II Crimsonstreak

Chris Fairborne, the speedy superhero known as Crimsonstreak (first met in I, Crimsonstreak), has a simple power and complicated problems. His world is littered with the scars and side effects of a complex, violent past. America is still recovering from being taken over by the evil doppelganger of Chris’s father, Colonel Chaos. Chris spent time in a hospital for the criminally insane, and his mother, Miss Lightspeed, has never been the same since she returned from the dead. Then Earth is caught between two alien races, the fabric of reality hangs in the balance, and Chris must somehow solve it all by running really fast. The usual issues of identity and self-determination come up repeatedly, as do Chris’s myriad daddy and mommy issues. An inconclusive, unsatisfying ending suggests that this is the first half of an epic rather than a complete novel, but the story will nevertheless appeal to superhero fans with its absorbing worldbuilding and its warm, engaging protagonist. (Oct.)