The Everything Box

Human beings had turned out to be a bit of a disappointment to heaven so 4000 years ago, Qaphsiel, the angel normally in charge of heavenly office supplies, was sent to finish off the human race. It should have been an easy assignment since a flood had already done most of the work for him. Unfortunately, he lost the box that would accomplish the task. Fast forward to modern day Los Angeles. Charlie ‘Coop’ Cooper is just out of jail when he is hired by Mr. Babylon to steal the box from a well-guarded vault. Not only is Coop a very good thief, he is immune to magical traps so this should be a piece of cake for him and his crew. But Babylon is not the only one looking for the box. Qaphsiel is also on the trail because, until he show more completes his task, he can’t return to heaven; a couple of destroyer god cults want the box so they can be the first to bring about the apocalypse and prove their god loves them best; the Department of Peculiar Occurrences (DOPS) has their own plans for it; and there’s a mysterious Stranger headed their way although he takes the occasional side trip to do some sightseeing and complete a few renovations to the landscape on the way. Suddenly what had seemed like a simple heist has become a veritable sh*tstorm for Coop.

The Everything Box by author Richard Kadrey is something of a departure from his Sandman Slim series. It has the same urban fantasy/noir feel with the added bonus of a comedy crime caper but it is a lot lighter in tone. Just as the titular box seems to be everything to everyone who wants it, the story has a bit of everything to keep the reader wanting more: Girl Scout vampires, werewolves, mobsters, magical traps, angels, demons, doomsday cults, witty dialogue, quirky characters, and Fluffy. Add to this, laugh-out-loud humour and you have one heck of an exciting and entertaining read. The novel works well as a stand-alone with all of the major plot lines tied up nicely at the end but here’s hoping this is just the first of a series because I for one didn’t get nearly enough of Coop and company.

4.5

With thanks to Harper Voyager and Edelweiss for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review show less

A few thousand years ago, God decided that humanity needed another purging à la The Flood. The angel tasked with doing it accidentally lost the angelic device that would accomplish this. Fast forward to now when, of course, a bunch of doomsday cults think acquiring this would be a really good idea. Madness ensues.

It's typical Kadrey: humorous, snide, fast-paced...total reading carbs. I enjoyed it.

If you think you'd like a shallow knockoff of Good Omens, then this might suit you. The characters have no appeal, and the attempts at adolescent humor rarely hit. There is some farcical banter during heist scenes and a complete lack of any reason these characters could have survived to start the story. Nor is there any reason the reader should care if their world is ended, which is what's supposed to drive the tension here. Blow that one up, please!

Good strong and witty first pages. Too bad it drops down to dull quickly. The characters all qualify as creepy losers, without enough of a hint of redemption to keep any interest ongoing. Felt like I was wasting time with deplorables when so many good characters await elsewhere.

I am a huge Sandman Slim fan so anything new by Richard Kadrey is an automatic read for me. This one didn't disappoint. Lighter in tone than Sandman with more humor. Twisted humor. So much humor. I loved Coop and the rest of the cast and can't wait for the next visit with this madcap crew!

A good urban fantasy, Kadrey's Coop is snarky and cynical. Dark without being depressing, easy to read and full of humor. I'll look out for other Coop heists.

Review copy

"Earth. Four thousand years ago. Give or take." When this is the opening line in your new novel, it better be epic. The verdict? Richard Kadrey delivers again.

It's just after the great flood and the angel Qaphsiel is sent by God to finish off mankind, but he misplaces the Instrument of Destruction. Fast-forward to the present day where a number of individuals and groups are closing in on The Everything Box. Of course the usual Kadrey wit abounds. It's a story filled with magic, where literally anything is possible.

"'You know, the the last few days, I've taken orders from a dead man, hung out with poltergeists, vampires, werewolves, people with tentacles, people with gills, and seen the inside of a turd submarine.'"

The end of show more the story reminded me of the madcap cross-country rush to find treasure in the Stanley Kramer classic, It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.

If snark is your thing, or if you're just in the mood for a bit of brain candy, you'll love The Everything Box.

Published by Harper Voyager, The Everything Box is available as an e-book, hardcover, paperback and a variety of audio formats.

Richard Kadrey is a New York Times Bestselling Author best known for his Sandman Slim novels and my personal favorite Butcher Bird. His work has been nominated for a British Science Fiction Award and for the Prix Elbakin in France. show less