After reading and loving the first book, The Extraordinaries, I knew I would enjoy this book! It is just such a quirky read with the most loveable YA characters – it’s hard for readers not to fall for their charm! The story ARC really does develop in this sequel and it made for an enjoyable read. Again, I should mention that this novel isn’t going to work for everyone; there is a lot of rambling and info-dump moments, which are part of Nick’s charm – but you may not find that charming. It’s also worth mentioning that the author has tried to change his narrative regarding police brutality; whilst I found it heavy-handed, I still appreciated the effort. Whether it works for you is a matter of personal opinion. Overall, I had fun reading this book and I’m looking forward to more from the Extraordinaries series!

Thank you so much to @TorTeen & @NetGalley for giving me this eARC in exchange for my honest and unbiased review (Release Date | 13 July 2021)

SYNOPSIS | Nick & Seth are ready to take on the world but there are new superheroes arriving into Nova City and it isn't always easy to determine who is virtuous or who is villainous.

WHAT I LIKED:
- that cliffhanger ending!!
- the secondhand embarrassment style of humor had me laughing & cringing fondly on Nick's behalf
- the fact that TJ writes with such intention (including addressing the policing concerns raised after The Extraordinaries)
- honestly I'm beginning to think that TJ can't write a bad book

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:
- the story felt a little repetitive to the first book (I don't usually enjoy sequels as much as the first book though!)
- I struggled at times to lean into the disbelief (I don't actually watch or care for superhero movies)

This is the second book in the Extraordinaries series, so if you haven’t read that one yet, you really should! This book has all of the fun snappy dialog that the first one had, as well as the heartwarming swoony moments. I love TJ Klune’s writing, so this was just as perfect for me! I think I may have liked it even more than the first one, and that is saying a lot. I loved how the secondary characters were expanded upon more, and HIS DAD. I love him so much. And of course, there is a cliffhanger so be prepared to be wanting the third book SO BADLY it kind of hurts. I loved this book so much and I can’t wait to read the third one!

I was given an advanced reader's copy via NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own

This series is hilarious and I adore the characters and the story. I cannot wait for book 3. I recommend a series to everyone. It is so unique and witty.

I received a copy of this story from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This review is long overdue. I love and treasure this series and I knew nothing I could say here would do it justice. Nick and Seth and Gibby and Jazz are amazing and I want to be friends with all of them. My inner teenager thrills to read about their adventures.

I couldn't give this one a 5-star review, though, because some of the plot points felt a bit forced and preachy. I think they were absolutely necessary but I didn't love the execution.

I cannot wait for the next book to come out. I want to go on more adventures with this group. I want more happy LGBTQIA+ stories. The world needs more of them.

Thank you, TJ, for crafting beautiful stories.

Freaking loved this book so much. I read The Extraordinaries as well this year. I gave each book a personal rating of 6 stars and that means it will make it onto my favorite books of the year list. I really love Nick, Seth, Gibby, and Jazz so much. The story just had me from the first word to the last word. And the sneak peak for the 3rd book, just rocked my world. I will be definitely reading the last book right when it comes out. On July 19, 2022. I can honestly say that T.J. Klune is my favorite male author. And I will preorder his books right away. He is definitely an auto-buy author for me.

Wanted to give this series another go because I loved Cerulean Sea, but I think that it just isn't for me. I love the unique storyline and diverse characters, but just am not connecting with the characters themselves.

This was a DNF for me. And that hurts my heart to say. I just could not get into this one! And I loved the first one so much!! Will update feedback if I attempt to read in the future.

Oh to be a teenager again!!!And even more, to be an EXTRAORDINARY teenager (emphasis on the EXTRA, please). Just the tought of sneaking around with your boyfriend (or girlfriend) and having your Dad walk in, exactly at the same time your bedroom echoes the phrase 'BLOW ME' 🤣🤣🤣🤣...

And that my friends is how 'Flash Fire' kicks off and becomes one of my FAVE books read thus far this 2021. To be honest, I dove into this book with the exact mindset you are supposed to being an adult who loves YA: just ENJOY IT.

