Card Sharks

Wild Cards #13

by George R.R. Martin (Editor), Kevin Andrew Murphy (Contributor), Melinda M. Snodgrass (Contributor)

A group of SF's most imaginative writers, who share a love of the larger-than-life comic book superheroes, presented each other with a challenge to compose stories featuring these superheroes and villains as flesh-and-blood people, living through this century's turbulent history. Contributors include Roger Zelazny, Kevin Andrew Murphy, Michael Cassutt, and five others.

Genres: Science Fiction, Superheroes, Fantasy, Fiction, Anthologies, Short Stories, Alternate History

452 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 1993

About the author

George Raymond Richard "R.R." Martin was born September 20, 1948, in Bayonne, New Jersey. His father was Raymond Collins Martin, a longshoreman, and his mother was Margaret Brady Martin. He has two sisters, Darleen Martin Lapinski and Janet Martin Patten.

Martin attended Mary Jane Donohoe School and Marist High School. He began writing very young, selling monster stories to other neighborhood children for pennies, dramatic readings included. Later he became a comic book fan and collector in high school, and began to write fiction for comic fanzines (amateur fan magazines). Martin's first professional sale was made in 1970 at age 21: The Hero, sold to Galaxy, published in February, 1971 issue. Other sales followed.

In 1970 Martin received a B.S. in Journalism from Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, graduating summa cum laude. He went on to complete a M.S. in Journalism in 1971, also from Northwestern.

As a conscientious objector, Martin did alternative service 1972-1974 with VISTA, attached to Cook County Legal Assistance Foundation. He also directed chess tournaments for the Continental Chess Association from 1973-1976, and was a Journalism instructor at Clarke College, Dubuque, Iowa, from 1976-1978. He wrote part-time throughout the 1970s while working as a VISTA Volunteer, chess director, and teacher.

In 1975 he married Gale Burnick. They divorced in 1979, with no children. Martin became a full-time writer in 1979. He was writer-in-residence at Clarke College from 1978-79.

Moving on to Hollywood, Martin signed on as a story editor for Twilight Zone at CBS Television in 1986. In 1987 Martin became an Executive Story Consultant for Beauty and the Beast at CBS. In 1988 he became a Producer for Beauty and the Beast, then in 1989 moved up to Co-Supervising Producer. He was Executive Producer for Doorways, a pilot which he wrote for Columbia Pictures Television, which was filmed during 1992-93.

Martin's present home is Santa Fe, New Mexico. He is a member of Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America (he was South-Central Regional Director 1977-1979, and Vice President 1996-1998), and of Writers' Guild of America, West.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/george...

Reviews

[The Shayne-Train · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was truly worried when I started this book. The previous one was, in my opinion, the weakest of the series thus far. I feared the series had 'hopped the fish.' But this one....
This one was amazing. It's the secret history of the Wild Cards world. So many tantalizing stories that were briefly mentioned in other books get fully explained here. Numerous name-droppings of all your favorite characters.
I think this might be the best one since the first one.

[Angelica · Rating 5 out of 5]

The last line bumped the rating from 4 to 5 stars

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 4 out of 5]

In March 1993, the Wild Cards series went to its second publisher, Baen Books, for the thirteenth release in the series. So, how do you restart the series? How about a mystery that reaches back through the entire history of the Wild Cards, allowing the individual authors to tell historical tales set in a variety of eras, told by a variety of totally new point-of-views. It's a nice conceit that allows both a wide look at the Wild Cards universe and a really tight storyline.

The framing story that holds everything together, "The Ashes of Memory" (Leigh: Hannah Davis), is a very meaty tale that tracks a horrific crime in Jokertown and leads up carefully through a lot of narratives ...

"'Til I Kissed You" (Wu: Chop-Chop). Wu does a great job of taking a character that really doesn't seem that interesting and turning him into a living, breathing human being that you're rooting for. The historical setting seems fine enough at first, then Wu twists it around in a truly surprising way. Overall, this is a great start to the new book [8/10].

The Crooked Man (Snodgrass: Finn). It's great to read a short about Finn, who's been a tertiary character in the Wild Card books for some time. The story about a trip to Africa is pretty slow at first, but like Wu's story before it, it uses the historical time period to give the story a great twist — but whereas "Til I Kissed You" was all about Wild Cards history, this one is all about real history. The result is an amazing ending [7/10].

A Method of Reaching Extreme Altitudes (Cassutt: Thayer). Wild Cards does The Right Stuff! This is a nice little story about the early space age, though its got some chronological mistakes and the end is a little muddy — not necessarily too muddy for a short story, but a bit too different from the other stories, with its vague motives and unresolved plot points [7/10].

