liz089
Written on Nov 24, 2015
STANDALONE or SERIES.
Series ! This is the first part of The Hero Agenda series. Second book, Relentless, will be released in June 2016.
WHY this book.
I liked that it was a combination between two well-known writers. I’ve never read anything from Tracy Deebs though, but I read multiple books from Tera Lynn Childs. (Recently also Ten Things True Hates About Sloane) I like how easy and simple to read her books are, so I was curious how this would work out.
COVER impressions.
Nice font for the title, love the eyes and sparkles. But well, like usual.. typical YA cover.
FIRST THOUGHTS.
I have so many questions !!! I keep going through it in my head, but well.. I think I have to wait until next year before I get any answers. But the fact that it keeps going through my head is a good sign, meaning that it was catching and interesting enough to remember the story.
I loved the whole GOOD VERSUS EVIL, that it is not as simple as that. The world is not black and white, and good people can do bad things and the other way around.
And.. ofcourse I LOVED the whole Superheroes/Villains part. How cool is that, with all kinds of powers and stuff, awesooooome.
PLOT.
The story is about Kenna, living in a world full of powers, divided into the Heroes and the Villains. Good and evil. At least, that’s what she has always been told. She works in the lab for the Heroes, helping her mom and other scientists. Her mom is some kind of super scientist (is she really someone with powers or just really smart? I don’t remember…) and has developed a serum for Kenna to make her immune for superpowers. Nobody knows about this (not even the Heroes). So then a couple of teenage Villains break in, searching for someone they claim the Heroes have kidnapped and her worlds starts to shake. Her best friend, Rebel, is the daughter of the Heroes President, and gets her to know the Villain teenagers. This starts to have her question everything about good and bad, and who is on what side. Followed by more break ins and plans and of course, an open ending with a lot of questions about what is going to happen next.
Though most of the plot was kind of expected, of course they fall in love.. of course the serum to make her immune is not what you expect it to be. I mean hello ?? OF COURSE she ends up having some kind of super awesome superpowers.. with a Villain mark? Makes you wonder about who exactly her father is.. And HA on the who is Draven’s daddy? Not that much of a surprise, especially with the double powers.
ROMANCE.
Kind of insta-love between Kenna and Draven. Which is one of the downsides to this story. Their love feels kind of fake.. they fight and get passionate and stuff.. but it doesn’t feel real, it feels forced and kind of unnecessary. Yes I love a good romance, but it has to be the right place and time.. and this one just doesn’t do it for me. Too bad…
SETTING.
Love the whole superpowers stuff. Though I would like more background stuff on it… how it works with the whole powers between good and evil, do they differ or can a Villain have the same kind of power as a Hero ? What with the double powers ? When your parents both have powers can you be powerless etc ? Also like all the lab stuff and breaking and entering, getting a plan ready, guards to watch out for etc, love that kind of stuff !!
CHARACTERS.
Kenna. Main character, everything is from her point of view. I loved how adult she was in certain times, not dwelling in self-pity but just moving forward. Made her a strong and likeable character ! Independent women !!
Rebel. Her best friend, with telekinesis powers, moving stuff around. Weird personality, very strong and likeable some of the time, but turns in a blubbering mess at the slightest problem. But is brave at the end, priorities straight. Like that about this series !!
Draven. One of the breaking and entering Villain Teenagers. The love interest of Kenna, for a Villain he has some kind of a hero complex… wants to save the day at any moment, especially when Kenna comes into the picture of course. His mood changes a lot, sometimes he’s the reasonable one but at other moments he just explodes over nothing.. kind of childish.. Boys..
Dante. The second Villain Teenager, he is searching for his twin brother (Deacon) who is kidnapped by the Heroes. Also the boyfriend of Rebel. He has the power over wind, can make wind gusts and flying people around.
Nitro. The last of the Villain Teenagers, he is a bit darker than the others. He has quite the short fuse and can make all kind of fireballs. But all in all, a pretty decent guy.
Jeremy. The ex-boyfriend of Kenna, nerd boy. His power is technokinesis, to manipulate technical stuff, really good with a computer. And apparently has the same bag as Hermione.
Riley. The big brother of Rebel, who helps them at the end. The has the power to fly and a major superman complex. Quite the nerd, has all kind of Marvel collections.
Daddy Marlone. The father of Rebel and Riley and the Heroes President. The big evil haha.
FAVORITE.
Difficult !! Most of the time I chose the one that I would like to know more about.. but the ones I don’t know a lot about, like Deacon have not come in action at all.. So I think I will go with the main character Kenna, I loved how adult and independent she was. A big change from most of the characters I read about lately ! Would love to know how she is going to change and grow in the next part.
LEAST FAVORITE.
Maybe Draven.. It’s almost like he has some kind of personality disorder, he’s moods change so much.. It gets a bit annoying and he doesn’t make me swoon at all.. His character is kind of interesting with his powers and heritage.. but as a person he kind of sucks as I get to know him better. In the beginning he is tall and mysterious… helping her in the lab with the candy and stuff. But later he just.. is not IT.
THE BAD.
Like I already mentioned above, I did not like the romance at all. It almost seems completely unnecessary to even have a romance in this part of the story. The story on itself would have worked really well without the romance forced into it.. Of course there could be some flirting and the potential of a love interest, but I really think it could have done without. Maybe develop more slowly and graduate.. Make it more exiting when they finally come together further down the story… but well.. It is what it is.
FAVORITE QUOTES.
“I blink at him, tears welling.
“Don’t let her sacrifice be in vain.”
It takes several shallow, shaky breaths before his words hit home. If I am willing to put my life on the line, then should it surprise me that Rebel feels the same?”
.
“Tell her,” he whispers, “the scarlet phoenix flies at dawn.”
.
“Over the last week, I’ve learned a lot about myself. I’ve learned a lot about the world I thought I knew so well. Heroes can be evil. Villains can be good. Draven has shown me that more than anything else. And if that’s true, the bad guys can do good things, then it’s time to show the hypocritical heroes that the opposite is also true. With the right motivation a good girl can do a bad thing. A lot of bad things. Especially if she has a little villain blood in her veins.”
.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Really fun read, and I would love to read more about it. Looking forward to the second part next June ! I was just thinking back.. and throughout the story I did not even notice that it was written by two different persons.. Kind of awesome, I have no idea who wrote what ! So I would like to give it 4 Freyja’s. Loved the world of the supers.. and very excited about what will be in store for us in the next instalment ! You should read it !!!
