(Mostly) Human Resources is the debut novel of American author Grace Viall.
Growing up in the Appalachian (pronounced Appalatchian for people like me who didn’t have a clue), the tales of cryptids and creatures that went bump in the night were bedtime stories.
As an adult, she worked in the corporate world of HR, and that’s where reality and fantasy meet.
Amongst mountains as old as time, the jackalopes and ghouls are the least of your worries…
Working in Human Resources was not what Alexys had in mind when she joined Entity, the company who categorise and manage the monsters and cryptids of the world. But after her dad was killed as a Warden in the Appalachian mountains, she was filled with noble ideas of carrying on his legacy… from behind the safety of a desk.
But when one of her new Wardens, Elliot, goes missing, her chances of promotion go missing too. Determined to find him safe and sound, she marches off into the mountains to find him herself.
Because Elliot had been talking about sightings of a highly dangerous and never-recorded monster, The Hollow Walker, and she’s promised herself that no Warden will ever die on her watch.
Meanwhile Nic, Director of Research and Categorisation, is not one to ignore the words ‘never-recorded’. With Alexys, his work nemesis, leading the charge into the mountains, he’s not going to let her have all the fun. If he can be the youngest Entity employee to discover a new monster, his name will go down in the annals of cryptozoology… and if it means spending some extra time with Alexys then he’s not one to argue.
But Alexys and Nic are about to discover why the Appalachian Mountains are the last place you want to find yourself after dark…
(Mostly) Human Resources is a humour-filled story of what could happen when two combatative colleagues are forced to work together for the greater good.
Alexys is stubborn, never veers from the path of rule-following, and you can mentally hear her wincing whenever someone else forgets to read the rulebook – which she lives by.
The daughter of a deceased warden, she takes her job of keeping them all safe incredibly seriously and expects others to do the same.
Nic Dyre is not that man. He lives in chaos that could never be described as even a smidgeon organised. He is Alexys’ idea of hell on earth, and the idea of being stuck with him for even a few moments is intolerable. So you can imagine her reaction when he shows up and tells her that they’re going to be working together!
Fireworks, animosity, intense UST. This book has it all and more.
Honestly, the sort of book you should pick up if you love a little forced proximity blended with the perfection that was the first few seasons of The X-Files and a show that I apparently mention about 20 times in this episode, Warehouse 13.
Grace Viall’s debut novel (Mostly) Human Resources is the first in her Entity Case Files trilogy, and while the second and third books are not out yet (nor going to be for a while), I would 100% recommend you pick this one up
If you’re looking for books that have a similar feel to (Mostly) Human Resources, then you’re in luck. There are so many that give off a cosy yet spooky, almost Halloween vibe. Light horror blended with humour and romance.
A Witch’s Guide to Magical Innkeeping by Sangu Mandanna
The Irresistible Urge to Fall for Your Enemy by Brigitte Knightley
Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree
The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by Megan Bannon
The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune
