Ex-Heroes

I like superheroes and I like zombies – a book that combined the two seemed like a good fit for me. Unfortunately, I had some issues with Ex-Heroes, to the point that I ended up taking a multi-week break from it part of the way through. Had this been a library checkout rather than a purchase, I probably would have DNFed it.

The plot was fairly simple but took such a long time to get going that I feel like almost any synopsis I might write would give too much away. I will say that the basic setup should be familiar to any fan of zombie apocalypse stories: a group of survivors tries to continue surviving, hopefully find a cure, and maybe even forge something like a normal and fear-free existence. This particular group of survivors show more (really, enough people to count as a little town) just happens to be guarded by a few surviving superheroes.

One of those superheroes is St. George, a guy who can breathe fire and glide for a long enough distance that it looks like he can fly and who, more importantly, is completely invulnerable. Then there's Gorgon, a man whose gaze can suck the energy out of people and temporarily give him greater power. Cerberus is the name given both to an enormous armed mecha and to the woman who operates it. Zzzap is a man in a wheelchair who can transform into a flying being made out of energy. Stealth is mysterious, athletic, and coldly cerebral.

Here's the good: I really did enjoy the combination of zombies and superheroes. Clines didn't exactly do anything new with those aspects – I've already mentioned the familiarity of the zombie apocalypse setup, and I could think of Marvel or DC equivalents for several of the superheroes. St. George was a fire-breathing Superman. Stealth was a female Batman without the childhood tragedy (which, considering St. George's attraction to her, makes this very nearly Superman/Batman slash fic). Cerberus could be seen as a female Iron Man. Even the way the story was told was familiar: Clines alternated between the post-apocalyptic present and brief flashbacks that showed either the various superheroes' origin stories or the early days of the zombie apocalypse.

Although the individual components were familiar, the way Clines combined them resulted in some interesting moments and revelations that almost made me want to continue reading/listening to this series. The second book, Ex-Patriots, is part of Audible's current “2 for 1 credit” sale, and I'm tempted. Jay Snyder did a great job with the male voices and POV parts, although there were times when his “superhero” voice clashed with certain lines. (I just googled Snyder and learned that he voiced Descendants of Darkness's Tsuzuki. Fangirl moment.) Khristine Hvam also did a great job with the female voices and POV parts. I wouldn't mind listening to another audiobook voiced by the two of them together, and part of me does want to know what happens next in this series, but...

Okay, now for the negatives. Clines' superheroes were regular people who, one way or another, ended up becoming superheroes and, well, some of them weren't very heroic. There was Gorgon and his 17-year-old girlfriend, Maxwell Hale and his extremely flexible ideas of right and wrong, and pretty much everybody's objectification of Stealth.

Speaking of Stealth, she could probably count as an example of an asexual character (out of curiosity, she'd tried sex with both men and women but couldn't understand the appeal). She was, however, the kind of asexual stereotype I hate, a completely emotionally distant block of ice who only cared whether those around her were useful or not. As much as I disliked her, the way male characters tended to focus on her breasts and catalog all her curves bothered the heck out of me, because I knew that, had she been able to peek into those characters' minds, she'd have been horrified. This was a woman who was so averse to the idea of others noticing her physical attractiveness more than anything else about her that she almost always shrouded herself in a full-length cloak.

Now for the part of Ex-Heroes that bothered me so much that I had to take a multi-week audiobook break. The book took place in L.A., and several of the characters liked to brag about the famous zombified people they'd managed to take out. During one particular bragging session, someone mentioned Maxwell Hale, the superhero who'd ended up becoming a zombie because he'd tried to rape a zombified Jessica Alba. It was just a small moment, and yet it managed to kill nearly all of my enthusiasm for the book. So much about it repulsed me. First, that it happened, period. Second, that a superhero (often shortened to “hero”) did this. Third, that the zombie was a real person rather than some random nameless zombie. Fourth, that the comment seemed to be pointless, a throwaway moment meant as a bit of dark humor but not really important to the story as a whole.

