Another Review at MyShelf.Com

Sandman Slim
A Novel

by Richard Kadrey

     

Most people die before they go to Hell...not so with James Stark.  He has spent the past eleven years as a hit man living in Hell, but now he's back on the streets of Los Angeles, and looking for revenge.  He wants the people who killed his girlfriend, and sent him to Hell to pay the ultimate price.

Richard Kadrey's sense of humor is exceeded only by his fruitful imagination as he takes Stark from one bad encounter to another. Stark's talent as a magician gets him into and out of trouble, and keeps the reader guessing. Violent and convulsively funny, Sandman Slim gives new meaning to fantasy literature.  Merriam-Webster defines an anti-hero as a "protagonist or notable figure who is conspicuously lacking in heroic qualities."  Stark is all of that... long on testosterone and ambition, he will keep you reading long into the night.

After beheading second-rate magician Kasabian, Stark parks the head, who still lives and talks, on a closet shelf.  Their conversations with each other are hilarious.  Stark goes hunting for the Black Magician, Faim, who is the target of his revenge, then Homeland Security agents and a crazy angel get mixed up in the chase.

The plot is not exactly straightforward, but the characters are compelling and the action is great.  Fantasy is not usually my favorite kind of story, but Kadrey's brand of fantasy may just be addicting.

The Book

Eos / HarperCollins
July 21, 2009
Hardcover
0061714305 /978-0-06-171430-6
Urban fantasy
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Excerpt
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The Reviewer

Beverly J. Rowe
Reviewed 2010
NOTE: Reviewer Beverly J. Rowe is Myshelf.com's "Babes to Teens" columnist, covering topics related to reading ideas for the youth in the family.
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