# List of Wild Cards books and short stories

Wild Cards is a series of science fiction superhero shared universe anthologies, mosaic novels, and solo novels written by a collection of authors known as the Wild Cards Trust and edited by George R. R. Martin and Melinda M. Snodgrass. Set largely during an alternate history of post-World War II United States, the series follows humans who contracted the Wild Card virus, an alien virus that rewrites DNA and mutates survivors; those who acquire minor or crippling physical conditions are known as Jokers, and those who acquire superhuman abilities are known as Aces.
As of the publication of Texas Hold'Em in October 2018, the series consists of twenty-six books. Wild Cards began publication through Bantam Books, under its Spectra imprint, in January 1987. Bantam published the series until 1993 and released twelve installments. Baen Books published three books from 1993 to 1995. From 2002 to 2005, ibooks Inc. published two more installments, including one solo novel. Wild Cards is currently published by Tor Books, an imprint under Macmillan Publishers. As of October 2018, Tor Books had released nine novels.
Several novels were also reprinted. Reprinting rights to the first eight novels were acquired by ibooks Inc. in 2000. The company reissued the first six novels before declaring Chapter 7 bankruptcy shortly after the death of founder Byron Preiss; ibooks' assets were acquired by Brick Tower Press. As of November 2021, Tor Books reprinted the first twelve, sixteenth & seventeenth novel.
Marvel Entertainment has published two Wild Cards mini-series, thirty-two years apart. The first, released via their Epic Comics imprint, was published from September to December 1990 and featured an original storyline based on events that occurred in the early novels. A second limited series, this time adapting stories from the first novel, ran from June through October 2022.

