Unbelievably bad. From Game of Thrones to Bag of Bones. DNF 0 of 10 stars26 s Martin Doychinov500 31

???????? ????? ?? ????????????? ?? ?????????, ????? ? ??? ?? ?? ????? ??????? ? ???.
???????? ? ???????? ????? ? ?????????? ?????, ? ????? ???? ?? ??????? ?? ??????? ?????. ?????? - ?????? ???????? ?????, ? ?????????? ?? ?????, ?? ? ??-????? ?? ????? ??? ? ???? ? ? ?????? ?????, ? ???? ???????? ?? ????????. ???? ?????? - ?? ? ?????? ????????, ????? ???? ?? ??????????? ???? ?? ?????, ????? ???????. ??????????????? ?? ???? ?? ???????? ????? ?? ???????, ????? ????? ?? ?? ????????, ?? ???????? ?? ????? ?? ????????. ??????? ? ???? ? ????? ?????? - ???? ?????, ????? ???? ?????? ?? ?????? ?????? ? ????????? ??????, ????? ????? ?????? ? ???? ??????. ? ??????? ?? ??????????? ???????.
????? ?? ?????? ?????? ?????? ?????????? ??????? ?? ????????? ?????? ? ???-???? ?? ?????, ????? ?? ????? ????? ?????? ??????.
????? ??????? ?????????, ???????? ??????? ?????? ? ??????? ????? ?? ????????? ????????? - ?????? ? ?????? ?? ???? ? ????? ?????????.
?????? ???? ?? ?????? ?? ????? ?? ??????????? ? ??????? ? ???? ?????? ????????? ? ?? ????, ????? ? ?? ???. ?????? ?? ?????? ? ?????????? ????? ? ????, ? ? ???????? ????? ????????.
?????? ?????? ?? ???? ?? ???-??????? ????? ? ?????????? ??????!4 s Stacey (sassysreadingnook)584 72

3 1/2 stars

I do have mixed feelings about this one, I did enjoy it but there were a few things that did deter me a little. I went into this series blind due to not reading the other books in the series, so I did end up lost and a little confused in some areas, so I do recommend reading the other books first as not to get lost I did. Also, the book is written from different POV's, instead of changing characters with chapters it was done throughout each chapter and it did throw me off track a bit, trying to keep up with which character was narrating, got a little frustrating at times.

I loved how detailed and vivid the story was, I could clearly picture everything that was happening, and it really brought everything to life. The authors did an amazing job with that. The characters were original, realistic and very interesting. Loads of action, suspense and mystery to keep you on your toes.

Would I recommend? Yes, if you've read the other 6 books in the series or if this is a genre you love to read. 2017-read blog-tours netgalley-arc ...more4 s Charlton153

So an influential person to the Joker community is murdered in the beginning of the book. The rest of the book is trying to find said murderer. It had me until the end.fantasy sci-fi3 s Leelas22 1 follower

This volume represents the first irregularity in the Wild Cards series' triad format. Ostensibly, it's the final volume in the Puppetman triad. However, Puppetman plays only a very minor, indirect role in the plot of Dead Man's Hand, with other baddies taking center stage instead. It takes place over the same period of time as Ace in the Hole, but is set in New York rather than Atlanta (although the story moves to Atlanta for the climax). It's similar to GRRM's later splitting of A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons, except it works better, and one gets the distinct impression that both of these stories were dramatically improved by being placed in separate volumes.

There are two PoV characters in this volume, Popinjay and Yeoman, both of whom are investigating the death of a mutual friend, whose passing was hinted at in the previous volume. The usual suspects are all investigated, including Puppetman, the Shadow Fists, and Ti Malice, before the killer is revealed in a very jarring conclusion. Popinjay and Yeoman both have very different, sharply conflicting ideas regarding morality and justice, and, although they share a common goal, are quite antagonistic to one another for the majority of the story.

