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ejthephoenix's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
mysterious
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
4.25
This book is super special and really funny. It's about two extraordinary people who become the best of friends and how they learn that they can choose who they are. I loved all the characters in the book and the plot was a little confusing but I loved it as well. I wanted to read this book because I'm a huge fan of Marvel and I love superheroes. It did not disappoint. This book makes me want to read more Superhero novels! :D
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction and Alcohol
Minor: Grief, Mental illness, Death, and Blood
readingthroughinfinity's review
adventurous
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
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? Yes
4.0
I stumbled across this while scrolling through Scribd and thought it would be my kind of thing (superheroes + mystery). Cut to a year later and I finally picked up the audiobook as part of my Asian readathon TBR, and it surprised me in all the best ways.
The narrative is funny and direct, the mystery surrounding the protagonists' amnesia is gripping, and the world-building feels very believable. Jamie and Zoe's friendship was definitely my favourite part of this novel. They begin the story as nemeses (though they don't stay that way for long) and end it as close friends, whose quest to recover their lost memories has bonded them for life. I really liked the fact that Zoe had super strength and near-invincibility, and she often had to save Jamie from moments of peril, as this subverts the usual stereotyped gendered roles we get in superhero-themed media.
Perhaps my favourite element of this book is the fact that there's no romance at all (apart from a minor side-romance (we only see the aftereffects of this)). Jamie and Zoe's friendship is a wonderful, strong, fulfilling bond and they don't share a romantic connection or sexual chemistry, which I LOVED. The author shows us that friendship is just as strong as a romantic relationship and that platonic love is in no way inferior to romantic love, and I adored that.
The narrative gets a little convoluted during some of the explanations of the antagonist's plans and a few parts of the final climax felt a bit too 'convenient' for me, but forgave these issues pretty easily because the great final twist and satisfying conclusion.
Content warnings for violence, amnesia, past death of a partner, on-page death of a spouse, building fires, gun violence, emotional manipulation, alcohol addiction.
The narrative is funny and direct, the mystery surrounding the protagonists' amnesia is gripping, and the world-building feels very believable. Jamie and Zoe's friendship was definitely my favourite part of this novel. They begin the story as nemeses (though they don't stay that way for long) and end it as close friends, whose quest to recover their lost memories has bonded them for life. I really liked the fact that Zoe had super strength and near-invincibility, and she often had to save Jamie from moments of peril, as this subverts the usual stereotyped gendered roles we get in superhero-themed media.
Perhaps my favourite element of this book is the fact that there's no romance at all (apart from a minor side-romance (we only see the aftereffects of this)). Jamie and Zoe's friendship is a wonderful, strong, fulfilling bond and they don't share a romantic connection or sexual chemistry, which I LOVED. The author shows us that friendship is just as strong as a romantic relationship and that platonic love is in no way inferior to romantic love, and I adored that.
The narrative gets a little convoluted during some of the explanations of the antagonist's plans and a few parts of the final climax felt a bit too 'convenient' for me, but forgave these issues pretty easily because the great final twist and satisfying conclusion.
Content warnings for violence, amnesia, past death of a partner, on-page death of a spouse, building fires, gun violence, emotional manipulation, alcohol addiction.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Fire/Fire injury, Violence, Gun violence, and Addiction
Minor: Death
asphodelashes's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
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? Yes
4.0
This was a fun, lighthearted read. Reminds me of the superhero stuff I watched as a kid.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Confinement, and Mental illness
nebulasaurus's review
adventurous
dark
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
The Narrator for the Audiobook, sadly, does not do great male impressions.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Violence, Cursing, Blood, Body horror, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, and Death
madarauchiha's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
β€οΈ 𧑠π π π π my about / byf / CW info carrd: uchiha-madara π π π π 𧑠β€οΈ
I love but hate superheroes. Not to be an elitist hipster, but marvel and dc comics are incredibly tedious these days. The rote, flashy, emotionless 3 hour long movies and poorly done tv series make me want to avoid the genre altogether. This isn't exactly this.
The best I could relate this to is a sci fi movie. Not a book adaption of a sci fi movie, but definitely one that you'd catch in smaller showings before popping up on daytime television to fill in some slots. It has the potential to become a cult classic.
