I received an advanced reader copy in exchange for my honest review. This was a fun adventure story set in a world where super heroes or extraordinaries really exist. In this world comic books and popular comic book heroes also exist was fun. At some points the story felt exaggerated but that kind of fits the comic book style of the story. The characters were likeable but definitely flawed and the narrator at times was hard to follow. The main character nick has a huge crush on his favorite extraordinary, shadow star. Nick is struggling with his ADHD and feels he is disappointing his father so he decides to become an extraordinary and chaos ensues. This is a fun story and I recommend it for a lighter distraction!

I felt this was just average, probably on the lower side of enjoyment for me and I most likely won't continue the series.

This was lacking world building, there was some stuff there but it wasn't well set out from the beginning so it was difficult to fully grasp the world.

The characters felt very much the same-same to me and I didn't feel a connection to them.

I felt like the story could have ended a lot sooner, there were a few "battle" scenes towards the end - ok about three - and after the first two I felt the story would have ended a lot better. There was the potential for a good cliff hanger but instead it was a story that ended and no real continuation onto the next one in the series.

Perhaps this wasn't for me, but it really should've been based on the synopsis and genre

As an avid reader of fanfiction, it’s nice to see its appearance in mainstream fiction. We follow a boy named Nick, who deals with ADHD and being not extraordinary. He writes fanfiction about his favorite superhero, Shadow Star. I loved this concept of superheroes and villains being reversed roles. We see that here, the lines of what we deem good and bad are blurred. I also loved Nick’s best friend, Seth. The pining and overall tension is amazing. The characters deal with realistic problems which make them more relatable. I loved this book! Superheroes, pining, angst, fluff, lgbtq, and more!

This book was everything I needed. A mix of humor, coming of age and superheroes. These characters had me laughing and I thoroughly enjoyed the relationship between father and son here. I found myself excited for their conversations and really appreciated that bond building. As someone who used to read a lot of fan fiction- I loved reading the fanfic scenes throughout the book and how the writing style changed to match a teenager and how they would write, it made everything so much more real. 10/10 would recommend.

What an amazing story. The whole idea that the novel centers around characters who AREN'T superheroes?! What a great concept. The characters are dynamic and relatable. All the plot points were great to read. I recommend this book to everyone who loves an underdog.

Full disclosure: I have been a loyal fan of TJ Klune for a good number of years and have rarely been disappointed by his adult novels, so this review might be a bit biased as a fan.

This book was a hilarious yet tender-hearted adventure that, I felt, explored what it means to be neuro-diverse within a landscape that has Extraordinaries, aka superheroes and supervillains. Our main character Nick has ADHD and is also dealing with the grief and mourning that comes from losing a parent unexpectedly, so there is an emotional thread of Nick feeling like his disorder makes him a screwup and puts him into deep trouble despite his good intentions (which is bananas, but it's a spiraling way of thinking many people especially teens can fall into). This is why he decides to become an Extraordinary himself and prove himself a hero, the opposite of a screwup (... how exactly, Nick has not figured out, but that's where the hilarity ensues).

I don't think there was anything too surprising in the plot, honestly, but TJ Klune's writing style felt fresh and different from what I've read in YA recently. I didn't care much for the plot itself but was compelled to follow Nick in his superhero quest and discover more about him and the colorful and lovely people who fill his life, support him, and even call him out when he is wrong. And there are enough loose ends left unresolved that we can expect a sequel.

The humor is quite over the top and there are many moments of paragraphs of text dedicated to introspection which I was mostly fine with, but I wish both of the humor and introspection was cut back just a little, especially when the humor did distract from the tension of an action scene or the introspection, especially towards the end, made me want to jump those paragraphs to get to more action-oriented scenes. But those are my main points of criticism.

Another point I found hilarious was a couple of chapters of Nick's Extraordinary fanfic with his self-inserted character! Those chapters read so authentically as self-fulfillment fanfic written by a 16-year-old, it gave me flashbacks to my own fanfic writing attempts at that age and made me smile. The best part is the fanfic was not such a big device used in this novel, the fanfic snipped that we did read was few and struck me as the right amount.

