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Sandman Slim #12
King Bullet
The incredible finale of the page-turning, high-octane Sandman Slim series filled with an explosive ending and intense kick-ass action from New York Times bestselling author Richard Kadrey.
It’s been three months since Stark stopped a death cult and a potential ghost apocalypse, and he’s at loose ends. His personal life is a mess. His professional life isn’t much better. And the world…well, the world is going to shit. L.A. is gripped by a viral epidemic that has everyone wearing masks and keeping their distance from each other. But what’s even more frightening is the Shoggot gang and their leader, King Bullet, who revels in the city’s collapse.
Who is King Bullet? No one knows. He seemingly came from nowhere with nothing but a taste for mayhem and an army of crazed killers who follow his every command. What king wants seems simple on it face: Chaos. Destruction. A city in flames. But there’s more to the king and his plans for L.A. and what Stark discovers will change Heaven, Earth, and Stark himself forever.
It’s been three months since Stark stopped a death cult and a potential ghost apocalypse, and he’s at loose ends. His personal life is a mess. His professional life isn’t much better. And the world…well, the world is going to shit. L.A. is gripped by a viral epidemic that has everyone wearing masks and keeping their distance from each other. But what’s even more frightening is the Shoggot gang and their leader, King Bullet, who revels in the city’s collapse.
Who is King Bullet? No one knows. He seemingly came from nowhere with nothing but a taste for mayhem and an army of crazed killers who follow his every command. What king wants seems simple on it face: Chaos. Destruction. A city in flames. But there’s more to the king and his plans for L.A. and what Stark discovers will change Heaven, Earth, and Stark himself forever.
303 pages, Hardcover
First published August 17, 2021
103 people are currently reading
2461 people want to read
About the author
Richard Kadrey
131 books3,558 followersRichard Kadrey is a writer and freelance musician living in Pittsburgh, best known for his Sandman Slim novels. His work has been nominated for the Locus and BSFA awards. Kadrey's newest books are The Secrets of Insects, released in August 2023; The Dead Take the A Train (with Cassandra Khaw), released in September 2023; The Pale House Devil, released in September 2023.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 257 reviews
January 26, 2022
I fully expected to hate this one with a vengeance and/or DNF the fish out of it. I mean, after reading some 1 and 2-star reviews for the book I was so bloody terrified I briefly considered giving up on this installment together and moving on to Noddy's adventures. BUT. See my rating up there ↑↑↑? Ha! It turns out all those people who gave the book despicably low ratings read it wrong!! (Or maybe it's just that they read the Papua New Guinean edition from back to front and upside down. Hmmm...Yeah, come to think of it that's probably it.) Anyhoo and stuff, even though I expected the worst, this book ended up making me feel a little like this:
Why? Because HAHAHAHAHA + gore and violence and bloodshed, oh my + I want a She-Ra mask for Christmas + Candy and Kas and Fuck Hollywood and Samael and Brigitte and Carlos = one of the best cast of supporting characters ever + doomsday plumbing and Inspector Gadget + assholes and bastards galore + spoiler spoiler spoiler + HAHAHAHAHA + a pretty perfect conclusion to the series (I have a feeling Jimmy might not agree with me on that one) + those last three lines 😍😍😍. Oh, and aslo: Jimmy Stark Forever.
P.S. Is this really the end? Who knows...😬.
· Book 1: Sandman Slim ★★★★★
· Book 2: Kill the Dead ★★★★★
· Book 3: Aloha from Hell ★★★★
· Book 3.5: Devil in the Dollhouse ★★★★★
· Book 4: Devil Said Bang ★★★★
· Book 5: Kill City Blues ★★★★
· Book 6: The Getaway God ★★★★★
· Book 7: Killing Pretty ★★★★
· Book 9: The Kill Society ★★★★★
· Book 10: Hollywood Dead ★★★★★
· Book 11: Ballistic Kiss ★★★★
Why? Because HAHAHAHAHA + gore and violence and bloodshed, oh my + I want a She-Ra mask for Christmas + Candy and Kas and Fuck Hollywood and Samael and Brigitte and Carlos = one of the best cast of supporting characters ever + doomsday plumbing and Inspector Gadget + assholes and bastards galore + spoiler spoiler spoiler + HAHAHAHAHA + a pretty perfect conclusion to the series (I have a feeling Jimmy might not agree with me on that one) + those last three lines 😍😍😍. Oh, and aslo: Jimmy Stark Forever.
P.S. Is this really the end? Who knows...😬.
· Book 1: Sandman Slim ★★★★★
· Book 2: Kill the Dead ★★★★★
· Book 3: Aloha from Hell ★★★★
· Book 3.5: Devil in the Dollhouse ★★★★★
· Book 4: Devil Said Bang ★★★★
· Book 5: Kill City Blues ★★★★
· Book 6: The Getaway God ★★★★★
· Book 7: Killing Pretty ★★★★
· Book 9: The Kill Society ★★★★★
· Book 10: Hollywood Dead ★★★★★
· Book 11: Ballistic Kiss ★★★★
August 18, 2021
LOVE this series but this last book and the previous one were just okay. Did not care for Janet's character, so whiny and it made no sense in the context of the story. Also the stroyline was thin and really dragged in parts. I miss Jimmy being super kick butt and hardcore. He has become depressed and angsty and it is very annoying.
August 22, 2021
If I were forced to sum up the final Sandman Slim novel, “King Bullet,” in one word (okay, two) it would be “contractually obligated.”
I get it. After 12 books, maybe that well has dried up or venturing back into the gritty LA of Stark and gang might feel depressing (esp. given the current state of the world.) But I felt like Stark deserved a better send-off.
The pacing was breakneck and it felt like being dropped into a movie where I’d missed the first 15 minutes.
This book felt rushed from the first page as if Kadrey just wanted to get it finished so he could get back to writing something else. Threads were left dangling and the penultimate scenes were perfunctory at best.
I genuinely felt like the author had a checklist of all the characters he needed to work into the book so we could say goodbye but that they were added on a stream-of-consciousness basis.
I was bummed that we didn’t get to see Father Thomas again. He was one of my favorite characters.
And then he crammed them all into a single cramped and uncomfortable apartment which honestly felt like a metaphor for the whole book. By the end, I was starting to think Stark’s apartment must have resembled a clown car full of misfits and cast-offs.
I mean after he dies, we get a one-sentence description of what’s going on with his Scooby gang for whom he just gave up his life. He was so worried about saving them, he went through both literal and figurative hell on their behalf but when he goes back to see how they are, he barely cares.
These are people he’s died for more than once and as a reader I personally was invested in their fates enough that I wanted more detail and *I* didn’t die for them. You’d think Stark was a little more invested than me.
I hope that was done intentionally to show that Stark is letting go of his earthly worries but after “protecting his friends” was hammered into us as one of his only consistent character traits, but it was jarring to see him basically just say “peace out” and give zero fucks about them afterwords.
Is this a device to draw parallels between himself and Mr Muninn being an absent god once he got to heaven? I don’t know, but it’s a big change for the character. It’d be one thing if he was made to seem fully at peace in heaven. But he still jokes about leaving.
And if there’s one thing we know about how the world works in the series, it’s not like he couldn’t have a more active role in observing his friends once he arrived, so what gives? Candy has the key now. Can’t she visit?
Noir always has the protagonist get the shit knocked out of him. And throughout this journey poor James Stark has been absolutely put through the cosmic wringer.
But holy shit, this book felt like Kadrey had grown to hate Sandman Slim on a personal and visceral level. The things he does to his “hero” in this book feel unnecessarily cruel. The painful mental flagellation Stark feels as he begins to realize how no matter how much he tries to protect his friends, he’s the common denominator in their being in danger, and his reflection on his feelings for Candy juxtaposed with his feelings for Jane (a character I came to loathe by the end of the book--through no fault of their own) are ultimately unsatisfying. It’s like Kadrey finally lets him grow as a character just to kill him. Where was this introspective Stark in books 1-11?
But the mental toll on Stark is nothing compared to what Kadrey does to him physically in this book. The Kissi arm is like a walk in the park compared to this one. The scarification and mutilation he undergoes to prep for the final battle felt to me like an expression of hatred for the character.
