• Hardcover: 448 pages
• Publisher: Harper Voyager
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061714321
• ISBN-13: 978-0061714320

Synopsis: Supernatural fantasy’s greatest anti-hero goes back to hell! In Sandman Slim Stark came back from hell for revenge. In Kill the Dead he tackled both a zombie plague and being Lucifer’s bodyguard.Once again all is not right in L.A. Lucifer is back in Heaven, God is on vacation, and an insane killer mounts a war against both Heaven and Hell.

Stark’s got to head back down to his old stomping grounds in Hell to rescue his long lost love, stop an insane serial killer, prevent both Good and Evil from completely destroying each other, and stop the demonic Kissi from ruining the party for everyone.

Even for Sandman Slim, that’s a tall order. And it’s only the beginning.

Sandman Slim’s story comes to a close in Aloha from Hell, and author Richard Kadrey is in his trademark form in the final installment of this arc of his supernatural noir. This series has been a purely decadent ride, unapologetic in its over the top mayhem and action; but beneath the violence and blood is a truly gripping story about a broken man’s struggle to reconcile the guilt of his past with with the promise of his future.

It’s been a long road for Stark this and it looks like he’s finally found a measure of peace in the arms of his companion Candy, a Jade who relates to our antihero’s darker side. But just when Stark begins to find comfort his world is turned upside down and his past comes back to haunt him. This is where Stark has been heading from the beginning. He’s carried the guilt of his dead girlfriend’s murder with him for three books now, and finally he’ll have to face the consequences of his reckless past.

Kadrey has a very unique way of inserting pedestrian themes into his stories without making them seem trite, mostly because he doesn’t treat them with kid gloves. Stark has, in essence, been on a manly-man’s emotional journey from the moment he crawled out of Hell. He’s the brooding hero without the soft and chewy center that is common to the archetype. This time he tackles relationships and our tendency to look back and idolize the past in such a way that it can interfere with our ability to move on with our lives.

What always impresses me about Kadrey’s writing is that he adds these bits without interrupting the pace of the narrative. Aloha from Hell can be enjoyed for exactly what it is: an explosive story that appeals to action junkies that like a lot of ass-kicking in their entertainment. Kadrey’s ability to add nuance to the book without miring it in introspection is incredible, and elevates his work into literature of real substance.

I give Aloha from Hell Five out of Five Stars.

Pick up your copy of Aloha from Hell from Amazon today!

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