Scan barcode
A review by ninjamuse
Jokers Wild by George R.R. Martin, Edward Bryant, Leanne C. Harper, Melinda M. Snodgrass, Walter Simons, Lewis Shiner, Richard Kriegler, John J. Miller
3.0
In brief: It’s the 40th anniversary of Wild Card Day and things are about to get weird(er) in New York City. Third in a series.
Thoughts: Hee! In case you missed my recent post on the Wild Cards books, they’re a shared-world superhero series that is well-written, mostly holds up to modern eyes, and utterly bonkers. This installment is no exception, and as enjoyable a read as the rest of ‘em. There’s an assassination plot, a missing girl, a fermenting gang war, a bit of romance, some soul-searching, a stolen journal, an elaborate dinner… and the way all the stories weave through each other, intersect, and affect each other is beautiful. There are some elements that haven’t aged well or (hopefully) wouldn’t happen nowadays—the “sorcerer-pimp”, the cat burglar who spends most of the story in a bikini because reasons, the word “Oriental”—but there are also elements that are fairly progressive, like characters where “gay” is a footnote, mention of the AIDS crisis, and non-sexualized sex workers. George R.R. Martin and his fellow writers were clearly aiming to capture 1986 while thinking ahead to future audiences, and I think they’ve succeeded. This was fun!
7/10
Thoughts: Hee! In case you missed my recent post on the Wild Cards books, they’re a shared-world superhero series that is well-written, mostly holds up to modern eyes, and utterly bonkers. This installment is no exception, and as enjoyable a read as the rest of ‘em. There’s an assassination plot, a missing girl, a fermenting gang war, a bit of romance, some soul-searching, a stolen journal, an elaborate dinner… and the way all the stories weave through each other, intersect, and affect each other is beautiful. There are some elements that haven’t aged well or (hopefully) wouldn’t happen nowadays—the “sorcerer-pimp”, the cat burglar who spends most of the story in a bikini because reasons, the word “Oriental”—but there are also elements that are fairly progressive, like characters where “gay” is a footnote, mention of the AIDS crisis, and non-sexualized sex workers. George R.R. Martin and his fellow writers were clearly aiming to capture 1986 while thinking ahead to future audiences, and I think they’ve succeeded. This was fun!
7/10