I bought this book after it was recommended to me and I wound up staying up late to finish it. I loved it! I was a skosh annoyed that the book ended sooner than I expected (though that was mostly my Kindle saying it was 91% completed because I didn't realize there was a short story at the end), but the book absolutely didn't end on a cliffhanger.
It was the kind of ending that yes, didn't tie up everything (which would require it to end "and then everyone died" or "and then the heat death of the universe happened" for any book to do that). But it was the kind of ending that was satisfying because it closes out that specific story being told and leaves the possibility open for more, which is fun to consider and speculate on. The story was Anna's attempts to take down Supercollider and it told that story, while setting up the possibility of sequels telling new stories.
So I wasn't going to write a review of this book, but I made the mistake of looking at some of the one star reviews and I'm really puzzled. I don't know if people didn't finish the book, only skimmed it, heard about it secondhand, or what because a lot of the elements they complain about not being a thing are very much a thing in the book.
Warning! Spoilers ahead!
On the complaint that Anna was part of a kidnapping plot of the mayor's kid and held the mind control doohickey at him and is therefore a villain and not a good person and/or the story would be better if she was simply an innocent bystander:
First of all, she was a temp hired to do spreadsheets and the villain ordered her to attend an in-person event under false pretenses simply because he wanted a woman there so he could look like a progressive villain. Which was explicitly stated in the book. And, having finished the book less than 12 hours ago, I distinctly remember that the villain shoved the doohickey into her hands as she tried to prevent him from doing so, then she stood there in shock trying to figure out what to do and then the heroes burst in and all hell broke loose. Hardly part of a mastermind plot.
However, that's just petty details. Anna never once paints herself as an innocent bystander. She freely admits to being a hench. The entire point, which was discussed over and over and over, is that **it shouldn't matter if she was an innocent bystander.** Permanent physical disability and a lifetime of pain is not justified for a temp job doing spreadsheets, regardless of who she works for, whether it's a supervillain or a mundane corporation that does villainous things. Her femur was shattered into pieces (google spiral fracture) which required a lot of emergency surgery, metal rods, physical therapy, and a lifetime of pain and physical disability simply because the superhero did not care enough about how much damage his super strength inflicted on the bodies of normal people.
On the complaint that the book ignored all the collateral damage from the villains and therefore the heroes are saving lives:
The book covered this in great detail in multiple chapters. It was explicitly stated that the numbers for collateral damage caused by the villains were far less than those caused by the heroes, regardless of whether the plots succeeded. The book even had a part where the greater supervillain community, save some D-listers desperate to raise their cred, long stopped engaging in mass bloodshed because the cost was too high. And even when the villains caused collateral damage, it was often limited to their henches, whereas the superheroes didn't discriminate. Anna also did not approve of how some villains used henches as cannon fodder, but she still did the numbers.
The book also discussed how Supercollider caused significantly greater injuries and property damage when his sidekick was working with him because, even though his sidekick was essentially The Flash, Supercollider, smashed buildings and spines without caution if his sidekick was even slightly in danger. This was discussed as a problem because it meant Supercollider cared more about the safety of one person with superpowers than the dozens of normal people who couldn't survive his backhand or a building collapsing on them (BTW, many of those people were innocent bystanders so no sympathy for them, I guess?).
The book also talked about how Quantum Entanglement actually wasn't one of those superheroes. She went out of her way to NOT harm bystanders, showing that causing so much death and destruction was a choice the superheroes made because they didn't feel the consequences of their actions.
On the complaint that Anna is a bad person because she never felt remorse:
I mean, that's straight up incorrect. She spent a lot of time feeling remorse. That was an enormous part of her struggle as a character.
On the complaint that Anna didn't have PTSD:
Again, incorrect. She had it in spades. She had panic attacks and nightmares from the start. I guess people must have also missed the part where, after the superhero kidnapped her, imprisoned her, tortured her, and was having her lobotomized, she had PTSD flashbacks when encountering specific smells or going for a walk.
On the complaint that people chose to be villains:
In the third act, the book revealed and discussed how this wasn't necessarily the case. The organization that oversaw the selecting and training of superheroes (the Draft) also trained supervillains, many of those they trained (which were usually taken as young children) did not get to choose their path. At best, the Draft was actively engaged in creating supervillains.
On the complaint that Quantum Entanglement never felt remorse for selling out for petty reasons:
I mean, she did. But she was also trapped in a relationship with an abuser (Supercollider) for years, being part of the coverups of his crimes, literally used her powers to make it look like he could fly so the Draft could market him as a better hero, so it was less about selling out for petty reasons than it was refusing to be part of criminal acts, for which she was punished by being framed for murder. It was literally in the book.
