It all started with a door to door salesmen...

Okay, so my parents weren't always the most... well, parental. But today, On this Thanksgiving Eve I want to take a moment to be thankful for a small thing that changed my life.

When I was about 4, a door to door salesmen came calling. ( I know, I know-- this is the set up to a horror movie or a porn, but I promise, not this time)

He was selling books. Big, hard cover kids books with colorful illustrations. They weren't baby books with one or two words per page... NO. These were classics, real books with lots of words. I remember The Ugly Duckling being a particular favorite. At four I couldn't read. But these books were extra special. They had cassette tapes that went with them. In my memory I can still hear the crisp *bing* that indicated that it was time to turn the page.

My parents didn't really read to me. In their defense they both worked and blah blah blah... These books with tapes really changed everything for me. They taught me to read. They taught me to love books.

We moved a lot when I was a kid, and I have no idea when those books, tapes and the My Little Pony cassette player that served them tangibly disappeared from my life-- but in the most real way, they never did. In a life full of mad dashes across the continent and an every changing cast of characters (Tonight the part of Dad will be played by....) books were a constant.  If my copy of Lion the Witch and The Wardrobe got left behind in one of our rushed moves...it was okay. Where ever we were going would have a library and in that library would be my book. The page number might be different, the cover might have changed, but fundamentally the book would be there, a trusted friend.

Okay, enough being maudlin. Today I am thankful for door to door salesman, the Ugly Duckling, and most especially books.

Teaser Tuesday

** Okay.. so I'm writing and well... that's pretty much it. That's what I have space in my brain pan for. So here is another small snippet of the current WIP. Rough? Yes. But, come on... you like it rough. ;) **

Behind the counter, Front Desk Bitch Sin smiles at Blue. "I didn't have anything on Steve's appointment book today. I need a release form signed."

"One, no one ever calls him Steve. Two, I need the Old Man's pistols and a coupla' hundred bucks."

All the pleasant and perky disappears, her overly done Morticia-Addams-as-Donna-Reed face drawing in to an angry scowl. "Hell no."

Blue's eyes light up with fury. "I know you think he's a paper tiger. That you run this joint and he's just a mascot. But I one hundred percent surely know that he told you that whatever I ask for, whenever I ask-- I get. I also one hundred percent surely know that you will never work in a tattoo shop again if you piss off The Old Man. Check your fucking tattoo history. If you look past the Sailor Jerry rum and your tacky Ed Hardy sunglasses, you'll find him there. Let me put this in terms you might understand. He's Dumbledore, bitch."

Review- Aloha From Hell by Richard Kadrey

Order Aloha From Hell

Amazon Book Blurb--

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.

It is no secret that I love the Sandman Slim series and may have a tiny writer crush on Mr. Kadrey. (It isn't blind love. While I liked Butcher Bird, it wasn't great and I had serious issues with a few things.)

That said... I LOVED Aloha. Stark grows up quite a bit in this novel, going from being a 19 year old kid in a 30-something body that hungers only for bloody vengeance to something that approaches a real man. The relationships get a little deeper and you don't feel like he's just living on the rebound of all the crap that has happened to him any more.

While I saw first two "twists" coming from 1000 miles away. ( I hate reviews with spoilers, so I won't say more) The last two caught me off guard. I'm not often surprised, or if I am it tends to leave me with the crappy.. "Well, you just pulled that out of you ass" kind of feeling. These didn't come off that way. The twists were surprising, but fit seamlessly with the world building and characters.

So, if you haven't read them Go ahead and pick up Sandman Slim. If you have... feel free to share your opinion in the comments!