I can't wait to see how teens react to this novel. Good luck, Mr. Klune. I can't wait to see how this series continues.

“The Extraordinaries” is the second book by TJ Klune to be released this year under Tor Books, specifically Tor Teen. Because of the COVID19 pandemic however, release has been moved back from May to 14 July 2020. Many thanks to Net Galley for the eARC. I will post my full review in July, but I will say that I enjoyed this YA book about a teen with ADHD who wants to be a superhero, and how his father and his friends support him. I laughed, and I cried, and I learned something new.

Thanks to NetGalley and Torbooks for an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review. It was amazing.

The Extraordinaries is TJ Klune's YA debut and the first book of a trilogy with the same name. The second book will be published next year.
The story starts with a fanfic chapter about the Extraordinaries of Nova City (Shadow Star and Pyro Storm), writed by Nick, the most popular fanfic’s writer and our protagonist.

Nick Bell (16 years old) biggest dream is meet Shadow Star and when that happens, he gets the idea in his head of becoming a Extraordinary and he ask his friends for help. His gang are:
- Seth, "the best human in the world and his second favorite person after his dad" in Nick's opinion.
- Jazz, a pretty sweet girl. She's the sweetest character, I love her.
- Jazz’s girlfriend Gibby, who always saves the day because the other three share one brain cell.
- And last but not least, Owen that is the creepy ex-boyfriend who offers his help in Nick's mission. I consider him as part of the gang. I really like this character.

This novel is not a conventional superhero's story. It's about the relationships with family, friends, idols and yourself. It has action scenes, ridiculous humor, ADHD and LGBT representation (Klune is good with these themes) and all that in an amazing book without stereotypes.
For people like me, who during adolescence writed fanfics about anime, manga, superheroes, boybands and all that, this book could be very nostalgic. When I was reading it I really felt the things that the characters were telling and that was awesome. I really think about this as the strongest point of The Extraordinaries.

For all anime, manga, superheroes and LGBT romance lovers, this is your book. And for TJ Klune lovers like me, this novel is not like any of the previous ones, is something fresh and new, but it conserves that unique touch of joyfulness, sarcasm, and everything we love of his others works.
Like Green Creek series and The House in the Cerulean Sea, The Extraordinaries has it all to be adapted in a movie or series. Netflix, this is your chance.


Spanish version

Muchas gracias a Netgalley y TorBooks por la copia avanzada.


The Extraordinaries es el ingreso de TJ Klune al young adult y tambien es la primer entrega de una trilogía que llevará el mismo nombre (la segunda parte será publicada el año próximo, información dada por el mismo TJ en Twitter).

Originalmente se publicaba el 5 de mayo pero a consecuencia de la pandemia y el aislamiento social, se debió retrasar la fecha y finalmente será lanzada el 14 de julio de este año. Esto tambien significa que el otro libro de TJ Klune pendiente a publicar en este año se nos va a Octubre (estoy hablando de Brothersong, el final de la saga Green Creek).

The Extraordinaries empieza con un facfic sobre un superheroe de la ciudad Nova "Shadow Star" escrita por Nick (su mayor fan), que es nuestro protagonista.

Con 16 años, Nick Bell sueña con conocer a su superheroe preferido, y despues de un encuentro con él decide que tiene que ayudarlo con su labor de cuidar Ciudad Nova. Desafortunadamente, la manera en la que se le ocurre hacerlo es convertirse en un Extraordinario.

Para lograr su objetivo va a pedir ayuda a su grupo de amigos conformado por Seth, el mejor ser humano del universo según nuestro protagonist, a Jazz, que es la criatura más dulce y comprensiva de todas y a Gibby, la persona inteligente que les salva las papas todo el tiempo a los demás porque la mayoría de las veces comparten una única neurona. Y quien repetidamente se ofrece a colaborar sin ser escuchado es Owen, su ex novio que parece no haberlo superado.

Esta novela aparte de ser sobre superheroes (no de la manera en la que estamos acostumbrados) es sobre relaciones, la relación que tienes con tus ídolos, con tus familiares, con tus amigos y contigo mismo.