I get that he’s martyring himself for his friends but goodness it felt so cruel. I kept imagining someone taking a pen and just angrily scribbling over a picture until the original image is totally destroyed and unrecognizable. It just felt spiteful to me. Like Kadrey had to destroy him on every level to let him go to heaven.
I also didn’t really understand the final battle between him and King Bullet. What happened to King Bullet after Stark tricked him? If he’s also a hybrid, wouldn’t King Bullet wind up in heaven too?
As a finale it certainly felt “final” but read more like a novella written because an editor asked for one last book to close out the series rather than a fully developed story.
I get it. After 12 books, maybe that well has dried up or venturing back into the gritty LA of Stark and gang might feel depressing (esp. given the current state of the world.) But I felt like Stark deserved a better send-off.
The pacing was breakneck and it felt like being dropped into a movie where I’d missed the first 15 minutes.
This book felt rushed from the first page as if Kadrey just wanted to get it finished so he could get back to writing something else. Threads were left dangling and the penultimate scenes were perfunctory at best.
I genuinely felt like the author had a checklist of all the characters he needed to work into the book so we could say goodbye but that they were added on a stream-of-consciousness basis.
I was bummed that we didn’t get to see Father Thomas again. He was one of my favorite characters.
And then he crammed them all into a single cramped and uncomfortable apartment which honestly felt like a metaphor for the whole book. By the end, I was starting to think Stark’s apartment must have resembled a clown car full of misfits and cast-offs.
I mean after he dies, we get a one-sentence description of what’s going on with his Scooby gang for whom he just gave up his life. He was so worried about saving them, he went through both literal and figurative hell on their behalf but when he goes back to see how they are, he barely cares.
These are people he’s died for more than once and as a reader I personally was invested in their fates enough that I wanted more detail and *I* didn’t die for them. You’d think Stark was a little more invested than me.
I hope that was done intentionally to show that Stark is letting go of his earthly worries but after “protecting his friends” was hammered into us as one of his only consistent character traits, but it was jarring to see him basically just say “peace out” and give zero fucks about them afterwords.
Is this a device to draw parallels between himself and Mr Muninn being an absent god once he got to heaven? I don’t know, but it’s a big change for the character. It’d be one thing if he was made to seem fully at peace in heaven. But he still jokes about leaving.
And if there’s one thing we know about how the world works in the series, it’s not like he couldn’t have a more active role in observing his friends once he arrived, so what gives? Candy has the key now. Can’t she visit?
Noir always has the protagonist get the shit knocked out of him. And throughout this journey poor James Stark has been absolutely put through the cosmic wringer.
But holy shit, this book felt like Kadrey had grown to hate Sandman Slim on a personal and visceral level. The things he does to his “hero” in this book feel unnecessarily cruel. The painful mental flagellation Stark feels as he begins to realize how no matter how much he tries to protect his friends, he’s the common denominator in their being in danger, and his reflection on his feelings for Candy juxtaposed with his feelings for Jane (a character I came to loathe by the end of the book--through no fault of their own) are ultimately unsatisfying. It’s like Kadrey finally lets him grow as a character just to kill him. Where was this introspective Stark in books 1-11?
But the mental toll on Stark is nothing compared to what Kadrey does to him physically in this book. The Kissi arm is like a walk in the park compared to this one. The scarification and mutilation he undergoes to prep for the final battle felt to me like an expression of hatred for the character.
I get that he’s martyring himself for his friends but goodness it felt so cruel. I kept imagining someone taking a pen and just angrily scribbling over a picture until the original image is totally destroyed and unrecognizable. It just felt spiteful to me. Like Kadrey had to destroy him on every level to let him go to heaven.
I also didn’t really understand the final battle between him and King Bullet. What happened to King Bullet after Stark tricked him? If he’s also a hybrid, wouldn’t King Bullet wind up in heaven too?
As a finale it certainly felt “final” but read more like a novella written because an editor asked for one last book to close out the series rather than a fully developed story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 21, 2021
I wanted to love it after my Perfect Man went on PTSD pills in last book; did not fight for Candy just rolled over and gave her away. I was disappointed with last book I didn't write a review. I wanted him to, "Snap out of it." I wanted Samhail to find our Intrepid Sandman Slim and bring him back wherever Allegra buried him in his head with her liberal views. I wanted Candy to pound some sense into him. I wanted him to wake the F Up. It got worse. Someone has to kill the monsters. Instead, I get him mutilating himself, kneeling and baring his neck? To a Keesie? I'd rather him alone then with a whiny crybaby like useless Janet. I just dont get it. What happened? Why? Why send our hero out like this? Does every hero have to become a politically correct bundle of feelings taking all the blame for the ills of the world and full of regrets? John Wayne stayed John Wayne. How many times has Stark saved the world? Opened Heaven? But no. This is what I am left with. Just ugh. I know its an unpopular opinion but its mine. I seriously wish I'd never listened to the last two books. Just awful. I'm losing faith in today's writers that just seem to keep doing this as of late. Signed, One Unhappy S. Slim Fan
May 4, 2021
It’s been 12 years, and as many books, and now we’ve come to this—King Bullet, the final novel in Richard Kadrey’s Sandman Slim saga. I approached this with excitement, because hey, it’s a new Sandman Slim novel, but also trepidation and a tinge of sadness, because hey, it’s the last Sandman Slim novel. Bittersweet mixed emotions, I guess I’m saying.
If like me you’ve been along for the ride from the very beginning, and a lot of you have, then you’ll be happy to know that the whole gang’s here for this one. Stark of course, but also Candy, Alessa, Janet, Fuck Hollywood, Kasabian, Allegra, Carlos, Brigitte, Samael and Mr. Muninn. Even Mustang Sally and Flicker are there to lend a helping hand. Old friends who are no longer alive, particularly Alice and Vidocq, are very much missed. Kadrey excels at creating characters who feel real, whether human or not.
Like every novel in the series, the plot of King Bullet moves like a freight train. L.A. is on fire, on the verge of collapsing, consumed by an epidemic turning the locals to raving maniacs and worse (I now know what the word autophagia means. Kinda wish I didn’t.). People are afraid to go out, and masked up when they do. Sound familiar? On top of that, there’s a new gang in town reeking havoc, the Shoggots, and their leader, the mysterious King Bullet, may be more than Stark can handle. Naturally, though, the odds don’t matter when Stark’s friends, and his city, are threatened, so he dives head first into the chaos, na’at and black blade in hand. Kadrey’s villains are always over the top, and King Bullet is one of his best, a nihilistic, supernatural killer with a score to settle with Stark.
There’s wall to wall action here, but Kadrey also gives the novel room to breathe, allowing Stark moments of much needed introspection. Caught between his new love for Janet and his still smoldering love for Candy, Stark is at a crossroads. He spends much of the novel surrounded by his friends, but in many ways he’s never been more alone. King Bullet and the epidemic would almost be a welcome distraction if only they weren’t threatening everything he cares about in the world.
After reading the last Sandman Slim novel, Ballistic Kiss, my son and I made a bet about where Stark and another character would be at the end of the series. I’m not saying what the two of us thought, but I am saying that I now owe him $20.
King Bullet releases on August 17, 2021. If you’re already a fan, you know the drill…pre-order it now. If you haven’t had the pleasure yet, time to get reading. You have some catching up to do.
If like me you’ve been along for the ride from the very beginning, and a lot of you have, then you’ll be happy to know that the whole gang’s here for this one. Stark of course, but also Candy, Alessa, Janet, Fuck Hollywood, Kasabian, Allegra, Carlos, Brigitte, Samael and Mr. Muninn. Even Mustang Sally and Flicker are there to lend a helping hand. Old friends who are no longer alive, particularly Alice and Vidocq, are very much missed. Kadrey excels at creating characters who feel real, whether human or not.