## Books
### Bantam Books (1987–1993)

Bantam Books, under its Spectra imprint, published twelve books between 1987 and 1993, including two solo novels written by Melinda M. Snodgrass and Victor Milán.
| No. | Title | Original release | ibooks Inc. reprint release | Tor Books release |
| 1 | Wild Cards Edited by George R. R. Martin | January 1987 ISBN 978-0-553-26190-5 | July 31, 2001 ISBN 978-0-7434-2380-9 | November 23, 2010 ISBN 978-0-7653-2615-7 |
| "Prologue" by Martin "Thirty Minutes Over Broadway!" by Howard Waldrop "The Sleeper" by Roger Zelazny "Witness" by Walter Jon Williams "Degradation Rites" by Melinda M. Snodgrass "Interlude One" by Martin "Captain Cathode and the Secret Ace" by Michael Cassutt "Powers" by David D. Levine "Shell Games" by Martin "Interlude Two" by Martin "The Long, Dark Night of Fortunato" by Lewis Shiner "Transfigurations" by Victor Milán "Interlude Three" by Martin "Down Deep" by Edward Bryant and Leanne C. Harper "Interlude Four" by Martin "Strings" by Stephen Leigh (as S. L Farrell) "Interlude Five" by Martin "Ghost Girl Takes Manhattan" by Carrie Vaughn "Comes a Hunter" by John J. Miller "Epilogue: Third Generation" by Shiner "Appendix: The Science of the Wild Card Virus" by Milán "Excerpts from the Minutes of the American Metabiological Society Conference on Metahuman Abilities" |||||
| 2 | Aces High Edited by Martin | April 1987 ISBN 978-0-553-26464-7 | October 2001 ISBN 978-1-59687-283-7 | December 20, 2011 ISBN 978-0-7653-2616-4 |
| "Pennies From Hell" by Shiner "Jube" by Martin "Unto the Sixth Generation" by Williams "Ashes to Ashes" by Zelazny "If Looks Could Kill" by Walton Simons "Winter's Chill" by Martin "Relative Difficulties" by Snodgrass "With a Little Help From His Friends" by Milán "By Lost Ways" by Pat Cadigan "Mr. Koyama's Comet" by Williams "Half Past Dead" by Miller |||||
| 3 | Jokers Wild Edited by Martin | October 1987 ISBN 978-0-553-26699-3 | February 2002 ISBN 978-1-59687-284-4 | February 11, 2014 ISBN 978-0-7653-2617-1 |
| Bagabond by Harper Fortunato by Shiner Jennifer "Wraith" Maloy by Miller Jack "Sewer Jack" Robicheaux by Bryant Roulette by Snodgrass James "Demise" Spector by Simons Hiram Worchester by Martin |||||
| 4 | Aces Abroad Edited by Martin | May 1988 ISBN 978-0-553-27628-2 | August 27, 2002 ISBN 978-0-7434-5241-0 | January 13, 2015 ISBN 978-0-7653-3558-6 |
| "The Tint of Hatred" by Leigh (as S. L. Farrell) "From the Journal of Xavier Desmond" by Martin "Beasts of Burden" by Miller "Blood Rights" by Harper "Warts and All" by Kevin Andrew Murphy "Down by The Nile" by Gail Gerstner-Miller "The Teardrop of India" by Simons "Down in the Dreamtime" by Bryant "Zero Hour" by Shiner "Always Spring in Prague" by Vaughn "Puppets" by Milán "Mirrors of The Soul" by Snodgrass "Legends" by Cassutt |||||
| 5 | Down and Dirty Edited by Martin | November 1988 ISBN 978-0-553-27463-9 | January 7, 2003 | October 27, 2015 ISBN 978-0-7653-3559-3 |
| "Only the Dead Known Jokertown" by Miller "All the King's Horses" by Martin "Concerto for Siren and Serotonin" by Zelazny "Breakdown" by Harper "Jesus Was an Ace" by Arthur Byron Cover "Blood Ties" by Snodgrass "The Second Coming of Buddy Holly" by Bryant "The Hue of a Mind" by Leigh "Addicted to Love" by Cadigan "Takedown" by Harper "Mortality" by Williams |||||
| 6 | Ace in the Hole Edited by Martin | January 1990 ISBN 978-0-553-28253-5 | February 25, 2003 ISBN 978-0-7434-5837-5 | October 4, 2016 ISBN 978-0-7653-3560-9 |
| Jack "Golden Boy" Braun by Williams Gregg Hartmann by Leigh Mackie "Mack the Knife" Messer by Milán Sara Morgenstern by Milán James "Demise" Spector by Simons Dr. Tachyon by Snodgrass |||||
| 7 | Dead Man's Hand Edited by Martin | July 1990 ISBN 978-0-553-28569-7 | — | June 13, 2017 |
| Daniel "Yeoman" Brennan by Miller Jay "Popinjay" Ackroyd by Martin |||||
| 8 | One-Eyed Jacks Edited by Martin | January 1991 ISBN 978-0-553-28852-0 | — | August 7, 2018 |
| "Nobody's Girl" by Simons "The Tower of Gold and Amber" by Murphy "Luck Be A Lady" by Chris Claremont "Horses" by Shiner "Snow Dragon" by William F. Wu "Noawadays Clancy Can't Even Sing" by Milán "A Broken Thread in a Dark Room" by Vaughn "Sixteen Candles" by Leigh "The Devil's Triangle" by Snodgrass "Dead Heart Beating" by Miller |||||
| 9 | Jokertown Shuffle Edited by Martin | August 1991 ISBN 978-0-553-29174-2 | — | April 30, 2019 |
| "The Temptation of Hieronymous Bloat" by Leigh "And Hope to Die" by Miller "The Unintended" by Cherie Priest "Lovers" by Snodgrass "Madmen Across the Water" by Milán "Unraveling" by Vaughn "While Night's Black Agents to Their Prey Do Rouse" by Williams "Riders" by Shiner "Nobody Does It Alone" by Simons |||||
| 10 | Double Solitaire Written by Snodgrass and edited by Martin | March 1992 ISBN 978-0-553-29493-4 | — | December 3, 2019 |
| 11 | Dealer's Choice Edited by Martin | October 1992 ISBN 978-0-553-29161-2 | — | September 1, 2020 |
| Bloat by Leigh Modular Man by Williams Billy "Carnifex" Ray by Miller Tom "The Great and Powerful Turtle" Tudbury by Martin Zelda "Bodysnatcher" by Martin Wyungare by Bryant |||||
| 12 | Turn of the Cards Written by Milán and edited by Martin | January 1993 ISBN 978-0-553-56152-4 | — | November 9, 2021 |

