Ex-Communication

Clines’s high-concept mashup of superheroes and the undead, now on book three (after Ex-Patriots), continues to be one of the few interesting updates of the tired postapocalyptic zombie subgenre. In a ravaged Los Angeles, heroes like the gunslinging, analytical Stealth and her partner, powerhouse St. George, fight alongside enhanced soldiers. The threat of the mindless “ex-human” hordes, or “exes,” makes life complicated enough, but things get stranger when Stealth and company meet Madelyn Sorensen, an unusually well preserved and shockingly sentient ex. Further casting doubt on their already-limited understanding of life and death is the revelation that Max Trent, a hero who supposedly died, is haunting the city as a ghost; the demon Cairex, whose body Max had previously hijacked, is not pleased. Fans of zombie gore might be a tad disappointed to realize this is a superhero tale at heart. Clines throws in a whole lot of plot, but the distinct voices of the characters and the solid pacing keep the story entertaining and the action fresh. Agent: David Fugate, David S. Fugate Agency. (July)