Like every novel in the series, the plot of King Bullet moves like a freight train. L.A. is on fire, on the verge of collapsing, consumed by an epidemic turning the locals to raving maniacs and worse (I now know what the word autophagia means. Kinda wish I didn’t.). People are afraid to go out, and masked up when they do. Sound familiar? On top of that, there’s a new gang in town reeking havoc, the Shoggots, and their leader, the mysterious King Bullet, may be more than Stark can handle. Naturally, though, the odds don’t matter when Stark’s friends, and his city, are threatened, so he dives head first into the chaos, na’at and black blade in hand. Kadrey’s villains are always over the top, and King Bullet is one of his best, a nihilistic, supernatural killer with a score to settle with Stark.
There’s wall to wall action here, but Kadrey also gives the novel room to breathe, allowing Stark moments of much needed introspection. Caught between his new love for Janet and his still smoldering love for Candy, Stark is at a crossroads. He spends much of the novel surrounded by his friends, but in many ways he’s never been more alone. King Bullet and the epidemic would almost be a welcome distraction if only they weren’t threatening everything he cares about in the world.
After reading the last Sandman Slim novel, Ballistic Kiss, my son and I made a bet about where Stark and another character would be at the end of the series. I’m not saying what the two of us thought, but I am saying that I now owe him $20.
King Bullet releases on August 17, 2021. If you’re already a fan, you know the drill…pre-order it now. If you haven’t had the pleasure yet, time to get reading. You have some catching up to do.
September 1, 2021
Yeah, he's finally given up. The last few showed the author was burned out, but he wanted to wrap things up. This one is both over the top and truly pedestrian, an impressive skill. Crazies are somehow completely overpowering LA and only the burnout Sandman can save things yet again. Still trying to be woke, the author used the idiotic "they" rather than "ze" for Janet, and isn't even consistent about it. All the other characters make appearances because they're supposed to. The villain is just a petulant idiot.
I read the conclusion because I had to, kind of like why he wrote this terrible book.
I read the conclusion because I had to, kind of like why he wrote this terrible book.
August 18, 2021
so, it’s probably a good thing this is all done and over with. this one was just a painful read to get through.
the best part was Stark doing a heist with the devil. that actually had me giggling a bit. (hence the second star)
unfortunately, other than that it was more of the same. lots of self pity and angst.
the whole “bwah haha i was your half brother this whole time!” goes to show there just wasn’t any more tricks to pull out of the bag. i feel there was a huge lack of impact seeing as how we never got any time with Uriel besides his guise as the Doc. There was no time in which Stark and him got to sit down and hash shit out. Then we get this douche out of nowhere causing a plague (which was an attempt to work in real world shenanigans) just because he shares a dad with the MC who was also abandoned by him. Felt like something more deserving of the Young and the Restless.
Anyways, it’s over and i’m hoping Stark stays dead this time. I loved the series a lot and it’s one of my favorites but sometimes you just need to be able to Old Yeller something when it reaches its end. To me it felt like that was a couple books ago.
Looking forward to what comes next. Loved Dead Set and enjoyed most of his other books. I’ll definitely continue to be a fan of Kadrey.
the best part was Stark doing a heist with the devil. that actually had me giggling a bit. (hence the second star)
unfortunately, other than that it was more of the same. lots of self pity and angst.
the whole “bwah haha i was your half brother this whole time!” goes to show there just wasn’t any more tricks to pull out of the bag. i feel there was a huge lack of impact seeing as how we never got any time with Uriel besides his guise as the Doc. There was no time in which Stark and him got to sit down and hash shit out. Then we get this douche out of nowhere causing a plague (which was an attempt to work in real world shenanigans) just because he shares a dad with the MC who was also abandoned by him. Felt like something more deserving of the Young and the Restless.
Anyways, it’s over and i’m hoping Stark stays dead this time. I loved the series a lot and it’s one of my favorites but sometimes you just need to be able to Old Yeller something when it reaches its end. To me it felt like that was a couple books ago.
Looking forward to what comes next. Loved Dead Set and enjoyed most of his other books. I’ll definitely continue to be a fan of Kadrey.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 13, 2023
I recommend stopping reading the series at book 10, and not bothering with the last 2 books.
Meh. Just felt like Stark pinballing from fight to fight. Wasn't a point to it.
Changing Janet from a manipulative thrill seeker to a complaining timid damsel in distress made them even more annoying. How are we supposed to like them as a love interest if the entire book is Stark missing Candy?
The entire book is a pandemic, with people always concerned about masks and social distancing (it's not a respiratory virus but a magic plague, but whatever it can just join the rest of the plot holes). It's entirely tiring to have Stark complaining about wearing a mask all the time, then preaching to the audience about needing to wear masks. This is not the kind of escapism that I'm looking for.
Meh. Just felt like Stark pinballing from fight to fight. Wasn't a point to it.
Changing Janet from a manipulative thrill seeker to a complaining timid damsel in distress made them even more annoying. How are we supposed to like them as a love interest if the entire book is Stark missing Candy?
The entire book is a pandemic, with people always concerned about masks and social distancing (it's not a respiratory virus but a magic plague, but whatever it can just join the rest of the plot holes). It's entirely tiring to have Stark complaining about wearing a mask all the time, then preaching to the audience about needing to wear masks. This is not the kind of escapism that I'm looking for.
June 2, 2022
As endings go, this is far from the worst I've read. As stories go, I admit that there was a lot of relationship stuff going on here that I only half-cared about, more expecting some high-octane, big magic and/or bullets UF to blow out on.
As it was, the action, when it was action, was pretty damn awesome and I have no complaints. Mr. Slim is hardly as powerful as he used to be and this was an appropriate challenge. Or rather, this was a hold-on-by-the-skin-of-your-teeth challenge, and it wrapped practically everything up quite nicely.
The one perfectly positive thing I can say about this is that it lands the plane in a very satisfying way.
Maybe not satisfying if you wanted the UF to go on forever, mind you, but it was heroic and it was sad and almost everyone got their just desserts.
As it was, the action, when it was action, was pretty damn awesome and I have no complaints. Mr. Slim is hardly as powerful as he used to be and this was an appropriate challenge. Or rather, this was a hold-on-by-the-skin-of-your-teeth challenge, and it wrapped practically everything up quite nicely.
The one perfectly positive thing I can say about this is that it lands the plane in a very satisfying way.
Maybe not satisfying if you wanted the UF to go on forever, mind you, but it was heroic and it was sad and almost everyone got their just desserts.
October 11, 2021
"This might be the smartest stupid thing I've ever done."
—James Stark, p.109
James Stark has done a lot of stupid things (and a few smart ones) since I first met him in Sandman Slim, the first book in Richard Kadrey's eponymous series. That was in 2010. Back then, Stark was cracking wise while digging himself out of a grave in a Hollywood cemetery after his escape from "Downtown," and swearing vengeance on everyone who'd been involved in sending him to Hell for more than a decade.
Eleven years later and a dozen books in, Stark has definitely mellowed—he even says "Please" (on p.12) and seems to mean it, and he at least tries not to misgender his current love (their name is Janet).
But some things are still the same...
If I'm going to continue with this new life I'm trying to grow into, there's only one thing that makes sense.
I'm going to kill every single one of them.
—p.71
King Bullet brings a new big bad to Los Angeles—his name is in the title, which is actually a first for this series, as I look back—and an epidemic as well. The virus—a plague, really—has effects that are far worse than COVID-19, at least for Los Angeles:
"If the virus doesn't get you, I'm afraid the crazies will."
—p.91
As always, Stark has a lot to deal with, both personally and as part of the wider picture. King Bullet's a unique villain, whose powers seem stronger than they should be, and the chaos in L.A. may have made traffic a lot lighter, but everything else seems to weigh more heavily. Even if he is "immune to everything" himself (p.5), Stark's friends—like the aforementioned Janet, and like Fuck Hollywood, who's currently holed up in his apartment eating pizza and taking snapshots of Stark in his She-Ra mask (don't ask)—are not.
What happens next... well, that's something that hasn't changed, ever since Sandman Slim. You'll want to find out. Kadrey continues his chapterless style to the end, which made King Bullet as hard to put down as its predecessors
I have to admit I screwed up, though; I saw King Bullet on the shelf in my local branch library and snatched it up even though I haven't yet read the eleventh book, Ballistic Kiss. I was just too eager.
