Kill the Dead by Richard Kadrey

“’I’m not taking name abuse from someone called Sandman Slim. That sounds like a diet shake with roofies.’” My sentiments exactly. If there’s one thing Richard Kadrey knows how to do, it’s crafting an insanely funny story. Every page is littered with many wisecracks, smart-aleck remarks, and generally hilarious observations of the world he makes…

The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler

“You’re broke, eh?” “I been shaking two nickels together for a month, trying to get them to mate.” This is the novel that penned the hardboiled genre, giving greatness to short, snappy sentences and tough anti-heroes. What this is not, however, is a noir novel. One is defined by the terse sentence structure, the tarter…