A Wind from Khorasan (Milán: Belew). We got hints about the Aces mission to rescue the Iranian hostages way back in Wild Cards I, and so it's great to see the story in full. Milán also does a great job of giving us a historic look at several favorites, including Billy Ray and Jay. Overall, a fun (albeit: dark) story [7/10].

The Long Sleep (Zelazny: Croyd). Everyone loves to write about Croyd, but it's always a joy to see Zelazny take the reins (sadly: for the last time here). He tends to focus more on who Croyd is and what is powers are. This time around we get an intriguing story about an attempt to cure Croyd's powers, tied into the dawn of the Atomic age. The endings of these stories is getting a little stale, since they tend to focus on the Card Sharks conspiracy making things go bad, but this is still a fun Croyd story [7/10].

"Cursum Perficio (Murphy: Will-o-Wisp). This story is a great look at Will-o-Wisp, one of Cameo's buddies (Previously alluded to in Delaer's Choice). It's also a great historical story focusing on a lot of notables, particularly Marilyn Monroe. Murphy manages to bring together both of these elements and seamlessly combine it with the story of the Card Sharks. He even manages to avoid the trope of ace-advances-that-go-bad that burden too many of these stories. Add some poignancy and humanity, and this is probably the best story in this volume [8/10].

The Lamia's Tale (Mixon: Lamia). And we end with another nice historical piece with nice connections to Wild Cards continuity. The story seems most concerned with connecting together dots on the Card Sharks conspiracy, to provide a good conclusion to the volume, but it's fine for that [7/10].

And after all that, the volume turns out to have been a setup, without a very conclusive ending ... but its last line may be the best line in Wild Cards history.

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

Card Sharks is the thirteenth Wild Cards volume, and the first that was not published by Bantam. This Baen edition has the phrase "Book I of a New Cycle" displayed prominently on the cover. Many of the writers from the previous volumes are back, including Zelazny, Snodgrass, Milan, and Leigh, and we have great returning characters such as Croyd and Puppetman. The frame has jumped a bit, but the feel is familiar and this is one of the best multiple author, multiple view-point, mosaic novels of the series.

[Craig Childs · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Card Sharks triad is subtitled "A New Cycle" and represents a mini-reboot of the series. The central figures in this volume are all either brand-new characters or else minor characters from previous books whose points of view have never been explored. The only exception, of course, is Croyd Crenson. Other recognizable faces also return but now in supporting roles.

(The reason for this decision is that Wild Cards switched publishers in 1993, and Baen Books wanted a fresh start for the franchise. It proved a disastrous decision. Baen was smaller than Bantam and could not market the novels as well. Also, they did not purchase the reprint rights to the first twelve books, so Bantam quickly let the backlist fall out of print. Baen only published three volumes, and they have been out of print since the mid-1990's.)

I almost gave this volume a 5-star review. It is the strongest since Aces Abroad, without a doubt. It fleshes out more of the alternate history and emphasizes the human toll of the virus more than the political and economic ramifications. I particularly enjoyed "The Crooked Man", "Cursum Perficio" and "The Lamia's Tale".

Here are my individual story reviews:

1. "The Ashes of Memory" by Stephen Leigh

Hannah Davis, a nat with a vague prejudice against wild card victims, investigates the arsonist who burned down the Church of Our Lady of Perpetual Misery, killing several joker men women, and children. This story serves as the interstitial material that links all the other stories. Each person Hannah interviews segues into a new story or flashback. These stories add depth to the Wild Cards alternate history and also establish that a shadowy Card Sharks conspiracy has operated behind the scenes for decades to rid the world of aces and jokers. Several members of this conspiracy were previously introduced in Turn of the Cards.

2. "Till I Kissed You" by William F. Wu

This flashback to the summer of 1957 relates the events that inspired the famous movie Jokertown (the in-world version of Chinatown, although starring an aged Marilyn Monroe instead of Faye Dunaway). Meyer Lansky in cahoots with several New York real estate tycoons engineers a plan to burn Jokertown to the ground. The plot is foiled by Chop-Chop, Troll, and a young pregnant Fleur Van Renssaeler. This is a fun story grounded by the awkward adolescent perspective of the new joker character Chop-Chop. One of its nice touches is that it manages to hit some of the same story beats as the famous Roman Polanski film.

3. "The Crooked Man" by Melinda Snodgrass

Dr. Bradley Finn volunteers to vaccinate an entire joker village in Kenya in 1985, but he unwittingly becomes part of a plot to infect them all with the HIV virus. Finn's first point of view story features some lighthearted moments as he adapts to living as a centaur in a third world nation. However, this is ultimately a heart-wrenching story of human depravity at its worst; it is also the author's best work in this series since "Mirrors of the Soul" in Aces Abroad.