It's a rare thing for an author to end a series as emphatically as Richard Kadrey does, especially after a round dozen volumes... but King Bullet ends the Hell out of Richard Kadrey's Sandman Slim series—and that's all the more you need to know.
December 11, 2023
Some serieses go out with a bang, some with a whimper. This was put out of its misery by the author.
All twelve novels expressed frustration with the modern world, skewering everything from wokeism to commercialism, spiritual beliefs to pandemic protocols, with each book more cynical than the last. Richard Kadrey must have been going through his Dark Night of the Soul by the time he wrote King Bullet. In the series finale, the world is reeling from a new disease that either kills you or turns you into a murderous, self-cannibalizing maniac. The Horseman bearing Pestilence calls himself King Bullet, and all the little maniacs worship him. He's also Stark's half-brother.
I liked this series toward the middle, but now I'm just glad it's over. In all honesty, Kadrey probably could've wrapped it up with the tenth book - I really didn't need to read about the Stark/Janet dysfunction, or Stark grotesquely altering his physical body to appease KB and save Janet's worthless ass.
No, I can't say the series was worth the investment, but it had its moments. Overall meh.
All twelve novels expressed frustration with the modern world, skewering everything from wokeism to commercialism, spiritual beliefs to pandemic protocols, with each book more cynical than the last. Richard Kadrey must have been going through his Dark Night of the Soul by the time he wrote King Bullet. In the series finale, the world is reeling from a new disease that either kills you or turns you into a murderous, self-cannibalizing maniac. The Horseman bearing Pestilence calls himself King Bullet, and all the little maniacs worship him. He's also Stark's half-brother.
I liked this series toward the middle, but now I'm just glad it's over. In all honesty, Kadrey probably could've wrapped it up with the tenth book - I really didn't need to read about the Stark/Janet dysfunction, or Stark grotesquely altering his physical body to appease KB and save Janet's worthless ass.
No, I can't say the series was worth the investment, but it had its moments. Overall meh.
August 18, 2021
Is there much point in reviewing the final book in a 12 book series?
To my mind, at this point, there's only one relevant question: Does the author stick the landing?
The answer, dear readers, is yes. He most definitely does.
To my mind, at this point, there's only one relevant question: Does the author stick the landing?
The answer, dear readers, is yes. He most definitely does.
March 10, 2022
Notes:
For now, this is the last Stark book. The story was the essence of Stark and friends, but it was too short. I felt like the majority of it was to rehash old elements and give a little page time to key members of Stark's life. There wasn't enough space left to make the showdown a story of it's own.
Can you like a story about a protagonist that doesn't really change? The changes are so minor and yet significant enough that you'll throw a party when it happens?
Yup. You can like it, even if the MC drives you a little (a lot) crazy over their antics. =P
There are many excellent technical aspects to this book. For that, it should be 4 stars. Plus, the narration by MacLeod Andrews was the expected thumbs up. Kadrey made me run a well trodden gauntlet on the emotional Stark rollercoaster, linked lots of details from the entirety of the series, and wrapped up the book with a classic Stark style of happy.
For a fav series that I've followed for years, this was an okay ending. You know what, I just remembered the rating I gave for another finale book. I gave it a higher rating. Though, I had similar feelings about the book being okay vs grand. The difference lies in how much I cared about the series, and I have to say that I cared more about Stark and his monstrosities than the other series. Well, I guess I should bump up the rating to 4, because it's a good book. It just wasn't the story I had wanted to read.
For now, this is the last Stark book. The story was the essence of Stark and friends, but it was too short. I felt like the majority of it was to rehash old elements and give a little page time to key members of Stark's life. There wasn't enough space left to make the showdown a story of it's own.
Can you like a story about a protagonist that doesn't really change? The changes are so minor and yet significant enough that you'll throw a party when it happens?
Yup. You can like it, even if the MC drives you a little (a lot) crazy over their antics. =P
There are many excellent technical aspects to this book. For that, it should be 4 stars. Plus, the narration by MacLeod Andrews was the expected thumbs up. Kadrey made me run a well trodden gauntlet on the emotional Stark rollercoaster, linked lots of details from the entirety of the series, and wrapped up the book with a classic Stark style of happy.
For a fav series that I've followed for years, this was an okay ending. You know what, I just remembered the rating I gave for another finale book. I gave it a higher rating. Though, I had similar feelings about the book being okay vs grand. The difference lies in how much I cared about the series, and I have to say that I cared more about Stark and his monstrosities than the other series. Well, I guess I should bump up the rating to 4, because it's a good book. It just wasn't the story I had wanted to read.
August 23, 2021
It made very little sense as a storyline. The logic was wafer thin during most of it, and just uninteresting when it wasn't. Lack lustre as a book, even worse as a series ending.
Its been a steady decline to a solid start, RIP James Stark. Please stay dead.
Its been a steady decline to a solid start, RIP James Stark. Please stay dead.
November 8, 2022
Twelfth and last book in the The Sandman Slim series. In a plague-ravaged L.A. Stark becomes entangled with King Bullet, a supernatural creature with his army of mutilated Shoggot cult-followers who have it out for Sandman Slim.
Beverly Center, L.A’s Premier Shopping Mall, where Stark and Bridgette make a stand against the Shoggots.
My audiobook was about eight (8) hours long. It had a US copyright of 2021. A dead tree version would be about 320-pages.
Richard Kadrey is an American novelist, freelance writer, and photographer. He has about 20 novels published including this one. This is the twelfth and final book in the author's Sandman Slim Series. This is the 13th or 14th book I’ve read by this author. The last being Ballistic Kiss (Sandman Slim, #11) (my review).
MacLeod Andrews was the narrator. Andrews has been the long term narrator for the series. He’s a good narrator that can ably change his voice with the characters internal and external narrative. Although, he has a limited range of female voices.
This book will be unintelligible, if you’ve not been following the series. Long-term plot lines make-up the bones of this story and the author does not provide a lot of backstory.
Writing was good and on a par with the rest of the series. I get true enjoyment over Kadrey’s modern interpretation of hard boiled with an urban fantasy spin. In particular, I treasure his pithy metaphors and bizarre descriptive prose. The action scenes were well handled. However, the typically hardboiled dialog was better than the descriptive prose. In particular, Stark’s inner narrative, off-color aphorisms, and disdainful badinage have always been endearing to me.
As per the series, there is always sex, drugs, rock ’n roll and mega-violence. (Stark (AKA Sandman Slim) The monster who kills monsters.). The books in the series always have at least one heterosexual sex scene of the fade-to-black type. Although, this book had a few. In addition, the dialog was slightly more graphic with its reverences to the dirty deed.
Stark always drinks a prodigious amount of alcohol, while eschewing both soft and hard drugs. Currently he’s been drinking the hipper bourbon. At the beginning of the series, he was drinking Jack, or when he could get it, Aqua Regia the rotgut liquor quaffed in Hell. Aqua Regia and a Malediction cigarette at the Bamboo House of Dolls bar being his idea of good living. Maledictions being the corrosive cigarettes smoked in Hell. With his fave poison in short supply, Stark ironically starts drinking, Angel's Envy.
There were numerous musical references. In this book, Skull Valley Sheep Kill Stark’s fake, fave band receives several references. In addition, there were the usual amount of film school critique and film references.
Violence has progressively gotten more graphic as the series has gotten long. It includes: physical, edged-weapons, firearms and Hoo-doo (magic) related havoc. In this book, Sandman Slim uses all four-types, with some really potent supernatural fire. Body count as always for Sandman Slim books was genocidal.
Previously, Kadrey's knowledge of firearms was mostly correct. Stark habitually packs a Colt .45 revolver-- a real, classic, hand cannon appropriate for killing monsters. However, Stark played fast and loose with several guns. At one point sloppily describing the action of a revolver as that of an automatic. I think at one point he and Bridgette were using twin Benelli M4 Super 90s to wreak havoc on a Shoggot mob, but Kadrey’s interest in gun pr0n appears to be waning.