I like that it wasn't clingy to standard hero vs villain plots. I was expecting a connect the dots, very basic premise, and was glad to find there is a little more thought put into this.
I think the female main character was treated fairly well as far as comic book type superheroes are treated.
I have mixed feelings on how the police were portrayed in this story. They are definitely not heroes in real life and can we please get over copaganda already? Us Asians are not exempt from their brutality, no matter how much you want to be the Model Minority.
I would love to see more from this story line, honestly. It sort of gives me Megamind feelings but not as an exact copy. More like something in the same venn diagram section, you know?
Content warnings:
Minor emetophobia
Major: pro police sentiment, alcohol abuse, gore, death, memory loss, violence, psychiatric abuse, psychiatric institutions, human experimentation, medical abuse, torture, abuse, unreality, demolition, live burial / claustrophobia,
I love but hate superheroes. Not to be an elitist hipster, but marvel and dc comics are incredibly tedious these days. The rote, flashy, emotionless 3 hour long movies and poorly done tv series make me want to avoid the genre altogether. This isn't exactly this.
The best I could relate this to is a sci fi movie. Not a book adaption of a sci fi movie, but definitely one that you'd catch in smaller showings before popping up on daytime television to fill in some slots. It has the potential to become a cult classic.
I like that it wasn't clingy to standard hero vs villain plots. I was expecting a connect the dots, very basic premise, and was glad to find there is a little more thought put into this.
I think the female main character was treated fairly well as far as comic book type superheroes are treated.
I have mixed feelings on how the police were portrayed in this story. They are definitely not heroes in real life and can we please get over copaganda already? Us Asians are not exempt from their brutality, no matter how much you want to be the Model Minority.
I would love to see more from this story line, honestly. It sort of gives me Megamind feelings but not as an exact copy. More like something in the same venn diagram section, you know?
Content warnings:
Minor emetophobia
Major: pro police sentiment, alcohol abuse, gore, death, memory loss, violence, psychiatric abuse, psychiatric institutions, human experimentation, medical abuse, torture, abuse, unreality, demolition, live burial / claustrophobia,
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Gore, Death, Torture, Violence, Stalking, Physical abuse, Medical trauma, and Forced institutionalization
Minor: Vomit
thereadingrambler's review
adventurous
emotional
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? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Alcoholism, and Medical content
booksthatburn's review
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
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
5.0
βA superhero and a super villain meet in AA and decide to team upβ is a remarkably simple and excellent premise, brilliantly told and nearly flawlessly executed in WE COULD BE HEROES. Their changing relationship feels really natural, with a lot of give-and-take of trust and information, slowly building into a finale where I was on the edge of my seat to find out what would happen.
Above all else this book is fun. Yes, thereβs danger (sometimes a lot of danger), and the stakes are really huge for the characters, but watching them was an adventure. The way they went about their heroics and their villainy totally fit their personalities and helped tell me more about them, long before they were explaining themselves to each other. Itβs heartfelt and earnest without being sappy. The main characters are vibrant and very distinct from each other, they have totally different ways of seeing the world and it was really easy to track who was who. I liked the way their individual goals fit into their eventual shared goal without feeling like either of them completely changed just to suit the plot.
I love this and Iβd happily read more in this setting if it ever gets a sequel, but itβs very satisfying as a stand-alone superhero story.
Above all else this book is fun. Yes, thereβs danger (sometimes a lot of danger), and the stakes are really huge for the characters, but watching them was an adventure. The way they went about their heroics and their villainy totally fit their personalities and helped tell me more about them, long before they were explaining themselves to each other. Itβs heartfelt and earnest without being sappy. The main characters are vibrant and very distinct from each other, they have totally different ways of seeing the world and it was really easy to track who was who. I liked the way their individual goals fit into their eventual shared goal without feeling like either of them completely changed just to suit the plot.
I love this and Iβd happily read more in this setting if it ever gets a sequel, but itβs very satisfying as a stand-alone superhero story.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Blood, Death, Gun violence, and Violence
Minor: Drug use
CW for drug use (backstory), alcoholism, blood, gun violence, violence, major character death, death.
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