recommend Pest Control to just about anyone. I got several good chuckles out of it myself. It’s just good, clean fun.
Steven Brandt @ Audiobook-Heaven
When someone tries to hire Bob as an assassin, having completely misunderstood his exterminator-for-hire flyers, Bob is never quite able to convince them that he only kills bugs. Then the man Bob was hired to kill goes and drives his car off a mountain road, making it look like Bob has completed the hit. In another scene, Bob is on the verge of proving that his assassin bugs really work, and someone blows up the building in an attempt to kill him, but only succeeds in destroying the evidence of Bob’s success. Through a whole series of similar Three’s Company-ish scenarios, Bob’s name ends up at the top of a list of the best assassins in the world.
Pest Control is just one hilarious misunderstanding after another, and Bill Fitzhugh plays it out perfectly. He is funny and witty and has a real knack for metaphors and similes. In one scene, Bob’s wife is reading some of the old love letters he wrote while they were dating. He is describing one of his favorite bugs when he says, “it’s dark metallic blue and dangerous, like your eyes.” I think Fitzhugh is a great writer and I’m a little surprised that I’ve never heard of him. I’ll be on the lookout for his name from now on.
Pest Control is the second Colby Elliott narration that I’ve heard, and I like him more all the time. The first one was a non-fiction audiobook with little dialogue, and not much room for interpretation. Pest Control was a better forum for Elliott. There were some foreign characters to read, and Elliott did convincing French and British accents, and he read with a good deal of enthusiasm when the story called for it.
I would recommend Pest Control to just about anyone. I got several good chuckles out of it myself. It’s just good, clean fun.
Steven Brandt @ Audiobook-Heaven
June 5, 2013
Pest Control isn't a newly released novel but it's a deservedly famous novel. It's been done as a radio show in Germany and as a musical in Los Angeles.
In the spring, 2013 edition of Mystery Readers International,an edition featuring environmental mysteries, author Bill Fitzhugh wrote a piece about Pest Control. Fitzhugh titled the piece Call It What You Will, seeing as people have called Pest Control an environmental mystery. Fitzhugh calls it a comedic thriller and he's right, but Pest Control does have an environmental aspect.
Fitzhugh's hero,an entomologist(one of those persons commonly referred to as "a bug guy"),is determined to breed a strain of assassin bugs that will kill cockroaches, thus eliminating the health hazards of chemical poisons--real hazards, mind you, since variations on nerve gas, originally developed for warfare, was the bug spray of choice for decades--and bugs, as Fitzhugh's research revealed, have been observed gaining resistance to pesticides since 1912.
Long story short, the bug guy's advertising for his new bug killing method is misinterpreted by a broker who handles international contracts for, well, contracts--to assassinate human beings. Hijinks ensue and the unwitting bug guy finds himself trying to keep his wife, himself, and his smartass ten year old daughter in one piece. It's a great comedy, a great sendup of New York City street norms,and no character is spared.
Author Bill Fitzhugh got paid for the movie rights a long time ago but he's still waiting to see his novel go up on the big screen. Me too.
In the spring, 2013 edition of Mystery Readers International,an edition featuring environmental mysteries, author Bill Fitzhugh wrote a piece about Pest Control. Fitzhugh titled the piece Call It What You Will, seeing as people have called Pest Control an environmental mystery. Fitzhugh calls it a comedic thriller and he's right, but Pest Control does have an environmental aspect.
Fitzhugh's hero,an entomologist(one of those persons commonly referred to as "a bug guy"),is determined to breed a strain of assassin bugs that will kill cockroaches, thus eliminating the health hazards of chemical poisons--real hazards, mind you, since variations on nerve gas, originally developed for warfare, was the bug spray of choice for decades--and bugs, as Fitzhugh's research revealed, have been observed gaining resistance to pesticides since 1912.
Long story short, the bug guy's advertising for his new bug killing method is misinterpreted by a broker who handles international contracts for, well, contracts--to assassinate human beings. Hijinks ensue and the unwitting bug guy finds himself trying to keep his wife, himself, and his smartass ten year old daughter in one piece. It's a great comedy, a great sendup of New York City street norms,and no character is spared.
Author Bill Fitzhugh got paid for the movie rights a long time ago but he's still waiting to see his novel go up on the big screen. Me too.