### Baen Books (1993–1995)

Baen Books published a new triad between 1993 and 1995 subtitled of a New Cycle. In 2002, Martin commented that he felt the triad was creatively "three of the strongest volumes Wild Cards ever had" and that the series "came back strong" after stumbling with a previous storyline; however, he conceded that the triad was "very dark", acknowledging it was a commonly voiced complaint, and that he felt switching publishers was a mistake.
| No. | Title | Original release |
| 13 | Card Sharks Edited by Martin | February 1993 ISBN 978-0-671-72159-6 |
| "The Ashes of Memory" by Leigh "Till I Kissed You" by Wu "The Crooked Man" by Snodgrass "A Method of Reaching Extreme Altitudes" by Cassutt "A Wind From Khorasan" by Milán "The Long Sleep" by Zelazny "Cursum Perficio" by Murphy "The Lamia's Tale" by Laura J. Mixon |||
| 14 | Marked Cards Edited by Martin | March 1994 ISBN 978-0-671-72212-8 |
| "The Color of His Skin" by Leigh "Two of a Kind" by Simons "My Sweet Lord" by Milán "Paths of Silence and of Night" by Harper "Feeding Frenzy" by Williams "A Breath of Life" by Sage Walker "A Dose of Reality" by Mixon and Snodgrass |||
| 15 | Black Trump Edited by Martin | July 1995 ISBN 978-0-671-87679-1 |
| Gregg Hartmann" by Leigh Jack "Popinjay" Ackroyd by Martin Mark "Cap'n Trip" Meadows by Milán Billy "Carnifex" Ray by Miller Zoe Harris by Walker |||

### ibooks Inc. (2002–2006)

In 2000, ibooks Inc. purchased two new installments and the rights to reprint the first eight books of the series; the two new books were published between 2002 and 2006, including a solo novel by John J. Miller. The company filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in July 2005, shortly after the death of founder Byron Preiss. In December 2006, J. Bolyston & Co. Publishers, parent company of the Brick Tower Press imprint, acquired all of Preiss' assets, including those of ibooks, for $125,000. Brick Tower Press offered e-book versions of its titles, including Deuces Down and Death Draws Five, via Humble Bundle in February 2016.
| No. | Title | Original release | Tor Books release |
| 16 | Deuces Down Edited by Martin | June 25, 2002 ISBN 978-0-7434-4505-4 | January 5, 2021 |
| "Storming Space" by Cassutt "Four Days in October" by Miller "Walking the Floor Over You" by Simons "A Face for the Cutting Room Floor" by Snodgrass "Father Henry's Little Miracle" by Daniel Abraham "Promises" by Leigh "With a Flourish and a Flair" by Murphy ||||
| 17 | Death Draws Five Written by Miller and edited by Martin | February 1, 2006 ISBN 978-1-59687-297-4 | November 9, 2021 |

