Butcher Bird
A Novel of the Dominion
Richard Kadrey
- 400 Pages
- September 12, 2017
- ISBN: 9781597809245
- Imprint: Night Shade Books
- Trim Size: 5in x 7in x 0in
Description
Butcher Bird, an early protoype for dark urban fantasy from the New York Times bestselling author of Sandman Slim, is reissued in a special tenth anniversary edition.
Spyder Lee is a happy man. He lives in San Francisco and owns a tattoo shop. He has his favorite drinking buddy, Lulu Garou, and other friends all over town. One night a pissed-off demon tries to bite his head off and he's saved by a stranger—a small, blind woman with a sword as wicked as her smile. After that, Spyder’s life is turned upside down.
The demon infected Spyder with something awful—the truth. He can suddenly see the world as it really is: full of angels and demons and monsters and monster-hunters; a world full of black magic and mysteries. These are the Dominions, parallel worlds full of wonder, beauty and horror, of which Spyder’s is only one. Each Dominion is home to another race of creatures from human myth. If you’re clever or lucky, you can pass from one Dominion to another, but the Dominions themselves never touch.
At least, they’re not supposed to. The Black Clerks, infinitely old and infinitely powerful beings whose job it is to keep the Dominions in balance, seem to have new interests and a whole new agenda. Dropped into the middle of a conflict between the Black Clerks and other forces he doesn't fully understand, Spyder searches for a magic book with the blind swordswoman who saved him. Their journey will take them from deserts to lush palaces, to underground caverns, to the heart of Hell itself.
Spyder Lee is a happy man. He lives in San Francisco and owns a tattoo shop. He has his favorite drinking buddy, Lulu Garou, and other friends all over town. One night a pissed-off demon tries to bite his head off and he's saved by a stranger—a small, blind woman with a sword as wicked as her smile. After that, Spyder’s life is turned upside down.
The demon infected Spyder with something awful—the truth. He can suddenly see the world as it really is: full of angels and demons and monsters and monster-hunters; a world full of black magic and mysteries. These are the Dominions, parallel worlds full of wonder, beauty and horror, of which Spyder’s is only one. Each Dominion is home to another race of creatures from human myth. If you’re clever or lucky, you can pass from one Dominion to another, but the Dominions themselves never touch.
At least, they’re not supposed to. The Black Clerks, infinitely old and infinitely powerful beings whose job it is to keep the Dominions in balance, seem to have new interests and a whole new agenda. Dropped into the middle of a conflict between the Black Clerks and other forces he doesn't fully understand, Spyder searches for a magic book with the blind swordswoman who saved him. Their journey will take them from deserts to lush palaces, to underground caverns, to the heart of Hell itself.
Authors
Richard Kadrey is the New York Times bestselling author of the Sandman Slim novels, plus five others, including Butcher Bird and Metrophage, as well as a Vertigo comics miniseries. He also writes and speaks about art, culture, and technology for various publications and websites. Kadrey lives in San Francisco and has no qualifications for anything he does.