October 2, 2015
In a comic novel that is reminiscent of a Jerry Lewis or Don Knott's film, Bill Fitzhugh provides a novel that is both entertaining and educational. I probably learned more about bugs as I read this farce than I ever learned in school.
Bob Dillon (yeah, one of the gags is the grief he took because of his name reminding folks of the pop star) is an exterminator with the dream of cross-breeding certain types of bugs and allowing them to take the lives of cockroaches, spiders, or other pests. When he loses his job he decides it is time for this approach-- meanwhile, on a drunk evening, some friends send one of his flyers in response to an ad placed in the New York Times seeking an exterminator of a different kind. Soon, every big-time assassin in the world has come to New York, trying to take Bob out, convinced that he is the newest and meanest killer around.
Fitzhugh writes in a unique style, and his editors let him get by with a few spelling errors... (COURSE for COARSE among them)-- and just when the reader thinks he is going to get bogged down with the insect information, he picks the story right back up again. The comedy of errors is funny, some of the Dylan jokes are pretty good, and finally the story is full of odd characters that would make a Carl Hiassan fan green with envy.
Bob Dillon (yeah, one of the gags is the grief he took because of his name reminding folks of the pop star) is an exterminator with the dream of cross-breeding certain types of bugs and allowing them to take the lives of cockroaches, spiders, or other pests. When he loses his job he decides it is time for this approach-- meanwhile, on a drunk evening, some friends send one of his flyers in response to an ad placed in the New York Times seeking an exterminator of a different kind. Soon, every big-time assassin in the world has come to New York, trying to take Bob out, convinced that he is the newest and meanest killer around.
Fitzhugh writes in a unique style, and his editors let him get by with a few spelling errors... (COURSE for COARSE among them)-- and just when the reader thinks he is going to get bogged down with the insect information, he picks the story right back up again. The comedy of errors is funny, some of the Dylan jokes are pretty good, and finally the story is full of odd characters that would make a Carl Hiassan fan green with envy.
July 23, 2014
A well-done comedy thriller about a down-on-his-luck entomologist turned exterminator who's big dreams just haven't happened. He ends up lying to his wife and risks losing her and their daughter in his last effort to perfect an all-natural pest killer. He advertises his exterminator services and is mistaken for an assassin. Sort of like Chauncy Gardener, he keeps stumbling into bigger and bigger cases of mistaken identity until he himself becomes a target. Fitzhugh does well with his premise and there are a lot of chuckles along the way. Not sure if it rises to greatness, but comedy is hard to rate. Worth a look, though.
August 26, 2009
OK...obviously I just didn't get "it". So many reviews raved about the humor and witty writing. Even my Librarian told me I'd love it, calling it "one hella funny read". Yeah, umm, I didn't laugh or even chuckle once while reading. It kind of made my head hurt more than anything...all that bug talk. And the characters/situations were so frustratingly dumb that I just wanted to throw this book out the window. The only reason I finished reading it is that I was TRYING to figure out WTH reviewers were talking about. Never did. A big thumbs down.
February 26, 2010
Fitzhugh is kind of a cross between Tim Dorsey and Christopher Moore, in that he peppers his books with trivia and minutae, dashes them through will wild and logic defying stunts, and then comes crashing to an insane crescendo. It moves along at a bullet pace, and Bob and the dynamic between his wife Mary and daughter Katy are some of the best moments in the novel. He’s sort of this sad-sack working man, but he’s got a big heart and a whole lot of determination.pest control
April 16, 2013
Black comedies are my favorite kinds of books, and this is definitely one. A hapless exterminator bent on creating cockroach-killing bugs to save the environment accidentally gets mistaken for an assassin and funny shit happens after this. The violence of New York is of course overstated, and there were about 5 sentences in the whole book that made me cringe a little because they were really bad comedy, but overall it was super fun.
June 2, 2020
Truly one of the funniest things I've read in a long time. I loved what Fitzhugh did to make the obsession of the main character, Bob, be charming. It was also essential to how the story wrapped up. The wit extends to smaller details too, such as the little jokes based on song lyrics that are sprinkled throughout. Madcap violence isn't that easy to pull off, but it really works here. I was pleased to see that a sequel eventually came out -- though as it turned out, I didn't like it that much.
June 21, 2010
A book that really should have been made into a movie right now. It has that perfect blend of visual slapstick and amazing wit that Barry Sonnenfeld could do wonderful things with.