There are problems with this book, the worse being that a beloved character, who was one of the most empowered jokers in the series, is brutally fridged in order to set the plot in motion. In addition, the separation of the two halves of the story feels awkward at times, particularly in the second half, after Jay makes the trip to Atlanta, and we are forced to read through many scenes that we have already read in the previous volume, from Jay's point of view. Sometimes this works, and Jay's perspective adds new dimensions to the scene (the scene following the revelation of Puppetman's identity is easily the most powerful of these moments). Other times it makes you want to skim ahead.

John J. Miller's characters tend to be somewhat stuffy and inconsistently written, and oftentimes come across as rude and unable. His best character was killed at the start of this volume, and we're left with Yeoman (who goes full-on asshole on us in the final scene), and Wraith (who somehow always becomes a damsel in distress, even though she has ace powers and her boyfriend doesn't). Fortunately, Yeoman's storyline contrasts very well to the sarcasm and levity of Popinjay, and, un in certain previous volumes (most notably the time when he was very inappropriately given the task of singlehandedly defeating the Swarm), his passages never drag.

Overall, this is a very satisfying book, and the closest that the Wild Cards series has come to getting a 5 star review from me. Along with book 6, this represents a peak in quality for Wild Cards. We'll see how it goes from here.2 s Eric Bauman233 5

It has been years since I read the first dozen volumes in this shared-world series, and I had nearly forgotten just how good they are.

The thrust of the books is that in 1946, an alien virus is released in the skies above Manhattan and infects the citizens of the island (primarily—it does affect people in other areas and other countries, but mostly it’s New York that feels it). Most people (90%) affected die horribly. A smaller percentage (9%) who are infected become what are called “Jokers"”—they usually suffer horrible mutations (extra or missing limbs, feathers, etc.) and are looked down upon by the unaffected (“nats”). The remaining one percent becomes “aces,” people with meta-human abilities (teleportation, gravity control, flight and so on). The books deal with how these people interact with the world.

This volume takes place during the same week that was the setting for volume 6 (the 1988 Democratic national convention in Atlanta), but takes place mostly in New York. Chrysalis, a woman with invisible skin and one of the leaders of Jokertown—the ghetto where most Jokers live—has been brutally murdered. Jay Ackroyd (aka “Popinjay",” although he hates that moniker) has been hired by Chrysalis to protect her and is the one to find her body. Daniel Brennan (aka “Yeoman”) is implicated because there is an ace of spades on her body, which is his calling card, as it were. Brennan, who was her lover in the past, didn’t do it. Both set out (at first independently) to find the murderer.

There is lots of action and suspense as well as a good mystery. It, most of the others, is a very fun read and I highly recommend it (although I do recommend you read the other books first—not completely necessary, but strongly advised).

4.5/5read-in-20112 s Rafal Jasinski872 48

Trylogia zwi?zana z postaci? antagonisty - Lalkarza / senatora Grega Hartmanna - mia?a zako?czy? si? w poprzedniej cz??ci serii, zatytu?owanej "Ukryty as". Tymczasem, co odkry?em ze zdumieniem, "R?ka umarlaka" jest ksi??k?, która rozgrywa si? dok?adnie na tej samej przestrzeni czasowej. Opisuje jednakowo? wydarzenia z "poziomu ulicy" a jej osi? fabularn? jest poszukiwanie mordercy "matki chrzestnej" kryminalnego pó??wiatka - Poczwarki, które prowadz? - pocz?tkowo niezale?nie a nawet psuj?c sobie nie?wiadomie szyki - Daniel "Yeoman" Brennan (tutejszy, acz bardziej brutalny i bezwzgl?dny, Hawkeye) i ?ywcem wyj?ty z kart powie?ci noir detektyw Jay Ackroyd (z uwagi na moc pozwalaj?c? mu za wskazaniem palca teleportowa? ludzi do znanych mu miejsc, zwany Rzutnikiem)... ?ledztwo okazuje si? o tyle? wa?ne, ?e zwi?zane z nim zagro?enie jest wcale niemniej powa?ne, ni? doj?cie do w?adzy Hartmanna (tu na dalszym planie).