Entre escenas de acción, visibilización de neurodiversidad, representación del colectivo LGBT y humor (todo en lo que TJ siempre destaca) transcurre esta fabulosa historia libre de estereotipos, que tiene lo que promete y más.

Quienes hemos atravesado la adolescencia, el mundo de los fanfics y el amor por bandas, personajes de ánime, comics, etc. vamos a estar muy nostálgicos durante la historia y siento que este es uno de los puntos más fuertes de The Extraordinaries. Es muy probable que te sientas identificado con la enorme cantidad de sensaciones que cada uno de los personajes transmite.

Amantes del anime y manga, comics, superheroes, distopías y del romance LGBT, este es su libro.

Por otro lado, no sé cómo se manejaran hoy los fickers del mundo, pero TODO en los fragmentos de fanfic que aparecen en la novela son coherentes con lo que yo recuerdo haber escrito a los 14. Incluso la ficha técnica.

Para cerrar, si han tenido la fortuna de leer algo de TJ Klune, se darán cuenta de que este libro es muy distinto a lo que ha escrito antes, al igual que The House in the Cerulean Sea. Y cómo Green Creek, tiene mucho potencial para ser adaptado a película o serie (Netflix, aprovechalo)..

First of all, thank you so much to Tor Teen for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I have actually never read a TJ Klune book, but when I read the synopsis of this, I knew I needed to read it. This was a fun, very specifically humorous book. As someone who is often looking for a light read (because let's be honest, right now is not the best time for dark reads) this was exactly what I needed!

When Nick, a superhero fan fiction writer, has a chance encounter with Shadow Star, kind of just the coolest superhero from Nova City, Nick is on the hunt to become extraordinary (hey, the title!). Nick's best friend (and love interest) Seth Gray beta reads all of his fan fic (hey, actual publishing terms, yay!). With his mother recently killed in a back robbery and a struggling relationship between he and his cop father, Nick' story starts out a bit rough.

This story kind of has everything. We have a lesbian couple, we have superheroes, great representation with Nick also having ADHD, grief, and just generally well-rounded, non-stereotypical characters. I personally haven't read Fangirl, but I have read the Renegades trilogy (twice) and basically anything comped to it I am IN LOVE WITH.

And now I'm off to read more of Klune's work, because YES! I also plan on listening to the audiobook, because I think this book would be an awesome audiobook and movie!

My only criticism is that this book ended too soon. The ending was beyond spectacular, by the way. The epilogue was super intriguing. 

I have read a lot of books where the protagonist has a disability, such as ADHD. Often times, the way the character thinks and acts does not reflect the aforementioned disability. I am relieved to tell you this book not only accurately portrays being a queer teen with a disability (I have some experience there), but it portrays it so so so well. I absolutely adore Nick. His quirkiness is endearing.

And the romance is absolutely precious. It wasn't weird or gross or teenager-y in a negative way. It was utterly perfect and so so sweet, my heart is crying tears of joy. I can already see a huge fanbase of shippers for this book (not going to spoil the names of who is in the ship!).

I honestly laughed a lot during this book. It's so sweet and fun that I couldn't help it. While this book isn't a comedy or anything, it's written so lightheartedly that I never stopped smiling. Except during that plot twist of betrayal. No spoilers though!

The creativity is beyond words. Every three pages I was like WAIT WHAT OMG YES QUEEN because the plot never got stale. The book is brilliantly crafted and I can already tell the next two books will be best sellers. They don't release for a couple of years, TJ Klune please leak your own books early. Thank you in advance.

I can't find the words to say enough good things about this book. It's simply brilliant. I just love it so freaking much. If you don't read this the second you can, you are officially a fool.

T.J Klune is one of the only writers that succeeds in making me laugh out loud. This book was amusing and heartfelt and important. It was like slipping on a pair of comfortable shoes not having read a T.J book in a while (a couple months max) This is an all star YA debut.

I've been a fan of TJ Klune for awhile now and was really excited to see that he was writing a YA book. He is great at writing interesting LGBTQ books that are equally funny and emotional - which is shown in this book. I loved the twist on a superhero story that focuses on a fanboy. The relationships in this book are great and realistic, especially between Nick and his father. This is one I'll definitely purchase for my library and recommend to readers.