After hundreds of books and a few dozen YA authors, giving Tj Klune the chance to prove himself as a masterful teen story teller was a no brainer since I've been a hardcore OG fan of his since day and book one, many, many, many, many moons ago. Did he changed his writing style now that he joined the ranks of high profile authors belonging to the NYT Bestsellers? I say it became a sharper style, but he didn't lose his signature humor, sarcasm and wit. If you ask me what I think about this latest book? I'll tell you that he is just plain and simple, a BRILLIANT author. Period. 'Flash Fire' -the sequel to last year's 'The Extraordinaries'- just proved my point.

And for that exact reason, going back to Nova City was the mental equivalent of traveling Disneyland on steroids.

I refuse to spoil this for you guys. This book DESERVES to be enjoyed in any and every format (cause his all time fantastic narrator Michael Lesly takes the cake here again with the audiobook) but what I will twll you is that no matter how 'Extraordinary' any character may or may not be, they are still TEENAGERS, and Lord HAVE MERCY, Tj portrayed these teens as realistic and dramatic and overbearing and HORMONAL as possible. After reading the first three chapters you simply CANNOT deny that everything Nick, Seth, Gibby and Jazz go thru is possibly a reflection of your OWN teenage years. It's an ode to the supreme drama that floats around each teen at that perfect age where your heart melts when you see that boy or girl you like and the butterflies build a colony in your stomach. Yep, it has action, love, sweetness, drama, and though some things MIGHT seem predictable, they really end up NOT like you believe they will. Trust me on this. This book has EVERYTHING.

After the EPIC battle Nick and Pyro Storm fought against Shadow Star, everything SEEMED to be somewhat going back to normal, but not everything CAN go back to what it was, and Nova City is just preparing for another wave of not only new and brilliant Extraordinaries to join Pyro Storm in his mission, but we also see the possibility of not only one more story, but at least two more. I have my hopes high here, but I am a HUGE sucker for teenage drama (even more if this includes queer super heroes).

In short: Fash Fire brings the adventure and humor you would expect in your average YA story, but it also has those deeply rooted family ties Tj has mastered to portray over the years in every one of this books. Tj is an EXPERT storyteller when it comes to family bonds, blood and none blood related, and he manages to make you shed a tear or two with the way each story unfolds and the messages he wants to share. Flash Fire will make you laugh, cry happy tears but mostly, remember why your teenage years (or at least mine) were the BEST. ❤️

This was a solid sequel, if a bit predictable. In Flash Fire, we pick up pretty much where we left off in The Extraordinaries. We are still following Nick, Seth, Gibby, and Jaz and how the navigate both high school, new responsibilities and the fall-out from the conclusion of the last book.

This book contains the same humour as the first book. which I loved, plus we some more serious conversations about police brutality and grief than we might have seen in the first book. I loved how Nick really came into his own this book, learning to be a better friend, boyfriend, and care for people outside of himself. I also loved what we got to see of the rest of the crew, but I was left wanting more. I wanted to see some more development from our secondary characters, but we still have the third book for that.

Like I mentioned before, the plot was pretty predictable, especially in the first half. However, I still really enjoyed reading Nick move through the different parts of the plot and I, although not super shocked by the plot twist, am still really excited to see how this all wraps up (?) in the third book in this series.

Overall, this book series is a really fun time with superheros and learning about who you are.

This novel was a life-changing story, and while not the typical genre I read, it was a wonderful opportunity to read.

The cat is out of the bag, everyone knows Seth is an extraordinary. Now Seth has a larger community to back him up on every step yet the dangers lurking may tear the group apart. Flash Fire is an amazing sequel to Extraordinaries and continues the story flawlessly. Nick is back in his usual sharp humor and mile a minute thinking. Klune is a master at quick paced plots infused with humor and depth. His characters always have multi-dimension and depth and this is not limited to the protagonists. One of my favorite characters is Nick's dad, who brought the most sass and defused tension with humor. While the group is trying to save the world they are also trying to be teenagers as much as possible. Trying to balance the super hero and teen world is difficult, the pacing and plot fractures a bit when the police sub plot is brought in. I would have liked to see Klune tackle this a little more then the prom to be honest. This book was a fun and easy read but may have been a little over ambitious in what it tried to tackle.

It seems this blog has lately been gravitating towards writing review, but the truth is I was so behind on reviewing and my life has been so unexpectedly hectic that I’m just now getting up-to-date with everything, so just hold on there for a bit, please, while you enjoy these reviews (at least I hope you are).