...tak wi?c z thrillera politycznego przechodzimy do krymina?u, w którym twórcom - tym razem przede wszystkim George'owi R.R. Martinowi i Johnowi Jos. Millerowi (reszta wymienionych autorów pojawia si? w "creditsach" dlatego, i? wyst?puj? tu, stworzone przez nich na potrzeby serii, postaci) - uda?o si? zr?cznie wykorzysta? wszelkie charakterystyczne tropy i triki gatunku, ??cz?c je umiej?tnie z estetyk? komiksu, fantasy i wszelkimi elementami ugruntowanego ju? uniwersum "Dzikich kart".

To kolejna znakomita powie?? z serii, którego jedyn? wad? s? fragmenty, które s? 1:1 przeniesione z poprzedniego tomu (nie ma ich wiele - i jak si? dowiedzia?em ju? po lekturze, "Ukryty as" i "R?ka umarlaka" pierwotnie planowane by?y jako jedna ksi??ka, wi?c st?d to - mo?e nie niecodzienne, Martin zrobi? to ju? raz w przypadku "PLiO"... - zagranie), ale poza tym pi?knie uzupe?niaj?ca niejasno?ci i urwane w?tki drugoplanowe z cz??ci poprzedniej. Ponownie polecam fanom miejskiego fantasy, komiksu i - tym razem - powie?ci kryminalnej!1 Michael Caveney428 6

The slightly stronger companion piece to Ace In The Hole concentrates on Chrysalis's murder and Yeoman and Popinjay's investigation. This gets going a lot faster than the last volume and has a satisfying mystery with a suitably shocking twist.1 Zane Eddy28 1 follower

Probably the weakest in the series so far. There was a lot of overlap with Wild Cards 6 at the end, so it felt filler rather than a book of its own. 1 Mike McDevitt319 3

More horrorshow in superhero clothing. "d" it probably isn't the correct term. Engrossing. Addictive. a hideous accident from which I cannot look away. I really do prefer my entertainment less gory... BUT. I much preferred this one to book six with its unending politics. A murder mystery from book six is followed up on here to my grisly satisfaction. It was good to see Wraith again (she has terrible taste in men), plus I found Jay Ackroyd refreshing, what with him being a protagonist who isn't a brutal murderer (for a change). This series is more good old fashioned nightmare fuel than inspirational- but ya gotta give the slavering hordes what they want.1 Craig5,356 129

This was the first Wild Cards book that had a straight novel format as opposed to the mosaic patchwork the earlier books had. Only two authors are credited, John J. Miller and Martin himself. The events of this book tape place concurrently with the previous volume, Ace In the Hole, which is set at the Democratic National Convention in Atlanta while this one is primarily set in New York. It's a murder mystery that does wind up overlapping with the previous book. It's a good story that does explain and resolve a lot, but I prefer the shared-world format for the Jokers and Aces. 1 Craig Childs852 11

"Chrysalis was a lot of things, and one of them was my friend, no matter what you think. But she was never innocent."

Chrysalis has been murdered.

Both Popinjay and Yeoman are on the case. They do not trust each other after their previous faceoff in Jokers Wild, but they track the killer on separate paths through the slums, gang turfs, and dark recesses of New York City's Jokertown.

Structurally, this book needs a word of explanation because it does not fit the mold of the rest of the Wild Cards series. It overlaps in time (and a few scenes) with Ace in the Hole. It is not a standalone single-author novel. It is not a mosaic novel. It is not part of a triad. It is nominally referred to as the concluding volume of the Puppetman Quartet, but that's just a convenient label. Puppetman never appears in this one.

This book was in fact originally written to be part of Ace in the Hole, but the Martin and Miller chapters grew so long the publisher decided it was too big for a single paperback. They excised nearly the entire Chrysalis subplot (except where it intercepted with Tachyon's speech at her funeral and Popinjay's trip to Atlanta) and bundled it into this separate novel.

The result of this editorial hack is, surprisingly, a strong noir mystery with a consistent tone and pace (attributes the other Wild Cards books have struggled to accomplish). It also feels fully immersive because it is set against a rich alternate history and a large cast of diverse fantasy characters.