4. "A Method of Reaching Extreme Altitudes" by Michael Cassutt

After Wild Cards Day in 1946, the US government temporarily abandoned its expensive space and rocket program to deal with the deadly virus outbreak. Wernher von Braun defected to work for the Russians. America ditched the German scientist's plans to build multi-stage rockets and instead concentrated on designing winged spacecraft. Aces came to dominant the space program (although Gus Grissom and Chuck Yeager were still tangentially involved), partly because their abilities made them better pilots and partly because they were considered expendable. The US finally made it to space by 1970 and presumably achieved moon landing shortly thereafter. Progress might have come quicker, but internal saboteurs who hated the aces dealt the program a vicious betrayal in '57…

I enjoyed the alternate history aspects of this story, although I felt the characters were not very well-defined. Half the story concerns their various extramarital liaisons. The author seems to be trading in on sexed-up nostalgia for Tom Wolfe's The Right Stuff. Readers do get a short glimpse of Mark Meadows as a child, and we learn Robert Heinlein's famous series of juvenile novels were centered around life on the planet Takis.

5. "A Wind From Khorasan" by Victor Milán

The Mechanic takes a team of civilian aces into Tehran to free American hostages in 1980, but they are betrayed by men in high positions in the government. Several aces die but those that survive will never be the same including Carnifex, Lady Black, and Popinjay. This story tells how Lady Black and Carnifex first became friends. It also explains how Mechanic knew so much about the conspiracy in the last book.

6. "The Long Sleep" by Roger Zelazny

Using hypnotic suggestion, a psychiatrist helps Croyd Crenson control his transformations during his sleep cycles. For a time, this enables The Sleeper to ensure he always wakes up with a set of useful ace powers instead of painful joker deformities. Unfortunately, the doctor is part of the Card Sharks conspiracy, and he takes advantage of the situation to try to frame Croyd for treason.

7. "Cursum Perficio" by Kevin Andrew Murphy

In 1963, someone in Hollywood is sabotaging any movie that is sympathetic to wild carders. Secret ace Nick Williams (aka Will o' Wisp) is hired by director Orson Welles as a private investigator to protect his upcoming film based on the life of Blythe Van Rensaeller. Welles is convinced the movie will be bigger than Citizen Kane and will change America's attitudes towards aces.

This story is unique in many ways. First, Wells' movie is a dramatization of the events from "The Witness" and "Degradation Rights" in Wild Cards I. We get to see how those stories are re-contextualized for entertainment fifteen years after the fact. Second, major Hollywood players are living different lives in this alternate history. Elizabeth Taylor died in a car crash but James Dean did not. Liberals such as Orson Wells, Dalton Trumbo, John and Robert Kennedy are aligned towards jokers' rights, while conservative figures William Randolph Hearst, Hedda Hopper and Howard Hughes (still deathly afraid of disease) are secretly plotting with J. Edgar Hoover and the rest of the Card Sharks.

The most interesting reimagining of a historical person is Marilyn Monroe. She is embroiled in affairs with both Kennedy brothers, as well as brief flings with Golden Boy, Will o' Wisp, and her psychiatrist (the same one who treated Crody Crenson). In this version of reality, she is a brilliant actress who stepped into many of the roles Elizabeth Taylor made famous in ours. She is also still beautiful, fragile, mercurial, needy, and perhaps dangerous. Her real feelings towards jokers remain a mystery, perhaps even to herself. She commits a terrible murder at the end of this story. Does she do it because she loves an ace -- or because she hates him?

8. "The Lamia's Tale" by Laura J. Mixon

Joan Van Renssaeler is a rich, shallow, vindictive socialite who abhors jokers, until the day she turns into a mythical Lamia, a half-snake half-woman from Greek mythology who devours children. Her story ties into the previous one -- we learn more about Marilyn Monroe's predicament, as well as who ordered the assassination of the Kennedy brothers-- but the power of this tale is in how vividly Joan's transformation is depicted and her struggle to adapt when faced with the loss of her husband, her friends, her money, and even her daughter. This is the best origin story in the Wild Cards series, rivaled by only "The Sleeper" by Roger Zelazny.

[Ylva · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded UP because THAT is how you do a final line! Characters-so-twisted-they-loop-back-to-being-good enjoyers we are soo back

//

“The jokers aren’t worth this,” he called after her. “Nothing touched by that damn virus is worth it.”
She shut the door. Quietly.
And she wondered.

