Limbus, Inc.: Book II (Limbus, Inc., #2)

Amazingly enough Limbus - Book II is better than book I of the series. Not only did Joe R. Lansdale win the Bram Stoker award for his story in the long fiction category, "Fishing for Dinosaurs", and Jonathan Mayberry's second installment of his ware.... PI story (this time co-staring his other character Joe Ledger), hit the mark, there was not a bad story in this collection.

Once again the nice mix of Science Fiction, Mystery and Horror stories hit the sweet spot.

It's hard to believe that an anthology series can maintain this high level of content.

I look forward to volume III at some point in the future.

Contents:

13 - "Prologue" by Cesky Krumlov
19 - "Zero At The Bone" by Harry Shannon
67 - First Interlude: Whispers In Shadow
71 - "Fishing For Dinosaurs" by Joe R. Lansdale
113 - Second Interlude: No Good Dead
117 - "Lost And Found" by Joe Mckinney
165 - Third Interlude: Beyond The Veil
169 - "The Transmigration of Librarian Blaine Evens" by Gary A Braunbeck
203 - Fourth Interlude: A Pawn In Their Game
207 - "Three Guys Walk Into A Bar" by Jonathan Mayberry
301 - Epilogue
303 - About The Authors

Limbus Inc - the most extraordinary employment agency you'll ever work for. What would you do? Down on your luck perhaps. Desperate. You find a mysterious card. With a telephone number on it, and it seems to be speaking just to you. In fact, it seems to have been waiting for you. You're going to call that number, aren't you? Just to see if, by some miracle, you can turn your life and fortunes around. Just to see if you can retrieve what you thought you'd lost forever. Be careful what you wish for. That's a cliche. because it's true. This is a ''shared world' anthology by some of today's best. award winning horror writers. Don't miss it.

“The world is a stage, life is a play, and we are the puppets. It’s better not to ask who pulls the strings.”

How lucky do you feel?

That question echoed through the world’s underground, scrawled on bathroom walls, spray-painted across subway tunnel exits, written on paper that fluttered through bleak side-streets in the winter wind, printed on cheap business cards tacked to corkboard displays in darkened hallways. But always beneath one name—Limbus.

Matthew Sellers revealed the truth of Limbus, Inc. to the world, and in his tales of time travelers, intergalactic beings, and human sacrifice, he thought he had told it all. But the story of the shadowy employment agency that operates on the edge of the abyss, always finding the perfect person for the perfect job—no matter what the cost—had only begun.

This shared-world anthology continues the story of Limbus, Inc., as told by five masters of horror, fantasy, and science fiction. But beware, for once you learn the truth of Limbus, Inc., your world will never be the same. So it's time to ask yourself . . .

How lucky do you feel?

This second book did not disappoint! Another collection of fun, weird, f@&*ed up tales all tied together by the mighty, mysterious Limbus. Want to know what Limbus is? Read the books! You still won't know. But you'll have read too great books.
I'm ready... bring on Limbus III!

Limited Editions Bonus Features:

371 - A Guide to "Limbus Inc" Book II
379 - Jonathan Maberry – "Doctor Nine"
393 - Gary Braunbeck "In A Hand or Face"
415 - Harry Shannon "Bait"
427 - Joe McKinney "A Little Crimson Stain"
445 - Joe R. Lansdale’s, "The Ears"

The book is bound in Leather and is signed by:

Jonathan Mayberry
Joe R. Lansdale
Gary A. Braunbeck
Harry Shannon
Brett J. Talley

This is COPY 23 OF 250 signed numbered copies.

This should be a TV series.

This follow-up to an acclaimed shared world anthology that features some of the best writers in business pushes the envelope even further.
Ex-hacker, Conrad is in hiding from the events of the first book. Like a tongue to a sore tooth, he’s pulled back into the dark-net: The real, hidden internet. He itches to get back on the trail of a shadowy “corporation” known as Limbus Inc.