Stark always takes an extraordinary amount of punishment in every book. In this it was no different, within the first chapter he’s shot in the face with a small caliber pistol. He’s shot through the chest with a large caliber pistol only for the bullet to exit a deep, open wound in his back. He’s gutted like a fish with a stomach wound. And finally, endures Shoggot-like, extreme, self-mutilation.
Kadrey loves to create characters. Although, for this final book, he just retread the multitude from previous books. Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) has been for Stark to “Know a Guy (or Gal)” from the series’ ample backstory to move the plot along or save the day. This story has a tiringly ample number of examples of this.
The series continues with its single POV. James "Sandman Slim" Stark being the protagonist. There was only a small amount character development. Stark spends a lot of pages lamenting his personal situation. He’s continuing to be wanting to get back to his demon GF Candy. (She has her own GF now.) Although, he’s deeply involved with a civilian, Jennifer.
The old cliché that the city was a character in the story continues. However, many previously introduced venues were reused here. I did like like Kadrey's description of the breakdown of LA under the conditions of the COVID-like supernatural pandemic. I didn't find the few, new venues' to be particularly interesting.
Plot was a flat out Always Save the Girl trope with a spin. Against the background of LA being the hotspot for a vaguely supernatural plague, Stark realizes the demonic, cult leader King Bullet is really after him. It’s when King Bullet starts after Stark’s innumerable friends and allies that he comes out of his box.
This book was OK. I always find amusement in Stark’s hardboiled, pithy dialog. However, I’ve seen the ilk of this particular story before in this series. Kadrey has some good scenes, but this is just a rehash of things he’s done before. Stark, always knows a guy or gal to solve every problem. Stark kills, wounds and maims multitudes. Stark also spends a lot of time whinging about being a burden on his friends and how many have died because of him. He spends lots of time longing for Candy, longing for Jennifer, longing for long-gone Alice, and how his life has been wasted. It was been hard to feel sympathy for him for the last half-dozen books.
Kadrey let the series go on too long. However, , but he’s done that before too. In summary, this may or may not be the final Sandman Slim story, but I’m Declaring Victory. I’m done with the series.
Beverly Center, L.A’s Premier Shopping Mall, where Stark and Bridgette make a stand against the Shoggots.
My audiobook was about eight (8) hours long. It had a US copyright of 2021. A dead tree version would be about 320-pages.
Richard Kadrey is an American novelist, freelance writer, and photographer. He has about 20 novels published including this one. This is the twelfth and final book in the author's Sandman Slim Series. This is the 13th or 14th book I’ve read by this author. The last being Ballistic Kiss (Sandman Slim, #11) (my review).
MacLeod Andrews was the narrator. Andrews has been the long term narrator for the series. He’s a good narrator that can ably change his voice with the characters internal and external narrative. Although, he has a limited range of female voices.
This book will be unintelligible, if you’ve not been following the series. Long-term plot lines make-up the bones of this story and the author does not provide a lot of backstory.
Writing was good and on a par with the rest of the series. I get true enjoyment over Kadrey’s modern interpretation of hard boiled with an urban fantasy spin. In particular, I treasure his pithy metaphors and bizarre descriptive prose. The action scenes were well handled. However, the typically hardboiled dialog was better than the descriptive prose. In particular, Stark’s inner narrative, off-color aphorisms, and disdainful badinage have always been endearing to me.
As per the series, there is always sex, drugs, rock ’n roll and mega-violence. (Stark (AKA Sandman Slim) The monster who kills monsters.). The books in the series always have at least one heterosexual sex scene of the fade-to-black type. Although, this book had a few. In addition, the dialog was slightly more graphic with its reverences to the dirty deed.
Stark always drinks a prodigious amount of alcohol, while eschewing both soft and hard drugs. Currently he’s been drinking the hipper bourbon. At the beginning of the series, he was drinking Jack, or when he could get it, Aqua Regia the rotgut liquor quaffed in Hell. Aqua Regia and a Malediction cigarette at the Bamboo House of Dolls bar being his idea of good living. Maledictions being the corrosive cigarettes smoked in Hell. With his fave poison in short supply, Stark ironically starts drinking, Angel's Envy.
There were numerous musical references. In this book, Skull Valley Sheep Kill Stark’s fake, fave band receives several references. In addition, there were the usual amount of film school critique and film references.
Violence has progressively gotten more graphic as the series has gotten long. It includes: physical, edged-weapons, firearms and Hoo-doo (magic) related havoc. In this book, Sandman Slim uses all four-types, with some really potent supernatural fire. Body count as always for Sandman Slim books was genocidal.
Previously, Kadrey's knowledge of firearms was mostly correct. Stark habitually packs a Colt .45 revolver-- a real, classic, hand cannon appropriate for killing monsters. However, Stark played fast and loose with several guns. At one point sloppily describing the action of a revolver as that of an automatic. I think at one point he and Bridgette were using twin Benelli M4 Super 90s to wreak havoc on a Shoggot mob, but Kadrey’s interest in gun pr0n appears to be waning.
Stark always takes an extraordinary amount of punishment in every book. In this it was no different, within the first chapter he’s shot in the face with a small caliber pistol. He’s shot through the chest with a large caliber pistol only for the bullet to exit a deep, open wound in his back. He’s gutted like a fish with a stomach wound. And finally, endures Shoggot-like, extreme, self-mutilation.
Kadrey loves to create characters. Although, for this final book, he just retread the multitude from previous books. Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) has been for Stark to “Know a Guy (or Gal)” from the series’ ample backstory to move the plot along or save the day. This story has a tiringly ample number of examples of this.
The series continues with its single POV. James "Sandman Slim" Stark being the protagonist. There was only a small amount character development. Stark spends a lot of pages lamenting his personal situation. He’s continuing to be wanting to get back to his demon GF Candy. (She has her own GF now.) Although, he’s deeply involved with a civilian, Jennifer.
The old cliché that the city was a character in the story continues. However, many previously introduced venues were reused here. I did like like Kadrey's description of the breakdown of LA under the conditions of the COVID-like supernatural pandemic. I didn't find the few, new venues' to be particularly interesting.
Plot was a flat out Always Save the Girl trope with a spin. Against the background of LA being the hotspot for a vaguely supernatural plague, Stark realizes the demonic, cult leader King Bullet is really after him. It’s when King Bullet starts after Stark’s innumerable friends and allies that he comes out of his box.
This book was OK. I always find amusement in Stark’s hardboiled, pithy dialog. However, I’ve seen the ilk of this particular story before in this series. Kadrey has some good scenes, but this is just a rehash of things he’s done before. Stark, always knows a guy or gal to solve every problem. Stark kills, wounds and maims multitudes. Stark also spends a lot of time whinging about being a burden on his friends and how many have died because of him. He spends lots of time longing for Candy, longing for Jennifer, longing for long-gone Alice, and how his life has been wasted. It was been hard to feel sympathy for him for the last half-dozen books.
Kadrey let the series go on too long. However, , but he’s done that before too. In summary, this may or may not be the final Sandman Slim story, but I’m Declaring Victory. I’m done with the series.
August 21, 2021
What just happened?
So I'm disappointed by the end of this book for so many reasons. I called out tha end in the first chapter and what was going to happen writing wise as well. Felt like the rug was ripped from under me with a closed sign thrown out to make me go home. This is a sad ending for a 11 book series and I feel the author just wanted to be done and that current climate of social and political issues oozed in with heaps of pessimism.
Characters were more like stick puppets than ever and this is the worse book of the series.
So I'm disappointed by the end of this book for so many reasons. I called out tha end in the first chapter and what was going to happen writing wise as well. Felt like the rug was ripped from under me with a closed sign thrown out to make me go home. This is a sad ending for a 11 book series and I feel the author just wanted to be done and that current climate of social and political issues oozed in with heaps of pessimism.
Characters were more like stick puppets than ever and this is the worse book of the series.
January 21, 2022
King Bullet is an end to a series that probably outstayed it's welcome by about 3 or 4 books. It's the same old Sandman Slim, except he seems to be filled with more angst as before. There are call-outs to previous books towards the end, and he seems to have a decent ending. But yeah, if it weren't the conclusion of a series that started strongly and that I was invested in, I would probably rate it much lower.