This book sent me on an emotional rollercoaster. I connected deeply enough with the character that I could feel exactly what he was feeling most of the time. He seemed so real and true that I anticipated his feelings and felt them along with him. This book was so heartfelt, wholesome and well-written. It was much more than just a romance. It was a superhero film as a book with a little bit of teenage drama thrown in for good measure. I would recommend it to everyone who enjoys superheroes and has felt different from other people. Because in this book, being neurodiverse makes you a superhero. Looking forward to the second book.

"The Extraordinaries" by T.J. Klune was both funny and realistic. Realistic for a fantasy book anyway. I liked the diverse cast of characters, from Nick and Seth to Gibby and Jazz. Nick reminded me of Cath from Rainbow Rowell's "Fangirl," almost like a gender-swapped version of her. The cover, while appealing, doesn't really match the book's fantastical realism feel. Just looking at this cover with no relation to the book I would think "The Extraordinaries" was a contemporary story.
Overall Rating: 4 Stars

Gay superheroes! The cutest! I’ve read a lot of other books by TJ and this book is very similar to his Tales of Verona series, except not as dirty. The Extraordinaries is the PG-13 version of that series!

Sometimes the oblivion of the characters is frustrating but I got used to it after the Tales of Verona series. I didn’t think this book would throw plot twists at me but there was a lot of things that happened that I didn’t expect. I thought I knew who the heroes and villains were but boy was I wrong!

I will definitely be anticipating the second book!

Alright. Let me start this review with admitting that I am 100% in love with this cover. It's absolutely gorgeous and whoever made it deserves a raise.

Now on to the book itself. Holy shit, I loved it to pieces. Hilarious, outlandish, entertaining, and everything I wanted it to be. Ever want a crossover with Marvel and Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl? Well, your dreams have come true. We got it. And to make it even better, it was hella queer. With ADHD rep. Easily one of my favorite reads this year.

I'm already fighting off a reread.

If you take the plot of The Amazing Spider-man films, the tone of Spider-Man Homecoming, the irony of Miraculous Ladybug, and then make it all gay, you will have a pretty good idea of what to expect from The Extraordinaries by T.J. Klune!

(I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!)

As someone who has never read a T.J. Klune book before, I honestly went into this book with no expectations. As a fanfiction lover myself and a fan of dramatic irony and superheroes, I knew this could be the kind of book I would love. And, although for half of the book I honestly wasn't sure how to feel about what I was reading, I'm pleased to say that I was ultimately won over by this fun, enthusiastic, and cute story. I've gone back and forth on the rating since finishing this book yesterday. While I enjoyed myself reading it, I think there were also a number of weaknesses that almost made this book feel like a fanfiction written by its protagonist at times. I settled on 4 stars because I think that ultimately, it comes together in a satisfying way, and there are great twists and turns that made me boost my rating, but I did have a few more problems with this book that I normally have with my 4 star reads.

I'm going to start with those issues before I get into the stuff I really liked. Despite Klune being the author of a great number of books, I found a lot of issues in this book that I would expect from less experienced writers. For instance, the characters all fit into "types" so clearly that I started being able to predict all of their words and actions (especially Nick, Jazz, and Owen). A lot of the dialogue in this book is completely unrealistic as well. It felt kind of like Klune wrote a dialogue draft of what he generally wanted the character's dialogue to accomplish, but he forgot to go back in and replace the drafted dialogue with things that don't feel like the script for a TV sitcom. For evidence of this, look no further than the melodramatic cafeteria scene on the first day of school. Also, Nick is kind of unbelievable as a character. And by that, I mean UNBELIEVABLY oblivious. I love a "cute idiot" protagonist as much as the next girl, but I have to draw the line at some point, and Nick far crosses the line of believable obliviousness. No boy who writes self-insert fanfiction would miss THAT many context clues that his best friend has feelings for him, it's simply not realistic. Especially when every. single. character. in the book drops hints to him repeatedly. I also think it undermines Nick's character a little bit--since he spends a lot of the book trying to convince people that he is smart and deserves to be taken seriously.