### Tor Books (2008–2022)

Tor Books, an imprint under Macmillan Publishers, published the series in both print and e-book format, releasing thirteen new installments from November 2008 to August 2022.
| No. | Title | Original release |
| 18 | Inside Straight Edited by Martin with assistance from Snodgrass | January 22, 2008 ISBN 978-0-641-91260-3 |
| "Johnathan Hive" by Abraham "Dark of the Moon" by Snodgrass "Chosen Ones" by Vaughn "Looking for Jetboy" by Cassutt "Metagames" by Caroline Spector "Star Power" by Snodgrass "Wakes the Lion" by Miller "Crusader" by Martin "The Tin Man's Lament" by Ian Tregillis "Incidental Music for Heroes" by Leigh (as S. L. Farrell) "Blood on the Sun" by Snodgrass |||
| 19 | Busted Flush Edited by Martin with assistance from Snodgrass | December 9, 2008 ISBN 978-0-7653-1782-7 |
| "Double Helix" by Snodgrass "Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda" by Spector "Just Cause" by Vaughn "Political Science" by Tregillis and Simons "The Tears of Nepthys" by Murphy "Volunteers of America" by Milán "Dirge in a Major Key" by Leigh (as S. L. Farrell) "Mortality's Strong Hand" by Miller "Won't Get Fooled Again" by Milán "A Hard Rain Is A'Going to Fall" by Milán |||
| 20 | Suicide Kings Edited by Martin with assistance from Snodgrass | December 22, 2009 ISBN 978-0-7653-1783-4 |
| Jerusha "Gardener" Carter by Leigh (as S. L. Farrell) Wally "Rustbelt" Gunderson by Tregillis Noel "Double Helix" Matthews by Snodgrass Mark "Cap'n Trips" Meadows by Milán Michelle "Amazing Bubbles" Pond by Spector Johnathan "Bugsy" Tipton-Clarke by Abraham Tom "The Radical" Weathers by Milán |||
| 21 | Fort Freak Edited by Martin with assistance from Snodgrass | June 21, 2011 ISBN 978-0-7653-2570-9 |
| "The Rat Race" by Cherie Priest "The Rook" by Snodgrass "Faith" by Miller "Snake Up Above/Snake in the Hole/Snake on Fire" by David Anthony Durham "...And All the Sinners Saints" by Milán and Ty Franck "Sanctuary" by Mary Anne Mohanraj "Hope We Die Before We Get Old" by Leigh "More!" by Paul Cornell "The Straight Man" by Murphy |||
| 22 | Lowball Edited by Martin and Snodgrass | November 4, 2014 ISBN 978-0-7653-3195-3 |
| "The Big Bleed" by Cassutt "Those About to Die..." by Durham "Galahad in Blue" by Snodgrass "Ties That Bind" by Mohanraj "Cry Wolf" by David D. Levine "Road Kill" by Williams "Once More, for Old Times' Sake" by Vaughn "No Parking..." by Tregillis |||
| 23 | High Stakes Edited by Martin and Snodgrass | August 30, 2016 ISBN 978-0-7653-3562-3 |
| Marcus "Infamous Black Tongue" Morgan by Durham Barbara "Babel" Baden by Leigh Bathsheeba "The Midnight Angel" Fox by Miller Francis Xavier "Franny" Black by Snodgrass Michelle "Amazing Bubbles" Pond by Spector Mollie "Tesseract" Steunenberg by Tregillis |||
| 24 | Mississippi Roll Edited by Martin and Snodgrass | December 5, 2017 ISBN 978-0-7653-9052-3 |
| "In the Shadow of Tall Stacks" by Leigh "Wingless Angels" by Miller "A Big Break in the Small Time" by Vaughn "Death on the Water" by Priest "Find the Lady" by Murphy "Under the Arch" by Levine |||
| 25 | Low Chicago Edited by Martin | June 12, 2018 |
| A mosaic novel edited by George R. R. Martin assisted by Melinda M. Snodgrass. There are stories from eight authors that were woven into the novel. The stories, in the order of their first appearance in the novel are: "A Long Night at the Palmer House" by John Jos. Miller "Down the Rabbit Hole" by Kevin Andrew Murphy "The Motherfucking Apotheosis of Todd Motherfucking Taszycki" by Christopher Rowe "A Bit of a Dinosaur" by Paul Cornell "Stripes" by Marko Kloos "The Sister in the Streets" by Melinda M. Snodgrass "A Beautiful Façade" by Mary Anne Mohanraj "Meathooks on Ice" by Saladin Ahmed |||
| 26 | Texas Hold 'Em | November 6, 2018 |
| A mosaic novel edited by George R. R. Martin assisted by Melinda M. Snodgrass. There are stories from seven authors that were woven into the novel. The stories, in the order of their first appearance in the novel are: "Bubbles and the Band Trip" by Caroline Spector "The Secret Life of Rubberband" by Max Gladstone "Jade Blossom's Brew" by William F. Wu "Beats, Bugs, and Boys" by Diana Rowland "Dust and the Darkness" by Victor Milán "Is Nobody Going to San Antone?" by Walton Simons "Drop City" by David Anthony Durham |||
| 27 | Knaves Over Queens Edited by Martin with assistance from Snodgrass | August 13, 2019 |
| "A Flint Lies in the Mud" by Murphy "The Coming of the Crow" by Peadar Ó Guilín "But a Flint Holds Fire" by Murphy "Needles and Pins" by Caroline Spector "Night Orders by Cornell "Police On My Back" by Charles Stross "Probationary" by Marko Kloos "Twisted Logic" by Peter Newman "The Cracks in the City" by Ó Guilín "The Ceremony of Innocence" by Snodgrass "How to Turn a Girl to Stone" by Emma Newman "The Visitor" by Mark Lawrence "Feeding on the Entrails" by Ó Guilín |||
| 28 | Joker Moon Edited by Martin with assistance from Snodgrass | July 6, 2021 |
| "The Moon Maid" by Mary Anne Mohanraj "Flat Man" by Steve Perrin "Within that House Secure" by Christopher Rowe "Ghost of a Chance" by Steve Perrin "Have Spaceship, Will Travel" by Michael Cassutt "Star Ghost" by Steve Perrin "Luna Incognita" by Leo Kenden "The Sands of Mourning" by Caroline Spector "Diggers" by David D. Levine "Dreamers of the Day" by Melinda M. Snodgrass "Fatal Error" by Victor Milán and John Jos. Miller "Journey's End" by Walton Simons |||
| 29 | Three Kings Edited by Snodgrass with assistance from Martin | March 15, 2022 |
| There are stories from eight authors that were woven into the novel. Mary Anne Mohanraj Peter Newman Peadar Ó Guilín Melinda M. Snodgrass Caroline Spector |||
| 30 | Full House Edited by Martin with assistance from Snodgrass | August 2, 2022 |
| Collects ten stories that had been previously published only on Tor's website or in anthologies outside the Wild Cards series. "When We Were Heros" by Daniel Abraham "Evernight" by Victor Milán "Lies My Mother Told Me" by Caroline Spector "Nuestra Senora de la Esperanza" by Carrie Vaughn "Discards" by David D. Levine "The Elephant in the Room" by Paul Cornell "When the Devil Drives" by Melinda M. Snodgrass "The Atonement Tango" by Stephen Leigh "Prompt. Professional. Pop!" by Walter Jon Williams "How to Move Spheres and Influence People" by Marko Kloos |||

