A heads up for all you Wild Carders out there — another publication day has rolled around.

Check out your favorite local bookstore or on-line bookseller.  Today’s the day Tor releases its long-awaited reissue of JOKERTOWN SHUFFLE, volume nine of the overall series and the second book in the Rox/ jumper sequence.   Originally published in August, 1991, this one has been out of print for the more than two decades, available only from used book stores and auction sites at inflated prices… and that for a mass market.  The new Tor edition will be a trade paperback, featuring a lovely new cover paining of Lady Black by David Palumbo.

The original lineup of JOKERTOWN SHUFFLE (1991 edition) was:

STEPHEN LEIGH     “The Temptation of Hieronymous Bloat”
JOHN JOS. MILLER   “And Hope to Die”
MELINDA M. SNODGRASS          “Lovers”
VICTOR MILAN  “Madman Across the Water”
WALTER JON WILLIAMS  “Whilst Night’s Black Agents To Their Preys Do Rouse”
LEWIS SHINER  “Riders”
WALTON (BUD) SIMONS  “Nobody Does It Alone”

Featured characters include Bloat, Yeoman, Dr. Tachyon, Cap’n Trips, Black Shadow, Veronica, and Mr. Nobody.

But that’s not all.   Just as we did with volumes one, four, and eight, we’ve added some brand new original content to JOKERTOWN SHUFFLE in the form of two original stories from CARRIE VAUGHN and CHERIE PRIEST, starring Fort Freak’s joker detective Leo Storgman (Ramshead) and SCARE agent Joanne Jefferson (Lady Black).  So even if you’ve read the book in the mists of time, you haven’t read it all.   The new tales are entitled “The Unintended” (by Cherie) and “Unraveling” (by Carrie).  You won’t want to miss them.

[[Times have changed since 1991, so I had best mention here that JOKERTOWN SHUFFLE is probably the darkest volume of the original series and includes some very strong stuff, including sexual violence.  So consider this a trigger warning for those who prefer not to go there]].

So here’s your chance to complete your Wild Cards collection by filling in a long-missing volume… or maybe to start a Wild Cards collection.

And once you’ve read it, head over to Tor.com and join the discussion with Katy Rask and the Wild Cards reread:

Stolen Bodies, Warped Minds—Wild Cards IX: Jokertown Shuffle

The mean streets of Jokertown and the madness of the Rox await…

Current Mood: pleased