Ex-Patriots

I gave up at p. 160.

Clines is trying so, so hard to make characters that are Diverse and Representative, but in so doing is only highlighting his own internal biases all the more.

So we have Stealth, Female Character #1, incredibly beautiful, sick of being objectified--so she spends all of her time in a mask not using her real name because she's sick of men just falling in love with her all over the place. Yeah. OK. Do you know an incredibly beautiful woman in real life who is sick of being objectified? I'll bet you do. I know a lot of them. Do ANY of them SPEND THEIR LIVES IN MASKS? No. They don't. Why? Because as it turns out, Mr. Clines, being an "incredibly beautiful and intelligent woman who is sick of being objectified" is only show more part of a full personality. Other motivations, other feelings, and the need for basic fucking human interaction do come into play.

Same with Danielle. Oh good, she's a doctor! And she wears an enormous fighting soldier suit that makes her all but invicible! Go Dr. Ass-kicker! Except that she is a bundle of fainting terrified nerves whenever she is not in her suit. So Danielle gets to be the Girl Who is Very Smart But Still Fragile and Scared. And that's it. That's her entire personality.

But it was Captain Freedom who really did me in.

Captain Freedom, the Black Character. The character who is Motivated by Freedom Because His Great-Grandfather was A Slave. Can you come up with anything more offensively racist. I read about his back-story and his need to fight for Freedom everywhere because of the history of slavery in his family, and I saw the rest of the book laid out before me: Captain Freedom, fighting for the wrong side because they represent the old government of the US, the government who (formerly enslaved but then later) freed his great-grandfather, and who apparently has no mixed feelings or ambivalence due to the significant residual racism in the US since that time, but wait! This army he is fighting for! They have enslaved the superheroes! Then he will switch sides and join forces with St. George and Stealth, and they will win the day.

Nothing could make it clearer that Mr. Clines does not see people of colour or women as actual people than his insulting portrayal of them as one-dimensional cut-outs motivated by nothing more than some half-assed understanding of one part of their racialized or sexualized experience.

This isn't a book about zombies. It's a book for zombies. If you have a brain, don't waste your time. show less

I think I enjoyed the sequel to Ex-Heroes more than the first book. It’s more of the same - superheroes and zombies - but with a stronger plot and much more tension. Once again it’s really just a big bundle of comic book cliches, this time we have the addition of the super soldiers, but that doesn’t mean it’s not still a really, ridiculously fun ride.

The plot is tense! I was really quite stressed out reading it for the most part! It was inevitable and obvious - as Zzzap says you can never trust the government in any zombie movie - but that made it worse when you had to watch the heroes walk into a trap. I was actually genuinely scared for them, which is something I never felt reading the first book! Over all the story was show more better, not only did the jeopardy feel more realistic, but there were some good twists. Of course the ending action scenes were just as bonkers, so fans won’t be disappointed there.

There were a couple of new additions whom I did like, despite Captain Freedom being so obviously modelled on Captain America! The Driver was a bit too two dimensional, and it would have been nice to have his role expanded. Stealth had more of role in this book, getting right into the action. She is so badass, I do love her! Danielle got a bit of character development which I did appreciate as she’s is only of my favourites, and its good to get her out of the suit a little bit - I mean I still want her kicking ass as Cerberus, but it’s good to know the woman inside it too.

It’s difficult to say much without spoilers, and really it’s just a trashy read so there isn’t a lot more than zombies + superheroes = still awesome!

I ordered Ex-Communication but I think I need a break from these, they get a bit testosterony! I’ll let Boyfriend get ahead of me (he’s obsessed, basically ripped Ex-Patriots out my hands as soon as I finished!). show less

Read from December 11 to 12, 2015

This series is just fun and Clines writes impressive action sequences. In this installment, we meet super-soldiers living on a base in Yuma. The chapters alternate between now and then, but this time "then" equals us meeting those in Yuma -- soldiers and a man named John Smith. This book also definitely sets up more paths Clines can take in future books. One thing I like about this series is its not just looking at "the end of the world", but the rebuilding. On to the next one!

