sheldonnylander's review
4.0
In short, there's one word that I would use to describe Rico Slade will Fucking Kill You by Bradley Sands: Hillarious! Several times, I found myself laughing out loud during the book. Okay, that's too short of a review, so let me see if I can expand on this.
The novel follows the antics of Chip Johnson, a Hollywood movie actor famous for his role as the action movie character Rico Slade, who has a penchant for ripping out throats. After a particularly stressful day, Chip snaps and comes to believe that he really is Rico Slade, and proceeds to travel around Hollywood kicking everyone's ass whom he sees as an enemy, which pretty much everyone. He does this in pursuit of his (Rico Slade's) archnemesis, Baron Mayhem, played by Chip's former lover George, and all while pursued by his (Chip's) body-hair-obsessed psychologist, Harold Schwartzman, who Chip/Rico keeps mistaking for his (Rico's) sidekick, Joe Pesci. Are you still with me?
The novel skewers the Hollywood stereotypes pretty savagely, from plastic-surgery obsessions, tour buses, traffic jams, and ranting action-movie director Jared Bruckheiny (guess who that's supposed to be). Sands also mock/pays tribute to action movie stereotypes, with repeated, over-the-top martial arts moves, constant explosions, and loud rock music playing in the background. I kind of got the feelings that the author may have had the movie “Last Action Hero" playing in the background while writing this novel, or was at least inspired by it. At the same time, I found myself identifying with Chip in a way. I mean, who hasn't wanted to snap after having a really bad day and go on a rampage through the city? Anyone? Anyone? Just me? I'm not sure if I should be concerned about that.
If I have any complaint, it would be the ending, but it's a big enough complaint to detract a full star and left me a little cold. For obvious reasons, I won't divulge the ending, but suffice to say that it was disappointing in the least. Not surprising, just disappointing.
Overall, though, it's an enjoyable and downright fun read that still gets a recommendation. It's a fun journey, but the destination is ultimately more like Grimsville than the Carribean.
Rico Slade Will Fucking Kill You by Bradley Sands earns 4 out of 5 stars.
The novel follows the antics of Chip Johnson, a Hollywood movie actor famous for his role as the action movie character Rico Slade, who has a penchant for ripping out throats. After a particularly stressful day, Chip snaps and comes to believe that he really is Rico Slade, and proceeds to travel around Hollywood kicking everyone's ass whom he sees as an enemy, which pretty much everyone. He does this in pursuit of his (Rico Slade's) archnemesis, Baron Mayhem, played by Chip's former lover George, and all while pursued by his (Chip's) body-hair-obsessed psychologist, Harold Schwartzman, who Chip/Rico keeps mistaking for his (Rico's) sidekick, Joe Pesci. Are you still with me?
The novel skewers the Hollywood stereotypes pretty savagely, from plastic-surgery obsessions, tour buses, traffic jams, and ranting action-movie director Jared Bruckheiny (guess who that's supposed to be). Sands also mock/pays tribute to action movie stereotypes, with repeated, over-the-top martial arts moves, constant explosions, and loud rock music playing in the background. I kind of got the feelings that the author may have had the movie “Last Action Hero" playing in the background while writing this novel, or was at least inspired by it. At the same time, I found myself identifying with Chip in a way. I mean, who hasn't wanted to snap after having a really bad day and go on a rampage through the city? Anyone? Anyone? Just me? I'm not sure if I should be concerned about that.
If I have any complaint, it would be the ending, but it's a big enough complaint to detract a full star and left me a little cold. For obvious reasons, I won't divulge the ending, but suffice to say that it was disappointing in the least. Not surprising, just disappointing.
Overall, though, it's an enjoyable and downright fun read that still gets a recommendation. It's a fun journey, but the destination is ultimately more like Grimsville than the Carribean.
Rico Slade Will Fucking Kill You by Bradley Sands earns 4 out of 5 stars.
uglyburrito's review
5.0
You can't start reading this book without knowing what the content will be like. I would imagine it would be shocking and hard to read if so. Luckily, I knew what I was getting into and it was hilarious.
oneheart's review
1.0
The book is like a 100 page dirty joke that doesn't have a punchline. More than once, I thought "I'm not enjoying this, but I'm almost done. How much worse can it get?" Every time I asked that question it got worse. Every. Time.
paulopaperbooksonly's review
1.0
Weak book. Review to come.
I will not dwelt much time to it because it's not worth it. It's a book about a TV action character(think Arnold Schwarzenegger) and the person who play it. Imagine now that the person thinks he is really this said character (Rico Slade) and there you go.
If you read some stupid, over do, action movie - then you arrive here. It's small novella. Read it at your own risk.
Sorry. I can't say anything good besides giving me some laughs...
I will not dwelt much time to it because it's not worth it. It's a book about a TV action character(think Arnold Schwarzenegger) and the person who play it. Imagine now that the person thinks he is really this said character (Rico Slade) and there you go.
If you read some stupid, over do, action movie - then you arrive here. It's small novella. Read it at your own risk.
