Butcher Bird, by Richard Kadrey
It’s like a road trip through The Matrix into The Wizard of Oz— ending up at the The Sandman and Hellblazer.
I’m impressed that Kadrey just made me compare Butcher Bird to all my favorite action fantasy epics.
Protagonist Spyder, a San Francisco tattoo artist, is clairvoyantly infected by a demon with a power that lets him see other "Dominions" of angels and devils. He now must go looking through these Dominions for a set of lost books that will keep the worlds in balance.
Kadrey describes the coolest other-worldly creatures and scenes:
"People threw money at the Volt-Eater's feet after each demonstration of her electric skills. It made Spyder a little sad to see her. On any other night, she would have been the hands-down highlight... Tonight, however, the Volt Eater was just a pretty girl spitting watts, no more or less miraculous than Bible-quoting kittens or the lion-woman who'd just pronounced him both a fool and a hero."
Narrated by Jonathan Davis who also read Neil Stephenson's classic, Snow Crash.
--Aretha Bright
