The Mighty Odds (Mighty Odds #1) ~ By Amy Ignatow – 4.5 Stars

Tags

Bullying, Death, Fantasy, Humor, Middle School Fiction, Racism, Superheroes

Thanks to NetGalley and Abrams/Amulet for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: September 13th, 2016

240 Pages

Synopsis: When a sweet nerd, an artsy cartoonist, a social outcast, and the most popular girl in school are involved in a mysterious bus accident, this seemingly random group of kids starts to notice from very strange abilities they did not have before. Artsy Martina can change her eye color. Nerdy Nick can teleport…four inches to the left. Outcast Farshad develops super strength, but only in his thumbs. And Cookie, the It Girl of school’s most popular clique, has suddenly developed the ability to read minds…when those minds are thinking about directions. They are oddly mighty–especially together.

This group–who would never hang out under normal circumstances–must now combine all their strengths to figure out what happened during the bus accident. With alternating narratives from each of the heroes, including illustrated pieces from Martina.

The start to a new series by Amy Ignatow, author of The Popularity Papers, The Mighty Odds is off to a rollicking good start. Ignatow has taken the theme of misfit kids, attaining superpowers, banding together to save the world, turned it on it’s head and throws in bullying, racism, and middle school politics for good measure. And unbelievably this works! Each character is richly drawn. For example Cookie, the only black kid in school has carved out a place for herself as the leader of the popular clique. She actually has more in common then she thinks with Farshad who at the beginning of the book she derisively refers to as “The Arab Kid” or even worse “Terror Boy”. But she’s not the only one guilty of using stereotypes to label her schoolmates. One of my favorite characters, Jay, whose somewhat ADD and always looks at the positive side to life is enamored with Cookie and calls her his “gorgeous Nubian queen” and says that someday they’ll “make coffee-colored babies”. He comes from a small town and Cookie is the only black person he’s ever met. Coming from a smallish town myself which is definitely not ethically diverse, I can understand this somewhat, but it still made me cringe. Also addressed is Farshad being the victim of anti-Muslim sentiment, and Nick’s dealing with his dying father. There are so many heavy issues brought up, but balancing those are some truly funny moments. Also adding to the appeal are Martina’s illustrations. Martina actually reminded me a little of Luna Lovegood from the Harry Potter series. She has a kind of quirky, zany view of the world, but once you really pay attention to what she’s saying/drawing, somehow it all makes sense. The ending leaves things open for the next book as the mystery of who exactly the villains are and what are they up to isn’t really answered. This first book mainly serves as an introduction to this band of misfits while successfully working in societal issues along the way. It’s funny and poignant at the same time, and I believe it’s one of the more clever and appealing books for tweens that I’ve read this year. 

Black Widow: Forever Red ~ by Margaret Stohl – 4.0 Stars

Tags

Adventure, Black Widow, Marvel Comics, S.H.I.E.L.D., Superheroes, Suspense, YA Fiction

 I received this e-Arc from NetGalley and Disney Book Group/Marvel Press, in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: October 13th, 2015

Synopsis: Natasha Romanoff is one of the world’s most lethal assassins. Trained from a young age in the arts of death and deception, Natasha was given the title of Black Widow by Ivan Somodorov, her brutal teacher at the Red Room, Moscow’s infamous academy for operatives.

Ava Orlova is just trying to fit in as an average Brooklyn teenager, but her life has been anything but average. The daughter of a missing Russian quantum physicist, Ava was once subjected to a series of ruthless military experiments–until she was rescued by Black Widow and placed under S.H.I.E.L.D. protection. Ava has always longed to reconnect with her mysterious savior, but Black Widow isn’t really the big sister type. 

Until now.

When children all over Eastern Europe begin to go missing, and rumors of smuggled Red Room tech light up the dark net, Natasha suspects her old teacher has returned–and that Ava Orlova might be the only one who can stop him. To defeat the madman who threatens their future, Natasha and Ava must unravel their pasts. Only then will they discover the truth about the dark-eyed boy with an hourglass tattoo who haunts Ava’s dreams…

At fifty-years-old, I’m still a comic book geek at heart, so when I first heard that this book was in the works last year I was a little excited.

Naturally, when it appeared on NetGalley I immediately requested it, and when I was approved, I want you all to know I was the epitome of calm, cool, and collected, and never reacted like this: 

Or this:

Or even this:

No. I’ve been patiently waiting to read and review this until it was a little closer to the release date. I started reading about 3:00 yesterday afternoon, and after a few unwelcome interruptions like my husband requesting supper, and me not being able to resist watching the premiere of Scream Queens, I finally finished about 2:30 this morning. So, was it everything I hoped for? For the most part I give a resounding “Yes!”

Margaret Stohl does an excellent job capturing the essence of Natasha Romanoff, aka, Black Widow. I’ve always had a sort of love/hate thing going with this character. On the one hand she’s an awesome, kick-ass heroine who takes no prisoners, yet at times, she also comes across as being cold and remote, which makes her a little bit unlikable. Stohl keeps all her strengths while also delving into her traumatic past, which makes for a much more sympathetic character that readers can relate to. For me, Black Widow actually winds up taking over the story. I’m not sure if this was Stohl’s intention, but I wound up impatiently skimming through the sections with Ava and Alex, so I could get back to Natasha.

