Archive for September, 2009
Book Review: Sandman Slim
Sandman Slim
by Richard Kadrey
I won this book in a giveaway by HarperCollins/Eos Books and wasn’t really sure what to expect, not having heard much about it previously. What I got was a wickedly enjoyable read. James Stark, the narrator, is a magician turned pit fighter and assassin after 11 years in Hell – from which he has just escaped. He is a sarcastically hilarious and cynical character, whose time Downtown (as he refers to Hell) has also turned him into a bit of a vicious brute with handy self-healing powers, and Kadrey doesn’t pull any punches when describing all of the violence and gore – and there is plenty. Or the lewd and crude, either, which normally bothers me more, but with Stark’s dry and sharp delivery just adds to the humor. The story follows him as he tries to piece the reality of his life on Earth back together (there’s an interesting scene when someone has to explain 9/11 to him, since it happened while he was gone) and take revenge on those who killed his girlfriend and sent him to Hell in the first place, all while dodging agents of both Heaven and Hell and something else besides. Stark is definitely a shoot-first, ask-questions-later kind of old western throwback hardass, but he isn’t completely cold and brutal; he has a very human side as far as emotions, he just generally chooses to focus on anger and annoyance, as they seem to him more productive. He also genuinely cares for the few friends he has on his side (a vampire, among other creatures). All in all, it’s an irreverent, clever and grittily violent ride into a magic-riddled Los Angeles, with biting humor and an antihero you can’t help but cheer for as he thumbs his nose at both sides of the divine war. The fact that he may be the world’s only chance of avoiding utter destruction and chaos is kind of a ironic, pain-in-the-ass side gig, and the ending was certainly a surprise for me. I give this book a hearty recommendation, though not for the faint-of-heart or devoutly religious.
I give it 4/5 stars.
Book Review: Blackbringer (Fairies of Dreamdark)
Blackbringer (Fairies of Dreamdark)
by Laini Taylor
I’m a firm believer in the fact that just because something is dubbed as ‘teen’ or ‘young adult’ doesn’t mean it isn’t good, or isn’t worthy of my time as a supposed fully grown adult. Blackbringer was further proof of that. It takes place in what we are given to understand is Earth at some time in the past, but is rendered new and nearly unrecognizable from the perspective of one fairy, Magpie, gypsy granddaughter of the West Wind who travels with a ragtag group of crows in her quest to find and defeat devils loosed by the unsuspecting ‘mannies’ (humans). The particular slang and lingo that Taylor invests her characters with is entertaining and well-used. The reversal of typical themes (fairies as peaceful, crows as bad luck or similar) serve to give the story a bit of freshness, despite the obvious (inevitable?) coming-of-age and first-love themes. It was interesting, too, to see the reworking of some old myths and tales in the midst of her larger story – namely, Talon Rathersting and his woven skin, as well as the idea that the world is something woven whose warp and weft can become unravelled, to the peril of all. It also had a few unexpected plot twists, which is always a pleasant surprise for me. If not a particularly heavy read, it was still entertaining and enjoyable, full of action and magic and youthful folly/bravery. I’m keeping watch for the sequel out very soon: Dreamdark: Silksinger (Fairies of Dreamdark).