I have this really bad habit of requesting books on Netgalley without fully reading the synopsis. I just knew that this book had a fun cover, had something to do with superheroes, and was written by T.J. Klune, who I’ve only ever heard good things about. As I was reading, I wrote in my little reading journal “It’s like Renegades meets Fangirl!” and wow… that’s literally in the synopsis. For once, the comparison worked!

First things first, this book was a ton of fun. This was the fun, quirky, nerdy superhero book I never knew I needed. Nick and his friends were great and I absolutely believed in this world where superheroes are real and the police are just exasperated with them. This book almost felt like a movie because it was so descriptive! I could almost see everything playing out in front of me.

I loved how Nick kept trying anything he could think of to make himself an Extraordinary and he never gave up regardless of how many times he failed or how many people told him he was crazy. Also, I thought I knew what was going on with the various superheroes (and villains?) but I did not.

There are at least two major plot points that are hinted at and left open at the end of the book. This was a little bit frustrating for me because I really wanted answers, but now I see that this is going to be a trilogy and things make a little more sense. The next book has no title or cover yet, but it’s set to come out at some point next year. (Do what you will with that information.)

All in all, this was a super fun book and I would definitely recommend it as long as you’re okay with waiting for answers. I would also recommend not taking it too seriously, because it’s meant to be a little bit silly.

this queer superhero story is truly a fun read. set in a world where there are folks with x-men like abilities, in the extraordinaries, nick bell is a shadow star stan. he writes fan fiction loosely based on his favorite extraordinary and if it's a romance with a character based loosely on himself, well, it's his prerogative. nick also is still reeling from the loss of his mother. plus he has to deal with his adhd wreaking havoc with his concentration and occasionally his life. and his overprotective dad. and his annoying ex-whatever.

with the school year starting he's hoping he can finally get more time with his best friend seth, but seth is just as distant and preoccupied as he was all summer. and then nick meets shadow star in person. and it's like he knows him. but shadow star's battles with pyro storm (the villain, particularly in nick's fanfic universe) are getting bigger and more and more dangerous. and when nick has an encounter with pyro storm, it's like he knows him too?

the only way forward, nick decides is to become an extraordinary himself.

nick, if you haven't realized, is kind of a clueless idiot. he's lovable though. and he has the bestest friends in the world.

there are some twists and turns and a big twisty cliffhanger of an ending, so i'm not going to get into more detail than that. but this was definitely a delight to read.

**the extraordinaries will publish on july 14, 2020. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of netgalley/tor teen in exchange for my honest review.

I've never said the words "I absolutely love this" more than when I was reading this book. There were so many great elements that if I listed them all, this review would be 20 paragraphs long but everytime one of these great things happened, I just looked up and said to myself "I absolutely love this" because I couldn't think of any other adjectives. I absolutely loved it!

The Characters were so amazin, and relatable, and different to anything I've read before. I love that the dad is so comfortable with, not only his son's sexuality, but his own as well. He is always making jokes about Nick having crushes other guys as well as pretending to be flirting with his best mate in front of Nick just for a laugh. It was very refreshing to see this compared to all of the other books where the father does not know how to act around their gay son and is afraid to say anything in case of offending them.

One thing I noticed about this book however is that I didn't laugh at certain points in it, I think I started laughing at the beginning and didn't stop until the end! Whether that be a small giggle at Nick's dad's funny one liners or absolutely cry laughing at the Cricket Man scene! It is officially one of the funniest books I've ever read, not just this year, but ever!

The only bad thing, however is the fact that this book has only just come out and so we're going to have to wait a long time (or at least what feels like a long time) before the next one comes out. I cant wait to read it though because there are still some things that need to be resolved and some questions that need to be answered and I am so excited to see how it all plays out!

Superheroes, romance, teenage angst, friendship; this YA title has you covered. Really enjoyed the father/son relationship.

This book has to be the funniest, most heart-warming book I've ever read! I think TJ Klune is brilliant and does dialogue better than anyone! I might have a new favorite author!!!!!

