TJ Klune is a master of allegory and metaphor with his humorous and heart warming stories. He tackles tough topics within fantastic world building and brilliant characters. Quirky, fun, and fantastic. A great YA fantasy with LGBTQ+ representation that will appeal to a broad audience.

Once again, Klune has given me life with this novel.

Nick is still the amazingly adorable and hilarious kid that we all know and love. I seriously want to be his best friend for real. Also, yay for more Jazz because she cracks me up! All of the awesome characters are back in this sequel, though I will say that Seth was less impressive to me this time around. I'm not sure if it's because he's supposed to be the polar opposite of Nick, but he felt a little flat here. He was completely overshadowed by everyone else, especially by the new characters that are introduced. But I do have hopes he'll get better in the next book.

While I am trash for this series and am already planning to listen to the audio version as well (the narrator deserves an Oscar for his work on the first book!), this sequel lost a tad bit of the quirky lightheartedness of the original. The extremely important topics of police brutality/reform and racial justice were addressed, as promised to by the author, but it seemed a bit shoe-horned and less organic than I was expecting. It played a major part in the story which made the book have a completely different tone than that of the first one. After a really amazingly hilarious first chapter, the jokes weren't as prominent and I felt super heavy and a little down by the change in tone for the rest of the novel. For other books that works but it seemed misplaced somewhat here.

All in all, I thought this was a really great book and after that cliffhanger (OH. MY. GOD.), I'm already dying for book three!

This is a sequel to The Extraordinaries, which was also a book that I really enjoyed. This book continues to follow Nick, who is a nerodivergent, superhero enthusiast, fan fiction writer. I always love Nick and his humor and the on brand humor of a T.J. Klune book.

I don't want to go too into depth with this review since it is a sequel and so most if what I would discuss would be spoilers if you haven't read the first book. I will say, I really enjoyed this even more so then the first book. I loved that some of the foreshadowing that was done in the first book was revealed in this book and I love being right about my suspicions. I love that we had more growth of all of the characters and this also widened the family circle to include more of the parents, who are notthing but loving and supportive. I loved that we also had a whirlwind cliffhanger that makes me need the third book immediately.

Honestly, this was SOOOOOO enjoyable and just brought me to a really happy place emotionally. I feel like T.J. Klune's books always feed my need to feel the acceptance and love they radiate. This author has nourished my heart and left me feeling light and excited for the next book in this series.

Unfortunately, I'm not sure how I feel about this one. TJ Klune can be a little hit or miss for me. I read the first book in anticipation of this one, and I kind of had a feeling I wouldn't enjoy it. The premise just was not really for me. I'm still glad I got a chance to read it although I didn't feel very attached to the plot or characters. I think TJ Klune is a pretty good writer, but sometimes the pacing is off in their books. This book didn't keep me consistently engaged throughout, so I can't rate it very highly.

So happy to have gotten the sequel to the amazing first book! I was so excited to read this one.
First of all let me just say the characters were absolutely amazing! I especially loved getting to see Nick again in this book, and his character is as good as I remembered from book one! The relationship was amazing, of course. I could not put this book down. Often times, I read books for the characters, and the plot is just an added bonus. However, in this book the plot was so good I felt so drawn into the story (of course the characters were amazing too, don't get me wrong)!
Overall this book is amazing, and will completely draw you in from the very beginning. Great characters, plot, and a story you will not want to put down.

Thank you to Tor and Netgalley for this e-arc.

I was not familiar with TJ Klune until I heard about his controversial statements. I was disappointed to hear that he profited off Canadian Indigenous trauma by using a tactic of cultural genocide as an inspiration for his novel, House in the Cerulean Sea. Sadly, I also recently discovered that the author has made problematic remarks surrounding police brutality in the past. When I requested Flash Fire sometime last week (I love reading LGBTQ fiction), I didn't realize it was written by the same author. That was my own mistake. I tried to read this and didn't enjoy it at all, and I don't want to support Klune.

What a great sequel to an amazing YA superhero story. TJ Klune has such a way of creating characters that pull at your heart and stomp on it. Um, I need the last one NOW.

I loved this book. Like really, really loved it. After the cliffhanger in the last book, I knew we’d be getting a big reveal moment (or moments) in this book, and I could not wait. Suffice to say, I was not disappointed. And Nick with powers? Just as messy and chaotic as one would expect. After some of the comments made by certain side characters, I’m really hoping we get to see the full extent what Nick can do.

