Make no mistake: this is a Batman novel for folks who enjoy the character. The whole No Man's Land premise is pretty extreme, but no more so than the idea of a guy dressed as a flying rodent fighting a clown. But who goes looking to stories about costumed superheroes for naturalistic documents of society?
In a lot of ways, this is the ultimate Batman story: How does a man who decides to work outside the law function when the system of law breaks down? As a fictional examination of how society would behave if all the traditional infrastructures disappeared, featuring familiar characters from popular culture, this book works just fine. Call it science fiction, call it a metaphor, call it a fantasy or a comic book without pictures. It's still a lot of fun.
The earthquake plunged Gotham into chaos. The national decision to isolate the city sends it into a deadly abyss. The cells of Arkham Asylum have been opened, releasing dangerous and psychotic criminals like Bane, Poison Ivy, Two-Face, and the Joker. These criminally insane villains have taken over NO MAN'S LAND. Only a handful of former Gotham City cops, a few superheroes, and Batman remain to protect the survivors, but infighting leaves them divided. No path gives any hope to these brave men and women or for those they vow to protect.
This adaptation of one of 1999's best running comic book story lines works as readers feel the devastation, loss, and helplessness confronting the citizens including the superheroes. The tale is filled with non-stop action. Though readers may wonder about a federal decision to cut off Gotham City, politics caused that response. Wizard magazine has Lex Luther as the 2-1 favorite to have forced the government into making that decision. Fans of Batman and anyone who enjoys a post holocaust story line will fully relish this novel and the comic books that Greg Rucka derived the story from. New "Dark Knight" fans should also try 1998's fabulous detective story, THE LONG HALLOWEEN.
Harriet Klausner