One of the most memorable scenes was Chrysalis' funeral, when her father orders the ruined body be presented as it was before the Wild Cards virus corrupted it, and only her birth name used. This angers her friends who knew her as Jokertown's transparent lady. One person remarked, "I came here to see Chrysalis one last time, to make my farewells. And what do I find? Some nat fantasy lying in a coffin, and a roomful of people forbidden to speak her name."

This book contains some details that would have been beneficial to know when reading Ace in the Hole. It confirms the speculation it was Chrysalis who hired Demise to kill Hartmann. We learn how Popinjay came to possess Hartmann's blood-stained jacket. Mention of the New York jokers who traveled to Atlanta to attend pro-Hartmann rallies helped make sense of how Hartmann had so many puppets at his disposal during the convention.

In fact, I would recommend reading this book soon after Ace in the Hole. Several characters in New York have conversations with (or about) characters in Atlanta. Jay's and Yeoman's interpretations of the evidence are routinely informed by the evolving events in Atlanta.

This book introduced fun new characters: Gatekeeper, who can open a pocket portal to a nightclub where nats are turned to jokers; Stigmata, who bleeds continually from his hands, feet, side, and forehead; The Mother and all her manikin children who spy for Chrysalis.

The only major flaw in this book stems from Popinjay's trip to Atlanta. Readers already know (most of) his escapades because they were related from other characters' points of view in the previous volume. These scenes are now retold from his point of view, and at first they seem redundant and off-topic to the murder investigation. However, leaving these scenes out (or trying to summarize them) would have made the sequence even more disjointed, because some of the events do eventually affect the investigation, and new scenes are appended to conclude the Ti Malice storyline and explain Blaise's disappearance.

Ultimately, the reveal of Chrysalis' murderer was satisfying. The solution was tangentially related to the arc of both villains in this quartet, Puppetman and Ti Malice.

It also led to a great scene that contrasted Popinjay's belief in law and order versus Yeoman's vigilantism. Even Tachyon remarks, "We created superhumans, and the result has been a growing chaosÂ… We are dangerous and heedless and deserve to be controlled since we are unwilling or unable to abide by the rules of civilized society." It is the sort of nuanced superhero debate you did not often see in comic books or movies until the late 80's.

The Puppetman Quartet left several noteworthy character arcs unresolved, hopefully to be picked up in future volumes down the line:

- Yeoman: Will he ever get his revenge against Kien? (Their feud is apparently going to continue all the way to the ninth volume, according to Wild Cards Wiki.)

- Sewer Jack: He was last seen in a coma, his body cycling through alligator/human form as the wild card and AIDS viruses fight for control of his body.

- Modular Man: How long will he have to rob banks for his now-mortal creator, Travnicek.

- Cordelia: Is she still trying to get control of Buddy Holly's musical recordings? Does the Asian mob still want to kill her over this?

- Water Lily: Where is she? Does she carry the cure for all jokers? Will she cure Tachyon?

- Polyakov: He rolled over in exchange for Tachyon's immunity. Did he go to jail?

- CC Ryder & Bagabond: They were headed to Guatemala to help the indigenous peoples build their new country. (The payoff of this plot point may not occur until Bagabond shows up again in the 14th book Marked Cards.)
2 s Mid Fimbulwinter235 8

Audiobook re-read.

I don't think I've read this far in the series since I was a teenager. This is the other half of the story from Wild Cards book 6, covering the investigation of Chrysalis' murder. It's mainly focused on Yeoman and Popinjay. There's a lot to here - the noir-ish crime solving and wise-cracking, and the Jokers/Wild Cards issue stuff goes fairly well. It gets a solid fail on female characters, most of them being femme fatales or victims to be fridged. The Ti-Malice parts are also a strong reminder of why this series has such a reputation for torture porn. I have a fairly high tolerance for the grotesque, but some of the parts were frankly gratuitous. The story-relevant horror didn't need quite as much gore as we got.

I'm also still immediately annoyed with every sentence that includes Blaise.

