Super Human (review)

Bringing back a creepy, sadistic, power-hungry superhuman from four thousand years ago may not seem like the best idea, unless you are certain that he will be grateful for it and will help you take over the world. It is this very plan that a ragtag group of teens with still budding superpowers must thwart, without the help of any adults (superheroes or otherwise) who have all been contaminated with a horrific illness. For the most part, these teens didn't even know each other until this crisis emerged, and they have varying levels of mastery over their powers, so they aren't exactly a unified force of righteousness. They are, however, determined, convinced of their invincibility, and perfectly willing to try to save the world. The plot emerges impeccably, with every detail accounted for and even minor subplots explained in a logical way. The teens themselves are nuanced, well developed, and as intriguing as the circumstances in which they find themselves. There's the complex and lonely Pyrokine, who gets roped into helping the bad guys; the irascible Abby (still deciding on a superhero name), who practices her powers after working double waitressing shifts to support her mother and young sisters; there's also the incredibly powerful Roz, one of the few teens who has actually been in training, in her case with her superhero older brother. It is refreshing that the lines between good and evil are elegantly blurred in some situations, even if very subtly. This grappling with the ways in which power can be used badly will likely linger with readers even after the details of an epic battle with an ancient reanimated monstrous dude have faded.