Limbus Inc. requires no resume submissions, no ads for employment. No, my dear friends. They will find you. Limbus Inc. preys on the weak, the ones whose paths are least-traveled. What they recruit for will never hit the newspapers, or the media. What they do, well…I wouldn’t want to tell you because you haven’t read the fine print. And even if you did…would you still want to know?

This follow-up is even darker, more personal. Harry Shannon opens with, Zero at the Bone, a story that is beautiful as it is horrific. It’s heart-rending. “Snake,” as his military buddies called him, is down-and-out. However, presented with the worst-case-scenario by a corporation more powerful than all nations combined, Snake thinks there is a silver-lining. With twists and turns that you won’t see coming, Shannon boldly sets the tone for what’s to come.

Joe R. Lansdale ups the ante with, Fishing for Dinosaurs. Just when you thought every emotional chord has been plucked, we find that “Ray Slater” has hit rock-bottom. No hope is in sight…until he finds Limbus Inc.’s card. He calls the phone number only to be given an ultimatum. What choice does he have? What follows is unique, and cranks reader’s imaginations to their limits. Do you believe in Global Warming? Do you believe what you were taught in science class?

Joe McKinney offers an emotional power-house of a story, Lost and Found. The suspense is palpable, and will keep you on the edge of your seat, unable to look away. Alan Becker had too much to drink. Once the police find him in his car, he sees his seventeen-year career as a cop coming to a swift end. Still mourning the loss of his wife and two children, all he asks for is a second chance. Thus begins Alan’s attempt to reconcile his life post-tragedy…and he’ll need every ounce of emotional strength he has left.

Gary A. Braunbeck takes us down a deep, dark rabbit-hole filled with characters so real they almost pop off the page with, The Transmigration of Librarian Blaine Evans—a nod to S/F phenom, Philip K. Dick. Five years ago, Blaine Evans was a meager librarian with a wife and kids. That was before Limbus Inc. stepped into the picture. When his wife and kids left him, they didn’t even say good-bye. After pulling off another job for Limbus Inc., Blaine finds himself being hunted, as opposed to the hunter. What follows is a mind-blowing, heart-plucking story that never lets up, building to a crescendo no one will see coming.

Jonathan Maberry easily gives us the darkest, and most shocking of tales with, Three Guys Walk Into a Bar. Sam Hunter used to be a cop. A good cop. Until a scandal that will send chills up your spine came to his attention. But that was then, perhaps before… Sam enters his vehicle to find a Limbus Inc. card waiting for him. Why does this seem familiar? What follows takes you to the darkest depths of the human—and inhuman—soul in ways only Mr. Maberry can. Filled with characters, emotions, and humor, Three Guys Walk Into a Bar encapsulates every facet of Limbus Inc. It’s the perfect ending for this edition.

Journalstone knocks another one out of the ball-park with this truly amazing follow-up. However, what makes this—and Limbus Inc. Book 1—so believable is this: The dark-net is real, and so are “corporations” who operate there with twisted appetites that would make even Hitler nauseous. You’re only getting 3% of the internet from your service provider. And that’s a good thing. The rest is fraught with things the word “illegal” would seem to timid to describe. But there are worse things that exist there. And at the heart of it is Limbus Inc.

Always read the fine-print, my dear friends.

Втората книга от серията ми влезе малко по-леко от към визуална бруталия.
Също така виждаме една малко по-различна страна на корпорация Лимбус - не толкова експлоатираща нещастници, а по-скоро помагаща по един жесток начин.
Интересно ми стана, че тук фантастика леко обърна поджанра от времева (не че я няма) се потопи във водите на нанотех-а и генните модификации. Приятно разнообразие, бих казал.
Третото и преставам, е че авторите този път са малко по-опитни и изкарват главните си герои от клишето за пропадналия военен, без шанс за интеграция, в което предишната книга почти затъна.

Пролог - Прологът и интерлюжиите отново ни представят самотен персонаж, на който се дава шанс да разкрие чавст от истината за Лимбус. Този път е хакер, направил издънка и криещ се в ауспуха на географията. Малко по малко, история по история, нашето момче разбира, че света е по-голям и по-мрачен от колкото си е мислел.