### Bantam Books (2023–present)

Wild Cards returned to its original publisher, Bantam Books, in 2023.
| No. | Title | Original release |
| 31 | Pairing Up Edited by Martin with assistance from Snodgrass | July 11, 2023 ISBN 978-0-593-35786-6 |
| "Trudy of the Apes" by Kevin Andrew Murphy "Cyrano d'Escargot" by Christopher Rowe "In the Forests of the Night" by Marko Kloos "The Wounded Heart" by Melinda M. Snodgrass "Echoes From a Canyon Wall" by Bradley Denton "The Long Goodbye" by Walton Simons "What's Your Sign?" by Gwenda Bond and Peter Newman "The Wolf and the Butterfly" by David Anthony Durham |||
| 32 | Sleeper Straddle Edited by Martin with assistance from Snodgrass | February 6, 2024 ISBN 978-0-593-35783-5 |
| "Swimmer, Flier, Felon, Spy" by Christopher Rowe "Days Go By" by Carrie Vaughn "The Hit Parade" by Cherie Priest "Yin-Yang Split" by William F. Wu "Semiotics of the Strong Man" by Walter Jon Williams "Party Like It's 1999" by Stephen Leigh "The Bloody Eagle" by Mary Anne Mohanraj "The Boy Who Would Be Croyd" by Max Gladstone |||

## Novellas

Tor Books published an ebook novella in March 2020 as a companion to the novel, "Inside Straight":
* "American Hero"

## Short stories

Tor Books published 23 short stories through its website from January 2013 to July 2022:
* "When We Were Heroes" by Daniel Abraham (January 16, 2013), edited by Martin
* "The Button Man and the Murder Tree" by Cherie Priest (May 15, 2013), edited by Martin
* "The Elephant in the Room" by Paul Cornell (May 29, 2013), edited by Martin
* "Nuestra Señora de la Esperanza" by Carrie Vaughn (October 15, 2014), edited by Martin
* "Prompt. Professional. Pop!" by Walter Jon Williams (November 21, 2014), edited by Martin
* "Discards" by David D. Levine (March 30, 2016), edited by Patrick Nielsen Hayden
* "The Thing About Growing Up in Jokertown" by Carrie Vaughn (December 21, 2016), edited by Martin
* "The Atonement Tango" by Stephen Leigh (January 18, 2017), edited by Martin
* "When the Devil Drives" by Melinda Snodgrass (July 5, 2017), edited by Martin
* "Evernight" (February 21, 2018) by Victor Milán, edited by Martin
* "The Flight of Morpho Girl" (May 2, 2018) by Caroline Spector and Bradley Denton, edited by Martin
* "Fitting In" (October 24, 2018) by Max Gladstone, edited by Martin
* "How to Move Spheres and Influence People" (27 March, 2019) by Marko Kloos, edited by Martin
* "Long is the Way" (May 15, 2019) by Carrie Vaughn and Sage Walker, edited by Martin
* "The City That Never Sleeps" (August 28, 2019) by Walton Simons, edited by Martin
* "Naked, Stoned, and Stabbed" (October 16, 2019) by Bradley Denton, edited by Martin
* "The Visitor: Kill or Cure" by Mark Lawrence, edited by Martin
* "Berlin is Never Berlin" by Marko Kloos, edited by Martin
* "Hammer and Tongs and a Rusty Nail" by Ian Tregillis, edited by Martin
* "Ripple Effects" by Laura J. Mixon, edited by Martin
* "Skin Deep" by Alan Brennert, edited by Martin
* "Hearts of Stone" by Emma Newman, edited by Martin
* "Grow" by Carrie Vaughn, edited by Martin
One additional short story, "Lies My Mother Told Me" by Spector, was published in the Dangerous Women anthology, also edited by Martin. The anthology was released on December 3, 2013.
Wildcards.com has also published:
* "I Have No Voice and I Must Zoom Meeting" by Paul Cornell