Sorry. I can't say anything good besides giving me some laughs...
bookdingo's review
4.0
Rico Slade has issues. That's because he's a good guy, and to be a good guy, sometimes you have to rip out a few throats and keep a few skeletons in your closet. Someone keeps calling Rico Slade "Chip Johnson". Fuck that guy.
barb4ry1's review
3.0
Sometimes the good guy rips out innocent people’s throats. That’s just something the world needs to live with if it wants the good guy to keep saving the day
I have never paid much attention to bizarro fiction. Hard to say why. In theory, a blend of grotesque imagery, absurd humor and surrealism should work well for me. In practice, though? It depends. It really, really depends. On the book and on my mood.
Few days ago I made a list of crazy book titles. Rico Slade Will Fucking Kill You was on that list. And when I saw the cover I knew, I simply knew I needed to read it.
Rico Slade is a hero. People love him. The thing is Rico doesn’t really exist. Rico is a movie persona played by Chip Johnson. Being an actor, wearing masks (more than one), dealing with movie director is stressful. Too stressful. The lines between fiction and reality become blurred and Chip becomes Rico.
While the life goes on as usual, Chip/Rico perceives normal situations in warped, borderline schizoid way. In his mind, people walking down the streets become his movie sidekicks or foes. For example his lover George turns into villainous Baron Mayhem and his therapist Harold into his sidekick Joe Pesci.
Rico wants to save the world. In movies, he’s a weapon of mass destruction and that’s precisely what he brings to streets of Hollywood. He rips throats out. He throws fucking punches in the fucking faces because that’s who he is.
The book is short and quite simple on the outside – we follow Rico who’s set loose on the streets. There’s a lot (A LOT) of violence, explicit sexual content (although it’s more grotesque than really erotic/pornographic) and foul language.
The prose is simple, especially in the first chapter when almost every sentence starts with Rico’s name:
Rico Slade doesn’t want to see pictures of your dead relatives. Rico Slade doesn’t care about the political climate or who won last night’s game. Rico Slade just wants to sip on a drink with a tiny umbrella and enjoy his flight. Rico Slade has racked up a lot of frequent flyer miles. Rico Slade has a lot of time to kill..
After a while this stylistic choice works pretty well. Not everyone will dig it, but I think in places this language simplicity was used in brilliant ways. It works well in implying Chip’s mental confusion.
The approach to celebrity cult is mocking and grotesque. Some of the scenes are ultra-violent or, simply, gross. I guess it’s part of Bizarro (anti)aesthetique?
All in all, it’s definitely clever book. If you read it literally, you won’t like it. If, however, you enjoy absurd humor and aren’t easily offended, you may find parts of this book hilarious.
In the end, I’m not sure how to rate it. I sort of liked it – or maybe my brain was too shocked to stop reading? It’s definitely an oddity but I read it in one sitting. It wasn’t always nice experience but it definitely was an experience I’ll remember for a while.
pattmayne's review
3.0
A crazy, fun, short book about a delusional actor who seems to believe that he is really the superhero who he portrays in films.
see_sadie_read's review
3.0
I just don't even know where to start with this one. Bizarro doesn't even seem to cover it. My brain feels a bit like I met Zaphod Beeblebrox for Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster apéritifs before finishing the book. Having said that, it is funny as fuck—politically incorrect, culturally insensitive, sadist, slightly misogynistic, possibly even misandrinistic, and just plain crude. Does that make me a bad person for laughing so hard and so often?
thekarpuk's review
3.0
"Wait, what the hell just happened?" was my initial response when I completed this. It was a blur of high-stakes wackiness, and by the time I might have grown tired of the broad humor which occasionally strayed into lazy Hollywood stereotypes, it was already over.
But oddly I have fond feelings about it despite the dialogue that sometimes felt clunky, and not always in an ironically bad sort of way.
The title and the summary promised me hilarious, high-stakes cheesiness, and I was a trifle disappointed that it only really exists inside Chip's head. A villain whose bomb destroys people but leaves their money intact was funny enough to justify my purchase, I just wanted more of that.
Several things inform me that this may be considered Bizarro. My actual reading only leaned towards that in one regard. There's no real straight man in bizarro writing it seems, and to me that runs counter to a lot of effective comedy. When there's no element of normality to bounce all the madness off of, it loses a lot of its weight, and it just becomes a series of wacky, at times nonsensical things.
Absurdity is far more clever played against the mundane.
But I still smile when I think about the book, so that has to count for something, right?
But oddly I have fond feelings about it despite the dialogue that sometimes felt clunky, and not always in an ironically bad sort of way.
The title and the summary promised me hilarious, high-stakes cheesiness, and I was a trifle disappointed that it only really exists inside Chip's head. A villain whose bomb destroys people but leaves their money intact was funny enough to justify my purchase, I just wanted more of that.
Several things inform me that this may be considered Bizarro. My actual reading only leaned towards that in one regard. There's no real straight man in bizarro writing it seems, and to me that runs counter to a lot of effective comedy. When there's no element of normality to bounce all the madness off of, it loses a lot of its weight, and it just becomes a series of wacky, at times nonsensical things.
Absurdity is far more clever played against the mundane.
But I still smile when I think about the book, so that has to count for something, right?
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