Scan barcode
A review by scheu
Ace in the Hole by George R.R. Martin
3.0
This is the first of the WC books I've re-read where I had serious problems. Everything seemed fine when I was fourteen...
My biggest issue is Tachyon. He's pathetic. I feel badly for the jokers and everyone who relies on him - he ought to be a little effective but spends nearly the entire book crying. Literally weeping.
My second issue would be the female characters, since they barely do anything - and when they do, they're sleeping with someone or looking to their male counterparts. Chrysalis - the one with any agency typically - is killed "off-panel". The Wild Cards books have come a long way in the past quarter-century, thankfully, in regards to its female characters.
Then there's Jack Braun. The writers really over-estimate the memory of the American public. Jack, no one's going to care about you being a traitor or whatever. Stop whining.
Then there's Hiram and his plot point (which won't be resolved until next volume). Everyone's staring at this nasty scab on his neck, everyone notices he's acting REALLY STRANGELY, but no one acts on it, just so we can kick his plot point can down the road.
If there's one thing I appreciate about this volume, it's that some too-powerful characters are taken off the table (Demise, Puppetman, Mackie). Not the end of mental-domination plotlines but we're getting there.
My biggest issue is Tachyon. He's pathetic. I feel badly for the jokers and everyone who relies on him - he ought to be a little effective but spends nearly the entire book crying. Literally weeping.
My second issue would be the female characters, since they barely do anything - and when they do, they're sleeping with someone or looking to their male counterparts. Chrysalis - the one with any agency typically - is killed "off-panel". The Wild Cards books have come a long way in the past quarter-century, thankfully, in regards to its female characters.
Then there's Jack Braun. The writers really over-estimate the memory of the American public. Jack, no one's going to care about you being a traitor or whatever. Stop whining.
Then there's Hiram and his plot point (which won't be resolved until next volume). Everyone's staring at this nasty scab on his neck, everyone notices he's acting REALLY STRANGELY, but no one acts on it, just so we can kick his plot point can down the road.
If there's one thing I appreciate about this volume, it's that some too-powerful characters are taken off the table (Demise, Puppetman, Mackie). Not the end of mental-domination plotlines but we're getting there.