Jason Bucky Roberts‘s review

The first thing you should know is that this book is not written by George R. R. Martin. He is the editor, and the novel is made up of shorter pieces by several different writers. This is #19 in a series, and while it can be enjoyed on its own, you should at least read the previous book, “Inside Straight”, as most of the characters are introduced in that volume and it can be hard to keep up.

The other thing you should know is that this is completely different from GRRM’s “A Song of Ice and Fire.” This is superhero fiction, which owes a great deal to comic books, and is reminiscent of recent TV series such as “Heroes” and the “The 4400.” If you like those shows, or have enjoyed X-Men or Justice League comic books, then Wild Cards will probably appeal to you.

Finally, the Wild Cards books are far more creative and inventive than what you’ll see on “Heroes.” In a parallel world, humanity has been infected by an alien virus that kills 90% of its victims, horribly disfigures another 9%, and gifts the remaining 1% with a useful super-ability. These people are called “aces.”

In this volume, which is a close sequel to “Inside Straight”, a group of aces under U.N. auspices travels to three hotspots in the globe, where they learn how difficult it can be to solve problems, even with superpowers. The action takes a little while to build, but the story quickly builds to a breakneck pace and ultimately to a satisfying conclusion.

The pandemic disaster that changed the modern world occurred in 1946 leading to the establishment of the United Nation’s Committee on Extraordinary Interventions. These wild cards have worked for years to solve global catastrophes and failures. Their current leader John Fortune is a former Ace operative so he knows how difficult field work is as there is never enough resourcing especially manpower to deal with all the calamities.

Recruiting and training a new group of Aces who think 1946 is ancient history, he sends the squad out into the world though his gut questions whether they are ready. He knows they are out of time so they must do their best with the hand dealt them. He sends rookies with vets as much as possible. The crews go to the powerful Caliphate Islamic Empire whose leaders are causing economic havoc everywhere; they deal with genocide in Nigeria and its African neighbors; a hurricane in New Orleans leaves them to battle the aftermath of zombies attacking the survivors; and a nuclear explosion in Texas has led to a deadlier new arms race. This and much more including nasty lethal stuff inside the government is the normal world chaos for a new generation of Aces to contend with as best they can.

The latest Aces interrelated anthology is held together by Melinda Snodgrass’ delightful “Double Helix” whose depressed hero makes all the superheroes seem real. Each entry is strong and enhances the overall mythos. Fans of the saga will relish the latest calamities and superheroes contending with them; while newcomers will enjoy this entry that can be read by it self but also seek at least the previous compilation of the new generation of Wild Cards