Book Review: Ex-Heroes by Peter Clines

This is the first book in a series of five about a world that suffers a zombie-apocalypse, but which also had some interesting super-heroes around at the time that it happened.  About 3 years ago I came across the second book in the series, Ex-Patriots.  The concept sounded interesting, and it had a blurb from Ernest Cline raving about it, so I checked it out.  Only after reading it did I realize that there was a previous book - but there was not really an indication that this was the second in a series.  Now I've finally gotten around to reading where everything started.

The book is just as good as Ex-Patriots, and has flashbacks to the origin of several of the heroes, as well as to a few things that have a bearing on the story occurring in the present.  The flashbacks also deal with the start of the outbreak, and how disbelief largely contributes to it getting out of control.  Similar to Ex-Patriots, the story starts a little slowly and then builds to the point where you don't want to put it down.

I have to say, this story has a very interesting catalyst for the zombie outbreak.  In fact, one of the most original that I have seen in any zombie story, and it ties in with the rest of the story structure incredibly well.  It was a very big surprise for me when it was revealed.  Very well implemented.  Bravo!  Encore!  Encore!  Oh wait - this is followed by Ex-Patriots, which I've already read.  But, that is followed by Ex-Communication, Ex-Purgatory, and this year Ex-Isle was released.  So, there are plenty more zombies in my future.  Well, in this series they are referred to as "exes" (as in ex-humans), and they are caused by the "Ex" virus.

The heroes are interesting and their powers are fairly original - at least to me.  St. George, or The Mighty Dragon, is pretty much invulnerable, can breath fire, and has somewhat limited flight ability.  Zzzap is a man who can transform into an energy form, capable of very fast flight, and a few other things.  Gorgon has a vampire-like ability to drain the life out of people.  Regenerator has the ability to heal himself and others, but in the present his ability is all but gone.  Stealth has the ability to move quickly and silently, like a Ninja, and she has fierce fighting ability.  Cerberus isn't really a hero - it is a woman inside a military exo-suit of her own creation.  But, it is resistant to zombies and really packs a punch.

Things start off with the characters on a mission to scrounge food and medical supplies from the city outside the Mount, which is an old movie studio in Hollywood that has been fortified to isolate the population being protected by the superheroes.  Pretty much an expected problem in any zombie story which is about survival - the world is radically different.  Things quickly get complicated when they run into a rival group called The Seventeens, which was a former gang in the area before the outbreak of the Ex-virus.  They are a competitor for the limited resources of the city, and they constantly cause problems for the survivors in the Mount.  The survivors quickly learn that things have recently become much worse, and they are facing a very alarming and unexpected threat.

The portrayal of the Seventeens very much reminded me of the Humungus and his group of bandits in the film Max Max 2:  The Road Warrior - they essentially want to be the number one group and annihilate anyone else who gets in the way or doesn't get in the way for that matter.  When the depth of the threat is realized, and the "normal" people start to realize what they are up against, they have the typical expected reaction:  they have a strong desire to get the heck out of dodge!  Of course, the heroes succeed in showing them that they are only motivated by fear - there is nowhere they can go without being destroyed by the zombie horde, and staying at the Mount and fighting is the best choice.  This is all very believable.  The final battle is filled with action, desperation, and a few surprises.

One of the best things about this series is that all of the characters, even the heroes, are very human.  They are just as flawed and imperfect as the rest of us, and in some cases just as unsure, and they make mistakes.  This puts the reader on the same playing field as the heroes - they could be someone that you know.

In typical classic hero form, Stealth and the other heroes have the lofty goal of not only keeping their own people at the Mount safe - they want to save as many people as they can.  This really seems like an insurmountable task given that the majority of the population is made up of zombies.

This is a great start to the series, and I'm looking forward to reading the remaining three books.