I absolutely loved this MM romance.

Such a great book with a solid storyline and great characters.

I eagerly look forward to reading more from this author.

A definite recommend!

A campy superhero comic, just in more words. I loved the little silly details and bits of world-building that made up the author's version of the superhero universe.

Thanks to the publisher for providing an eARC of Junior Hero Blues in exchange for an honest review.

I'm not going to lie and pretend that this was an intellectual masterpiece, but it was still really fun. It's campy and cliché but superhero books are historically supposed to be that so I think J.K. Pendragon choose a genre that really supports their writing style. We've had so many cheesy straight superhero books so it was really fun to read such a campy queer one.

Last year, Javier Medina was your average socially awkward gay high schooler with a chip on his shoulder. This year, he's . . . well, pretty much the same, but with bonus superpowers, a costume with an ab window to show off his new goods, and a secret identity as the high-flying, wise-cracking superhero Blue Spark.

Great story. Likeable characters. Hopefully part one of a series.

I did enjoy this book, Very funny lines and a lot of action.
The only downside is that I guess the love story whilst halfway through the book.
I'd like To see if there is a part 2 to the book

A fledgeling superhero falling for a brainwashed villain? Rick asks Javier out on a date. They get along until they find out each other's secret identity. Javier then works on saving Rick. There is a somewhat happy ending. I enjoyed the flow of the story. The author has done a splendid job to ensure that there aren't any dull moments in the story. I loved the characters ( main & supporting characters). They were all lovely. I liked how the author made sure that the MC did not get what he wanted easily. He had to work for it. I also loved how they avoided making the MC self-centred or annoying. It was great seeing a superhero who did not think the world revolved around him. Honestly, I do hope the author comes up with a sequel for this.

TL;DR - A splendid book with amazing characters

Good Lord was this book fun

This follows Javier Medina who is a socially awkward gay high schooler who just happens to have superpowers. No only that, but he's a... wait for it... Junior Hero. He's known by the public as Blue Spark and he's about to encounter a new foe that will change his life.

I love me some super hero fiction. It's my jam. But it's not always easy to do. I've read books licensed by Marvel and DC that bored me to tears and you know what? J.K. Pendragon knew what they were doing. When I read a books like this, book about people with powers, I want it to be fun and Junior Hero Blues delivered.

Javier is a realistic and relatable character who serves as an honest and hilarious narrator for the book and the story flows wonderfully from beginning to end. J.K. Pendragon weaves a wonderful world that is the perfect setting for a plethora of future books OR is the perfect setting for a single story that I want to reread again and again.

This book is fun, have I said that yet? It made me smile. It had a gay main character who was out and proud and not only that but a goshdarn superpowered badass as well. I got this book for free from Net Galley for an honest review but you better believe I'm buying myself a copy to put it on my shelf.

4.5 Stars

Javier is a high schooler who is out as gay, and loved by his parents who are immigrants from Spain and work hard for their very modest life in Liberty City. About six months back Javier had a freak accident and his body grafted with the energy of an alien life form that had been a Legion hero but was slain in the moments before. Now Javier is more than the weird kid who couldn’t speak English in primary school. He’s now a Junior Hero working for the Legion of Liberty. And, that’s an actual paying gig with a costume and everything. Javi hides his body from nearly enveryone because he’s covered in blue streaks, but in his alter-ego he’s the Blue Spark, with powers like almost-flying, and making shock waves, and sparks. He’s also really strong, but you know, not invincible or anything.

While out on patrol, Blue Spark discovers some Organization baddies robbing places. The head of this posse seems to be Johnny Black, who is a wise-cracking nefarious dude. He seems to be able to walk up vertical walls, and is super strong. This encounter reveals a secret plot by the Organization to gain access to the Legion database, digitally unmasking all the superheroes and their whereabouts in Liberty City. Battles between Organization and Legion operatives had been legendary, but there’s been a tentative peace for the last seven years or so–since the Legion had mostly eradicated the Organization’s forces. Now it seems as if they have been building up their team again, using a brainwashing agent known as a Hound to turn Legion members and new heroes to their malicious cause.

On the life front, Javier meets Rick, an attractive and popular boy at school, who seems like he wants to date him. And they hit it off. It’s so sweet and a bit overwhelming, which is why Javi doesn’t immediately notice the physical similarities between Rick and this Johnny Black guy.

I seriously adored this story. Javier is such a good and honest kid. He’s way out of his depth, but he’s striving to be the best person he can, while also keeping his big secrets. He learns pretty early that he’s fallen for Rick, and Rick is unfortunately under the sway of the Organization’s Hound. The ramifications mean they are always on opposite sides, even as Javier fights to win his mind and heart back. They have lots of discussions about right and wrong, and how to manage the divide across which they find themselves.

The tone and language of the story is perfectly aligned with a YA story framework. Javi and Rick have real-life teen drama angst, on top of the superhero/villain issues they both face. It’s a creative story with heart and interesting experiences and plotting. I loved Javi’s heart and his questioning of the situation and his plans. He loves his parents, and he’s trying to protect them, Rick, Rick’s family, his friends and all the people of Liberty City. He’s a good kid, and he does save the day, over and over, while also following his heart.

About halfway through this book, I was feeling a little disappointed. I'd been so excited for it, so hyped, and I saw what I thought was a twist coming from a mile away and I was like well that's kind of disappointing...

But then the main character addressed the twist straight on, commenting on how yeah sure maybe he should've realized it earlier but he was a little distracted and I was like okay, okay, this is not what I was expecting but I'm here for it... And I think it paid off very well.