December 28, 2021
A fun read, but not Kadrey's best: skips at breakneck (and ribs, and legs, and spine) pace through mostly predictable plot points with glee, but not a lot of gravitas.
Whilst I enjoyed all the usual fun things of a Sandman Slim book - the snarky wit, the pop culture, the violence and crazy shit happening - none of it felt like it had much weight.
The antagonist, the final big bad of the show, the titular King Bullet, never felt like much of a plausible threat - other than because that's how other characters were written to react to him. There was no build up, no slow reveal, and this meant very little real tension. Even Stark just seemed to be going through his paces.
It is impossible not to delight in the carnival of carnage and brutality that Kadrey can conjure when he needs to, and this book definitely delivers on that note. There's also some top-tier character moments and it's a little heartwarming to see some of them making amends and coming together again at the end of the road.
For any faults and shortcomings that I personally felt shone through, I still read the whole thing in two sittings, in a single day, and enjoyed it all - it just doesn't measure up to some of the highlights in this series.
Perhaps Kadrey was just somewhat bored and sick of writing these books, which is why it felt a little rushed out of the door? Perhaps the chaos that started the third decade of the 21st century had an impact on the novel, beyond the prevalent inclusion of a mandate of mask-wearing in the wake of a dreadful epidemic. Whatever the reason, I can't help but feel a little sad that Stark's final entry didn't have the bang and flash that I feel he deserves.
But then, I do wonder where exactly he could have gone and what he would have done that would feel appropriate, given that he's died, more than once, been to heaven and hell, killed angels, beaten gods, and everything in between.
But, if you're reading this far, then there's no reason not to read the 12th book in a series.
Whilst I enjoyed all the usual fun things of a Sandman Slim book - the snarky wit, the pop culture, the violence and crazy shit happening - none of it felt like it had much weight.
The antagonist, the final big bad of the show, the titular King Bullet, never felt like much of a plausible threat - other than because that's how other characters were written to react to him. There was no build up, no slow reveal, and this meant very little real tension. Even Stark just seemed to be going through his paces.
It is impossible not to delight in the carnival of carnage and brutality that Kadrey can conjure when he needs to, and this book definitely delivers on that note. There's also some top-tier character moments and it's a little heartwarming to see some of them making amends and coming together again at the end of the road.
For any faults and shortcomings that I personally felt shone through, I still read the whole thing in two sittings, in a single day, and enjoyed it all - it just doesn't measure up to some of the highlights in this series.
Perhaps Kadrey was just somewhat bored and sick of writing these books, which is why it felt a little rushed out of the door? Perhaps the chaos that started the third decade of the 21st century had an impact on the novel, beyond the prevalent inclusion of a mandate of mask-wearing in the wake of a dreadful epidemic. Whatever the reason, I can't help but feel a little sad that Stark's final entry didn't have the bang and flash that I feel he deserves.
But then, I do wonder where exactly he could have gone and what he would have done that would feel appropriate, given that he's died, more than once, been to heaven and hell, killed angels, beaten gods, and everything in between.
But, if you're reading this far, then there's no reason not to read the 12th book in a series.
June 2, 2021
King Bullet, the last book in the Sandman Slim series, is a pandemic baby, and you know it. It is steeped in isolation, anxiety, and the futile desire for simple answers in the face of complex problems. And it’s James Stark, so there’s violence, mayhem, hidden Hollywood, and heavenly hosts.
James Stark was sent to hell alive by his magician friends who were jealous of his powers. While there, he became Sandman Slim, the monster who kills monsters. Stark escaped from Hell to wreak vengeance on the magicians that sent him there, and caused the death of the girlfriend he left behind. Since then he’s almost destroyed the universe, but chose not to, become friendly-ish with one of the aspects of God, become Lucifer, quit being Lucifer, pissed off a lot of angels, died, come back to life, taken down a lot of really bad people, opened the gates of heaven to every soul, found the love of his life and lost her. He’s moved on from being the monster who kills monsters and has quit being anyone’s attack dog. But growth is hard because there will always be people who don’t want you to change.
The Sandman Slim series is at it’s best when Stark is in Los Angeles. Now Los Angeles is falling apart, the garbage is piling up, and the city is in danger of being over run by a madman and his gangs of henchmen. King Bullet knows who Sandman Slim is and wants to burn down everything Stark has ever loved. Stark wants to protect his people and his places, figure out his relationship with Janet, and find some peace. After forcing the machinery of the Universe to play fair, what antagonist could be worthy of Stark’s last outing? Kadrey goes Shakespearean. King Bullet gives a nice Saint Crispen’s Day speech.
“We few, we happy few, we band of horrors. For they today who shed their blood with me shall be my brothers, my sisters, my blessed beasts. Now. Go forth and make creation weep.”
King Bullet is the loneliest Stark has ever seemed. For all that he is surrounded by his friends, he is so aware of the impact that he has on the people around him. For the whole series, people have been telling Stark that what he does impacts others, and he has changed and evolved, sometimes reluctantly, and become someone who cares about the welfare of others, not just the people he loves. King Bullet weaponizes that care and punishes Stark with his own evolution.
Now that I’ve finished the series, I’ll be going back to the beginning and reading it all again. And when the audiobook is released, I’ll buy that and let MacLeod Andrews narrate Sandman Slim’s final chapter. Kadrey kind of maybe leaves the door open for more Stark.
I received this as an advance reader copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
James Stark was sent to hell alive by his magician friends who were jealous of his powers. While there, he became Sandman Slim, the monster who kills monsters. Stark escaped from Hell to wreak vengeance on the magicians that sent him there, and caused the death of the girlfriend he left behind. Since then he’s almost destroyed the universe, but chose not to, become friendly-ish with one of the aspects of God, become Lucifer, quit being Lucifer, pissed off a lot of angels, died, come back to life, taken down a lot of really bad people, opened the gates of heaven to every soul, found the love of his life and lost her. He’s moved on from being the monster who kills monsters and has quit being anyone’s attack dog. But growth is hard because there will always be people who don’t want you to change.
The Sandman Slim series is at it’s best when Stark is in Los Angeles. Now Los Angeles is falling apart, the garbage is piling up, and the city is in danger of being over run by a madman and his gangs of henchmen. King Bullet knows who Sandman Slim is and wants to burn down everything Stark has ever loved. Stark wants to protect his people and his places, figure out his relationship with Janet, and find some peace. After forcing the machinery of the Universe to play fair, what antagonist could be worthy of Stark’s last outing? Kadrey goes Shakespearean. King Bullet gives a nice Saint Crispen’s Day speech.
“We few, we happy few, we band of horrors. For they today who shed their blood with me shall be my brothers, my sisters, my blessed beasts. Now. Go forth and make creation weep.”
King Bullet is the loneliest Stark has ever seemed. For all that he is surrounded by his friends, he is so aware of the impact that he has on the people around him. For the whole series, people have been telling Stark that what he does impacts others, and he has changed and evolved, sometimes reluctantly, and become someone who cares about the welfare of others, not just the people he loves. King Bullet weaponizes that care and punishes Stark with his own evolution.
Now that I’ve finished the series, I’ll be going back to the beginning and reading it all again. And when the audiobook is released, I’ll buy that and let MacLeod Andrews narrate Sandman Slim’s final chapter. Kadrey kind of maybe leaves the door open for more Stark.
I received this as an advance reader copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
October 26, 2021
If reading is a sport, that series is a marathon, and I am happy that it is over. I read and own all books from that series and that one is last ... loool
From the book one everything was evolving, except it's cover, where they continue to write 'high-octane', 'page turner', 'kick aas action', prolly by inertia.
Finally Stark gathered all his women at one room, and till the end I was waiting that he will kill-em-all ... did not happen lol, he was walking to the right, to the left, posing, complainig: slow, boring and pathetic, such a broth stock of triple cooked oatmeal.
author knows dorohedoro, surprise! surprise!
From the book one everything was evolving, except it's cover, where they continue to write 'high-octane', 'page turner', 'kick aas action', prolly by inertia.
Finally Stark gathered all his women at one room, and till the end I was waiting that he will kill-em-all ... did not happen lol, he was walking to the right, to the left, posing, complainig: slow, boring and pathetic, such a broth stock of triple cooked oatmeal.
author knows dorohedoro, surprise! surprise!