I didn’t hate the Rox. I would even, very bravely, venture to say that I liked the Rox. Not the triad of books, because every single storyline involving the jumpers made me consider never returning to this series again, but the concept. The idea. And, largely, the associated characters. The Rox was an opportunity for WILD CARDS to get into the difficult questions of aces and jokers, coexistence and conflict, clashing ideals, Gregg Hartmann’s whole deal, all the good stuff. Did that happen regularly? No. But did it happen, in blazingly beautiful individual stories and arcs? Yes. Bloat is, still, one of my favorite characters this series has ever produced.

But, I have to give it to the haters, CARD SHARKS is clearly the beginning of a far, far superior and more narratively coherent trilogy.

“Battle says everything changes tomorrow.”
“Everything changes every day.��

It’s also absolutely not the soft reboot it was sold as, because most of the strongest stories and arcs deal with some of the most well-established characters of the series. Not that I’m complaining about that necessarily (David cameo<3), but this really is just the writers pretending the Rox triad (and associated works) didn’t exist, and picking right back up where DEAD MAN’S HAND ended. There is some minimal references to the fallout of the Rox’s fall, and even, surprisingly, some acknowledgement that the role that some aces played in that was pretty messed up, but that’s not the main point of this book by any stretch. Instead, it looks to unravel a conspiracy that has–apparently–driven the events in the WILD CARDS (and real, US American) world since 1946.

But they have a lot of fun with that.

“I don’t have much interest in a burnt match, Ambassador. I want the hand that dropped it.”

And Hannah, though I wasn’t initially very impressed with her character, grew on me. I think she’s the first major non-wild carder character since Yeoman, who barely counts, and it’s very interesting to see how her interactions with, and attitude towards, the wild carders around her develops throughout the book.

“Father Squid, is what most people call me,” he said, and there was amusement under that voice. “Even those who aren’t of my church. If you’re not comfortable with that, I understand.”
Hannah shrugged as if she didn’t care. She didn’t think the gesture convinced either of them. “Father, then,” she said.

Her relationship with Quasiman especially forms the, somewhat surprising, emotional heart of this narrative, and their quest to get to the bottom of this conspiracy (or even just find any thread to hang on to) before it unravels the world around them is truly engaging. The flashback stories, as per usual, vary widely in quality, but I do love how they all make sense in the story as it unfolds. And how they all, very actively, shape Hannah’s worldview as she continues on her journey.

“I’m Hannah,” she told him. “Your friend. And I’ll remember for you.”

WILD CARDS has always been about bigotry and exclusion, guilt and festering wounds, but it has also, always, been about redemption as well. About learning to do better the hard way, and clawing (sometimes literally) your way back from the depths of what humans are capable of doing to one another. It’s not always overtly obvious, but in CARD SHARKS all the authors seem to be, at least vaguely, on the same page about this.

I had always been a predator, by choice, without need. I had spent a lifetime preying on the weaknesses of others. The wild card made me a predator in truth, and gave me no choice in the matter.

That, and plenty of callbacks (and screen time!) for some of WILD CARDS’ very best? That’s a recipe for success, at least in my book.

Braun got a lot of attention, but he didn’t want to talk about the Four Aces, or the script. He said he’d had enough of playing Golden Boy and wouldn’t take the part.

Because, at the end of the day, WILD CARDS is written for its target audience, which is people who love to see what happens when Characters are placed in Situations. Why is the wisecracking PI on an elite undercover mission to Iran? How will this snobbish centaur doctor manage to unpack decades of systematic medical malpractice in relief efforts to the Global South? Is pseudo-Jungian psychological experimentation truly the best way for Croyd Crenson to rob the Los Alamos National Laboratory? Why is Marilyn Monroe the most compelling characters in this series now?

I was tempted to tell her then and there. I mean, she’d slept with Jack Braun. She wouldn’t care if I were an ace or a joker or whatever I was.
But it was my life, and it was all I had.

And why do we have to wait until the next book for the best hidden-antagonist-turned-anti-hero-turned-supervillain-turned-fallen-pariah-turned-???-turned-only-option the world has ever seen to make his much anticipated (by me) return to the foreground of this series?

Don’t disappoint us, Senator Hartmann.

[Kruunch · Rating 4 out of 5]

THIS is the book I was waiting for!

A revitalization of the Wild Card series, Card Sharks centers around a global conspiracy against wild card "victims". Told in flashbacks it does an excellent job of melding real history and wild card history together, while drawing in past characters to complete the saga.

