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Sergeant Kapp Johnson and his stepbrother, both American soldiers, are captured by the Nazis during a WWII battle. Instead of being killed, the two are taken prisoner and brought to Dr. Weiss' lab. Weiss intends to give both a fatal and terrible injection, but when it is Johnson's turn, Weiss confuses his vial and gives Johnson an experimental serum meant to extend life towards immortality. Johnson, waking from what should have been his death, finds that his athletic abilities are all magnified and escapes. A young Polish boy, Adok, who was stolen from his parents because he displayed "biologically valuable" characteristics, is also in the lab and given the serum by Weiss. Adok's kidnapping is part of the Lebensborn program. These events occur as the Allied forces are closing in on the Nazi's and Hitler's suicide has been announced. Weiss, Adok, and a few others flee his lab to escape the Allies. Weiss knows he is dying and gives a couple of soldiers and his nephew the serum before he dies. Adok and Weiss' nephew, Hans, are left a large sum of money and plan to board a ship to Canada. Johnson arrives in America and is met by his wife, who has learned of his injection from a service medic. Looking across the ocean, Adok and Hans spy Johnson and wonder what will happen when they all inevitably meet.
This first book of Davis' series clearly establishes it as alternative historical fiction. It is set within the context of WWII, but it adds the science fiction elements of the serum based on the Nazi experiments during the period. The two main characters are linked in two ways: they are singled out based on their race, and they undergo dramatic changes due to the super-soldier serum. Adok is kidnapped from his family and subjected to a mental and physical education program meant to turn him into a proper Nazi. This serves to highlight the Nazi Lebensborn program and is used to establish Adok's character. We see that his internal instincts guide him to be loyal and compassionate, establishing his resistance to the training. We are also reminded of Adok's youth, as he is still desperate for a mother figure and develops similar feelings for some of the women who provide his care and education. This illustrates the kind of mental manipulations children and adolescents were subject to during the Nazi era, including the Lebensborn program and the Hitler Youth initiative. The American soldier, Johnson, is also singled out due to his race. As an African American, Johnson is perceived as undesirable by Dr. Weiss and is considered a suitable subject for his experimentation. It is impossible to ignore the parallels to the story of Isaiah Bradley, who is found in the mythology of the Captain America comics published by Marvel. In each story, a super soldier serum is developed in the 1940s as part of each side's effort to gain an advantage over the other during World War II. In each, the racism against African Americans results in them being considered good test subjects for various experiments. Both Bradley and Johnson end up receiving a successful dose of the super-soldier serum. Each man realizes that even their own governments will hunt and fear an African American super soldier. This story arc is often seen as tied to that of the Tuskegee Syphilis Study, a racist and extremely unethical experiment by the United States on its own African American citizens.
This introductory book to Davis' series establishes the history of the character's powers, explains why the powers manifest differently, and entices readers to prepare for what is to come when the characters all come together in a future book. The narrative is clearly written and fast-paced, resulting in an easy weekend read. Readers who are interested in the superhero genre may find this an engaging starting point for a new and entertaining series.