I'm at a point in life where I truly, 100%, with all my heart believe that TJ Klune can do no wrong. The House in the Cerulean Sea was one of my favourite reads of 2020 and I must say that The Extraordinaries is not far behind!
This is such a fun, hilarious, superhero story that had me laughing out loud so much. I was also on the edge of my seat for most of the book, waiting for certain two individuals to KISS ALREADY and also for our resident clueless person (yep, the main character. He's so adorably clueless, I swear!) to figure out all the secret identities. The neurodiverse rep (MC has ADHD) and the queer rep are just cherries on top of an already amazing book. The author mentions that this book is his love letter to the queer community and we can see that shining through the entirety of this book.
I have seen this book being compared and recommended to people who love certain other YA books as well, but I feel comparing doesn't do this book any justice. I would want to end this by saying, if you
1. love superheroes,
2. want some adorable characters that you just wanna squish,
3. are craving for something hilarious and light and GAY,
4. want all kinds of positive queer rep,
5. want a story that concentrates on friendship as much as it does on love,
THEN GO BUY THIS BOOK!

Anyone who's read my reviews will probably know I have a soft spot for YAF.  I don't, however, have any interest in Superhero's,  never having watched Batman, Superman, Spiderman or any of the seemingly dozens of others that exist.    So what on earth compelled me to request the Superhero fiction <b>The Extraordinaries</b> by TJ Klune?   Well the comparison with  Rainbow Rowell's Fangirl certainly didn't hurt.   Even though I read that title 3 years ago I remembered loving it.   The great news is the comparison was justified and I thoroughly enjoyed The Extraordinaries.    If YAF is not your thing you may not be so keen. I would definitely say you don't need to be a super hero fan to enjoy this book but if you are partial to that genre blended with YAF I'm fairly sure you'll get a kick out of this one.  

Nick Bell was the central character in this story.  Teen boy.  ADHD sufferer.  Fanfiction blogger with a huge crush on the local Superhero Shadow Star.    Nick is slowly realising he may also have a bit of a crush on Seth the boy he's been best friends with since childhood.      Nick's self awareness fluctuated between hyperaware and clueless but he really was a likeable kid.

Not only was the writing engaging (at the YAF level) but it was so very entertaining, filled as it was with humorous dialogue.   In particular I  enjoyed the dialogue between Nick and his dad Aaron.   It was often funny and whether or not it was realistic for a father and his son I really couldn't say but it didn't stop me from having a chuckle.   Almost as often as it was funny it was touching.  Nick's mum had been killed a couple of years earlier and he and his dad were each other's everything so there were a few moments to tug on the heartstrings.  Finally, after the Epilogue, there was one last chapter that went by the title Stung.    I'm still not entirely sure if this was a teaser for a sequel or just a really clever ending to The Extraordinaries.   My guess is the latter but whatever it was it worked extraordinarily well for me.

My thanks to the author TJ Klune,  Tor/Forge, and NetGalley for the   egalley of this book.   I thoroughly enjoyed reading and reviewing this book and look forward to further titles by this author.

T.J. Klune drops us right into fanfiction about Shadow Star and we can see how Nick might be slightly obsessed with the superhero and his nemesis aka The Extraordinaries. Then Klune flashes into real life and what do you know, we really are in Nova City and there really is a superhero named Shadow Star. Don’t let Nick hear you doubt that there ever was one though (laugh).

Klune has a wonderful set of secondary characters in the multicultural lesbian couple Gibby and Jazz. I actually do not know which of the two is my favorite as they are the power couple to beat (sorry Nick). The love triangle of Owen, Seth, and Nick is quite funny at times as Nick does not realize that he is in a love triangle at all. Watching the chemistry between Owen and Seth, Owen and Nick, and Nick and Seth is humorous for all us including our live action commentators: the power couple with some of the best one-liners.

The last third of the book is a rollercoaster of emotions that even Nick’s ADHD medication cannot chill. Seriously. Klune puts us on a spiral to the last chapter (not including the epilogue).