Powers aside, this is also a lovely romance as well—Nick and Seth are perfect. I liked Seth even more this go-round, now that he’s not being dodgy and is a bit more fleshed out. I don’t think there was a single character that didn’t interest me in some way. Some of them pissed me off, sure, but they were all distinct, fully-developed characters. Nick’s dad was again a standout to me, and I’m interested in seeing what direction he ends up going as they all move forward.

And that cliffhanger? Well, I’m not sure how I feel about it, but it’ll be fun to see where the chips fall. Overall, this is a great follow-up, and I cannot wait for the third book.

I really loved the first one in this series - this one was good too! Not nearly as good as the first but that’s okay. The problem lies within the author. I found some stuff out about them and their using of indigenous trauma to make money… and I can’t support that.

Nothing quite like reading a sequel that surpasses its predecessor in every way! 4.25 stars! I received this ARC from Tor Teen on Netgalley. This did not in any way affect my review.

I must admit that I was unsure how to feel about The Extraordinaries when I first read it last year. The story was hilarious and the characters were charming, but often times the book was so obvious or frustrating or borderline nonsensical that I couldn't tell what the author was trying to go for. Overall I enjoyed the first book and gave it a 3.5 star rating based off of its. promising cliffhanger, but I didn't quite know what to expect from Flash Fire. While this book has some of the hit-you-over-the-head obvious writing and weird clash between absurd comedy and dark/serious moments, it also takes the story to new levels!

There is so much to love about this book! Nick and Seth's relationship is better than ever, the MLM / WLW solidarity is at an all-time high, and Nick's relationship with his father becomes even deeper and more complex. It's so satisfying to see how characters grow and change in this book, especially Nick's father. When TJ Klune wrote The Extraordinaries, it is clear that he hadn't fully thought about the repercussions of having multiple members of the police at the center of the story (it is, after all, fairly common in superhero media). And while I feel like many authors would try to overlook what is happening in our world and claim that their books are set in a fantasy world where there are only "a few bad apples" among the police, TJ Klune took the time to thoroughly unpack the abuse and corruptions of the police and handled the role of the police in a way that really earned my respect.

There are also new things in this story that were so great to dive into! Some new Extraordinaries (including a Drag Queen), emerging new villains, and of COURSE (spoilers for book 1!!!) the exploration of Nick's own telekinesis. The world of the Extraordinaries expanded so much in this book and I am confident that book 3 will achieve the same.

Sign me up for the galley of book 3 too please! I'm ACTUALLY DYING to see what happens next.

I love this so much. It's so ridiculous in some places, but the camp is part of the charm. Nick and his friends are loveable and fun.

There were some laugh out loud parts that had tears coming down my face (like when Nick forgets to turn his Bluetooth off and blasts...a movie...into his dad's car and Aaron proceeds to give a very embarrassing demonstration to the boys.

I also appreciate how Klune approaches real life social issues, including how he shifted some of the attitudes regarding Nick's dad and his occupation. I thought things were handled well.

Overall, this may not be for everyone, given the narrator is a teenager with ADHD who tends to be clueless and all over the place, but it was my brand of ADHD, so I appreciate the rep and found it to be a very enjoyable read.

So happy to be back with Nick Bell! He is one of my favorite characters. This book is a must purchase for any high school library.

VERY worth the wait. I admit I was skeptical the sequel would live up to the first book but it proved me wrong by being just AS GOOD as the first with the introduction of new characters and throwing in new stakes that threatens to damage relationships. I mentally need a break after that emotional high and that bloody cliffhanger will be the death of me.

So I'm not really sure how I feel about this sequel, but I know I did not enjoy it, which was such a surprise :( It took me so much longer than expected to read it, and at times I really didn't want to pick it up. I wonder if it's because I read both book 1 and 2 in row...

Everything I loved in the first novel turned sour in this one. The eccentricities I loved became quite annoying and the over the top style just felt too forced this time around, it all felt a bit grotesque. The story felt really disjointed as if it didn't know where to go, and it felt like there was no transition between scenes, which left me feeling like I never got closure on certain moments or never got proper answers. It was hard to focus and follow where each plot point was going. It also felt like the first book was much more character driven than the second book. I was hoping for more dialogues between Nick and Seth, but it never left the surface level. The adults in this story are unbelievably frustrating, and there's little consequence to what some try to pull off for money (talking about the teachers here). I don't know, I felt like I forgot the good parts because the story stretched for too long without being really entertaining. I think this could be due to the fact that we get almost no answers, and I wish we were given a bit more insight. The storyline with Burke just goes on and on, but it's so foggy, it would have been nice to get one question answered on that side.

