Hench by Natalie Zena Walschot
Read by Alex McKenna
Published: September 2020
Summary from Goodreads:
A smart, imaginative, and evocative novel of love, betrayal, revenge, and redemption, told with razor-sharp wit and affection, in which a young woman discovers the greatest superpower – for good or ill – is a properly executed spreadsheet.
Anna does boring things for terrible people because even criminals need office help and she needs a job. Working for a monster lurking beneath the surface of the world isn’t glamorous. But is it really worse than working for an oil conglomerate or an insurance company? In this economy?
As a temp, she’s just a cog in the machine. But when she finally gets a promising assignment, everything goes very wrong, and an encounter the so-called “hero” leaves her badly injured. And, to her horror, compared to the other bodies strewn about, she’s the lucky one. So, of course, then she gets laid off.
With no money and no mobility, with only her anger and internet research acumen, she discovers her suffering at the hands of a hero is far from unique. When people start listening to the story that her data tells, she realizes she might not be as powerless as she thinks.
Because the key to everything is data: knowing how to collate it, how to manipulate it, and how to weaponize it. By tallying up the human cost these caped forces of nature wreak upon the world, she discovers that the line between good and evil is mostly marketing. And with social media and viral videos, she can control that appearance.
It’s not too long before she’s employed once more, this time by one of the worst villains on earth. As she becomes an increasingly valuable lieutenant, she might just save the world.
A sharp, witty, modern debut, Hench explores the individual cost of justice through a fascinating mix of millennial office politics, heroism measured through data science, body horror, and a profound misunderstanding of quantum mechanics.
Confession:
Back when my son was young, we used to watch superhero movies and Transformers and similar such films. I myself am a huge fan of the James Bond franchise. But whenever I watched these movies, I always found myself thinking, but what about all of those bystanders? And where do the villains find people willing to work for them? And why would they? If you have ever had such thoughts than this is a book you just might want to consider reading.
Hench is a very smart and interesting take on the whole Superhero vs Villain genre. It is told from the point of view of one of the ‘henches’ who works for the notorious Leviathan. I really enjoyed spending time in Anna’s head. She is smart, analytical and a fantastic researcher. She can create a spreadsheet and have it tell a story. But she is also smart and imaginative enough to see how to use the data she collects to dismantle the superhero’s reputations and make their lives miserable. She is also pretty funny in a very sarcastic way. Her journey from being a short term hench temp to Leviathan’s trusted lieutenant is a very perilous one, full of danger and even a little heartbreak. Is Anna a perfect person? No, not by a long shot. She is one of the most morally gray characters I have met in a long time. Is she right to do what she does? Maybe. I’m not one to judge people’s choices in life, and perhaps her world isn’t perfect, but I do know that people get hurt and damaged in her world on a regular basis by the ‘heros’.
This is set in a similar world to ours, but in this one people do have superpowers, which are either used for good or for evil. I found it interesting that many of the villains had once been heroes, but changed sides for reasons known only to them. There is a dark side to the heroes lives that is only hinted at in this story, but I hope to learn more about in the next book. There is a lot of action in this story, and towards the end, a rather graphic description of what happens to Anna’s superhero nemesis. It is not for the squeamish. I also really enjoyed all of the office politics and felt very much at home in the villain’s lair with the other workers.
Alex McKenna did a fabulous job with the narration. She very easily conveyed Anna’s wit and sarcasm as well as her frustration throughout the story. She does some nice voices for the other characters as well, although I did find that Leviathan’s voice grated on my nerves a bit, but it totally fit with his character. I really hope that she narrates the next book.
This first book came out over five years ago, and I don’t know why there was such a delay, (I could make some guesses based on what I know about publishing, but I won’t) but we are finally getting a sequel later this spring. I am very much looking forward to it. If you have any interest in superheros or if you ever wondered why people would work for villains, you should give this story a try. I highly recommend the audiobook as well. The narrator does a fantastic job and made the book even more enjoyable.
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