September 25, 2021
It's a great series, sad it had to end. Fantastic narrator for the audio book.
August 19, 2021
Sad to see this series come to an end. The final installment was every bit as over-the-top and entertaining as I've come to expect, even if the premise seemed to come a bit out of left field. It was a solid end to a really fun series.
May 4, 2022
King Bullet is the final book in the Sandman Slim series and it shows. The issue isn't that Richard Kadrey has run out of ideas, it's that he's given James Stark so many powers and tools that the man is basically invincible. He can teleport, for god's sake! Why even bother battling when you have the instant out of slipping through a shadow? Which, to be clear, Stark does about a thousand times in King Bullet. So when he doesn't shadow-walk, it seems weird.
Anyway, the plot of King Bullet is essentially "we need a huge villain that'll force Stark to re-visit all his pals so he can make the ultimate sacrifice THE END." The huge villain is revealed to be , which is fun if the guy had been introduced sometime before now. As it stands, the big reveal is just like "oh hey, that's who he is, huh" and then the battle continues.
Also, the villain (King Bullet) arrives in town with a plague - a very similar plague to COVID-19. Numerous scenes involve characters discussing mask-wearing. I think I would have preferred Kadrey use the real-life illness, not the made-up one that's cured when King Bullet is dispatched.
All of Stark's grim banter is in King Bullet, as well as plenty of terrific gore and violence. But the story is just dumb. Ballistic Kiss also had a dumb story, but at least it had lots of solid character scenes for Stark and his crew. In King Bullet, character scenes are only of the "well, guess I'll never see you again" variety.
Sandman Slim is wrapped up and that's a good thing. I kind of can't believe I read all twelve volumes of this series when there's much better urban fantasy out there - not to mention much better books in general. I'll admit that the noir nature and racecar pacing of these books is highly appealing, but the content just fell off a cliff after a while.
Anyway, the plot of King Bullet is essentially "we need a huge villain that'll force Stark to re-visit all his pals so he can make the ultimate sacrifice THE END." The huge villain is revealed to be , which is fun if the guy had been introduced sometime before now. As it stands, the big reveal is just like "oh hey, that's who he is, huh" and then the battle continues.
Also, the villain (King Bullet) arrives in town with a plague - a very similar plague to COVID-19. Numerous scenes involve characters discussing mask-wearing. I think I would have preferred Kadrey use the real-life illness, not the made-up one that's cured when King Bullet is dispatched.
All of Stark's grim banter is in King Bullet, as well as plenty of terrific gore and violence. But the story is just dumb. Ballistic Kiss also had a dumb story, but at least it had lots of solid character scenes for Stark and his crew. In King Bullet, character scenes are only of the "well, guess I'll never see you again" variety.
Sandman Slim is wrapped up and that's a good thing. I kind of can't believe I read all twelve volumes of this series when there's much better urban fantasy out there - not to mention much better books in general. I'll admit that the noir nature and racecar pacing of these books is highly appealing, but the content just fell off a cliff after a while.
November 18, 2021
A terrible end to an awesome character. A heist with Lucifer was the only semi decent content of the entire book and far too brief. Sandman slim was an apex predator who could take on anyone and anything. In this book he's just a whining pathetic loser with a girl he doesn't love and who doesn't get him. And to be honest who doesn't benefit the story or the character in any way, unless it's to show how far he's fallen. He pines after his lost love, his lost life, his lost everything. Constantly. He pines, he whines, he moans, and then he repeats the cycle stressing constantly how he and everyone he knows would be better off if he was just dead. He also allows drug addled morons to get the better of him constantly. He does very little beyond feeling sorry for himself in the majority of the book.
The enemy!? I'm sorry but what on earth. The flimsiest of reasons to be the bad guy. The plague is ridiculous, its cause so pathetic. In book one he'd have been killed in two pages and without a second thought. And where I can rationalise an angel falling for a human, I cannot entertain the notion of falling for a krise (however that's spelt I can't even be bothered to check) from the early books. The repulsive, smelly athema of angel kind. Which ruins the premise, the abysmal reveal and any hope of credibility the story may have had. And finally, after one pathetic attempt to kill him, sandman slim gives up, commits suicide and takes him with him. Loser to the end. Plus the unresolved subrosa sub plot. This book ruins the character and his early deeds. Its one long drawn out suicide, of a has been come loser whose given up on himself and life. Whose friends don't notice or care enough to bother. Mr Kadrey must really have hated the character and these books by the time he wrote this one. Avoid and cherish the earlier books.
The enemy!? I'm sorry but what on earth. The flimsiest of reasons to be the bad guy. The plague is ridiculous, its cause so pathetic. In book one he'd have been killed in two pages and without a second thought. And where I can rationalise an angel falling for a human, I cannot entertain the notion of falling for a krise (however that's spelt I can't even be bothered to check) from the early books. The repulsive, smelly athema of angel kind. Which ruins the premise, the abysmal reveal and any hope of credibility the story may have had. And finally, after one pathetic attempt to kill him, sandman slim gives up, commits suicide and takes him with him. Loser to the end. Plus the unresolved subrosa sub plot. This book ruins the character and his early deeds. Its one long drawn out suicide, of a has been come loser whose given up on himself and life. Whose friends don't notice or care enough to bother. Mr Kadrey must really have hated the character and these books by the time he wrote this one. Avoid and cherish the earlier books.
March 13, 2021
I got to read an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Our series finale begins with a pandemic of unknown origin raging through Los Angeles, causing total chaos, garbage build up, out of control gangs, and the terror that your friends will kill you by breathing on you (Stark has to be reminded so many times to wear his mask!). Sound familiar? Even the Sub Rosa aren't safe from this plague. So what is our floundering Sandman Slim supposed to do amidst all this uncertainty? Why, find someone to fight, of course!
King Bullet, the big bad, is controlling all the gang violence, and seems unstoppable. Abbott hires Stark to take him down, but Stark has suspicions about Abbott's motives. KB seems to have it out for Stark personally, and does his best to make it personal to Jimmy dear as well. The whole crew gets together, giving Stark lots of time to pine for Candy, and consider the many other women in his life.
Overall, this final installment was as exciting as every other Sandman Slim book and was exactly what we've come to expect. To that end... it just felt like another installment. I would want the big bad in the series finale to be an extra special villain, someone who's identity has meaning and emotional ties to our hero, and I don't think King Bullet fit that bill. Stark was clearly still trying to overcome his past experiences and be a better person, mentioning his PTSD pills several times, but we never really got the chance to see if he was making progress or not. Other than that, the ending was very satisfying, our chance to bon voyage all the major characters was fulfilled, and I had a lot of fun reading it. Best of all, Kadrey left a little wiggle room for a continuation at some point if he so desires!
King Bullet, the big bad, is controlling all the gang violence, and seems unstoppable. Abbott hires Stark to take him down, but Stark has suspicions about Abbott's motives. KB seems to have it out for Stark personally, and does his best to make it personal to Jimmy dear as well. The whole crew gets together, giving Stark lots of time to pine for Candy, and consider the many other women in his life.
Overall, this final installment was as exciting as every other Sandman Slim book and was exactly what we've come to expect. To that end... it just felt like another installment. I would want the big bad in the series finale to be an extra special villain, someone who's identity has meaning and emotional ties to our hero, and I don't think King Bullet fit that bill. Stark was clearly still trying to overcome his past experiences and be a better person, mentioning his PTSD pills several times, but we never really got the chance to see if he was making progress or not. Other than that, the ending was very satisfying, our chance to bon voyage all the major characters was fulfilled, and I had a lot of fun reading it. Best of all, Kadrey left a little wiggle room for a continuation at some point if he so desires!
September 2, 2024
So, here it is, this is the grand finale of the Sandman Slim series and I have to say, it's quite a fitting one. It's not easy to write a good ending to such a long running series, especially considering there were several moments along the way where Kadrey could have comfortably called it a day but then decided to write another book and start another story arc.