In 2018, I cannot hear the phrase "human centipede" without having to suppress a snicker.

Even so, I still enjoyed it and found myself looking for reasons to listen to just a little more.

As for the audiobook specific elements, well, the readers weren't fantastic. Jay Acavone's Jay Ackroyd was pretty solid, with the significant exception of every time Hiram Worcester spoke. For some reason, the audiobooks have given Hiram a Scottish accent (Hiram mentions his father was a Scot in book 1). Acavone cannot do a Scottish accent, and his attempts wander from "leprechaun" ro "Groundskeeper Willie".

Adrian Paul might be a decent choice to play Yeoman in a screen adaptation, but Paul's natural "From a lot of places" accent doesn't fit Brennan's solidly American background, and worse, Paul isn't a good reader - you can generally tell when Paul hits the end of a line in his script, because there's a sudden pause. Paul's voices for the female characters are also overly soft, which is a frequent failure of male readers.

I'm at the point in the series where I *know* the quality drops off... soon. Number 7 is still in the range, though, where I'm willing to go for at least one more. Next up, we start the Jumper trilogy, where I suspect the depictions of sex and consent will not have aged well. Shannon AppelclineAuthor 25 books144

Dead Man's Hand is essentially the other half of Ace in the Hole, the story of Gregg Hartman's attempt to win the Democratic party nomination. That book was too long, so an entire plotline, regarding the murder of Chrysalis, was sliced off and became its own book, Dead Man's Hand.

As with the previous volume, editor Martin does a rather miraculous job of making this its own book. Oh, I'm sure there are some references to the events of Ace in the Hole that wouldn't make sense, but that was true of the previous book and its references to events here ... and it still worked out fine. In fact, as a whole, learning about these other events during those eight days really adds depth and complexity to the narrative. The only real problem is the repetition of a bunch of scenes around two-thirds of the way through the book, which causes it to drag a bit and feel you've seen this before (though probably only if you're read Ace in the Hole pretty recently).

Beyond that, Dead Man's Hand really shines in large part due to its characters (Popinjay and Yeoman) and the great writing of their authors. It's wonderful to see both of these characters get an adventure that's half-a-novel long, and it's interesting to see how the work on the problem of Chrysalis' murder in different ways.

However, that just makes the book good; it's the ending of the novel that makes it really soar. There are some shocking action sequences, as we increasingly expect from Wild Cards, some of which are going to have pretty big repercussions in the near future. However it's the reveal of the murderer that really shines.

Overall, a great book in the Wild Cards sequence ... and perhaps its last height for a while, as we're now moving into the Jumpers sequence, which drove many readers away from the series (including myself, first time through).shared-world superhero JP954 7

This is a strange book. Rather than the previous format of two short story collections and a mosaic novel, this subseries has two collections and now two mosiac novels (Ace in the Hole being the other). What's strange is that it continues the same plotlines of the first two books and mostly takes place at the same time as Ace in the Hole. Rather than focusing primarily on Puppetman and the political plotline in Atlanta, Dead Man's Hand is set mostly in New York and deals with the death of Chrysalis, the investigation of Ti Malice.

As a stand alone or complete alternative to Ace in the Hole, I think it would have been a lot stronger. Once the stories merge and start replaying events we've already seen in Atlanta (albeit with a different point of view), it feels a lot more repetitive.

Characterwise, I actually found myself liking Jay "Popinjay" Ackroyd as a point of view. He's surprisingly fun and has an amusing power that doesn't make problems feel trivial for the most part. Yoeman on the other hand has never been my favorite. He's got a quest for vengeance... and that's about it? Even his relationship with Wraith feels more a plot point then anything.

Oh, that Ti Malice plotline though. As the characters do finally acknowledge towards the end: if only everyone talked a bit more, life would go so much smoother. I will say, this book does the whole body horror thing relatively well. I'm glad to see that particularly plotline done (for now).

Overall, a decent book, if weakened by going over ground we've already covered.