While I would argue that the specific details of the incident that resulted in Hale being turned into a zombie were unnecessary, unfortunately, Hale did show up again later in the book. Readers were treated to a section from his POV, which was about as repugnant as I would have expected it to be. Yes, another character did say that what he tried to do to zombie Jessica Alba was rape. I don't think the other superheroes particularly liked him, and I'm sure Clines meant for him to be viewed as utterly vile. That said, there were other ways Clines could have established Hale as awful and unlikable.

Considering how much I enjyed Clines' 14, Ex-Heroes was disappointing.

Rating Note:

I struggled with how to rate this, because on the one hand I disliked parts of this book enough that I almost DNFed it, and on the other hand it was an interesting enough mashup that part of me is tempted to read more. In the end, I decided that although the rape aspects were terrible (and I just remembered, looking through my notes, that there was another zombie rape mentioned besides the one with Hale and Jessica Alba, WTF Clines?), the overall story still had some good moments. So, 2 stars.

(Original review, with read-alikes, posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.) show less

I stumbled across this book when I was cruising Amazon one day. Superheroes and zombies? How could I resist that? It was guaranteed to be awesome fun or really, really terrible. Luckily it was the former! It's pure trashy entertainment, and if that's all you are expecting from it then you won't be disappointed. I always try to rate on a scale of pure enjoyment rather than necessary "worthiness" .. and for just being a really fun read it gets 4 stars, despite its faults.

There is a quotation on the back describing it as The Walking Dead meets The Avengers, and honestly that is exactly what this book is (but so much more fun than The Walking Dead is)! There was an outbreak of a zombie plague that over ran the population, leaving on a few show more pockets of survivors.. standard zombie stuff. The zombies are actually referred to as "exes" which actually does help to make it feel a little fresher. However in this world there are also a people with super powers, who had been acting as vigilante heroes for a few years before the plague. They have banded together to help protect the survivors from whatever threats they might all face.

I honestly loved this book. It's a proper guilty pleasure. There are a good range of heroes with a range of superpowers, some more useful than others. St George is probably the most awesome as he is impervious to almost everything, super strong, he can fly and he can breathe fire! I was a big fan of Zzzap too. I thought Gorgon's powers were also interesting, and he had a nice darker edge to him next to the squeaky clean St George.

It is worth noting that this book is 100% an adolescent boy's dream. At the end of the book the authors notes that this novel was born out of conversation with friends in school, and you can tell.. and I'm not sure he ever grew up! For what it is I'm not upset with it for that. Of course it means that a lot of the women are hypersexualised.. particularly Stealth! I did like her, I thought she was an awesome character but.. there were A LOT of descriptions of how hot she is. And she wears a mask to hide her face because she is SO PRETTY that people never take get seriously. Some of this I can perhaps (perhaps) rationalise (a little bit). The majority of descriptions of her hotness comes from St George chapters (not all but most). It does serve to remind us that St George is in fact human and not boring far too perfect saintly guy. He has impure thoughts! He also has casual sex with another female character in which we get a nice description of her bra too. It's thin defence but I tried.

Now as for Stealth's costume I remained a little baffled as too why, if she was so sick of being objectified, she would choose to dress in a latex suit with belts and straps in all the right places! It was never stated anywhere, but I assume that as a "stealth" character she finds her hot body a useful distraction. She is constantly objectified.. but she isn't a sexual character. She has a bisexual past, which she mentions in a very logical and cold was (sex had as useful function) but comes across to me as a now existed as asexual. I have a feeling that might change in future books.. I was be disappointed though.

The are other women in the novel too, and while they are more sexualised than then male characters it's not to the extent of Stealth. I would say there are more descriptions of dead female exes than the male ones.. at one point he does describe the blood dripping between the breasts of one. Gross. This is problematic but.. the novel was just so much fun I honestly didn't care that much. When I was reading this, and talking about it now, it does read like a comic book. Like a graphic novel turned into text. It's an unavoidable truth that over sexualised females are a trope of comic books, so I guess it plays into the very visual style Clines is going for.

Still, Cerberus was another of my favourites, and while being a giant robotic suit of hardcore armour it is piloted by a woman. She managed to escape without any descriptions of her body parts that I can remember, and she's both super smart and completely badass. So not all hope is lost.