Zero at the Bone от Хари Шанън - Освен, че е сърдечна история с приятно щастлив финал, може да се ползва като свързващо звено с предната книга, сигурно за това е и първа история. Героят е претърпял трагедия бивш военен, затънал в алкохол и самосъжаление. Лимбус юе му предложи работа и възможност да изтрие спомените за нещастното си минало.

Fishing For Dinosaurs от Джо Лансдейл - Голямо име в жанра. Тук Лансдейл оставя така любимата си южнящка готика, за да ни представи един пастиш към Бъроуз и Уелс. Един отчаян младеж, останал на улицата и без переспективи, ще бъде потопен от Лимбус, или по-скоро от фирма наела Лимбус, в свят под нашия свят, където неандерталци и динозаври съществуват.

Lost And Found от Джо Маккинли - Настоящ полицай, бавно пропадащ след трагедия отнела семейството му, получава случай, който не може да откаже. Лимбус винаги намира правилните хора за правилната работа, дори те да не знаят.

The Transmigration of Librarian Blaine Evens от Гари Браунбек - Тази беше доволно странна, но забавна. Библиотекар, преждевременно треснат от кризата на средната възраст и то по възможно най-жалкия самобичуващ се начин, успява да провали всичко около себе си - възможности, жена, деца, живот. ДОкато един ден не го отвличат насред улицата. Оказва се, че Лимбус има работа за него. Работа нямаща нищо общо със способностите му, но обещаваща нов живот и... да и полудяване.

Three Guys Walk Into A Bar от Джон Мабери - Отново история за нашия космат (чат-пат) детектив Сам Хънтър. Този път най-омразните му клиенти ще го закарат в Пайн Дийп, където банда терористи въдят ГМО върколаци. Освен Кроу и Железния Майк ще видим и Джо Леджър, така че финалният екшън няма аналог. Малко съм скептичен от събирането на Сам, Кроу и Джо в един разказ, всеки е малко или много алерего на автора и така поставени (на една маса в бар) доста от приликите изпъкват и не ��тои особено добре. Липсваше само Монк от Мастило, но тази история предхожда неговата с едно десет години.

Историите бяха лекинко по-индивидуални, като Лимбус не взимаше толкова пряко участие в тях. При всички положения аз ще прочета и третата. А вие? ЧУвствате ли се късметлии?

Take some of the five most talented scary guys out there writing and put their keyboards to work and you are left with a really frightening look at a company that might want to think twice about joining. "Limbus Inc." is the name on the business card that suddenly finds its way into the hands of those that need saving the most. Many times it is when they are on their last nickel, seeing the bottom of the glass of that last drink or wondering if life is worth it when the card falls into their hands with the cryptic words - How lucky do you feel? Whatever the job, they agree to do it because they have no choice. Part CIA, part Dr. Who, this strange company changes people's lives and then pays handsomely. We don't know how long the job will last or if Limbus employees feel better afterward but we do know it is one interesting ride. Each author's style is incorporated into the central story but they write about one new employee. This is the second edition and while you will enjoy the book regardless if you read the first one, I am going to go back and read it to see how the company came about. Thanks to LibraryThing for a chance to read the advance copy of what is due out in October.

They did it again !

The imagination and dark humor in these stories are great. the first volume was fun, the authors took it a little darker this time but still worth the read.

I received a free copy of this book in return for a review, via the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program.

I had never known a woman like her. Enigmatic, strong, purposeful, and someone with a bit of dinosaur fishing experience.

This book follows the same format as the first Limbus Inc, book, with a frame story plus several novellas telling separate stories, and I enjoyed this book better than the first (possibly because it didn't start with a story about a slaughterhouse worker). This time the frame-story is right up to date, telling the tale of a hacker hiding out in Eastern Europe after the Dark Net is infiltrated, who finds stories about Limbus, Inc. appearing on his computer screen. I was happy that private investigator Sam Hunter made a reappearance, with his particular skill set leading Limbus to hire him for a second time to help the police investigate a series of murders, and who could resist a story called "Fishing for Dinosaurs"?