(We are driving to LA today and I keep mentioning that we should stop by Paramount for a little book tourism.)

I really enjoyed Peter Clines first zombies vs. superheroes book, Ex-Heroes, but he really takes it up a notch in the second book, Ex-Patriots.

The action in this book moves from Hollywood to a secret army base near Yuma, Arizona, where a group of super soldiers has survived and is protecting the small base. Cline takes some of the common zombie tropes (like never trust the army in a zombie film/book) and turns them, not quite upside down, but on their side. He does this in a self-referential way so that the reader is in on it with him.

Cline maintains the same style of shifting first-person accounts, as well as alternating between “then” and “now” to fill you in on the backstory and reveal some of the motives and the plot show more twists along the way. The best part about Ex-Patriots is that being the second book in the series, there is not as much exposition needed and that leaves more room for action. A lot of action.

The first part of the book does a good job of setting up the story, creating suspicions and doubts as to who the good guys really are. That leads to the second half of the book as disaster strikes and a nice, long, well-written battle takes place. Some parts are forecast a little bit, but Cilne does a good job of meting out the twists and surprises that make the whole story come together. Sometimes things get a little over the top and testosterone-filled, but we’re talking about superheroes and super soldiers and zombies. A little over the top is to be expected.

The characters here are worth rooting for which is what really makes the book work. Along with the new characters, you get to know some of the core characters from the first book even better. This is a great, summer, escapist read. Both this book and the series thus far. I can’t wait to see what the third book has in store. Highly recommended. show less

Zombies and superheroes, what's not to love?

This was a very good addition to this series. I loved getting to see the Heroes team up together to take out more zombies and military dudes. The action was really intense and there were so many surprises this time around that I never saw coming. The dialogue, especially the stuff that came from Zzap, was hilarious.

I still loved the writing and story-telling here and I enjoyed getting to see glimpses into the "Then" lives of various characters. Dr. Sorensen's "Then" story was especially sad to me.

The final showdown was my favorite action of the whole book. Things were looking so intense and hopeless that I truly wondered if all of the Heroes would make it out, especially Cerberus. Legion is show more going to be one hellish enemy to deal with since he can control the zombies and knows where the Heroes and their survivors are, even if it will take a while to get to them. show less

Zombies and superheroes, what's not to love?

This was a very good addition to this series. I loved getting to see the Heroes team up together to take out more zombies and military dudes. The action was really intense and there were so many surprises this time around that I never saw coming. The dialogue, especially the stuff that came from Zzap, was hilarious.

I still loved the writing and story-telling here and I enjoyed getting to see glimpses into the "Then" lives of various characters. Dr. Sorensen's "Then" story was especially sad to me.

The final showdown was my favorite action of the whole book. Things were looking so intense and hopeless that I truly wondered if all of the Heroes would make it out, especially Cerberus. Legion is show more going to be one hellish enemy to deal with since he can control the zombies and knows where the Heroes and their survivors are, even if it will take a while to get to them. show less

Zombies and superheroes, what's not to love?

This was a very good addition to this series. I loved getting to see the Heroes team up together to take out more zombies and military dudes. The action was really intense and there were so many surprises this time around that I never saw coming. The dialogue, especially the stuff that came from Zzap, was hilarious.

I still loved the writing and story-telling here and I enjoyed getting to see glimpses into the "Then" lives of various characters. Dr. Sorensen's "Then" story was especially sad to me.

The final showdown was my favorite action of the whole book. Things were looking so intense and hopeless that I truly wondered if all of the Heroes would make it out, especially Cerberus. Legion is show more going to be one hellish enemy to deal with since he can control the zombies and knows where the Heroes and their survivors are, even if it will take a while to get to them. show less