Since this is the last audiobook currently out, I'll put the series on hold for a while. I'll probably read the paper copies eventually (albeit Kindleially). Some day. Razel13

Murder mystery!

It's been hard for me to review the Wild Cards books since so much of it builds on what came before. Also, anthologies (or mosaics as this one is) are tough on their own anyway-- do you review stories individually? What if you d some and hated others?

This particular book though is one of the tightest so far because it's written from only 2 perspectives: Brennan and Ackroyd. The two characters are very distinct from each other and follow their own paths in their attempt to discover Chrysalis' killer (spoiler alert there). This investigation was really interesting and took me to some places I've been looking forward to learning more about. I also ended up rooting a bit for both characters even though they're not necessarily my favorites in the Wild Cards universe.

By necessity, a chunk of Ackroyd's story is a repeat, as we read some of those events in the previous book which was happening in parallel. I didn't enjoy that but not sure how else they could've done it, but I definitely found myself inpatient in those parts and ended up just skimming them.

Unsure how I feel about the murderer's identity and motive. Somewhat unsatisfied given the range of suspects, I think. I do feel it sets up more development to the future of the milieu which is always intriguing to see unfold.This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.Show full review Brian Rogers837 6

The other half of the events from book 6 (with some scenes slightly rewritten for character viewpoint), this is ly my favorite of the series simply because it is so focused. Only having two authors keeps the story flowing without so many POV shifts, and it is clearly closing up a lot of the plot threads from the prior books, giving the book and the series to that date a strong sense of completion.

Books 2-7 of this series just boil over with the sense of the late 80s - it was trying hard for edgy and topical, "real world superhumans" and it worked better than a lot of the comics of the same time period did in their attempts - strong authors, a good sense of where they were going (the events of Book 6 were clearly in the works from Book 1) and being able to start with a fresh setting and mythology helped. At other points, the authors were just reveling in being able to say and show "fuck and blood", but all told I'm happy to have done the reread.

Things bog down heavily after book 7 as the initial plots are mostly played out, some of the new plots are also played out and there's a sense tat other than Snodgrass' Tachyon stories and William's Modular Man none of the authors knew quite where to go next. Here is a good place to stop. Michael990 177

My reread review of Dead Man's Hand turns out to have some meat to it, spoilers ahoy:

Coming back to this volume as an adult, I find that I have a lot of strong feelings about it and none of those feelings are positive.

The sex scenes are all terrible. I probably knew they were terrible before but in hindsight they are REALLY terrible.

Lots of time is spent on the Ti Malice subplot, but it's all resolved in the space of a few pages. Compare this to the parallel Hartmann subplot which goes on and on with the consummate Tachyon whining.

Hiram Worchester is NEVER SEEN AGAIN. No one ever speaks of his trial in later books. One of the most public, high-profile aces, and he just vanishes - unless I simply missed something later.

I compare this to Fort Freak (a similar street-level kind of Wild Cards story) and find the latter much more enjoyable. Now I have the Rox Trilogy to look forward to, and I remember disliking a lot of it, so I'd better sharpen my knives!This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.Show full reviewsuperhero-fiction Travis Kuhlman12 2

This book is clearly drawing inspiration from hard-boiled detective novels and it does a fairly good job of adapting it into the Wild Cards universe. Popinjay is an interesting character and there's a nice foil to be found in Yeoman. I enjoy how it builds up tension between the two given their difference of ideals and their desire to solve the murder of someone close to them.

The main drawback that I have with this is that this book feels so closely tied to the preceding book (Ace in the Hole) that they almost need to be read in rapid succession to get the most out of it. It is possible that this was conceived as a single book and split into two which makes it a bit harder to pick up on the overlapping plot if you read the book about a month apart and have some difficulty picking up on the cross-over references between the two.