Now this could be just me, but at times, I felt there was some peer pressure (specifically from Jazz) for Nick to become intimate with Seth during prom night.

Spoilery Bits: I don't know for others, but the ending twist felt really cheap to me. I was actually pretty disappointed with it, especially when I went back to read TK's first interactions with Nick; how they treated him was not okay given the twist and I'm confused.

2 stars ~ ★★

I DNF this book at 51%, and here's why:

I loved the first book because of the characters. Seriously, I got so attached I couldn't stop reading. The Extraordinaires was character-driven, filled with plot points I fell in love with.

Maybe is shouldn't disregard this book purely because it's plot-driven, but it didn't grip me nearly like the first did. So far, I really don't care about the plot that much. The last chapter of The Extraordinaires made me think I'd love it, but it just got boring and impactless.

The cheesiness of the last novel was fun, but this one brought it to a whole other level - one that wasn't nearly as enjoyable. If I get second-hand twice at only 10% in, there's a problem. Plus, I'm not really sure who these books are for. On one hand, the writing and cheesy humour makes me think it's middle-grade, but with all the sexual references, I doubt it.

When it came to the actual characters, I liked how TJ Klune created tension without making either Seth or Nick "the bad guy", but there just wasn't enough to keep me reading. Whatever ups-and-downs they had were solved 8 pages later, which quickly got annoying.

If you have a long attention span, a young sense of humour, and are immune to second-hand embarrassment, read this book. Really. I didn't hate it by any means, but didn't love it enough to keep reading. Maybe you will.

4.5 stars:

And here I am, wracking my brain to come up with <i> something </i> coherent to sum up my feelings for this book. <b> T.J. Klune has done it again </b> I've said this before, but I genuinely think that Klune is one of the best writers out there today. Everything that he writes is magnetic and awe-inspiring. I can't get enough. I don't know how to explain, other than this book is <b> extraordinary </b>. It's clever, fast paced, full of heart, and if you like superhero stories, you would LOVE this series.

Okay, so when I got the arc notification from Netgalley for Flash Fire, I nearly jumped out of my skin. The Extraordinaries was one of my favorite books of last year (and maybe one of my favorite books of all time, if we're being honest here), and I couldn't WAIT to get my hands on the sequel, especially after that cliffhanger ending! As with most sequels, I was terrified that I'd hate this - that it wouldn't live up to how much I adored the first book, but I'm happy to say that it does tenfold.

Without giving anything away, Flash Fire is the continuation of Nick Bell's story after learning that his best friend (and now boyfriend) is a superhero. Flash Fire picks up the year after the Battle at McManus Bridge, where Nick learned that Shadow Star (his first beloved) was actually a supervillain and his boyfriend, Owen Burke, in disguise. Flash Fire is the exploration of identity and coming to terms with one's self after shocking revelations - of kids juggling being kids and also saving the world that looks down on them. It's a powerful story of love, friendship, identity, and grief all packaged up in a fun, superhero package. If I had read these in high school, that would have been it for me - this would have CONSUMED my life.

First and foremost, I am obsessed with Nick Bell, just as much as I was in The Extraordinaries. I've never read a character who thinks the way he does and it feels like you're constantly being kicked around on a ping-pong ball. The connections that his mind makes astound me, even as a reader, and it makes him such a fun character to read about. My favorite part of Flash Fire is how they explore Nick and Seth's relationship. I wanted so much more of them together - figuring out being 16-17 and falling in love for the first time. It was so soft and sweet and I couldn't get enough of it. It's not just the romantic relationships though. Their friendship with Gibby and Jazz is incredibly powerful and I love being surrounded by their antics. It's very easy for an author to create characters that are "friends," but you never feel a connection. You never have that problem with Flash Fire. I genuinely feel their love for each other and it makes you love them even more.

My second favorite part is how unabashedly honest and sex-positive it is. While this gave me way more second-hand embarrassment than I would have liked (and I know WAY too much about homemade dental dams now tyvm), it's so rare to find a YA book that is willing to breach these subjects. Nick and Seth aren't ready to take that next step in their relationship and they don't have to feel pressured about doing anything they don't want to do. While I personally don't understand how open Nick, the whole Lighthouse team, and Nick's dad are so *open* with each other, especially with the sexual innuendos, it's refreshing and it's nice to see it not be stigmatized. Especially topics like consent.

