Sandman Slim Series by Richard Kadrey
Sandman Slim #1
Sandman Slim #1
Sandman Slim
Richard Kadrey
Supernatural fantasy has a new antihero. Life sucks, and then you die. Or, if you're James Stark, you spend eleven years in Hell as a hitman before finally escaping, only to land back in the hell-on-earth that is Los Angeles. Now Stark's back, and ready for revenge. And absolution, and maybe even love. But when his first stop saddles him with an abusive talking head, Stark discovers that the road to absolution and revenge is much longer than you'd expect, and both Heaven and Hell have their own ideas for his future. Resurrection sucks. Saving the world is worse. Darkly twisted, irreverent, and completely hilarious, Sandman Slim is the breakthrough novel by an acclaimed author.
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Sandman Slim #2
Kill the Dead
Richard Kadrey
What do you do after you’ve crawled out of Hell to wreak bloody revenge? If you’re Stark you turn to bounty hunting, tracking and decimating whatever rogue monsters you’re paid to kill. Stark hates the work, but he needs the money, especially the big bucks Lucifer is offering. In town as an adviser on a biopic of his life, Lucifer needs protection, and he wants Stark as his bodyguard. But the gig isn’t all bad; there is the very sexy, very hot French porn star Brigitte Bardo, a friend of Lucifer’s in LA to remake her reputation as a legit actress. While it isn’t love, it’s pretty damn good, and after 11 years of demonic chastity, it’s enough for now. Stark has enough trouble juggling a diva devil and a scorching French bombshell without a zombie plague to complicate matters. And just what happens when a human-angel half-breed is bitten by the living dead? His human side begins to die, transforming him into an unstoppable angel of death—a killing machine devoid of emotion or thought, with no regrets or future to worry about. Not a bad way to be when your choices are limited. Now, Stark has to decide . . . if he does finds a cure for the zombie infection, will he take it?
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Sandman Slim #3
Aloha from Hell
Richard Kadrey
Supernatural fantasy’s greatest anti-hero goes back to hell! In Sandman Slim Stark came back from hell for revenge. In Kill the Dead he tackled both a zombie plague and being Lucifer’s bodyguard. Once again all is not right in L. A. Lucifer is back in Heaven, God is on vacation, and an insane killer mounts a war against both Heaven and Hell. Stark’s got to head back down to his old stomping grounds in Hell to rescue his long lost love, stop an insane serial killer, prevent both Good and Evil from completely destroying each other, and stop the demonic Kissi from ruining the party for everyone. Even for Sandman Slim, that’s a tall order. And it’s only the beginning.
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Sandman Slim #4
Sandman Slim #4
SS 04: Devil Said Bang: A Sandman Slim Novel
Richard Kadrey
Getting out of hell is just the beginning What do you do after you've escaped Hell, gone back, uncovered the true nature of God, and then managed to become the new Lucifer? Well, if you're James Stark, you have to figure out how to run Hell while also trying to get back out of it . . . again. Plus there's the small matter of surviving. Because everyone in Heaven, Hell, and in between wants to be the fastest gun in the universe, and the best way to do so is to take down Lucifer, a.k.a. James Stark. And it's not like being in L.A. is any better—a serial-killer ghost is running wild and Stark's angelic alter ego is hiding among the lost days of time with a secret cabal who can rewrite reality. Starting to care for people and life again is a real bitch for a stone-cold killer. Review“The most irreverent, darkly comedic, and downright cool installment to date. ... Powered by Kadrey’s twisted wit and distinctive narrative voice, this novel is replete with memorable lines, images, and pop culture references. …The action-packed and bombshell-laden blend of dark fantasy, crime fiction, and Hellish sitcom is utterly readable.” (Publishers Weekly )“Richard Kadrey’s ‘Sandman Slim’ series is one of my favorite sets of fantasy books from the last few years.” (John Scalzi )“Allow me to both love this series for its feel of crossing hard-boiled crime pulp with H.P. Lovecraftian fantasy, and hate the author for being so damn good at it.” (Bookgasm )“A hell of a good time” (io9.com )“Full of action, wit, and suspense, this grabbed a hold of me and wouldn’t let go. Kadrey is a master storyteller (overused, I know, but very apt) and he will have you rooting for him in Hell and on Earth.” (Suspense magazine on Aloha From Hell )“This bad-ass supernatural horror stuff is clearly the material he was born to write. Kadrey has an ungodly (literally) amount of fun with Stark’s wryer-than-wry and violenter-than-violent observations and dialog.” (Cory Doctorow, boingboing.com on Aloha From Hell )“If authors were tarot cards, Richard Kadrey would unarguably be the Hierophant of Paranormal Fantasy.” (Paul Goat Allen on Aloha From Hell )“Kadrey’s stylized treatment of the ubiquitous urban fantasy genre makes it seem fresh” (Kirkus Reviews on Aloha From Hell )“Compelling...brilliantly metaphoric...profane mixture of noir atmospherics, black humor, and nonstop action will please Kadrey’s many fans.” (Publishers Weekly on Aloha From Hell )“Kadrey’s prose is raw and gutter-tough, Raymond Chandler meets Lux Interior at the Whisky a Go Go at the end of days.” (Austin Chronicle on Aloha From Hell )“Everything a sequel should be; that is, more. … There’s hardly a moment where you’re not chewing your fingernails to the wrist wondering what happens