FLASH FIRE (The Extraordinaries #2) by TJ Klune
- Publisher: Tor Teen, July 13th, 2021
- Genre: Sci-Fi, Young Adult, LGBTQ+
- Format: eARC
- Page Count: 374 pages
Click on the cover for my review on Goodreads.
This review contains MAJOR spoilers (in spoiler tags) for The Extraordinaries (book 1). There are no spoilers for this sequel.
Cute Mutants meets One Last Stop (kind of) but achillean.
First and foremost, I love how queer this book is! There are mentions of different gay cultures, discussions of safe sex, etc. It is written by a queer author for queer teens. Also, I love the friend group so much! The ever chaotic Nick (17, gay, ADHD), his hot boyfriend Seth (17, bisexual), Jazz (17), and Gibby (18, lesbian). I also love some new Extraordinaries, especially the drag queen Miss Conduct. She brings having super powers as an analogy for being queer to the next level.
Note that this book by a white author deals with the subject of police brutality as well as defunding the police. I cannot say if Klune did well on incorporating discussions of the police in Flash Fire (Nick’s dad, Aaron Bell, is a cop), but I am glad to see that he tried. Also note that there is at least one instance of cissexism where “female anatomy” is supposed to include vaginas. I’m hoping that is only in the ARC. There are also a few inappropriate jokes on child labor and war from Nick.
So, about this book. In the final scene in The Extraordinaries, it was revealed that
There are also multiple scenes where Nick is confronted with his own privilege of being white and skewed view on the police since his loving father is a cop. I personally think it’s nice to have Nick learn and grow along the way.
And ew Simon Burke and Rebecca Firestone. They are just… no.
Again, the book ends with a short scene in Aaron’s POV. I don’t love revealing information in his scenes especially since some things were already alluded to in the story, but I guess they function as little cliffhangers.
Despite some of the imperfections that I hope are not in the final copy, the overall experience of reading Flash Fire was amazing, and I love seeing how awkward Nick and Seth are and how adorable Gibby and Jazz are (go sapphics!). The aspect of friendship and love and family is wonderful, and I love that all their parents (and Seth’s uncle and aunt) are loving and somewhat involved in their lives. I look forward to book three of the series and learn more about Guardian!
content warnings: blood, police brutality, racism, kidnapping, forced medication, panic attacks, jokes on child labor/war, cissexism, discussions of sex, conversion therapy (for Extraordinaries), fire
I received a digital review copy from Tor Teen via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review.
For more of my reviews and other whatnots, follow my blog, Twitter, Instagram, and friend me on Goodreads.