I must predicate my review by disclosing that I received this e-book as an Early Reviewers copy from LibraryThing in return for a review in August last year, but I only just read it.

Having read the first Limbus book a couple of years ago I knew what to expect, but I still found the use of an employment agency - which always finds the right person for the right job no matter how strange or how expensive - as an overall connecting framework for a series of short stories innovative and interesting.

The stories here are an eclectic mix, with the only thing in common the linking idea that the protagonist has been hired for a specific job by Limbus Inc. "Three Guys Walk Into A Bar", the final story in the book, involves the same character as one of the stories in the first Limbus Inc. book, a private investigator who is remarkably suited to the type of job Limbus has found for him because he is a werewolf, is the one I enjoyed the most. The horror has been scaled down a bit from the story in the first book to its advantage.

Coming close was "The Transmigration of Librarian Blaine Evans" which immediately precedes it. The story of a meek and mild librarian who hits rock bottom after his wife and children leave him and is hired by Limbus and retrained as a stone cold killer, but is then sent on what might be just one job too many.

The connecting story of Conrad, a hacker looking into the dark web where he finds each of the stories in the book is also interesting. As he unlocks and reads each story his paranoia rises.

Very highly recommended.

Limbus Inc.-Book II is a good follow-up to the original Limbus Inc., and best of all, you don’t have to read the first one to enjoy it.

Limbus Inc. Book II has the same supernatural and horror feel as the first one. The only story that I didn't really like was “Fishing for Dinosaurs”. For me, it had an unsatisfying ending. As I progressed thorough the book; however, I found myself wondering if there would be a story that would really grab my attention, and then, I started to read the last part: “Three Guys Walk into a Bark”. This section had some great concepts, but unfortunately, I felt the ending didn't truly complete the story. The conclusion just fizzled out in the end.

Overall, the book is a good read, but I think that some of the stories could have been developed a little better.

This is the second volume of stories about Limbus, Inc. Each story presents a new view of Limbus. Each person who finds a business card is given a choice of accepting employment. The choices that are made and its impact on lives are varied and never dull. I didn't expect to get drawn in so quickly. I found that I wanted to keep learning more about this mysterious company and the people they employ. Take a chance and see how lucky you feel.

*I received a review copy through LibraryThing's Early Reviewer group in exchange for a honest review. *

Intriguing

I've been a fan of shared universes since Wild Cards and Thieves World. But so many fall far short of expectations. Not so with Limbus Inc. Each story builds more mystery instead of offering solutions. Yet each story is complete. Their job is done and they were the best suited for that job.
I started with book 2, I am going back to get book 1. I am hoping there will be more to follow.
Out of all the stories, my favorite character is Sam Hunter. I liked the idea of his tale, and the humor in the telling. He is one character I wish I could read more about.

I received this book from Library Thing Early Reviewers. I thought Limbus, Inc. II by Jonathan Maberry, Harry Shannon, Gary A. Braunbeck, Joe R. Lansdale, and Joe McKinney to be exciting and full of variety. Limbus II is a sequel to Limbus Inc. Limbus Inc is a very unique employment agency. Recruiters offer contracts for employment tailored exactly to the job seeker in question. But a word to the wise. . . it's always a good idea to read the fine print.

This followup to Limbus, Inc. is every bit as good as the predecessor. Once again it is a loosely connected set of stories, with some being sequels of sorts to the previous book. As in my last review, I won't go into the stories themselves, so as not to spoil any surprises, and there were a few notable ones here! I really loved the final story. Spectacular doesn't do the book justice. This is my top contender for best of 2015, so check it out!

Even better than the first! Limbus, that shadowy sinister agency, is back, still covertly keeping our world spinning on its axis as we sleep.
I was sad to read that Anne C. Petty, writer and editor for the first book passed away, after a battle with cancer.
This second installment is very entertaining, and I can't wait to read another Limbus collection.