The story follows Javier Medina, who became a Junior Hero after an accident left him with super powers. He's trying to navigate being a hero and living a normal teenage life, including trying to date Local Hot Jock Rick Rykov. But of course none of this can be simple because super powers and super heroes and super villains.

I found Junior Hero Blues to be an excellent read, fast paced and entertaining. There is a casualness to the queerness that I appreciate - the queerness of the characters is important, but it isn't the point, and that's something I'm always looking for in my queer speculative fiction.

I struggled with how to rate this book. Everything about this book was nearly perfection (the characters, the plot, the superpowers), but I despised the writing style. The main character was supposed to be a 17 year old boy but instead it felt like I was reading about a 12 year old kid. The writing was very childish and I hate how the narrator kept addressing the audience and how the narrator would skip over parts of the story by saying "that was boring." I desperately craved more mature writing and narration, especially considering the fact that this book dealt with some topics that make this book more young adult than middle grade like some mentions of dicks and sex.

However, I did really enjoy everything else about the book and I found it to be a very important book in terms of representation. The characters were all very complex and lovable. I may even have a new favorite book couple after reading this book because the main couple in this book have so much chemistry and they're so cute with each other. The romance was so sweet and wholesome. I would literally die for the main couple.

The representation in this book is phenomenal. The main character is Spanish and gay, there's a Filipino American superhero who's rumored to be bisexual, and there's a lesbian character. All of the representation felt so natural and well done.

Overall I'd recommend this book if you're interested in a gay superhero story and you're okay with somewhat of a more children's or middle grade writing style. There's so many fun things that happen in this book that everyone will be sure to find something that they love about Junior Hero Blues.

For some reason, before I started reading, I had this weird feeling that I'm not going to like this book. So I've been putting it off for days, because I was afraid, until one day I was like "okay, fine, I need to start reading it" - and then I fell in love. I fell in love with Javier, both his clumsiness and his bravery, his stubbornness and his kind heart, and I fell in love with the story as a whole. And while the identity of Jimmy Black was painfully obvious (to everyone but Javier, really), and there were also some other predictable details about the storyline, it was still far from boring. I have been in a bit of a reading slump lately, reading at most 50 pages a day, getting distracted way too easily, and more often than not just reading for the numbers (another book finished, another X pages read, etc.) With this book, I ended up reading almost 200 pages in one day, and during the last chapter I kept wishing it could be longer, because I didn't want it to be over. Javier is, besides being so easily likeable, a very relatable main character, his struggles and his dilemmas (if you think about them in an "everyday" way, not in a "superhero" way) are ones we all face sometimes. What is good and what is bad? Am I doing the good thing? Just because people say a certain thing is good, does that make it true? This book will make you laugh out loud, will surprise you, will make you sad, angry, hopeful and relieved, and you'll find yourself rooting for Blue Sparks as well as Javier Medina - be careful, the guy will steal your heart! The writing style is pleasant, very easy to read, the flow is amazing, and it keeps you hooked from the first page to the last. And while I was worried (anxious, even) that the ending may disappoint me, that wasn't the case at all. It was just perfect, and it left me smiling even longer after I had finished reading.

The idea of a teenage superhero working for a superhero company was really interesting and came with all the usual tropes about having to hide his identity. I liked the character of Rick and Kendall was a great best friend character, I thought their personalities were really great and engaging. I thought the way we got the backstory bit by bit worked really well. I thought the action scenes with Jimmy Black were a bit cliché and the action felt a bit rushed. I didn't find Javier the most relatable main character and his asides were a little cheesy at times. Overall, I thought it was a feelgood story but perhaps a little simple for me.

This book was a fun read. If you read YA, and enjoy the fantasy world of superheroes and crime fighters then you're going to enjoy "Junior Hero Blues" by J.K. Pendragon.

It took me a few pages to get used to the writing style. That narrative was great though. Javier's voice was quirky, funny and endearing. It read to me a bit like a film ... the way a character will start off at the beginning of a film talking to the audience. I settled into the style and came to really enjoy Javier's wit and his self-deprecating humour.

The plot is not complex although parts of it are quire original. I really enjoyed the idea that superheroes join an organization to be "junior" to the people who have been in the game longer. I mean, it makes perfect sense. This book is heavy on the super-action...there are several pretty awesome altercations between the villains and the heroes. As the story progresses, the plot becomes more complicated in terms of "who is good" and "who is evil". I liked the way things were complicated by the author - it made the book. much more interesting read.

At the beginning of the book, Javier begins a relationship with Rick. They are, in many ways, opposite of one another and Javier struggles a bit as he tries to figure himself out. He's not just figuring out what it's like to live as a superhero, he's figuring out who he is as a person. The interactions between these two young men were great and really authentic. They were fun and even with the whip-snap turns in the plot, I kept finding myself cheering for them.

The only issue I had with this book was that the ending was a bit abrupt. I was hoping for a little bit more time to sit with the author's resolution but it was suddenly over! I suppose that's a good thing - I mean, I would have been happy if it continued so I was definitely enjoying it. There's plenty of resolution in terms of the plot, so don't worry about that. I just wish there had been some more time for the ending to sink in.

This was such a fun book and I will miss Javier! I will definitely pick up future publications by J.K. Pendragon.

I love superhero books and I love it even more when they're queer. So I was super excited for this one.

Unfortunately, it didn't really do it for me. I didn't really get on with Javier or the writing style. Though I liked that he was Spanish and willing to beat up bullies with his powers.

There's nothing wrong with the book, it just wasn't for me in the end.