Klune grabbed me from the beginning and Nick did not let go. I cannot wait to continue on Nick’s next adventure because let’s face it: 1) Klune left us with a cliffhanger of sorts; 2) Nick cannot stay out of trouble; and 3) Secrets gotta come out. I sooooo want to be there when it happens and so will you.

I received an ARC of this book and I am writing a review without prejudice and voluntarily.

Whenever I start a new T.J. Klune book I know that I’m in for a Good Time and this one did not disappoint. It was fun, tropey, queer, over-the-top in the best way and so full of love. As always, I can’t wait to read more.

I absolutely loved The House in the Cerulean Sea so to be approved for this made me so so excited. I love this author. One thing I do love about TJ Klune is his writing style. I find each story of his that I have read so so easy to read and engaging. I absolutely love how he brings attention to diverse topics and how he opens my eyes to topics that I do not know much about. Whilst I enjoyed this book and the characters were adorable, it just didn't quite live up to my expectations. I mean how could it, I have announced on numerous occasions that The House in the Cerulean Sea was one of my favourite books of all times. I'm not sure how any book can live up to that expectation. I would recommend this book to my friends however and I would absolutely love to read more by this author. I love the characters and the concept!

So this book.

I'm not really sure how to review it.
Because on the one hand I did enjoy reading this and it was fun, the characters were enjoyable. But on the other hand, it did drag somewhere in the middle and the characters were something annoying.

It was still an overall enjoyable read,butI think I true just fall flat in the middle. Where even though I enjoy this ARC and am intrigued by the possibility of a second book, it's not one that's immediatly going on my to buy list and if I never get a physcial or proper ebook copy I won't be dissapointed.

I have so many thoughts about this book, I'll try to be as coherent as possible. First, I love that this is an #OwnVoices story. This was my first time reading about a neurodivergent character and TJ Klune did such a wonderful job of translating Nick's internal monologue, to convey the urgency and confusion and pace and direction of his thoughts. Nick is so delightfully 16, reading him as an elder reader filled me with amusement and frustration, the boy is so oblivious- which is why I *loved* Klune's set of side characters, each well written and capable of holding their own, but also saying things to Nick you as a reader would wish you could say. Even though I saw the "reveal" coming, I DID NOT see it coming, I love being surprised by a book when you think you have it figured out. And what I loved (HATED) even more, is the little easter eggs, especially in the end, so author, PLEASE tell me there's a book 2 coming soon, I'm NOT ready to let go of these characters and their world yet. The book was funny, v feels inducing, and overall, a feel good one about baby gays being extraordinary in their own right.

This is an honest review in exchange for an e-ARC from Netgalley.

When I first heard about this book, I was so excited because you know, queer superheroes!! I wanted to read it so bad. It was my first TJ Klune novel. I have heard nothing but fantastic things about his work.
Overall, I did enjoy The Extraordinaries quite a bit. It was funny and easy to read. And of course, the queer representation, AND the ADHD representation, too. I don’t think I have ever read something with ADHD rep before this. There were a few issues that I had with it. First thing was the use of language in reference towards one of the lesbian characters. The work d*ke was used a couple of times as a description of Gibby, who is a black lesbian. I found the use of the slur a little discomforting. Also, although I did in fact appreciate the lesbian representation, it did feel a little stereotypical.
The plot was somewhat predictable. I was able to figure out everything before it happened—despite this, I did still find the story enjoyable. There were a few times while reading where I thought that the novel was too long. It felt like it kept dragging on. I was about 70% through the book before I felt like any action was really happening. At times, the writing did feel slightly childish and immature, but it did add to the humor quite a bit.
Overall, it was enjoyable. I had high expectations for this before reading it. Expectations were not completely met, but I wasn’t disappointed. I’d definitely recommend this to younger YA readers, not necessarily adult fans of YA.

this book is very very much not for me. the mc writes fanfic about real people in his universe, and real people fic squicks me out so much. i just couldn't get over that and it ruined the book for me.

