Reviews with content warning for Violence - The Extraordinaries

This book was consistently hilarious solely because Nick is unbelievably clueless. Like more that I could reasonably believe a real person would be, but I still enjoyed it in the story. Mostly it was obvious where the story was going, but I did go back and forth on who was which extraordinary a few times. But apparently I got cocky because the epilogue to the epilogue pulled the rug right out from under my feet.

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nothingrhymeswithrachel's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.75

Oh my god this book was so frustrating. First, the pro-police stance is gross. Nick’s dad should have been fired, not just demoted and then PROMOTED AT THE END OF THE BOOK. Beyond the constant police dick-sucking going on, the relationships sucked. Every. single. one. Between Nick and his dad? Toxic. Nick and Seth? Seth deserved better. Owen and Nick? What the fuck even was that? Gibby and Jazz? They’re fine I guess but we didn’t see them much. Jazz was my favorite character in this whole book because she minded her own freaking business. Also, can we talk about how actually STUPID Nick is? Dumb. A dumb man. Just because you’re aware that you’re a dumb teenage boy doesn’t make it okay. It is so infuriating to read. Oh my god. Jazz is the only reason this got any stars from me. I am mainly mad at myself because I know I’m going to read the whole trilogy even though they are probably all going to suck like this. Oh well.

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library_dreamer's review against another edition

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adventurous funny inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is not for everyone, but it was for me. It's funny. The main character, Nick, is a clueless but loveable ball of energy. He would be the main thing that makes this not for everyone, though. He has ADHD, which can make him insufferable at times. But there is a lot of overlap with my own brand of ADHD, so I really appreciated the rep and laugh out loud moments. How he is giving his friend some profound advice at one point and then jumping in a polluted river to try and get superpowers at another point.

I loved all of his friends and the relationship he had with his dad. There are some problematic elements concerning his dad and the police department he works for, made worse by the fact that the book was released the day after a very high profile case of police brutality in the U.S., but based on an interview with the author, I am going to withhold judgment on this until I read the sequel this summer.

I would like to know why Klune loves the color cerulean so much, though.

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caidyn's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted mysterious fast-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? Yes

3.75

This book was out of my wheelhouse. I'm not into superheroes and this is a very cutesy book. Are those bad things? Nope. But it's not entirely my thing. I absolutely adored how Klune wove the story. It felt like a YA book with actual teen characters. And the fanfiction? Amazing. It read in that cringey way that fanfiction can. I can't wait to see what the next book brings!

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alibader's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful lighthearted slow-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

2.0

I really, really wanted to enjoy this especially after reading The House in the Cerulean Sea. This book infuriated me almost all the way through.

What I enjoyed: (a short list)
1. Nick's cluelessness (until about the halfway point)
2. The romance (so cute!)
3. The overall premise (I wish I could say the same for the execution)
4. The ending.

What I did not enjoy:
1. The insensitivity towards police brutality and the character of Aaron Bell.
2. The camp - it took away from the story that could've been told and made it look like a bad parody.
3. The dialogue (teenagers do not talk like that)
4.

The constant lying. It didn't make much sense when it was finally revealed and it took too long for Nick to find out the obvious that it really hindered my enjoyment. Also when he found out that Seth, Gibby and practically everyone he knows lied to him it's just.... his fault? And it's all okay?

5. The reveals (I'd like to think that these were intentionally obvious but that didn't make it any more fun - also it was super anti-climatic). The ending wrapped up way too quickly too.
6. The "comedy". One of my biggest gripes with this book was that serious moments didn't make that much of an effect and instead served as "comedic relief" - it wasn't funny.

This is my longest review yet but I truly did want to enjoy this queer superhero series but I was so disappointed. I may give the sequel a try in the future.

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booksbutmakeitgay's review against another edition

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medium-paced

2.0

Some of this was cute, but superhero’s really just aren’t my thing.

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booksthatburn's review against another edition

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DNF page 111 (27% in).
At first I like the lighthearted tone, but then what was initially sweet started feeling cloying: intense without any heft to it, and no relief. Most moments which seemed like they should have emotional weight and importance just didn’t land for me. Scenes which could have been intense were diffused with humor or antics almost instantly. I like humorous tones sometimes, but when nothing is taken seriously the jokes stop feeling funny. I disliked every scene with the MC’s dad (the few that there were). The MC is oblivious about pretty much everything, and it made me want to yell at the book to get, just, anything about what was going on. I stopped trusting that it would handle anything well, and the way the dad controls the MC's medication didn't feel good.

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ronniereadsbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Superheroes and Gay romance! Count me in! This book was super fun! I found myself laughing throughout mainly at Nick’s random comments. I pined over Seth and his obvious love for Nick. I also enjoyed the homage to and parody of other superhero comics like the Burke’s being reminiscent of the Osborne’s from Spider-Man.

I pegged Seth and Owen as Extraordinaries early on. I didn’t get which ones right away but I figured they had powers. From the beginning I was hesitant to see Shadow Star as a hero. By comic book/superhero standards, controlling shadows and/or darkness is more of a villainous power.

All in all, I will say that I enjoyed the journey.

My gripes with the book all deal with Nick. I feel as though he was infantilized at times because of his ADHD. Also it irked me whenever he tried to use his ADHD as a crutch or an excuse for his behavior. Like you are still responsible for your actions diagnosis or not.

I’m super excited for Flash Fire and to see where the story goes next, especially after the tidbit at the end. TJ Klune did a great job with foreshadowing and not outright telling us some things which I appreciate.

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