The Wrong Dead Guy

The Wrong Dead Guy by Richard Kadrey, 420 pages

In this follow-up to last year's hilarious fantasy heist novel The Everything Box, magic-proof burglar Coop is back at it, this time working for The Man as a part-time agent of the Department of Peculiar Science. He's initially tasked with stealing a mummy, but when that goes sideways (the mummy wakes up, placing a curse on Coop and wreaking havoc across L.A.), Coop is suddenly on the hunt for all kinds of mystical objects that may or may not help solve the problem. Throw in a stoned fortune teller, a gun-toting used car salesman, a group of self-righteous bunny-hugging rich kids, and an undead former DOPS agent with a vendetta against Coop (oh, and an elephant), and you have a rollicking tale reminiscent of Dave Barry's riotously funny novel Big Trouble, but with, you know, magic and stuff. That said, it's a bit of a sophomore slump after The Everything Box, which had better heists and a somewhat more coherent plot. Here's hoping that if Kadrey continues the series, he steps it back up in the next book.