1) After reading this, I officially adore TJ Klune.
2) I recommend you skip this book.

Yes. I hold both of these truths in the palm of my hand.

I adored the story. The characters. The voices. The plot. I adored Nick's hyperactive cluelessness. His completely over-the-line sense of humour. I adored his slippery brain parts, and the way he loves his friends. I adored the superheroes and supervillains arc, and the way it played with the canon. I adored the super queerness and everything about it. It's funny and darling, and stop-your-heart-sweet.

But it's also unabashed pro-police propaganda.

Like so many books I have read this summer, this is a Before-times book, written and edited before COVID, before the deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, and before the Defund the Police movement entered the popular consciousness.

In perhaps a nod to the superhero genre, there is a very present B-Plot about police and law enforcement, and the tension between superheros and cops. Nick's dad is a cop, as is a close family friend, and over the course of the narrative, cops are repeatedly referred to, un-ironically, as heroes who risk their lives to keep their city safe. The only references to police-instigated violence are a few crass jokes about police brutality and abuse of power. There's no acknowledgement that cops harass, arrest, assault, and kill a disproportionate number of Black and brown people within our communities.

I know from my own writing that it's tempting, as a white person, to include cops and try to show in the text that "these are the good ones." It's an example of white privilege that I didn't fully understand in myself until this summer; but by including cops and claiming that they are heroes or that they uphold the safety of the [ahem white] community we're presenting an argument in favour of their continued place in our communities, even when we are conscious of the danger cops pose to communities of color.

We need to set aside the idea that there are good cops. Law enforcement is an institution that perpetuates racism and modern incarnations of slavery. Cops were originally created to hunt down runaway slaves. Our laws have been designed specifically to target people of colour (example: drug bills criminalize drugs used by Black communities with higher punishments than "white-collar" drugs, eg crack vs coke, weed vs weed; example: laws criminalizing certain styles of dress as suspected prostitution.) Our prison industrial complex puts imprisoned populations to work as slave labour. And people convicted under these unfair systems often lose their rights to vote and to participate in our democracy.

And then there's the fact that police publicly murder our Black friends and neighbors on a painfully routine basis.

This summer, across the world, we have seen people and organizations speak out against systemic racism and police brutality. I've seen anti-racism declarations from publishers, bookstores, underwear brands. But when confronted with the opportunity to speak out against the violence committed by their fellow cops, and to declare that this is not what the police are about, police departments and individual cops across the country (and world) have marched against their fellow citizens, beating, arresting, tear-gassing, and threatening anyone who dares to speak out against police brutality.

Police organizations have allied themselves with the killers among them. And cops have been out on the streets, showing exactly which side they are on. Until and unless we see police holding police accountable, for hate crimes, assault, battery, and first-degree murder, we can let go the myth of the good cop who wants to keep their community safe.

The idea that we can shape our society with a structure that no longer includes cops and prisons is new to all of us. I can't fault Klune for falling prey to the same blindness of privilege that I myself held onto until quite recently. But given how painfully important it is that we change these systems now, while we have momentum and focus on our sides, I cannot recommend any piece of writing that reenforces the perceived positive roles of police in our communities.

There were elements about this book that I absolutely adored. I. Fucking. Loved. everything about this book that wasn't cop related. But after my own experiences with police violence this summer, the pro-police elements were so triggering I ended up in tears. I would love to get this book back, without this ugly film cast across it.

I really hope that Klune and the publishers explore a second printing with a major editing overhaul to better align with our world today. In the meantime, if anyone does a fan-cut to remove all references to cops, hit me up. I'm not even minutely kidding.