It's not perfect.. but I didn't expect it to be.. and I don't particularly need it to be! This is a guilty read. It's pure fun. There are a lot of action scenes are they're brilliantly written. The characters are also well-formed, and distinctive. The plot is crazy. If you like superheroes and you like zombies.. give it a read.

I loved it. Maybe I shouldn't have but I did. It's better than I ever expected it to be.. and I cannot wait to read Ex Patriots! show less

Superheroes versus zombies. That's Ex-Heroes in a nutshell. Don't like superheroes or zombies? Well...that might not be a problem, actually.

Ex-Heroes is about a group of super-powered heroes trying to protect a last enclave of humanity in a Los Angeles movie studio-turned-fortress following the zombie apocalypse. I will admit that I'm a bit of a superhero guy, but I couldn't care less about the current zombie trend. It's okay, though, because the zombie apocalypse featured in Clines' books is just the setting; the real show is the larger-than-life yet all-too-human characters: St. George, Stealth, Zzzap. Gorgon, Cerberus, Regenerator. You could draw some easy parallels between Clines' creations and the stable of popular DC and Marvel show more Comics heroes, but it doesn't matter because Clines makes his so engaging.

I loved the structure of the book, too. The chapters alternate: two "Now" chapters set in the present day, told from your standard third-person perspective; then one "Then" chapter set in the past and told in the first-person by one of the superhero characters. The Then chapters move forward chronologically, slowly building up the history of the zombie apocalypse (including an ingenious superhero-related origin for the zombies) as well as fleshing out the backstory of the characters involved. And the way they interact with the ongoing plot of the Now chapters works brilliantly.

If there are any real flaws in the book, it would be that one of the heroes seemed way too powerful, and the hasty explanations given for why he wasn't more effective didn't really satisfy me. Also, the main bad guy has huge question marks in his background that (thankfully) are mostly cleared up in the sequel, but still drove me nuts for most of this book. Those are minor nitpicks, though. This book is just too much fun. [4 out of 5 stars] show less

I received this ARC through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program.

This book combines three major premises: superheroes, post-apocalyptic Los Angeles, and zombies. I love a good superhero story. Sometimes, however, it doesn't translate well to a novel. Post apocalypse stories? I love'em to bits because I'm morbid like that, but zombies tend to creep me out, so I don't actively seek out books with them. Therefore, I approached this book with some hesitance.

The book, in return, impressed me greatly.

Clines has created a vivid, incredible world here. His cast of superheroes varies widely as far as powers and personalities, and while they do follow the tropes of the genre, they are all vivid and absolutely believable. Even more impressive, show more he skips from perspective to perspective and between the past and the current apocalyptic environment, and manages to do so in a way that's not confusing at all. The heroes all speak in voices that are that distinct.

The setting itself is another wow factor. I'm a native Californian but only have a very basic understanding of where things are located around LA. Gauging from this book, Clines KNOWS this place. He uses the movie studios, the streets, and shows how it's all become a battleground. It feels firmly grounded in reality. My only wish is that the front of the book included a map.

Then there are the zombies. They are as nasty and sad as one would expect. The shambling undead have taken over the world. It's really chilling, though, when Clines breaks down the statistic to show how many zombies are staggering around LA, even after all the efforts the heroes have taken to combat them. Of course, the heroes aren't up against the zombies alone. Their big rivals in town are the Seventeen gang, and the thugs are no longer content with peddling drugs and spraying graffiti--no, they want supplies, and they want the superhero Gorgon dead.

Again, as a Californian, this really resonated with me--I could see a gang taking over in a vacuum of power like this. It's really weird to say, "This superhero zombie apocalypse novel won me over with its realism," but it's the truth. I went in with low expectations and now I really want to read the sequel that comes out soon. show less

Hold on to your knickers it’s super heroes versus zombies!

Just when I thought I had read almost every kind of zombie book out there, along comes Ex-Heroes. I didn’t quite know what to expect from it, having never read anything with super heroes, but what I got was a whole FACE PUNCH full of awesome! Ex-Heroes was everything I felt a good zombie book should be, with a little added spandex and flapping capes.