This is not a serious book by any means, but it is truly a hoot.
This is not a serious book by any means, but it is truly a hoot.
December 9, 2024
A bit jocular in the vein of Carl Hiassen, perhaps, but Fitzhugh is very clever with a turn of phrase. As well as with methods of killing -- several people go down to insects! And the descriptions of insects and insect cross-breeding...*shudder*! A lot of fun, really.
May 29, 2020
I was looking for a book by Tom DeHaven (I think) and saw this book. I work for a pest control company, so I read the flyleaf... and laughed out loud in the library, so I checked it out. It was hilarious, so I made my boss read it. It wasn't a "left behind" book, but he did enjoy it...
May 13, 2010
Very funny book. This book seriously needs to be made into a movie.
June 2, 2012
Pest Control
Reason for Book’s Selection: I found a used copy at Salvation Army, and the premise of the book seemed quirky enough to make for an interesting read.
Plot: Bob Dillon loves bugs but not pesticides, so when he finally has the opportunity to start an all-natural pest control business, he mails some marketing fliers to individuals and potential business contracts. He promptly receives a response from someone who wants a two-legged “pest” controlled…
Characterization: The characterization remains fairly consistent throughout, and there are a few interesting and unusual characters introduced. In this case, the protagonist is a guy you might meet on the street—a normal Joe just trying to stop working for “the man.”
Narration: The only part of the narration that stands out involves the author’s tendency to insert very dated and unnecessary metaphors and personal views. As an example, the author mentions Rush Limbaugh’s 1990s radio station in a metaphor, which is totally irrelevant to the story. The author could have spent a bit more time picking less obvious and dated asides and metaphors.
Description: The book devotes quite a bit of time to “bug talk” and bug factoids. I did not personally find it annoying or boring, but some readers might not like it. Otherwise, the descriptions mostly revolve around New York.
Setting: Mostly New York City
Prequel / Sequel / Etc: I think there might be at least one other book in this series (published much later).
Ingenuity/Premise: The premise seemed different enough to make me pick the book up and pay $1 for it, so points for premise!
Language: The story contains LOTS of cursing and shooting/killing but nothing sexual.
Positives: The most positive attribute of the novel is the premise—it’s something a little quirky and different. This is the first novel I have read that managed to work in facts about bugs as part of the plot. In addition, for readers who do not particularly care for the mystery or hired-killer genres, this book is a light version of both, so it can attract a wider audience than heavier stories in either of those genres.
Negatives: The book contains rather dated references, some personal opinions of the author hidden as metaphors and critiques of society, and some minor characterization annoyances.
Reason for Book’s Selection: I found a used copy at Salvation Army, and the premise of the book seemed quirky enough to make for an interesting read.
Plot: Bob Dillon loves bugs but not pesticides, so when he finally has the opportunity to start an all-natural pest control business, he mails some marketing fliers to individuals and potential business contracts. He promptly receives a response from someone who wants a two-legged “pest” controlled…
Characterization: The characterization remains fairly consistent throughout, and there are a few interesting and unusual characters introduced. In this case, the protagonist is a guy you might meet on the street—a normal Joe just trying to stop working for “the man.”
Narration: The only part of the narration that stands out involves the author’s tendency to insert very dated and unnecessary metaphors and personal views. As an example, the author mentions Rush Limbaugh’s 1990s radio station in a metaphor, which is totally irrelevant to the story. The author could have spent a bit more time picking less obvious and dated asides and metaphors.
Description: The book devotes quite a bit of time to “bug talk” and bug factoids. I did not personally find it annoying or boring, but some readers might not like it. Otherwise, the descriptions mostly revolve around New York.
Setting: Mostly New York City
Prequel / Sequel / Etc: I think there might be at least one other book in this series (published much later).
Ingenuity/Premise: The premise seemed different enough to make me pick the book up and pay $1 for it, so points for premise!
Language: The story contains LOTS of cursing and shooting/killing but nothing sexual.
Positives: The most positive attribute of the novel is the premise—it’s something a little quirky and different. This is the first novel I have read that managed to work in facts about bugs as part of the plot. In addition, for readers who do not particularly care for the mystery or hired-killer genres, this book is a light version of both, so it can attract a wider audience than heavier stories in either of those genres.