So much of this book is about Before and After, and unfortunately this is a Before-times story that really does not fit in the After.

this was an incredible read and everything I have come to expect from Klune. It made me smile and giggle and wanting to have more fanfiction in my life.
5 wonderful stars and I cannot wait to read more from Klune in the future

My Rating: 3.5
Superheroes! Aren't they amazing? Now, this is the time that most people would answer yes and I would answer... No! I never liked superheroes movies, series or comics when I was a kid. I don't know why but I just find it ridiculous (how unlikely it is to gain super powers) and mostly boring because I'm not a fan of action packed media either.
So the fact that I liked this book is actually a surprise. I had read The House in The Cerulean Sea back in February and I LOVED it. So when I saw this book I thought "Why not?"

In the book we follow Nick Bell, a HUGE fan of the Extraordinary Shadow Star. He even has his own fanfiction where he pairs himself with Shadow Star. He's a hardcore fan.
The book focus a lot on fandom culture and I did like how it was portrayed.
I would say that the reason that made me give it only 3 stars (besides the fact that I hate superheroes in general) was the MC. He had ADHD and I think it was well portrayed and that we need more representation but that made the character too accelerated and his thought were a bit scattered. And that made me lose focus of what was going on and I had to keep on re-reading the lines over and over.
Moving on, Nick has an amazing friend squad: Seth, Gibby and Jazz. And there there's Owen, the douche bag that Nick had a fling with. So Nick has this huge crush on Shadow Star and hates his archenemy Pyro Storm. Through out the whole book we keep getting hints that Seth and Owen might be one of the Extraordinaries but we only find out more towards the end. I liked the twist with the Seth and Owen even though I had already call it a few chapters before.
The romance was a bit meh since I wasn't really rooting for the male interest.
Overall it was a good superheroes book and now I'm a fan of T.J. Klune.

Hilarious, heartwarming and delightfully over the top/cheesy this book will not fail to put a mile on your face! I ws grinning with joy the whole time while reading!!

We follow our main character Nick, and his obsession with superheros, known in this world as extraordinaries. He writes fan-fiction about his favourite Shadow-Star who Nick might possibly have a crush on...

We also follow Nick and his friends at school, I think this was my favourite part of the book following Nick and his friends, they were all such easy characters to root for and very endearing and loveable and their friendship dynamic was adorable.

Nick also has such an entertaining but also heartbreaking dynamic with his father, they are both struggles after the death of his mum a few years ago but they care about each other so much and have the best banter. Their relatonship reminded me a lot of stiles and his dad from teen wolf which was one of my favourite shows when I was younger.

Nick also ADHD and struggles with feeling like his is too much for people/not good enough as he is, which leads him into trying to become an extraordinary. Nick is also hilariously oblivious, not realising that is best friend has been in love with him for years and Nick has also been in love with him as well and their dynamic was so endearing - friends to lovers really is the superior trope..

This book is also unapolgetically queer, with Nick being gay, his best friend Seth is bisexual and their 2 other friends (Jazz and Gibby - who are the best!!!!!) are a lesbian couple.

I also loved the superhero aspect of this book, which i know might not be for everyone but it made me feel so nostalgic and reminded me of my favourite cheesy superhero CW shows which really helped cheer me up when I was i ill. This book really is very over the top at times but it just works and I think is meant to be taking the micky out of superhero comics/shows a little bit.

One negative is I think this book was slightly longer than it needed it to be but I loved following the characters so this wasnt a major negative for me!

DNF at 28%: I hate to say this because I LOVED (like, favorite of the year, loved) the last TJ Klune book I read, but I did not enjoy what I read of this one at all. I found the main character’s POV to be kind of insufferable and that made it extremely hard for me to connect to the story or care at all about what was happening. While this one didn’t necessarily work for me personally, I do think that if you enjoy superheroes, you could probably still really like this one. But between me not caring a ton about superheroes and not connecting to the main character, this was very much just not the TJ Klune book for me.

I love every character in this book! They all have fabulous messages to deliver. I laughed and cried in equal amounts, and even learned a few new things. The dialogue - especially from the MC, Nicky - is endlessly entertaining and often educational. I'll do my best to choose my words a little more wisely going forward. I'll also forever laugh when I see a pillow with a face on it!
Entertaining and educational is a precious combination in a book. I will definitely be recommending The Extraordinaries.