All in all, it's an enjoyable read and I'm still engaged with this series and can't wait to see where it leads next.This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.Show full review RicardoAuthor 12 books80

Maravilloso y para mí una de las mejores entregas de toda la saga Wild Cards. Sorprendente además por tratarse de una subtrama originalmente descartada del sexto libro. Imagino que luego lo habrán desarrollado más porque la historia de dos investigaciones paralelas está tan bien armada que se nota que esto fue un trabajo muy laborioso y detallista. Tiene además uno de mis personajes favoritos, "Popinjay", aquí en un papel protagónico, además de uno de los villanos más temibles de la saga hasta ahora.

Al tratarse de la cuarta y última entrega del ciclo de Puppetman, el final queda más o menos cerrado y pensaba dejarlo realmente hasta aquí pero me ha gustado tanto que pienso seguir. Lástima que este haya sido el último volumen en sacar versión de audiolibro porque el trabajo de voz que han hecho es sobresaliente.

En fin, más que recomendado.audiobooks Michael HillAuthor 10 books3

Chrysalis who ruled Jokertown has been murdered. She had the dirt on everyone, which leaves plenty of suspects. Ace Jay Ackroyd and vigilante Brennan try to find her killer by many different routes, coming up against powerful Aces and even deadlier Jokers as well as mind control by a number of entities. Meanwhile Hartmann is trying to get into the White House, the public not knowing that he is the evil Ace, Puppetmaster who can control people. People die, Jay gets numerous serious beatings and Brennan gets a few too. Jack Braun is apparently killed but not so (too good to kill off?) The killer is revealed at the end but it is not who we thought it was. Astrid49 1 follower

Fun Ride

This is an excellent series in a fantastic world full of strange and colorful characters. It gets better with every book and each of them is memorable. It has been years since I read the sixth book, but this one jogged my memory and I remembered a lot more from the previous book than I thought I knew. Still, this would probably have been even more enjoyable if I had read them closer together. Books 4-7 are part of an overarching story that revolves around a particular "big bad," so I recommend not taking too long between books. Christopher Dodds555 1 follower

This was a great addition to the Wild Cards series. What was great about this book is that it kind of follows on from the last book in the series and it is also a bit of a detective story with the murder of Chrysalis being investigated by Popinjay aka Jay Ackroyd and Yeoman aka Daniel Brennan who do so in their own specific way, but the book also has a sub plot that doesn't divert what is going on in the main story which was great and kept me guessing who the murderer was and when it was revealed who it was it was a shock. Junior Araujo36 2

This one was nice. It follows a simple structure, a whodunnit mystery, two different perspectives from two very morally different characters. This made it easier to follow. As its timeline is concurrent with the previous entry of the series, it can get a bit repetitive. But this sticks out as a top rank in the series because it's so tight and fun. Anyway, Golden Boy did nothing wrong, leave him alone, assholes. :) Kitap784 35

Fun enough collaboration (rather than anthology, as is the norm for most other Wild Cards novels) featuring the unpowered (i.e., a "nat") Hawkeye/Green Arrow character Yeoman and the powered PI Popinjay solving a murder mystery that is connected to Puppetman's politicking in books 4, 5, and 6 of the series (last read by me a quarter-century ago). alternate-history fiction genre-crap ...more Loki1,319 11

The Wild Cards books in general tend to move around a lot in genre. This one is, primarily, a murder mystery. That's an odd fit for a science fictional series about superpowers and freakish deformities, and yet the writers do their best to bring it home. It lands, in the end, but ungracefully, which is unfortunate for a book that's also the conclusion of a four book arc within the larger series.alternate-history crime science-fiction Ben Lund273 1 follower

I d it, I d how it gave the other side of events that happened in book 6. A lot of the things you are left wondering about get resolved in this book which was nice. Plus most of the characters by this time are old favorites and getting to revisit with them is just a treat. Molly69 3

I think this is my favourite of this series. Jay and Brennan are the perfect characters for this and I really couldn't have told you who the murderer was until it was all revealed. Loved it! A great crime. Marco Ramírez70

Los últimos dos libros de esta saga son sumamente emocionantes, como logran desarrollar eventos en paralelo y como se entrelazan las historias es brillante, la acción y el suspenso se encuentran en cada página del libro. Kirby Evans218 1 follower

Autor del comentario:
=================================