Limbus, Inc. Book 2 is a shared anthology featuring some heavy hitters in the horror genre, masterfully edited by Brett Talley. Weaving into all of these stories is a shadowy hiring agency called Limbus Inc. that seems to find just the right people for a given job provided they are desperate enough to take it. The interludes that weaved in between the stories were probably my favorite part of the book. They followed a hacker who was being fed the same stories that the reader was reading. In the process, he was being lured in to work for the organization.

As for the stories, for the most part, they were high quality. The one that didn’t work for me was the one written by Gary Braunbeck. “Three Guys Walk Into a Bar”, written by Jonathan Maberry was a cool tale that features some of the characters in the series of novels that he writes thrown in together to stop an evil plot to manufacture werewolves to fight for rogue foreign governments was pretty cool. But my favorite story would have to be “Lost and Found” by Joe McKinney. It’s a story about a man down and out after losing his wife from a terrible murder who was given the opportunity to travel through time and save people who are about to be killed. The flow of the stories was great. The concept is really cool and the execution was even better. I preferred Limbus Inc. Book 3, but this anthology is a winner that is well worth reading

Carl Alves - author of Battle of the Soul

"Prologue" by Cesky Krumlov - ***
"Zero At The Bone" by Harry Shannon - **
First Interlude: Whispers In Shadow - ***
"Fishing For Dinosaurs" by Joe R. Lansdale - ****
Second Interlude: No Good Dead - ***
"Lost And Found" by Joe Mckinney - ****(*)
I initially gave this one a 5-star rating, primarily because it resonated with my experience (I have lost someone near and dear to me to a stupid traffic crash and I hurt all the time because they are not here), but upon thinking on the story I had to roll it back a bit. No spoilers, but some things just did not quite fit together as well as I would have liked.
Third Interlude: Beyond The Veil - ***
"The Transmigration of Librarian Blaine Evens" by Gary A Braunbeck - **** (Could have gotten a 5-star but the recruiting of Mr. Evens did not seem to fit their usual tactic and it was pretty darn crude)
Fourth Interlude: A Pawn In Their Game - ***
"Three Guys Walk Into A Bar" by Jonathan Mayberry - ***** (Ended a little too happily IMOP, but I am a dark soul in a dark land on a dark world orbiting a dark sun in a dark galaxy... So I may be a little dark.

Overall it earned a 3.75 stars, so always rounding to the nearest whole it gets 4 stars... which it has rightly earned.

Looking forward to the next installment.

The anthology starts off with a short piece by Harry Shannon. This guy has absolute mastery of the long short story. so this entry alone merits the cost of admission. The last story was by another master. Jonathan Maberry writes a fight scene like no other, probably because of his extensive martial arts training. Most of the stories in between were first rate, though there was one that I was just waiting for it to finish. Not saying which, because somebody might skip it who would otherwise have enjoyed it.

Very good collection. It had everything from drunk police officers to werewolves. Oh, and a secret hidden earth. It was my first exposure to several of these authors. And I think I found some new authors to add to my expanding "to read" list. The different ways the connecting theme was worked into each story was very unique. I do not usually read anthologies but in this case, I'm glad I did. Very nice!

All of these stories really worked within the context of the shared-world theme of Limbus Inc., save one and even that one was not bad, just not my cup o tea. (and no, I’m not going to tell you which one) Still overall, a very entertaining and well written collection with some of today’s top authors.

As with the first volume, not at all for me....with the exception of the final story, which shared the same main character as the best story from the first book...and the second story was even better - both of these were by Jonathan Maberry, so good on you, Mr. Maberry.

Agency from hell stories

I love this book !! I enjoyed reading about Sam Hunter and also the story about the cop looking for a murderer .. Love this series you should read it

Good variety

Good stories with a lot of variety. Even the overall story that is used to flow into the next short story is well written.

I enjoyed Limbus, Inc.'s second collection (but not quite as much as the first). The tales were nicely tied together and "Three Guys Walk into a Bar" was the highlight of the collection.