Anyway, I don't want to go into too much detail, but I for one am satisfied with the conlusion to the series. It's fast paced, it has the usual Sandman Slim action, carnage and bloody humor, but there is also personal growth. We get to meet almost all the important characters for one last time and all the plot lines are wrapped up neatly without it feeling somehow forced or shoehorned.
Admittedly, King Bullet as the final villain isn't that great and basically just there to give Stark a nut he can't crack that easily. The pandemic is a nice touch and though it's a much crazier one than Covid, I guess we can all relate to the everyday troubles it brings along. I also like how Kadrey makes a lot of references to classic as well as contemporary movies, music and so on but doesn't go overboard.
Anyway, as I said, this is a bittersweet but overall satisfying conclusion to the series. It's good to know that a return at some point in the future isn't completely off the table, but if this is indeed the last time we meet Sandman Slim and his crew, it's a fitting farewell.
Anyway, I don't want to go into too much detail, but I for one am satisfied with the conlusion to the series. It's fast paced, it has the usual Sandman Slim action, carnage and bloody humor, but there is also personal growth. We get to meet almost all the important characters for one last time and all the plot lines are wrapped up neatly without it feeling somehow forced or shoehorned.
Admittedly, King Bullet as the final villain isn't that great and basically just there to give Stark a nut he can't crack that easily. The pandemic is a nice touch and though it's a much crazier one than Covid, I guess we can all relate to the everyday troubles it brings along. I also like how Kadrey makes a lot of references to classic as well as contemporary movies, music and so on but doesn't go overboard.
Anyway, as I said, this is a bittersweet but overall satisfying conclusion to the series. It's good to know that a return at some point in the future isn't completely off the table, but if this is indeed the last time we meet Sandman Slim and his crew, it's a fitting farewell.
September 18, 2021
Rating 2.5
I didn't exactly like it...the end of the Sandman Slim series. It was bittersweet. My reasons for not liking it are not going to be politically correct. I felt like Stark being so involved with Janet was not in his character. It took this series in a direction that didn't feel authentic to Stark.
In the end, Stark was surrounded by women: Allegra, Brigitte, Candy, Fuck Hollywood (I liked her, she was awesome), Candy's girlfriend (can't remember her name at all), and Janet.
This was girl power overload (in my not so politically correct opinion.) I suppose what I'm saying is the book felt unbalanced. I missed the guys! I have to admit. I missed them. Kasabian, Carlos, and Samael are in this, briefly.
In the end, it was sad. Sad to see Stark chasing the bad guy, getting hurt so much, having to protect all these women, being the savior/martyr.
As for Stark's fate. I actually liked that part. That made sense to me. He was always going to end up...there. I'm good with that.
Well. I loved this series and I've been disappointed by this series, in the end, it was the narrator Andrew MacLeod's amazing performance that kept me listening. Truly. Bravo. I am going to miss that voice narrating.
Goodbye Stark and crew. It's been an interesting journey. I may not have liked how Kadrey developed the later books, but that's ok, he created an awesome universe. Thanks for that!
I didn't exactly like it...the end of the Sandman Slim series. It was bittersweet. My reasons for not liking it are not going to be politically correct. I felt like Stark being so involved with Janet was not in his character. It took this series in a direction that didn't feel authentic to Stark.
In the end, Stark was surrounded by women: Allegra, Brigitte, Candy, Fuck Hollywood (I liked her, she was awesome), Candy's girlfriend (can't remember her name at all), and Janet.
This was girl power overload (in my not so politically correct opinion.) I suppose what I'm saying is the book felt unbalanced. I missed the guys! I have to admit. I missed them. Kasabian, Carlos, and Samael are in this, briefly.
In the end, it was sad. Sad to see Stark chasing the bad guy, getting hurt so much, having to protect all these women, being the savior/martyr.
As for Stark's fate. I actually liked that part. That made sense to me. He was always going to end up...there. I'm good with that.
Well. I loved this series and I've been disappointed by this series, in the end, it was the narrator Andrew MacLeod's amazing performance that kept me listening. Truly. Bravo. I am going to miss that voice narrating.
Goodbye Stark and crew. It's been an interesting journey. I may not have liked how Kadrey developed the later books, but that's ok, he created an awesome universe. Thanks for that!
March 9, 2022
Bluntly, I wish the series stopped with Ballistic Kiss. That would have been a much better send off then this.
The last book isn't the time to introduce new... anything. You call in your markers, realize not everyone will survive, and face off against a powerful adversary that you've breadcrumbed or that fits the world as built. King Bullet would seem to match that description, but it feels demon ex machina. Comes out of nowhere and is absurdly powerful. If Slim wins, how was he ever victorious in the previous 11 books?
And too much of the book is Stark complaining about the people that love him to the people that love him. He has a sweet apartment, goes out, gets beat up, brings a friend back to the apartment, goes out again to get beat up, brings another friend back, before taking a nap and venturing out again, to be beaten again, to return home with an ex or two. He'll bleed, heal, drink coffee, go out to end up bleeding again, and come home with more friends. By the end, his place is a veritable menagerie of romantic partners, past, present, and future, celestial beings, good friends, and pizza boxes. No kumbaya, no taking stock, just a holding pattern before he walks outside and gets beat up again. He's smarter than that, even when he acts dumb.
Like or love the character, but this twelfth story need not have been told.
The last book isn't the time to introduce new... anything. You call in your markers, realize not everyone will survive, and face off against a powerful adversary that you've breadcrumbed or that fits the world as built. King Bullet would seem to match that description, but it feels demon ex machina. Comes out of nowhere and is absurdly powerful. If Slim wins, how was he ever victorious in the previous 11 books?
And too much of the book is Stark complaining about the people that love him to the people that love him. He has a sweet apartment, goes out, gets beat up, brings a friend back to the apartment, goes out again to get beat up, brings another friend back, before taking a nap and venturing out again, to be beaten again, to return home with an ex or two. He'll bleed, heal, drink coffee, go out to end up bleeding again, and come home with more friends. By the end, his place is a veritable menagerie of romantic partners, past, present, and future, celestial beings, good friends, and pizza boxes. No kumbaya, no taking stock, just a holding pattern before he walks outside and gets beat up again. He's smarter than that, even when he acts dumb.
Like or love the character, but this twelfth story need not have been told.
September 9, 2021
The good, the bad, and the end (no spoilers)
the Good: I thought the way Kadrey ended this incredible series was pretty good. Although it was fairly predictable, most series' endings leave the reader wanting in some department, not the case here, I felt it closed the storyline pretty well.
the Bad: The actual story premise of who King Bullet was and why the situation was occurring had promise, but ended up sorely lacking. The whole book seemed to be an exercise in including all the past characters, whether they had any business in the story or not. The randomness of some of the interactions felt very forced and awkward. The current story at hand seemed to take a backseat to other items.
Additionally, the entire "put your mask on" over and over (and over and over) felt more like a societal statement than a fantasy story, and was terribly distracting. It too was awkward enough to make me wonder if Kadrey went back and added it to the story after the start of Covid as a "ripped from the headlines" attempt.
the End: This remains my favorite series of all time, but something dramatically changed in the writing of the last two stories. Previous novels flowed tying stories together and keeping the reader gripped, which was missing in Ballistic Kiss and King Bullet.
the Good: I thought the way Kadrey ended this incredible series was pretty good. Although it was fairly predictable, most series' endings leave the reader wanting in some department, not the case here, I felt it closed the storyline pretty well.
the Bad: The actual story premise of who King Bullet was and why the situation was occurring had promise, but ended up sorely lacking. The whole book seemed to be an exercise in including all the past characters, whether they had any business in the story or not. The randomness of some of the interactions felt very forced and awkward. The current story at hand seemed to take a backseat to other items.
Additionally, the entire "put your mask on" over and over (and over and over) felt more like a societal statement than a fantasy story, and was terribly distracting. It too was awkward enough to make me wonder if Kadrey went back and added it to the story after the start of Covid as a "ripped from the headlines" attempt.
the End: This remains my favorite series of all time, but something dramatically changed in the writing of the last two stories. Previous novels flowed tying stories together and keeping the reader gripped, which was missing in Ballistic Kiss and King Bullet.
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