This book starts a new chapter in the Wild Card series centering around this anti-wild card conspiracy. It's become my favorite since the first Wild Cards book.

Deftly done!

[Ben Lund · Rating 5 out of 5]

This triad, of which this book is the first, seems to not actually exist as far as I have been able to tell. The only way I found copies was through used book sales over the years. But dang, this first book sets it off with a bang. The story is told almost entirely in flashbacks from different characters, and while it seems like it would get old quick, it's really very enjoyable. A staple of the wild card books is "running into" characters we've met before, while also meeting new people. And the series unfolds like a map, each time we meet someone, we learn a little more of their backstory, a previously unknown facet of their personality. I loved it, I can't wait to dive into the next one and see what happens next. Since only three books were published under the Baen books banner, I know it's likely nothing will conclude until the last book in the series, but I can't wait to see what happens next.

[B. Jay · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Wild Card series is known for mixing comic-book like super powers with gritty alternate history story-lines, and the Card Shark series is no exception. Filled with a new set of characters, a few old favorites, and Marylin Monroe, this book has more of an ongoing storyline than the other anthologies. The device of extended detective interviews is weak, as the stories delve quickly into novella-style authorship, but still make for some good yarns. I am debating continuing on with this series.

[Jessica Riddell · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very hard book to get a hold off, but worth reading, it really goes back to the roots of what makes the wild card books so great I really enjoyed it and have made a little youtube video if anybody is interested. https://youtu.be/3PMkBqI-qs4

[Steven · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good concept! This book is a collection of interviews conducted in an arson case. Each interview is written by a different author, giving them all their own personality. Despite all of the stories reading differently, the book has a unique and cohesive feel while never feeling disjointed.

[Barry · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting way of telling a story. Very effective. The various voices worked very well together.

[Elliot · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fabulous entry in the series, and an ingenious way to revitalise the format

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very good. Characters were believable.

[Leonel Esteban · Rating 5 out of 5]

With only the scene of Marilyn in the pool, the entire saga is justified. Dazzling. The last book had largely disappointed me, so this has brought the series back from almost dead for me.
Unfortunately, my e-reader broke as I accidentally let it fall while finishing the book. Now I realized it is the #13 of the series... next time, it could be better to jump from 12 to 14 (friendly advice).

[Theresa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Card Sharks: Book of the new cycle: (Wild Cards #13)
Edited by George R.R. Martin (editor)

A massive fire has ripped through Joker town church on Black Queens night, killing hundreds of Jokers celebrating this grim memorial. Rev. Quid is saved by Quaziman a time traveler joker who has a hard time keeping his mind and his thoughts, let alone the rest of his body with in a particular movement. They enlist the help of a new Nat reporter to investigate the crime; she discovers a whole history of Joker/ wild car atrocities that span the length and breadth of the modern times, affecting historical and political situations and figures. Leaving Marylyn Monroe alive and Liz Taylor deceased. Card Sharks is a dynamic story with grief, tragedy and a lot of heartache.
For fans this is the book to find out about Nick, and Cameo and why he died.
For new readers this book ties together the legends and ideals of the whole series, with the divergent history brought to place in the world of Wild Cards.
For new readers this book ties together the legends and ideals of the whole series, with the divergent history brought to place in the world of Wild Cards.

[Glen U · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Card Sharks" is the 13th entry into the Wild Cards saga. It is a return to the linked narrative of differing authors and is very cohesive, as opposed to some of the earlier compendiums. All the differing authors do a more then credible job of introducing a conspiracy against the Aces and the Jokers and they also all are accomplished writers with great sci-fi word crafting skills. Victor Milan and Roger Zelazny are especially crisp in their writing but unfortunately this is to be Zelazny's last contribution to the Wild Card series, before his untimely death in 1995. "Card Sharks" is also the kickoff of a "new" trilogy of Wild Card novels. As always, the appeal of the Wild Card series is its representation of an alternate history in America. John F. Kennedy, Robert Kennedy, Marilyn Monroe and other icons of the 60's appear and play a major role in the telling of this story. After 13 volumes of the series, the books still bring great entertainment and imagination, and I hope the subsequent tales will continue that trend.

[Erth · Rating 4 out of 5]

now i am hooked. This was such a great, easy and creative book. i was hooked after the first page.

The characters were easy to fall in love with and follow, along with the story. the author made the mental visions so easy and vivid of the surroundings and the characters actions felt so real.

i would highly recommend this author and this book.

[Serge Pierro · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the first time I was exposed to the Wild Cards concept, and found it to be quite readable. Each author did a good job in bringing to life the unusual characters that appear throughout the book.