Reviews
Praise for Butcher Bird and Richard Kadrey
“If [Butcher Bird] had been rendered in oil or acrylic, it would be kicking world-class lowbrow ass in multi-page spreads in Juxtapoz or on the walls of La Luz de Jesus. Go for it. The man is mad, in every best way.” —New York Times bestselling author William Gibson
“Mr. Kadrey’s invention never flags. He always has another joke up his sleeve. Even if the joke is on us and our ability to drag the Heavenly Hosts themselves down to street level, and then corrupt them.” —Wall Street Journal
“A master of manic, rapid-fire storytelling, hilarious wisecracks, and relentless supernatural lunacy.” —Barnes & Noble
“Shares some themes with its later cousin [Sandman Slim], but the shape and the tone of this book are completely different. . . . An original work with a unique voice. Butcher Bird is an engrossing and slightly unsettling reading experience. . . . Go find it. Read it. You’ll thank me.” —FantasyLiterature.com
“This is the book Sandman Slim should have been. . . . Some of the most creative writing I've seen in a very long time. There are a lot of ideas crammed into the book, a lot of stunningly novel and breathtakingly clever ideas.” —Bookish
“Buffy and Angel fans are likely to enjoy Kadrey's offbeat supernatural romp, which blends demonic evil and quirky humor. . . . Kadrey juxtaposes gore and brash insouciance in the face of apocalyptic evil.” —Publishers Weekly
“I’ve said on more than one occasion that I consider Sandman Slim a kind of sideways sequel to Butcher Bird . . . . It has many of the same themes: the notions of Heaven and Hell, the positions of Lucifer versus God, mortals’ relationship to the afterlife and to other powers that are beyond them.” —Locus “In Butcher Bird I read many of the themes which make the Sandman Slim series so interesting. . . Everything a good quest story should have. . . . Reading Butcher Bird while in the midst of the Sandman Slim series gave me a richer experience, because I already knew what Kadrey was up to.” —Lunisea
“Richard Kadrey is a genius.” —New York Times bestselling author Holly Black
“Kadrey really is the anti-Twilight. Raw, real, funny, furious, all full of piss and hemoglobin.” —FEARnet
“Kadrey’s prose is raw and gutter-tough, Raymond Chandler meets Lux Interior at the Whisky a Go Go at the end of days.” —Austin Chronicle
“Kadrey’s a fascinating writer and no matter how vicious Sandman Slim gets, we’re rooting for him to win.” —New York Times bestselling author Charlaine Harris
“Kadrey makes magic, humor, and crime mix effortlessly.” —Seattle Book Review
“If [Butcher Bird] had been rendered in oil or acrylic, it would be kicking world-class lowbrow ass in multi-page spreads in Juxtapoz or on the walls of La Luz de Jesus. Go for it. The man is mad, in every best way.” —New York Times bestselling author William Gibson
“Mr. Kadrey’s invention never flags. He always has another joke up his sleeve. Even if the joke is on us and our ability to drag the Heavenly Hosts themselves down to street level, and then corrupt them.” —Wall Street Journal
“A master of manic, rapid-fire storytelling, hilarious wisecracks, and relentless supernatural lunacy.” —Barnes & Noble
“Shares some themes with its later cousin [Sandman Slim], but the shape and the tone of this book are completely different. . . . An original work with a unique voice. Butcher Bird is an engrossing and slightly unsettling reading experience. . . . Go find it. Read it. You’ll thank me.” —FantasyLiterature.com
“This is the book Sandman Slim should have been. . . . Some of the most creative writing I've seen in a very long time. There are a lot of ideas crammed into the book, a lot of stunningly novel and breathtakingly clever ideas.” —Bookish
“Buffy and Angel fans are likely to enjoy Kadrey's offbeat supernatural romp, which blends demonic evil and quirky humor. . . . Kadrey juxtaposes gore and brash insouciance in the face of apocalyptic evil.” —Publishers Weekly
“I’ve said on more than one occasion that I consider Sandman Slim a kind of sideways sequel to Butcher Bird . . . . It has many of the same themes: the notions of Heaven and Hell, the positions of Lucifer versus God, mortals’ relationship to the afterlife and to other powers that are beyond them.” —Locus “In Butcher Bird I read many of the themes which make the Sandman Slim series so interesting. . . Everything a good quest story should have. . . . Reading Butcher Bird while in the midst of the Sandman Slim series gave me a richer experience, because I already knew what Kadrey was up to.” —Lunisea
“Richard Kadrey is a genius.” —New York Times bestselling author Holly Black
“Kadrey really is the anti-Twilight. Raw, real, funny, furious, all full of piss and hemoglobin.” —FEARnet
“Kadrey’s prose is raw and gutter-tough, Raymond Chandler meets Lux Interior at the Whisky a Go Go at the end of days.” —Austin Chronicle
“Kadrey’s a fascinating writer and no matter how vicious Sandman Slim gets, we’re rooting for him to win.” —New York Times bestselling author Charlaine Harris
“Kadrey makes magic, humor, and crime mix effortlessly.” —Seattle Book Review
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