George R. R. Martin Presents Wild Cards: House Rules ( A Novel in Stories)

An original anthology centered around one very unusual house in Cornwall which serves as a nexus to the multiverse—set in the Wild Cards universe created by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Game of Thrones.

An alien virus ravages the world, with effects as random as a hand of cards. Those infected either draw the black queen and die, draw an ace and receive superpowers, or draw the joker and become bizarrely mutated. But whether joker or ace or a bit of both, few turn down an invite to Keun.

The island of Keun lies off the coast of Cornwall, connected to the mainland only by an ancient, tidal causeway. It is a magical place, where anything can happen.

The mansion crowning the island is owned by Lord Branok, a mysterious billionaire who is also a wild card of some sort—but whether he is an ace, a joker or a knave, no one is quite sure.

Parties at Loveday House are legendary—for adventure, for intrigue, for love, for danger—and guests may take on whatever personae and masks they choose when they attend. Parts of the house seem to exist out of time, and the Wild Hunt is reputed to ride the island. And haunting the house is its original owner: a woman determined to regain control over her domain—by any means necessary.

With stories by: Stephen Leigh, Mary Anne Mohanraj, Caroline Spector, Kevin Andrew Murphy, Peter Newman, and Peadar Ó Guilín.