We all have crushes on celebrities when we’re teenagers. It just so happens that Nick Bell worships Shadow Star, the bravest Extraordinary in Nick’s home of Nova City. Shadow Star has vowed to fight the evil in the city, and he is the subject of all of Nick’s popular fanfiction (in which he may or may not have feelings for a Nick-like character).
After a chance encounter with his hero, Nick realizes he needs to become an Extraordinary too in order to have a chance at being noticed. That’s a tall order for anyone, much less a teenager with ADHD and anxiety and an overprotective police officer father.
Nick will try to enlist the help of his best friends—Seth (with whom he may be head over heels in love), Gibby, and Jazz—none of whom want to indulge this fantasy. But Nick is determined that his hero will notice him, even if it may jeopardize his friendships, his relationship with his dad, or even his life.
"Love is such a weapon in the face of darkness, if you only know how to wield it."
This book was utterly squee-inducing. Nick and Seth are utterly adorable, Jazz and Gibby are a hysterical “power lesbian” couple, and Nick’s relationship with his dad definitely choked me up more than a time or two. There’s definitely humor here, too. The scene when Nick finally meets his crush made me laugh out loud, as did some of the things his father said.
But there was so much more to love about this book as well, such as the friendships, and the story of a young man trying so hard to make sense of a world that often doesn’t make sense.
It’s amazing that before this year I had never heard of TJ Klune and now he’s written what will unarguably be two of my favorite books of the year, The House in the Cerulean Sea and this one. I want more of these characters!!
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