Ex-heroes by Peter Clines

I added Ex-Heroes to my library queue because it sounded like something I would want to read. Zombie? Check. Superheroes? Check. A ringing endorsement from a couple of my favorite authors? Check. Ex-heroes was all those things I wanted but didn't push past typical stereotypes.

Somewhere in the future an illness mutates and causes the dead to rise. The Government acts too slowly and the nation is lost. A group of superheroes saves part of Los Angeles and creates a community for superheroes and civilians to live in relative safety.  Superheroes patrol the streets of Los Angeles, killing exs (or zombies). A gang who also has some territory in Los Angeles and causes trouble for our superheroes. The superheroes decide to squash this threat and mount their assault.

There was plenty of action in Ex-Heroes. The story moved fast and it felt kind of like a movie. But the superheroes back stories were so tired. A beautiful woman who wants people to look past her beauty so she hides behind a mask. An aging superhero who feels guilty for those he couldn't save. A beast who's hell bent on revenge. This is the first in a series so hopefully the characters dig deeper and give me more to care about in the next book.

Great action read. A lot of fun and very little substance. I'll pick up the second in series (Ex-Patriots). Others who shared their thoughts on Ex-Heroes: Mom Read It, A Bitter Draft, My Shelf Confessions, and What Mark Read.