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juliebites's review against another edition
5.0
So good i had to listen to it again to find all the missed hints from the first time around.
jayburding's review against another edition
2.0
I'm calling this a DNF though I did skim read to the end. I picked this up because the blurb sounded like everything I wanted from a superhero YA, but I nearly tapped out before I even hit 100 pages. The depiction of fanfiction writers is tired and feels a little mean spirited, and that first meeting with Shadow Star was so utterly excruciating I had to skip parts of it. Even before the hero showed up there was no sense of danger in the attempted mugging, even while these teenagers are being threatened with weapons and the MC with panic attack issues is dwelling on the way his mother died. Just glossed over being attacked and went straight to fanboy in so horribly awkward a fashion that the MC would only ever get near Extraordinaries again because they are heavily signposted to be the guys crushing on him already.
The copaganda was a bit much to say the least as it progressed, but was still outstripped by the MC's desire to follow any half baked thought he has and blame it on ADHD, which he is called out on but doesn't really listen. I'm always here for neurodivergent rep, and I did appreciate the decent depiction of his panic attacks, but conflating all of MC's actions with ADHD feels off without interrogating it properly. Tellingly, his neurodivergence seems to go quiet after his dad gets hurt which just seems to line up more with ADHD functioning as a convenient character quirk rather than an intrinsic part of him.
MC's poor decision making seems to exist to fuel the plot, but is not limited to him. Everyone in this is criminally incapable of communicating properly or not being breathtakingly stupid at key moments, which is only partially explained for some of them by being idiot teenagers. From start to finish I could not get over how ridiculous MC's desire to become Extraordinary was, how ridiculous his attempts were, and how it was apparently resolved by his friend/LI saying he was already extraordinary. There's tropes and then there's just cliché.
Also gotta try not to laugh out loud that the superhero's mum is called Martha.
The copaganda was a bit much to say the least as it progressed, but was still outstripped by the MC's desire to follow any half baked thought he has and blame it on ADHD, which he is called out on but doesn't really listen. I'm always here for neurodivergent rep, and I did appreciate the decent depiction of his panic attacks, but conflating all of MC's actions with ADHD feels off without interrogating it properly. Tellingly, his neurodivergence seems to go quiet after his dad gets hurt which just seems to line up more with ADHD functioning as a convenient character quirk rather than an intrinsic part of him.
MC's poor decision making seems to exist to fuel the plot, but is not limited to him. Everyone in this is criminally incapable of communicating properly or not being breathtakingly stupid at key moments, which is only partially explained for some of them by being idiot teenagers. From start to finish I could not get over how ridiculous MC's desire to become Extraordinary was, how ridiculous his attempts were, and how it was apparently resolved by his friend/LI saying he was already extraordinary. There's tropes and then there's just cliché.
Also gotta try not to laugh out loud that the superhero's mum is called Martha.
nicolemcgraw91's review against another edition
4.0
Really enjoy his writing. This book was hilarious, fun and whaaaaaat?? That ending...
va4lent's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
I would die for seth
wtfsurprisedoll's review against another edition
2.0
I’ve never laughed this much while reading a book I also hated. I loved House in the Cerulean Sea and Under the Whispering Door, so I’m really shocked at just how much I hated this. Klune is undoubtedly a very clever writer whose style I like immensely, but it couldn’t save this plotless mess of copaganda and unlikeable characters.
sparkerzillich's review against another edition
4.0
YA superhero books aren't really my thing, but TJ Klune is always the exception. His writing is extraordinary.
gsaliare's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
erockwell729's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0