Butcher Bird: A Novel of the Dominion

Spyder Lee is a happy man who lives in San Francisco and owns a tattoo shop. One night an angry demon tries to bite his head off before he's saved by a stranger. 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. 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 finds himself looking 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.Skyhorse Publishing, under our Night Shade and Talos imprints, is proud to publish a broad range of titles for readers interested in science fiction (space opera, time travel, hard SF, alien invasion, near-future dystopia), fantasy (grimdark, sword and sorcery, contemporary urban fantasy, steampunk, alternative history), and horror (zombies, vampires, and the occult and supernatural), and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller, a national bestseller, or a Hugo or Nebula award-winner, we are committed to publishing quality books from a diverse group of authors.

From Publishers Weekly

Buffyand Angel fans are likely to enjoy Kadrey's offbeat supernatural romp, which blends demonic evil and quirky humor. The relatively normal life of San Francisco tattoo artist Spyder Lee goes thoroughly crazy when he's rescued from a mugger by Shrike, a mysterious blind woman who reveals that Lee's assailant was actually a demon. The wounds he suffered in the assault give him the ability to see the Dominions, other spheres of existence that regular mortals are unaware of. Soon Spyder finds himself hip-deep in demonic trouble, protecting his friend Lulu by offering his body to the organ-collecting Black and then dragging her off to join Shrike on a madcap journey to Hell, where they encounter monsters, Lucifer and even an alternate-time version of Lee himself. Kadrey (Kamikaze L'Amour) juxtaposes gore and brash insouciance in the face of apocalyptic evil, a blend that may not suit everyone's taste. (July) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

New York Times bestselling author William Gibson

“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.”

Wall Street Journal

“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.”

Barnes & Noble

“A master of manic, rapid-fire storytelling, hilarious wisecracks, and relentless supernatural lunacy.”

FantasyLiterature.com

“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.”

Bookish

“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.”

Publishers Weekly

“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.”

Locus

“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.”

Lunisea

“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.”

New York Times bestselling author Holly Black

“Richard Kadrey is a genius.”

FEARnet

“Kadrey really is the anti-Twilight. Raw, real, funny, furious, all full of piss and hemoglobin.”

Austin Chronicle

“Kadrey’s prose is raw and gutter-tough, Raymond Chandler meets Lux Interior at the Whisky a Go Go at the end of days.”

New York Times bestselling author Charlaine Harris

“Kadrey’s a fascinating writer and no matter how vicious Sandman Slim gets, we’re rooting for him to win.”

Seattle Book Review

“Kadrey makes magic, humor, and crime mix effortlessly.”

About the Author

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.

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