Early Review – Killing Pretty (Sandman Slim, Book 7) by Richard Kadrey (3.5/5 stars)

Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Urban Fantasy/Horror
Length: 400 pages
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Release Date: July 28, 2015
ISBN-13: 978-0062373106
Stand Alone or Series: 7th book in the Sandman Slim series
Source: eGalley through Edelweiss.com
Rating: 3.5/5 stars

I got a copy of this book through Edelweiss to review. This is the 7th book in the Sandman Slim series. I enjoyed this continuation of the Sandman Slim series but didn’t like this book quite as much as the previous book in the series.

Stark is back at his video store trying to make his life work. He’s adjusting to not being able to shadow travel anymore and trying to deal with the fact that Candy (now called Chihiro) looks completely different and is pretending to be a completely different person (to evade arrest). Then of course there is the fact that Death showed up in a completely dead human body and is languishing in his video store. Stark needs to figure out what the deal is with Death and how to get Death back where he belongs. When people all over the world stop dying the matter becomes incredibly urgent.

This book is a bit of a transition novel as Stark tries to figure out what to do with his life. It is a bit plagued by Stark’s whining; he is either whining about how sick he is about getting forced into world-changing events or whining about how he hates having a normal “white-picket fence” type of life. I got kind of sick of those parts since you know…you can’t have it both ways.

There is also less action in this book than in others. Which is not to say there aren’t some high-octane scenes and gruesome violence…it’s just a bit less in this book. There is a lot more of Stark trying to work as a team (which is not his strong suit) and investigate Death’s appearance.

I did enjoy the idea of Death being forced into a human body. It was a fun and interesting mystery for Stark and crew to solve. The side plot of Candy taking a new identity as Chihiro was also intriguing. I am curious to see where Chihiro’s story goes from here.

However the story wanders…a lot and it made the book quite a bit longer than it had to be. We spend a lot of time reading about Stark as he wanders about his somewhat disorganized and non-sensical life. Some of these parts were a bit boring and I kept hoping we would get to the point sooner than later.

Overall, while not my favorite Sandman Slim novel, this was still an entertaining read. The Sandman Slim series is full of witty dialogue and attitude and definitely has a unique style all its own. I recommend it to those who enjoy gritty urban fantasy. If you like gritty and slightly disturbing urban fantasy I would also recommend the Jessie Shimmer series by Lucy Snyder.

This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– You Read How Many Books? Reading Challenge