That’s not to say that Ava and Alex weren’t interesting. They each came with an intriguing backstory. Ava with her ties to Black Widow, and the Red Room, is a sympathetic and appealing character who gives an imaginative spin to that particular mythology arc. And Alex, although he started out as rather a bland personality, quickly evolved into something much more than just the romantic love interest of Ava’s. Their relationship is definitely a case of the dreaded and predictable insta-love, but there’s so much action going on that it never really got to the point of being annoying.

Rounding out the characters are Agent Coulson,

and Tony Stark.

Although they’re strictly there as supporting characters and only make brief appearances, once again Stohl does a wonderful job capturing their personalities. Tony Stark, with his suave, devil-may-care attitude, and Coulson’s dry sense of humor literally leap off the page. I honestly felt as though I was watching an Avenger’s movie, or ABC’ s Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.!

The villain, Ivan Somodorov was your typical over-the-top Marvel nemesis, but I’ve found this to be the same case with evil-doers in the comics, films, and tv series. I’ve always gotten the sense that far less time is spent on developing their characters, but for a few exceptions like The Flash’s Eobard Thawn, aka, Reverse Flash. This is just my humble opinion mind you.

The plot itself is fast-paced, and the action never lets up. The fight scenes are particularly spectacular, and I found myself wincing in sympathy during several of them. This is definitely classic spy stuff with plenty of high-tech gadgetry, disguises, and chase scenes. I also loved the inclusion of Russian words and phrases which pepper the story. They’re beautifully written in, and were a continual reminder that many of the characters have ties to Russia. 

Overall I found Black Widow: Forever Red to be a thrilling and imaginative start to a new series. While staying true to Black Widow’s origin story, there’s plenty of new twists and turns to entice fans, as well as attract readers not familiar with the Marvel universe. As of yet, I haven’t heard of a reaction from Stan Lee, but I can’t imagine he won’t be pleased with this latest interpretation of his creations. While technically a YA book, there’s plenty here to appeal to adult readers. I’m highly anticipating the next book! For right now though, after that late night reading session, I’m going to take a nap.

Powerless (The Hero Agenda #1) ~ by Tera Lynn Childs and Tracy Deebs – 3.5 Stars

Tags

Friendship, Superheroes, YA Fiction

 I received this e-Arc from NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire in exchange for an honest review.

Release Date: 6/2/15

~ Kenna is tired of being “normal”. The only thing special about her is that she isn’t special at all. Which is frustrating in a world of absolutes. Villains, like the one who killed her father, are bad. Heroes, like her mother and best friend, are good. And Kenna, unlike everyone else around her, is completely ordinary—which she hates.

She’s secretly working on an experiment that will land her a place among the Heroes, but when a Villain saves her life during a break-in at her lab, Kenna discovers there’s a whole lot of grey area when it comes to good and evil and who she can trust…After all…not all strength comes from superpowers.

I’m a fan of both authors so I was quite happy when I was approved by NetGalley for this. Plus, being the superhero geek that I am, I was excited to see what the pairing of Childs and Deebs would create in this genre. While I wasn’t blown away by Powerless, I found it to be an enjoyable beginning to a new series.

As it says in the blurb, Kenna is a normal teen surrounded by people who have superpowers. Her scientist mother has been secretly giving her injections which make her immune to the powers of both heroes and villains. This has come in handy several times, but Kenna still feels disconnected without any real powers of her own. As she’s working in her mother’s lab one night she suddenly finds herself under attack by three Villains, that is until one of them saves her, and she finds out that a group of Heroes are hatching something pretty evil, and the Villains may not be as bad as she’s always been led to believe.

So, here’s what I liked. Kenna’s a great character who more than holds her own even without powers. She’s got a wonderful  sense of humor and doesn’t spend a lot of time moping about everything that’s gone wrong in her life. She knows what she wants and isn’t afraid to do what it takes to achieve her goals. She also has no problem in setting aside those plans to do the right thing. Draven, her villainous love interest, opens her eyes to what’s really happening, and some of their interactions are quite explosive. They actually argue quite a bit, but you can still see the chemistry building between them. The secondary characters are fantastic as well, especially Kenna’s loyal best friend Rebel who definitely  lives up to her name. This is an action packed story which grabs you from the very first page. The descriptions of everyone’s powers are fascinating which add to the intriguing plot. I also liked the exploration of what makes someone a hero and what makes a villain. 

And here’s what didn’t work for me. I was really disappointed with the worldbuilding. It starts off well, but quickly flounders. For example, there’s no real explanation as to why the Villains are so bad. Beyond Kenna’s father being killed by one, there’s not very much information given about their evil deeds. Actually there’s not really any information given regarding either the Villains or the Heroes actions in the outside world. All the attention is spent on the characters and the central plot, but there’s a gaping hole where the background should have been. The whole thing just left me wanting more. I’m greedy like that. 