Lastly, it made me a little uncomfortable that Gibby is called "dyke" twice in this book by an author who is not a lesbian woman. I know that this is a term that some people are trying to reclaim, but I just don't know if we're there yet, and the scene where Owen casually calls Gibby that in conversation and no one raises an eyebrow at it doesn't sit right with me. I know Klune's heart is in the right place and it's awesome to see the mlm/wlw solidarity in this book, but I just think the book could do without questionable language like this.

As for things I liked: this book is HILARIOUS. I laughed out loud a number of times and screamed from secondhand embarrassment for Nick. The fanfiction parts are especially funny because, as a fic writer, I know that T.J. Klune KNOWS fanfiction. The author's notes, the ridiculous fic lengths, the apologies for late updates and the quality of the fic itself were all perfect. I think the sweet romance between Seth and Nick is one of the absolute highlights of the novel, but the relationship between Nick and his dad was also really special. The supporting characters are mostly cliché, but in a fun and readable way at least. I especially love how this book distracts you so much with the obvious foreshadowing that it's able to sneak some subtle foreshadowing past you without you paying it any mind. I audibly gasped in surprise while reading this book, which is saying something.

All in all, I can tell that I liked a lot because I am still thinking about it over 24 hours later, wishing I could pick it back up and keep reading more. SEQUEL WHEN?!

This was such a fun read! Nick's ADHD makes it hard for him to stay focused, which makes it hard for him to see what's right in front of him sometimes. He's so busy pining after the Extraordinary (real-life local superhero) of his fan-fic dreams that he can't see the nefarious plot that is putting the people he loves in danger. There were times when his cluelessness is almost too hard to believe, and there's a little bit of repetitious language that probably won't make it to the final round of edits, but overall this is an enjoyable start to what is sure to be a really fun series or duology.

This is the nostalgic and wholesome LGBTQ+ book of DREAMS! The callout to fanfiction and fandoms nestled so deeply in my soul right from the start. The two main characters?? Their begrudging friendship?? THEIR LOVE. This book is a warm hug wrapped up in forehead kiss. I laughed out loud a few times and hugged the book to my chest near the end.

I really wish I had read something this heartfelt and genuine when I was younger, but I'm so glad I have stumbled onto it now.

I finished "The Extraordinaries" by TJ Klune yesterday and as you can imagine, I was really excited about it. TJ Klune has written some of my favorite books and I couldn't wait for this one.

First of all I have to say that TJ Klune's humor is really special. 😂 I think you either love it or it's not your cup of tea. It's a bit over the top humor, but mostly fits really well to his stories. I personally enjoy his serious books more. And by that I mean the ones where you cry your eyes out after finishing them... in a corner... in the dark. 😂
No, but this is a really funny book, but sometimes it was a little "too over the top" for me.

I really loved the whole concept of this book. Nick, who writes fanfictions about the superheros (Extraordinaries) Shadow star, the hero who he has crush on, and Pyro Storm, the villain who he doesn't like at all, is our main character. He and his best friends Seth, Gibby and Jazz are all pretty adorable.
TJ Klune really knows how to write good characters. I loved Seth to pieces. I totally want more Seth in the sequel! Also Gibby and Jazz were so sweet. I'm always here for a cute wlw couple.

I can't say too much, but I had a idea in my head about who may be Shadow Star and Pyro Storm (and I was right 🤓), but that only made it more amazing AND funny. That's what I mean - the whole concept of this was really good. Amazing characters and great idea.

Also Nick has ADHD. Tbh I don't know enough about this topic, so I'm not the right person to say anything about the rep. But it was really present in the book and I liked that.

I had a problem with the relationship between Nick and his Dad. The Dad was really controlling and though it was pretty clear where it came from, it wasn't adressed enough in my opinion. I usually love TJ Klunes (found) family bonds, but there were some things going on here I didn't like at all.
There were also some jokes I didn't like. Like I said, the humor sometimes is a little too over the top for me. 😁

I really enjoyed this book. The idea behind it is amazing, I love the concept and the characters and I think if you like books that are really funny, you might love this one. 🧡