This was an okay read for me. It didn’t live up to my expectations if I’m being honest. I found myself getting slightly annoyed with Astrid and her schedules lol. Character development is what lacked in this for me.

I enjoyed the premise of this book, but the characters were very all very one-dimensional and there wasn't a lot of character growth to be had. Astrid's schedules got particularly grating and tedious as the book went on, and for me, Astrid came across as non-neurotypical in a way that did not feel intentional and was more a caricature than anything else. There didn't seem to be any chemistry between her and Max to the point where I wondered if she was actually asexual (which would have been great to see if it were explored deftly enough).

All in all, a fun read, but not one I'll be recommending super widely.

Cristina Fernandez brings readers to a world of powered people, seen through the eyes of someone who is not. Astrid lives in a world where superheroes and villains are normal, and that’s fine, but she likes her life to be nice and orderly, scheduled out to every second, so her plans go out the window the same time her boyfriend crashes through it wearing spandex.

Astrid is a med student, and her life is a big ball of stress that really comes through in How to Date a Superhero. She’s got a lot going on. Unfortunately, that much stress in a protagonist makes it hard for readers to emotionally relate to them and through them to the rest of the characters. It leaves the reader feeling disconnected from it all, looking into the story instead of immersed in it. ¬¬Without that connection to the main character, the rest of the story fell a bit flat, with the emotional punches not hitting as they should. Like toward the end of the story when Astrid had a mental breakdown that seemed narratively intended to be about her boyfriend Max’s powers but felt like the effect of all that stress.

This break came after Astrid was snatched off the street and into the air by a villain with the power of flight. This is a normal occurrence to those who date superheroes, with some being kidnapped over fifty times by villains who almost seem to joke and play against the superheroes. The actual threat of these villains didn’t feel real, nor did the ‘villain’ of Astrid’s story seem real. Her nemesis was a younger med student who is quite advanced but takes offense to Astrid breaking the curve on a single test. He sabotages her cultures at her internship causing the professor—who blames her even though the lab has next to no security—to take her off the main work. While Astrid doesn’t know who her saboteur is, it’s so obvious to readers that it’s a bit of a letdown, like it’s not an important part of the story—and maybe it isn’t.

And then there’s Molly. Molly is another superhero’s girlfriend and is much more into it than Astrid is. She embraces the life of a hero’s significant other to the point where she loves getting kidnapped because having her boyfriend come rescue her is the ultimate proof of care. She actually pursued her boyfriend because she found out he was a superhero. Overall, Molly has some issues that could have been explored more.

How to Date a Superhero (and Not Die Trying) has a solid premise, but could have been much more.

I love this novel!

I've always been a fan of superhero novels, especially the wit and banter. But oftentimes significant others and the citizens of the city that the superhero lives in get pushed to the side. In How to Date a Superhero (And Not Die Trying), the focus is on Astrid, a pre-med double major who likes life organized. She has her best friend & roommate, David, and her boyfriend, Max. And even though the duo adds chaos into her well-ordered life, it's ok. Well it is, until a supervillain crashes into her dorm and her boyfriend reveals that he's a superhero.

All in all, I really enjoyed this book. I really liked Astrid as a main character. Her focus on school, and the book actually showing this, was pretty cool. (Go Girls in STEM!) Also the focus on mental health was neat to see! Also the David/Astrid friendship was amazing! I really like how that platonic male/female friendship was portrayed. While Max & Astrid are cute, I really enjoyed seeing more established hero relationships (like Wally & Henry).

The books narrative style is interesting. We have the main plot line surrounding Astrid making sense of her boyfriend's double life and flashbacks to key parts of their relationship (mainly high school and freshman year of college). I think it was neat to see how Astrid became friends with both Max and David, as well as watching her romantic relationship with Max form.

This book is more than a fun superhero novel, it's full of heart and tackles a lot of serious issues. Also, I am really happy that another superhero novel exists in the world (& it's New Adult / College)! And I really am looking forward to Cristina Fernandez's next work.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Katherine Tegen Books for this eARC! I really enjoyed the opportunity to read this gem!