This is SO action packed! I normally struggle with reading action scenes, but not with this book. The scenes are described in a way that there's never any question about what's going on. The scenes are laid out perfectly and they make sense. Writing action is difficult and Klune does it with ease.

My biggest concern going into this was how Klune was going to address Aaron Bell's violent past as a police officer. I remember when Klune said that he was going to workshop a lot of this book to make it more transparent and critical of police officers and I'm really glad that he did. I cannot speak to whether or not this is done in an appropriate manner, but I appreciated that it was much more critical of law enforcement and honest about police brutality. My only gripe is that it felt like the onus was on Gibby and her family to explain their reasoning a bit too much (which they shouldn't have to do).

My only *drawback,* I guess, is that the first part of it is a little slow. It takes about 40% for the story to really get going and progress, so it took me 5 days to read up to the 20% mark and then I finished the remaining part in less than 24 hours. Once I got going, I couldn't stop, but it did crawl for quite a while.

I don't know what else to say. Read this book, it's incredible and you won't regret it. 2022, please come soon, I can't handle waiting another year after that cliffhanger!!!

DNF @ 25%.

It breaks my heart a little to DNF this book, because I truly loved The Extraordinaries. But where everything about the first book was fun and exciting, it feels a bit tired and overdone here. This may simply be a case of the wrong book for me in this moment.

However, one part of the book that was a bit more problematic was Klune's "apology" of sorts for the police brutality in the first book. It felt like something his editor had him add in (and let's be real, it probably was the result of a conversation with the editors). It was so forced, and relied way too heavily on Gibby's family, who is Black, to explain why a police officer beating someone up in custody and then getting rewarded with a promotion was a problem. The whole scene left me uncomfortable.

This book in one word: EPIC

This book is phenomenal! I can't remember the last time I had this much fun reading a book. 

I thoroughly enjoyed The Extraordinaries, so I was excited to receive an ARC of its sequel Flash Fire. This book lived up to and fulfilled all my expectations I had after reading The Extraordinaries. Right out of the gate I was laughing hysterically. I am loving Nick's dad trying to do what is best for him and embarrassing him along the way. So awesome! 

This book is as fast paced as the speed of Nick’s brain. It has teen parental embarrassment in front of the boyfriend. Which had me laughing out loud! A mystery that needs solved. The anticipation of wanting to know what is going on with Nick and waiting for a big reveal. A big bad villain that is sneaky and manipulative. A sweet teen love story. BETRAYAL! ACTION! SUSPENSE! I seriously had so much fun reading this book. I didn’t want it to end but at the same time I couldn’t put it down because I wanted to know what would happen next!

If you haven’t read The Extraordinaries yet, RUN don’t walk and grab it now, so that you can dive right into FLASH FIRE.

Flash Fire is book 2 in a trilogy and I can’t wait for book 3. (Cliffhanger warning)

These characters? Perfection! Klune's writing always sends me into fits of laughter, and Nick might be my favorite character ever. The friend group of Seth, Gibby and Jazz make me want to cry. They support each other through everything, and they don't judge each other for anything. I love that Nick's ADHD is described as his superpower, I think it's beautiful.
I'm not sure I can accurately judge the discussion of police violence and corruption in this book, as a white person. At times it felt forced, as if the commentary didn't fully match the characters. I did appreciate Aaron's choices at the end. It was made clear that his actions were hypocritical and he understood that, even if his goal was to protect his family. I hope that there is further discussion of defunding the police in the next book, as I think it's an incredibly relevant topic for this series.

I loved The Extraordinaries and I was really excited to be able to get this ARC from Netgalley! TJ Kline as a way of writing that speaks to me perfectly! Every book I’ve read has that sarcastic humor that is totally on brand for me! Flash Fire was no different, Nicky is one of the best characters I’ve ever read! This book was so good and a great continuation for the series! I love that we got to explore Seth and Nicky as a couple and also got to explore more about extraordinaries! Klune also creates an incredible cast of supporting characters, Gibby and Jazz are fantastic! I also like how real world issues were included in this book. I thought Klune did a really good job of describing what it would be like to be the child of a police officer and that struggle with knowing that the police don’t treat everyone the same. Nicky’s journey into become himself was so relatable! I can’t wait for this to come out nor to see what comes next for Nicky and Seth!