I gave this book 4.5 stars and I was kindly given an ARC in exchange of an honest review by the publisher -thanks a lot, Tor!!- and NetGalley. Thank you so much, it was totally worth it! And sorry for the delay.

I think we have all at least heard of The House in the Cerulean Sea. If you have not read that, please do so. If you have, what are you waiting for to read more TJ Klune?! This book was a warm hug in a cabin whilst there’s a pretty strong snowstorm outside; pretty much like what Danish people call “hygge”. This is why I did not doubt it for a second when I saw two more of his books on NG and, surprise surprise, I was accepted for both (second one coming very soon)!

However, I realised too late that this book was a sequel to The Extraordinaries, which I had not read at the time, so I chose to read that one first. I mean, who wants to start a duology with the second book?

In this series we follow Nick Bell, his father, friends and biggest crush through a series of adventures. Nick is a teenager whose mother passed away, living in a world of superheroes, but dreaming of becoming what he cannot be; one of them. He suffers from ADHD and struggles to focus and stay calm, which he’s trying to learn how to do. He writes a fanfic about his crush, Shadow Star and has quite a few followers.

As usual, everything was wholesome, cute and incredibly touching. The author’s sense of humour is impeccable and it’s not easy to make me laugh, so believe me when I tell you something’s funny enough to achieve this. It is sarcastic without being aggressive whatsoever, ironic without crossing the fine like between this and not being a joke anymore.

Character-wise I felt that was the drive for this book; or their emotions to be much more precise. I have found this great writer to be a master on human behaviour and emotions. Being a psychologist, I don’t think I have ever read books with such depth on human motivations, reactions and thoughts as his. Actually, the characters’ train of thought is hilarious!

I feel I cannot reveal anything else without spoiling the book, so I’ll leave you to read it, which you should totally do. No matter if you are character or plot driven; most of us are emotion driven.

EVEN BETTER THAN THE FIRST BOOK!! I honestly LOVE all of these characters. This a fantastic YA fantasy world featuring a fan-fic writing neurodiverse main character whose best friend and new boyfriend is a real superhero, with 'extraordinary' powers. Some of these 'Extraordinaries' fight for good and others struggle with what's right. Very similar vibes to the X-men universe, where the issue of hiding one's identity and being free to embrace your differences comes under scrutiny from those in authority.

There's also an amazing queer love story between the two main characters, Seth and Nick, as well as one of the best father-son relationships I've ever read. Real, relatable, heartwarming and FUNNY!!!

I cannot recommend this series more, especially for fans of Out of character or the Heartbreakers series. I really hope there will be more books in the series soon. Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my advance review copy!!

What a ride! Funny and deep and sweet and lovely! I enjoyed this so much! I recommend it almost daily!

A sequel that is just as good as the first? Yes please! I loved every second of the continuation of Nick and Seth's story. There were so many points that I couldn't help but laugh out loud but there is plenty of action and drama as well. Nick has really grown as a character and I cannot wait to see where book 3 will take him. Flash Fire gave me all the feels.

I got an ARC of this book.

I wanted to like this book, but Klune has ruined my view of him which is drastically impacting my ability to like his books. I found out that Klune took the pain of Indigenous people and made a profit. What the actual fuck. seriously?

https://whatever.scalzi.com/2020/03/17/the-big-idea-tj-klune/

This book did address some of the issues with police brutality, but it was still cops generally are good and will help you. Which just sort of slaps the idea that Klune tried to understand race in the face. I just couldn't with this book either. I am going to stop reading Klune.

The Extraordinaries was one of those books I just KNEW I would fall in love with, and it's sequel is no exception. Plenty of twists and surprises, but the heart of the novel is the sweet romance and laugh out loud friendships!

Received from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

3.5 stars.

I thought this book improved on the first one, with Klune's signature humour and further development of the father/son relationship that I adored in the previous book.

My one critique echoes a number of other reviewers who thought this book overcompensated with regards to the commentary around the lead's father being a police officer. At a point it no longer felt organic to the book, but more like a public service announcement. I appreciate the sentiment, but it was clunky. I think this review sums it up best: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3567742115?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

I think there is a way to address this with a little more subtlety. Hopefully the third book gets it right- I will still tune in for this otherwise delightful and fun group of characters.

TJ Klune writes amazing character driven stories! IT is so easy to fall for his protagonists, this was a great sequel to a superhero series and I look forward to the last one.