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A review by mallorypen
The Extraordinaries by TJ Klune
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
If you enjoy secondhand embarrassment, this is the book for you!
In all seriousness, the cringe of this novel was strong. I get that we're in the mind of a 16 year old boy with ADHD and apparently a high threshold for shame, but I found Nick to be insufferable as a protagonist. The level of devotion he earns from Seth doesn't necessarily make sense - aside from the "becoming friends on the playground as kids" element, I don't understand why Seth likes him so much. Nick is entirely self-centered for 90% of the novel, and even his moments of bravery and selflessness aren't entirely altruistic.
The bad self-insert RPF fanfiction element didn't help with the cringe, either. And I don't think I reacted strongly to it because it was cringy and bad; but it did feel like TJ Klune was inviting us to laugh at Nick through his bad fanfiction, which didn't sit right.
It might have been a stylistic choice, but I also found some of the dialogue to be a little wooden - especially from Owen, who sounded more and more like a comic book villain as the story progressed.
The redeeming factors for this novel were mostly from the relationship between Nick and his father (very believable), the quasi-but-not-entirely unique take on superhero stories, and for the moments of great heart; I personally don't think this is an example of TJ Klune at his heartfelt, empathetic best, but there were definitely bits and pieces that felt poignant and wholesome amid the nonsensical choices that felt like even a step too far for the excuse of "but they were dumb teenage boys."
All in all, not my favorite. I even technically DNF'd because I couldn't stand the final bit of bad fanfic at the end.
In all seriousness, the cringe of this novel was strong. I get that we're in the mind of a 16 year old boy with ADHD and apparently a high threshold for shame, but I found Nick to be insufferable as a protagonist. The level of devotion he earns from Seth doesn't necessarily make sense - aside from the "becoming friends on the playground as kids" element, I don't understand why Seth likes him so much. Nick is entirely self-centered for 90% of the novel, and even his moments of bravery and selflessness aren't entirely altruistic.
The bad self-insert RPF fanfiction element didn't help with the cringe, either. And I don't think I reacted strongly to it because it was cringy and bad; but it did feel like TJ Klune was inviting us to laugh at Nick through his bad fanfiction, which didn't sit right.
It might have been a stylistic choice, but I also found some of the dialogue to be a little wooden - especially from Owen, who sounded more and more like a comic book villain as the story progressed.
The redeeming factors for this novel were mostly from the relationship between Nick and his father (very believable), the quasi-but-not-entirely unique take on superhero stories, and for the moments of great heart; I personally don't think this is an example of TJ Klune at his heartfelt, empathetic best, but there were definitely bits and pieces that felt poignant and wholesome amid the nonsensical choices that felt like even a step too far for the excuse of "but they were dumb teenage boys."
All in all, not my favorite. I even technically DNF'd because I couldn't stand the final bit of bad fanfic at the end.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Death of parent