On the complaint that Anna was a shitty friend:
She readily admitted it and tried to make amends, but decided to respect June's wishes to distance herself from Anna. Which, by the way, happened after their reconciliation. June said the reason she couldn't be friends anymore wasn't because Anna was a shitty friend, but because she couldn't bear the emotional toll of the possibility of again watching Anna get dragged away by the superhero's goons to be tortured.
On the complaint that Anna was never arrested for the incident with the mayor's kid:
The police declined to press charges, given the scope of her injuries, but also because they and Supercollider, who was with the police in her hospital room (dressed as a police officer with them) wanted her to say it was the villain who injured her so they could cover it up. That was a huge part of the book: the corruption in the police, the Draft, and the superhero community covering up the crimes of superheroes.
Here's the thing about this book: it's not clean and tidy. It does not paint a world of Superman and Lex Luthor, where Lex is always up to something nefarious and Superman always foils him and no one gets hurt. The book is more like the real world, where almost everyone has driven over the speed limit or taken a post-it from work, or took an extra five minutes on their break, or worked for an employer who uses forced labor practices. No one is an innocent bystander and no one deserves to have their lives crushed because titans with too much power don't care where they step.
Enjoy fast, free delivery, exclusive deals, and award-winning movies & TV shows with Prime
Try Prime
and start saving today with fast, free delivery
Loading your book clubs
There was a problem loading your book clubs. Please try again.
Not in a club? Learn more
Join or create book clubs
Choose books together
Track your books
Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free.
Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.
Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.
Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.
Frequently bought together
Similar items that may ship from close to you
Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1
Popular Highlights in this book
“To seek vengeance and power instead of cowering when the world punishes you. That’s what they think evil is, do they not?”Highlighted by 335 Kindle readers- “Fear accompanies the possibility of death. Calm shepherds its certainty.”Highlighted by 302 Kindle readers
- I wondered what it must be like to be so mediocre and so confident at the same time.Highlighted by 261 Kindle readers
From the Publisher
|
|
|
|
|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
About the author
Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Reviews with images
All Photos
Neat Concept, Poorly Executed
I wanted to like this. I expected to like this based on the description, but it fell short in so many ways.Cons firstPlot:*The plot is based on a huge flaw: the narrator does a cost analysis for the damage that superheroes cost society (in lives and property damage, etc). But she doesn't do a cost-BENEFIT analysis. She fails to mention how much supervillains cost society? Would there be a need for superheroes if supervillains didn't use their powers to accumulate wealth and exploit the weak like the old mafia bosses?(I think there is an episode of Jessica Jones that explores this in a more honest way, partly because the aggrieved characters are civilians that are collateral damage.)The author could not explore the cost-Benefit truthfully because the plot would fall apart.*Plot feels forced in sections. It reads like a detective who finds evidence to support his theory instead of letting the evidence point to the truth.*Plot points introduced then left hanging.Dialogue:*Dialogue feels forced in sections.Prose:Sentences clunky and poorly structured. (There were a few good sentences here and there.) But overall there were a lot of amateur mistakes. I had to reread whole paragraphs, reread sentences multiple times. The poor writing kept pulling me out of the story.(For context, I read 70-90 books a year. Reading comprehension usually only becomes an issue when the writing is clunky.)Characterization:*Characterization was inconsistent.*Protagonist read like a Mary Sue character.*Two dimensional characters with diversity tacked on like a bow.*Author discards the black best friend character halfway through the book because she's inconvenient to the plot.*characters are just there to prop up protagonist.Pros:Occasionally good metaphors/analogies.Narrator voice had some fun quirks.I appreciated the female rage.SPOILERS:Author spends a bunch of time telling us how Anna's upgrades include infrared and ultraviolet vision. With this new ability she can see Leviathan's shoulder eye spots. But when Leviathan is presumed dead, Anna spends pages wondering why she doesn't believe he's dead. With infrared / ultraviolet vision she should have recognized that it wasn't him right away. It felt like the author dragged it out because she needed the word count.*You can't tell us a character is super smart and then have her behave in a way that is unintelligent.*At the end of the novel, Leviathan cries out in pain when he sees Supercollider's mangled body. But his grief is never explored. Leviathan was suddenly interesting and the author did nothing with it. She just dropped it. It felt lazy.Overall, a disappointing read.
Top reviews from other countries
Amazon Customer
Excellent book, great viewpoint
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 24, 2023Rene Berlin
Stories about superheroes and villains?
Reviewed in Germany on December 16, 2020
