AustLit

'Monsters,' said Vince Martinelli. 'There are monsters on the rig, Dave.' Dave Hooper has the hangover from hell, a demonic ex-wife and the claws of the tax office sinking into him. So the last thing he needs is an explosion at the off-shore oil rig where he works. But this is no ordinary industrial accident, and despite the news reports, Dave knows that terrorists aren't to blame for the disaster. He knows because he has killed one of the things responsible. When he wakes up in a hospital bed guarded by Navy SEALs, he realises he hasn't been on a bad acid trip. It all really happened. Yet his shock is cut short by a startling self-discovery; his contact with the creature has transformed the overweight, balding safety manager into something else entirely. A goddamned superhero. Then he learns the attack on the rig is only the first. ' (Publication summary)

'Two bright geometric shapes, metallic flashes picked out in the morning sun, moving impossibly fast and straight amidst the visual clutter and chaos of forest and rock...

''Is it dragons, Dave, is that what it is? Because I'm not ready for dragons...'

'A dragon brings down the Vice President's plane, a monster army is camped outside Omaha, and an empath demon springs an undercover operation in New York.

'New Orleans was just the beginning. New and different demons are breaking through all over America, and Dave Hooper has a new enemy with more guile and guts than the celebrity superhero, still stumbling in his role as Champion. While his agent fields offers for movies and merchandise, Dave is tasked with ending a siege in Omaha, saving his friends and deciphering the underrealms' plans to take over the earth.

'As an ancient and legion evil threatens to destroy mankind, Dave has to decide what kind of man he wants to be and the nature of his role in this new world. He may not be the hero humanity deserves, but he's the only one we've got.' (Publication summary)

''There were too many of them. Lucille was nowhere Dave could see and only a faint mournful sigh reached him from where she lay . . . It was time to die, the hero's journey over.'

'New York is on fire, the streets are overrun, and the Demon Horde is feasting. With the world's greatest city in chaos, all eyes are on Dave Hooper, the superhero destined to save mankind.

'But hero or not, Dave is just one man and he's short of allies. He soon finds himself relying on Karen Warat: art dealer and Russian deep cover agent. Smart, dangerous and armed with a magic sword, Dave knows not to trust her. He also knows that without her, New York will fall.

'While the United States military try desperately to hold off the Horde, Dave and Karen realise that the monsters have a powerful new weapon - one of their best warfare strategists is working for them. With the enemy using the military's own tactics against them, defeat seems imminent.

'To have any chance of survival, mankind needs its Champion more than ever. The world needs Dave to become the hero he is meant to be.' (Publication summary)