next. … Kadrey is a hell of a writer, versatile and seasoned, and these pulpy, dark, ultraviolent novels are his best work yet.” (Cory Doctorow, boingboing.com, on Kill the Dead )“Think Get Shorty meets Hellraiser.” (San Francisco Chronicle on Kill the Dead )“James Stark, antihero of 2009’s Sandman Slim, returns in this gritty, over-the-top tale of supernatural mayhem…Profane, intensely metaphoric language somehow makes self-tortured monster Stark sympathetic and turns a simple story into a powerful noir thriller.” (Publishers Weekly on Kill the Dead )“Kadrey knows how to spin a story, his prose is crisp and effortless, and the entertainment value is high.” (Charles de Lint, Fantasy and Science Fiction on Kill the Dead )“…endlessly inventive and high-octane…Kadrey’s an excellent writer who’s able to juggle all of it without dropping a single pin.” (Locus on Kill the Dead )“A sharp-edged urban fantasy, drenched in blood and cynicism, tipping its hat to Sam Peckinpah, Raymond Chandler and the anti-heroes of Hong Kong cinema. Kadrey brings it off through the propulsive force of Stark’s in-your-face, first-person, present-tense narration. It’s a bravura performance.” (San Francisco Chronicle on Sandman Slim )“His best work yet. . . . Kadrey tells his story in a swirl of tight, darkly intense prose. . . . Sandman Slim is very, very good indeed.” (SF Site on Sandman Slim )“Sandman Slim is one of the best books I have read in a very, very long while. Richard Kadrey is a genius. I read it on the plane ride home and was totally blown away.” (Holly Black on Sandman Slim )“Paced like greased lightning (watch out for friction burns on your turning finger), blend the movie-ish delights of tough guy noir and such smart-mouthgore-fests as “Reanimator” and “Army of Darkness”, seasoned by soupcons of Gaimanian romanticism and Koontzian sentiment.” (Booklist on Sandman Slim )“Kadrey’s tale lives on a tightrope, but the author nails the right balance of detective fiction and theological fantasy, seriousness and humor, pathos and absurdity.” (Lincoln Star Journal on Sandman Slim )“Nicotine and octane in equal parts might come close to the high-energy buzz from Richard Kadrey’s Sandman Slim. Crisp world building, recognizable and fully-realized characters, and a refreshingly unique storytelling style make for an absorbing read.Sandman Slim is my kind of hero.” (Kim Harrison on Sandman Slim )“The best B movie I’ve read in at least twenty years. An addictively satisfying, deeply amusing, dirty-ass masterpiece, Sandman Slim swerves hell-bent through our culture’s impacted gridlock of genres…it’s like watching Sergio Leone and Clive Barker co-direct from a script by Jim Thompson and S. Clay Wilson.” (William Gibson on Sandman Slim )“Sarcastic, irreverent and ridiculously enjoyable riff on the Urban Fantasy genre. … a lot like a mosh pit -- rough, exuberant, unpredictable -- and a heck of a lot of fun.” (Miami Herald on Sandman Slim )“Dirty, disgusting, vulgar, violent, poisonously testosterone-driven, so politically incorrect it ought to be prosecuted, and generally all-round offensively in your face. … I loved it. It’s amazing.” (Robin McKinley on Sandman Slim )“The perfect escapist storyline … side-splittingly funny. … gruesome slapstick mixed with down-and-dirty Hammett-esque mayhem and double-dealing. … If you’ve been hoping someone would bring the full-strength SoCal toxic waste to the urban fantasy game, then Sandman Slim is your poison.” (io9.com on Sandman Slim ) About the AuthorRichard Kadrey has published five novels, including Sandman Slim, Kill the Dead, Aloha from Hell, Butcher Bird, and Metrophage, plus the forthcoming Devil Said Bang, and more than fifty short stories. A freelance writer and photographer, he lives in San Francisco, California.
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Sandman Slim #4
Devil Said Bang
Richard Kadrey
Richard Kadrey’s Sandman Slim—aka James Stark—is, quite simply, one of the most outrageous uber-anti-heroes ever to kick serious butt on this or any other world or dimension.In his previous three adventures—Sandman Slim, Kill the Dead, and Aloha from Hell—Stark has fled Hell for California, taken on angels, demons, outlaw bikers, zombies, covert government operatives, and all manner of monsters, while saving humankind from total annihilation on numerous occasions. But in Devil Said Bang, he finally assumes the role he was destined for: as the new Lucifer, ruler of the Underworld.Combining outrageously edgy humor with a dark and truly twisted vision, Richard Kadrey has once again delivered a masterful amalgam of action novel, urban fantasy, and in-your-face horror that will delight a wide range of readers—from Christopher Moore and Warren Ellis fans to the devoted adherents of Jim Butcher, Charlaine Harris, Kim Harrison, and Simon Green.
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Sandman Slim #5
Kill City Blues
Richard Kadrey
s Stark, aka Sandman Slim, has managed to get out of Hell, renounce his title as the new Lucifer, and settle back into life in LA. But he's not out of trouble yet. Somewhere along the way he misplaced the Qomrama Om Ya, a weapon from the banished older gods who are also searching for their lost power. The hunt leads Stark to an abandoned shopping mall-a multi-story copy of LA-infested with Lurkers and wretched bottomfeeding Sub Rosa families, squatters who have formed tight tribes to guard their tiny patches of this fake LA. Somewhere in the kill zone of the former mall is a dead man with the answers Stark needs. All Stark has to do is find the dead man, get back out alive, and outrun some angry old gods-and a few killers-on his tail.
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