I was really excited to read this one. The premise was really exciting! I loved Astrid and Max, and it was a pretty quick read for me. It's a cute superhero book for college aged kids that had some fun plot twists for me!

This story has such a good premise. I enjoyed the story overall, but wish the story was told in first person. I think it would've given the reader a better sense of looking into the relationship and what it is Astrid, the MC, was going through.

I like how the story looks at Astrid and Max's relationship in the past and present. The transitioning could be a little bit smoother, so readers don't have to go back to check, but the first-person pov could help with that.

The side characters were wonderful and I liked the idea of having a support group for superhero significant others.

This book had a lot of layers. There were two different stories being told, the past and the present of the love story. It was quirky. The plot felt slow.

Astrid and Max's had an adventurous relationship. Most of the action felt one sided. Astrid seemed too busy to be in a relationship. Max also seemed go busy to be in a relationship.

This was a fun read. I enjoyed the premise thought the characters were a little one dimensional though relatable. I would recommend this to people who want a quick, fun beach read this summer. It was a little cheesy, but in a very good way.

Through NetGalley, I received a free copy of HOW TO DATE A SUPERHERO (And Not Die Trying), by Cristina Fernandez, in exchange for an honest review. Superheroes and supervillains are a regular hazard of life. When Astrid was in high school, a supervillain tossed her school bus off a bridge. Though saved by a superhero, Astrid has coped by developing her own superpower of perfect timing. Astrid, now a pre-med university sophomore, schedules every minute of her day with a priority on her studies and her extra projects supporting her goal of entering medical school. Astrid has known Max Martin since he was a high school nerd. Their relationship changed once they ended up in college together. Astrid rarely minds when Max disappears in the middle of dates or cancels last-minute because she can always use that extra time to study. When a supervillain breaks into Astrid’s room and kidnaps her, he outs her boyfriend as a superhero. Astrid has no time left in her schedule for super shenanigans.

Control freak meets persistent chaos.

#HowtoDateaSuperheroAndNotDieTrying #NetGalley

How to Date a Superhero (And Not Die Trying) is wonderful read, especially for college students. The characters are well-developed and relatable, giving the story a more realistic feel. I enjoyed how it shows its readers a superhero world from the perspective of a superhero’s love interest, who actually has a life outside of him and her own personality.

Possible triggers: swearing, LGBTQ+ couples

I had mixed feelings about this book. I really liked how Astrid worked hard for school, but I thought it was unfair of her to judge Max about being a superhero. I also felt like the professor putting her on probation for something she didn't do was unrealistic. At least I know my college professors wouldn't have jumped to conclusions that fast. I did really like the platonic relationship between David and Astrid.

As much as I loved this book for its different perspective on a superhero tale, I love it more for how present and discussed the anxiety of the main character (and others) was. And also, I’m not sure I’ve read of a couple cuter than Astrid and Max in a longggggg time.

We all love a good superhero story. We all love a romance. Now, let's put that in a pot, throw in YA themes, and mix it up. The product? A delicious Cristina Fernandez novel with great twists, turns, and the inevitable multiple month waitlist that will conspire at your local library come the release date. This will be the next YA "can't-put-downable" novel- I'm calling it now!

As a fan of superheroes and college-aged books, I was so excited to read this and wasn’t disappointed. I thought the premise was fresh and fun, and Astrid and Max were a couple I couldn’t help but root for. I loved how their relationship was portrayed, and how intimacy between them was displayed — their relationship felt so genuine and real, and that made me really invested in them. I never really got bored during this, and even though I predicted some of the twists I didn’t mind because it was still enjoyable to read. I also appreciated the depiction of anxiety and the unhealthy reality of academia — I do, however, wish that some of those behaviors were more clearly stated as unhealthy and toxic, more so than just Astrid starting therapy and trying to move away from some of those things. All in all, I really enjoyed this and felt like it was a unique read that will be great for college students to see themselves in, even if there’s superheroes!