Ballistic Kiss
A Sandman Slim Novel
-
- $1.99
-
- $1.99
Publisher Description
"I loved where Kadrey started with this series, but I love where he's going even more."-- NYT Bestselling author Cory Doctorow
Sandman Slim is back in Los Angeles and kicking more supernatural ass in this inventive, high-octane page-turner—the next to last volume in the popular and acclaimed fantasy adventure series from New York Times bestselling author Richard Kadrey.
As the battle between warring angels continues, James Stark is focused on seemingly simpler matters now that he’s resurfaced on earth: an invasion of ghosts. L.A.’s Little Cairo neighborhood has suddenly been overrun by violent spirits, and Thomas Abbott knows if anyone can figure out why they’ve appeared—and how to get rid of them—it’s Stark.
Armed with the Room of Thirteen Doors, Stark quickly learns that the answer may reach back to the 1970s and the unsolved murder of small-time actor, Chris Stein. As he begins to dig into the cold case, another area of Stark’s life takes an unexpected turn when he becomes entangled with Janet, a woman he saved during the High Plains Drifter zombie attack.
Janet’s brush with the living dead hasn’t quenched her thirst for danger. She’s an adrenaline junkie and a member of The Zero Lodge—a club that promises “there’s zero chance you’ll get out alive.” The Lodge attracts thrill seekers who flock to perilous events such as night walks through the LA Zoo—with its deadliest animals uncaged. Joining the lodge to be with Janet, Stark makes a pair of crucial discoveries that could decide the fate of LA and Heaven itself.
To prevent the Little Cairo haunting from consuming the city, Stark must piece together the connections between the Lodge and a missing angel last seen in a Hollywood porn palace. But while he may dispatch the ghosts, Stark knows that without his help, the bloody war in Heaven could rage forever.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
James Stark, aka Sandman Slim, is back in Los Angeles for the pitch-perfect penultimate adventure in Kadrey's long-running urban fantasy series (after Hollywood Dead). Having recently returned from the dead, Stark is haunted by nightmares of his time in hell and struggles to navigate the world of the living. His old flame, Candy, has moved on, and Stark strikes up a new romantic connection with Janet, a nonbinary thrill-seeker who gets involved with a dangerous group of adventurers known as the Zero Lodge. Meanwhile, Thomas Abbot, the leader of the California Sub Rosa, orders Stark to eradicate a stubborn infestation of murderous ghosts in Little Cairo. In the process, Stark discovers a 40-year-old mystery involving a murdered actor whose story could bring an end to the ongoing war among the angels. The prose simmers with Kadrey's characteristic blend of cynicism and absurdist humor, but the nuanced character development and exciting relationship-building make this feel like a brave new direction for the series. This addictive urban fantasy works in its own right and sets things up for what promises to be one hell of a finale.