Sandman Slim

Sandman Slim, Book 1

By: Richard Kadrey

Narrated by: MacLeod Andrews

Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins

Publisher's summary

When he was 19, James Stark was considered to be one of the greatest natural magicians, a reputation that got him demon-snatched and sent downtown - to Hell - where he survived as a gladiator, a sideshow freak entertaining Satan's fallen angels.

That was 11 years ago. Now, the hitman who goes only by Stark has escaped and is back in L.A. Armed with a fortune-telling coin, a black bone knife, and an infernal key, Stark is determined to destroy the magic circle - led by the conniving and powerful Mason Faim - that stole his life.

Though nearly everything has changed, one constant remains: his friend Vidocq, a 200-year-old Frenchman who has been keeping vigil for the young magician's return. But when Stark's first stop saddles him with an abusive talking head that belongs to the first of the circle, a sleazy video store owner named Kasabian, Stark discovers that the road to absolution and revenge is much longer than he counted on, and both Heaven and Hell have their own ideas for his future.

©2009 Richard Kadrey (P)2009 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

Not particularly good

The book was an okay listen, bolstered by a strong (though in places annoying) performance by the narrator. It's what I would classify as a "beach read" if it were a physical book, although not a particularly good one at that.

Ultimately the story, characters, and world are not particularly interesting or original. This book falls into the usual traps of urban fantasy which are including everything but the kitchen sink (angels, devils, vampires, you name it), an anti-Hero Mary Sue main character, and the use of tons of goofy similes and superficial descriptions that confuse cliche with originality. Ultimately, all of the characters are pretty superficially developed, not particularly interesting, or just plain goofy. The dialog in many places is equally goofy, with the main character saying things that are supposed to be "cool" but are just ridiculous (e.g., when he torches a neo-Nazi enclave telling them "Don't $%^ with my doughnut shop."

The same goes for the plot - most of the book has a poorly developed plot that is is just a series of scenes that are strung together, interspersed with pointless filler (e.g., stealing and crashing the motorcycle). While the book does have a healthy dose of action scenes in it, even these are pretty unsatisfying since they generally revolve around the main character "doing something impulsive, getting injured, but still prevailing". If I had to use one word to describe the whole book it would be "juvenile."

A darker gray man series

I love the world building and mystery in Sandman Slim. It turns out there is a heaven and hell along with many layers of creatures and and entities that live in between both worlds. Sandman Slim is our guide as we discover this new world that is all around us. We follow along as he seeks revenge and wait to discover the answers to the many mysteries presented in this first of a series. Narration is top notch.

Magician or wizard ??

I tried to like this book, but it didn't keep my attention. Supposedly, the Sandman is powerful but he rarely uses magic when confronted by threats. Lots of fight scenes but hardly any magic. What a disappointment!

Might give the 2nd one a try

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

It was ok, I had heard it was similar to the dresden files, I can see that, but only if it was crossed with Chuck Palanuik. it's supernatural, but the main character is very dark (which isn't a bad thing in itself) it just didn't hook me, but I definitely have friends who'd enjoy it.

What didn’t you like about MacLeod Andrews’s performance?

His "bored slacker" tone fit the character, and i've heard other performances, so I assume this was the director of the performance, but it just didn't pull me in.

Dresden files move over!

Really enjoyed this book, I would have to say the narrators voice had to grow on me initially but after I understood the character more I felt the voice was perfect. Story was solid, speed was ideal, only thing I didn’t like was the final two fights were a bit anticlimactic. All in all worth a listen. Looking forward to the next one.

entertaining story

it was an easy listen, great narration, and captivating story. I will definitely listen to more of the series.

I'm in love with the Sandman Slim books

I am sure that I rcvd a copy of one of these books on BOOKBUB a few years ago.
I instantly fell in love with the people, the characters , the very strange action of Sandman. this book begins the story as Sandman escapes from Hell. I suggest you read it and those who know me, hopefully will read the books too. to the rest, I'd block off a fair amount of time. there are a LOT of Sandman books. I highly recommend this book

Fantastic Novel, Wait for the build up

As with all first books in a very in depth series, there is a lot to explain and a lot of character development to get through. Kidney does this well and makes his first book sinister and interesting.

A great book and and even better performance.

Dark and irreverent - a good combo!

This book/series is not for those easily shocked, especially those with a pious background. If, however, you enjoy stories of the touching on the occult then this should appeal to you.

The hero of the story is indeed a dark hero. How else would you describe a character that is basically the spawn of Satan? This brings me to second observation: familiarity with Christian concepts and mythology is almost a must. I can't see someone from Tibet understanding the religious references in this book.

The irreverent part is the dry humor suffused throughout. This was one of my favorite aspects of this book, as I have a bit of a penchant for dark humor myself. Some one liners are true "groaners", but there are also some pretty good ones in there. The book is a bit silly in places, but hey, this is a story about someone who returns from hell and moves into a video store.

Give this a try if you enjoy the fringe. This is like a dark adult version of Harry Potter that is centered around Christian lore, but with much more humor.

good stuff

This man is a bad ass and the story is good hope the following books will be as enjoyable and violent as this one