Negatives: The book contains rather dated references, some personal opinions of the author hidden as metaphors and critiques of society, and some minor characterization annoyances.
February 23, 2013
Entertaining, but not his best work.
Fitzhugh specializes in filling his books with absurd characters in absurd situations. This is my third Fitzhugh book and I have to rank it in second. It is funny, but at times his characterization of New Yorkers as oblivious and callous to the violence that can be inherent in that city is even a bit much for me.
The premise of Pest Control is that a down and out exterminator who has come up with an entirely new way to control pests is confused for a professional hit man - a top level hit man. Soon, other top level hit men are swarming after the exterminator in an effort to eliminate the newest "star" in the hit man world.
The overall premise is funny but the book somehow fails to hit the high level of promise that this reader anticipated. That said, this would be a heck of a good movie if you get the right actors involved.
If you've never read a Fitzhugh novel, I'd recommend Cross Dressing to start with instead.
http://dwdsreviews.blogspot.com/
Fitzhugh specializes in filling his books with absurd characters in absurd situations. This is my third Fitzhugh book and I have to rank it in second. It is funny, but at times his characterization of New Yorkers as oblivious and callous to the violence that can be inherent in that city is even a bit much for me.
The premise of Pest Control is that a down and out exterminator who has come up with an entirely new way to control pests is confused for a professional hit man - a top level hit man. Soon, other top level hit men are swarming after the exterminator in an effort to eliminate the newest "star" in the hit man world.
The overall premise is funny but the book somehow fails to hit the high level of promise that this reader anticipated. That said, this would be a heck of a good movie if you get the right actors involved.
If you've never read a Fitzhugh novel, I'd recommend Cross Dressing to start with instead.
http://dwdsreviews.blogspot.com/
January 13, 2016
Pest Control by Bill Fitzhugh was written in 1997 and the story takes place in the early 1990s. This is a humorous tale of an insect exterminator who is mistaken for top international assassin. The book is entertaining and easy to read. It is the right length to read while on a 3 hour airline flight. The book might make an excellent movie.
Numerous references to little-known American cultural items such as Pintos, Popeye Doyle, Corey Pavin, Martin Landau and so on will make it hard to relate to this book as the years go by especially for non-Americans and younger generations. If a movie is made from this book all of these references will be need to be changed. On the other hand, Fitzhugh’s insect references seemed to be well researched and add spice and humor to the book.
The end of the book is somewhat expected but once again would be visually entertaining in a movie.
Numerous references to little-known American cultural items such as Pintos, Popeye Doyle, Corey Pavin, Martin Landau and so on will make it hard to relate to this book as the years go by especially for non-Americans and younger generations. If a movie is made from this book all of these references will be need to be changed. On the other hand, Fitzhugh’s insect references seemed to be well researched and add spice and humor to the book.
The end of the book is somewhat expected but once again would be visually entertaining in a movie.
April 26, 2016
Better than The Organ Grinders but not as good as Cross Dressing.
Full of little blink-and-you-miss-it bits like:
and
So many bits that I think I missed quite a few of them simply from not reading slow enough/not concentrating/not knowing Bob Dylan songs.
Full of little blink-and-you-miss-it bits like:
"Well, there must be some way out of here," said the assassin to the exterminator.
and
A somber Asian man moved down the crowded streets of SoHo in the rain searching for a place to eat. He was looking for a place called Lee Ho Fooks - he wanted to get himself a big dish of beef chow mein. He was quite hungry...
So many bits that I think I missed quite a few of them simply from not reading slow enough/not concentrating/not knowing Bob Dylan songs.
December 7, 2012
Meh. This was recommended to me, but it really didn't do anything for me at all. It's a story of an exterminator who gets confused for an intl assassin. Stale metaphors and predictable storyline, unfortunately. It's sad, too, because the If You Liked This Author listings for this book include some really funny guys, like Christopher Moore and Tim Dorsey.
The one thing I kinda liked about the book was that the guy was an amateur etymologist, so he was trying to breed the perfect assassin bug instead of using poisons. So the guy's affection for bugs was kinda cute, but it didn't carry the rest of the book.
The one thing I kinda liked about the book was that the guy was an amateur etymologist, so he was trying to breed the perfect assassin bug instead of using poisons. So the guy's affection for bugs was kinda cute, but it didn't carry the rest of the book.
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