Death Draws Five (aka Wild Cards XVII)
by John J. Miller
I remember that when I had finished reading this book, which was the then-latest volume of George R.R. Martin's Wild Cards, all I could say was, "wow." After several disappointing installments, there was finally another Wild Card novel worth the name. During the lull between books, I had been worried that the previous novel, Deuces Down (WC vol.XVI) was the lackluster death knell of a once great series.
The lady featured on the cover of both printings (so far) is Midnight Angel, a newer character in the Wild Cards pantheon, and the creation of author John J. Miller. She isn't the only new character to appear, but she has the strongest visual and gets a lot of page time. At one point, she is described as having a face (and figure) like Sofia Loren. I think the cover artist did good job capturing that likeness through the lens of superhero comic book art.
In the edition I own it is hard to make out who is on the playing cards scattered about, a visual conceit carried over from Brian Bolland's covers. One card is definitely Yeoman (also known as the Archer and the Ace of Spades killer). One is definitely Peregrine, the mother of central character (as a type of living MacGuffin) John Fortune. Another card looks like it bears an image of the Witness - a new hench-villain. After that, it's anybody's guess.
A very satisfying read that makes itself accessible to any fantasy fans lured in by the prominently displayed name of editor George R. R. Martin (of A Song of Fire and Ice fame), Death Draws Five is the latest in a shared world, alternate history, superhero franchise (woof, that's a mouthful!). An alien virus released on Earth in 1946 kills 90% of those infected in horrible ways. The remaining 10% are divided into deformed mutants called jokers and a lucky 1% given awesome powers and known as aces. A weird funhouse version of the history we know stretches from then to the present day.
That's all you really need to know to get started on any book in the series. Compared to some of the wilder, more freewheeling mosaic-style novels, DD5 benefited from the guiding hand of one author alone--something that had not worked quite as well for previous solo novels Double Solitaire (by Melinda Snodgrass) and Turn of the Cards (by Vic Milan).
John Fortune, son of the world's most powerful ace, finally "turns his card" in the parlance of the series (manifests a power from the Wild Card virus). On one side you have the Allumbrados, a secret order of religious zealots, that believe the boy is the Antichrist. On the other side stands the former PotUS, who believes this new ace is the second coming of Jesus Christ. Caught between these two forces, can John survive long enough for his reclusive father Fortunato to find him before he is killed by his own powers?
Unless I heard a lot of good buzz surrounding any sequels (at the time I wasn't sure if this volume had sold well enough to warrant another WC novel) I had considered Death Draws Five might be my last journey into Wild Cards. I wanted to end my love affair with the series on a high note. The nature of a franchise like this one means there will always be dangling plot threads, but Miller had tied up enough to make me happy. Old favorites revisited, some characters settling down, others dying, and even a few background players popping up in new roles, a series could do much worse for a last hurrah.
John J. Miller did a great job. I recall desperately hoping that if there were to be more Wild Cards books, they would follow this one's lead. I couldn't have known that DD5 was a prequel of sorts to the upcoming American Hero trilogy, which fully revitalized the franchise for another generation.