The amount of detail on the gore, and suspense was perfect. It was more than sufficient to paint vivid images in your mind, maybe even give you the heebie jeebies a bit. In my case with my overly active imagination, it had me flipping on all the lights in the fucking house and tossing and turning in bed with nightmares.

On a funny show more note, It was freaking hilarious how survivors would claim bragging rights on taking out celebrity exes.

It’s two years after the first ex-human attack, and survivors are hanging on well enough in the city of Los Angeles, with a lot of help from a handful of heroes. All of the survivors and events felt so real to me. People die, that’s what happens in the apocalypse, but they also don’t forget to keep living. What hurts the most is seeing someone’s fears taken out on those that have been trying the most to protect them. It hurt my heart to read it.

So obviously, I had total nerd love for the heroes. They were strong, tragic, arrogant, beautiful, humble, self sacrificing…they just were…heroes. My heart went out to them and I rooted for them. They aren’t just super heroes, they are people with needs and emotional baggage just like everyone else. What makes them stronger than everyone else to me isn’t their super powers but their willingness to take so much on themselves to protect so many others.

Now, even though the POV jumps around a lot to all of them and even a few times to the normal people, it works really well. Each hero had a very distinctive personality that no way could you confuse one voice with another. Also, throughout Ex-Heroes the story often jumps back in time and we get to see something of that heroes past. Whether it is how they came to be a hero or their first ex encounter, I thought these flashbacks were excellently placed, well done and extremely important! So pay attention!

And remember…exes aren’t the only thing a person has to worry about after the apocalypse! – because after all even a hero can die.

Personally, I’m like an ex gnashing my teeth for another meaty Peter Clines fix! show less

I was given this novel for Christmas. It was a quick and fun read, very much providing what it promised: superheroes versus zombies. The novel is set in Los Angeles post-zombie apocalypse, which has apparently wiped out most of the world's population. (Again, my money is on Iceland surviving.) A plucky band of superheroes lead the embattled remaining humans, although they are threatened by a surviving street gang as well as the undead. A series of flashbacks tell origin stories, both of individual heroes and the zombie plague. It’s exciting stuff, full of gory fight scenes and continual peril.

Although the male gaze is pervasive throughout, the heroes themselves offer some interesting variations on popular tropes. In particular, two show more main characters demonstrate how Batman and Iron Man might be treated differently as women. Stealth is a female Batman, but has to be extra grim and dark in order to be taken seriously. Men apparently have trouble seeing beyond her beauty, even when she wears a full-face mask all the time. I liked Stealth, as she took no shit from anyone, but I wished she would interact with other women more often. Cerberus was also pretty great. The male heroes didn’t interest me as much; St George lacked distinguishing features and Zzzap’s backstory wasn’t explained. The plot was fast-paced and interesting, although it did beg the question about everything looking like a nail if you have a hammer. In other words, there would have been a lot of sense in negotiating rather than punching at certain junctures, but when you have near-invulnerable people who like punching, that’s what happens.

There are some interesting plot twists that provide a fresh angle on zombie clichés, however I wasn’t keen on the creepy competition to kill the most (sexy female) celebrity zombies. I was amused by the comment that the apocalypse had massively improved LA’s air quality, though. I’m not sure whether I’m invested enough in this world and its characters to hunt down the sequel, but this book was a pleasant method of whiling away a few hours. show less

3.5 star rating

I borrowed this book from another Kindler because someone chose it as our horror group read on Shelfari and to be honest, I didn't want to buy it. It's not the type of book that I would normally read. I like superheroes and whatnot but a couple of hundred pages worth? Yeah...I was wary.
I have to admit that I was surprised at how much I ended up enjoying this book.

There were several superheroes, all original creations. At least I think they were because I have never heard of them. As the story progressed, there where chapters labeled 'Now' and 'Then'. Each 'Then' segment spent a bit of time with a superhero and filled in the gaps about them-as far as how they were created and how they came to be in LA fighting show more zombies.

Yes, superheroes fighting zombies...I know it sounds silly (and it was a little bit silly), but it was also well written, gory, bloody and just good fun. I will be buying the second book, just to see what happens. show less