Despite its flaws, I still think Powerless is a worthwhile read. The characters are great and provide quite a few laugh-out-loud moments, and the story is compelling. Hopefully the worldbuilding will be more fully developed in the next book.

 

 

 

 

The Zodiac Legacy: Covergence ( Zodiac #1 ) ~ by Stan Lee, Stuart Moore, & Andie Tong ( illustrations ) – 4.0 Stars

Tags

Chinese Zodiac, Graphic Novels, Multiculturalism, Superheroes

 Publishing date: January 27, 2015. This review is for an ebook arc provided to me by Disney Press and NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Teenager Steven Lee is on a school field trip in China. Steven himself is Chinese-American, and while on a tour of a museum it seems as though he knows more than the obviously distracted tour guide. After hearing some mysterious screaming Steven decides to embrace his inner superhero and follow her as she enters a hidden door and descends a long staircase into a strange basement. He is shocked to see a man being hit by multiple beams of light, which it turns out, are actually giving him the powers of all the signs of the Chinese Zodiac: Dragon, Goat, Horse, Dog, Ox, Monkey, Rooster, Rabbit, Pig, Rat, Snake, and Tiger. This would be the evil Maxwell who isn’t exactly planning on using his newfound powers for world peace. No, he’s planning on keeping the strongest power, that of the Dragon, for himself and passing on the other powers to people who will do his bidding. Something unexpected happens though and Steven winds up with the power of the Tiger and now it’s up to him, Jasmine the “tour guide”, and Carlos a technical wizard to stop his nefarious plot. Unfortunately, while Maxwell is attempting to capture Steven and Jasmine ( who also has the power of the Dragon ), there is an explosion and the rest of the Zodiac powers are released into the atmosphere. Once there, certain people around the world unwittingly pull the powers into themselves. If Steven, Jasmine, and Carlos are to have any hope in defeating Maxwell, they have to track these people down and convince them to join their team.

This graphically illustrated novel is vintage Stan Lee with it’s classic over-the-top villains and earnest heros determined to stop them. It’s amazing when you realize the man is 91 years old! What I really liked about this first book is all the different cultures represented. While the base of the story is the Chinese Zodiac, you’ve got heroes from other countries such as France, Ireland, and South Africa. The graphics are absolutely gorgeous! Here’s just one example: 

Even on my Kindle you can see every exquisite detail. While they come out rather small at first, if you double click on them the images enlarge to what I assume will be the full size in the print editions. While Steven is obviously the focus of the story, each of the other characters are well written and given their own voice. The action is fast paced and makes it difficult to put the book down. The powers are fascinating and build upon talents people already have. I did find a couple of them confusing however. For example: South African Duane has the power of the Pig, which is basically control over everything that’s electronic. Huh? And there’s Dog, a villain, who actually grows sharp teeth, hair, claws, etc. when he’s accessing his power. He’s the only one who really does this, although Monkey also attains attributes of his namesake. But then isn’t part of reading a novel or comic like this suspending disbelief? Even at over 400 pages I can see The Zodiac Legacy being hugely popular with middle-schoolers, YAs, and adult fans of Stan Lee. 

The Brokenhearted, by Amelia Kahaney

Tags

Adventure, Mystery, Superheroes, YA

 Holy Bionic Ballerina, Batman! With all the superhero books flooding the market, some soar, and some go, well, splat. The Brokenhearted flies sort of in the middle. Anthem Fleet should be the epitome of a happy teen girl. She lives in the privileged North Side of Bedlam City, her parents are successful developers who are on first name basis with all the most important business people and politicians, and Anthem herself is a prima ballerina. No one realizes she is feeling stifled and needs to escape until she breaks up with her gorgeous, popular, but potentially psychotic boyfriend and starts dating Gavin, who lives on the South Side which is home to the poor and the criminals who prey upon them. One night while Anthem and Gavin are at his apartment, he is kidnapped by three masked villains, and Anthem is told if she wants him to live she needs to get a hold of $250,000 for ransom. Desperate, and running home she falls off a bridge into the frigid water below. When she awakens she is told by her rescuer Ford and a renegade doctor that she had died and the only way to revive her was to replace her heart with one made from a hummingbird’s heart and mechanical parts. Anthem soon discovers that she is now developing super abilities like incredible speed, strength, and even flying. Will she be able to rescue Gavin with her new powers? First the bad parts. I liked Anthem, but she made some unbelievably questionable decisions, even for her age. Even more incredulously, her bodyguard Serge actually assists her. It didn’t really make sense. Bedlam City is obviously modeled after Gotham City where you have your model, upstanding citizens, the poor that they look down their noses at, and the sort of clownish, and at times not very bright villains. I didn’t mind this, because Amelia Kahaney manages to give her story a sense of uniqueness. There are a couple of big twists. One I had already been counting on, the other, at the end totally caught me by surprise. I will definitely read the sequel Invisible, which is coming out on Oct. 7th. I don’t have a problem recommending this. I would just advise you borrow The Brokenhearted at your local library instead of purchasing it.