Karissa E. (ophelia99) reviewed The Rise of Renegade X (Renegade X, Bk 1) on + 2527 more book reviews
I have had this book to review for what seems like forever. I was excited to finally get around to reading it. The books starts a bit slow, but ends up being a witty and entertaining story about what it means to be a villain or a hero.
Damien is super excited for his sixteenth birthday, the day when the whorls on his thumb will arrange themselves into a V and he will be able to commit to the life of a supervillain. However things dont go according to plan when instead of a V he gets an X on his thumb...the dreaded third mark that means he has a superhero parent and a villain parent. He knows his mom is the villain but who is his dad? When he finds out his mom suggests (forces) him to spend a few weeks with his paternal superhero family which goes against everything hes ever known. Soon he will be forced to make a choice; will he chose the life of a villain which is all hes ever known or does the life of a superhero hold more promise for him?
The book starts a bit slow and it took me a bit to get into the story, but once I did I really enjoyed it. Damien is very snarky and witty and I enjoyed reading about him. It was entertaining to watch him try to navigate a world of black and white where he ends up as a shade of grey.
What starts out as a seemingly simple mystery where Damien is going to help a new friend track down her dad, ends up as an effort to save the world. While Damien is used to and determined to be a supervillain, he also has a bit of a soft spot for doing what is right. Its interesting to watch him struggle to straddle the two worlds while also trying to just be himself.
The side characters fell a bit short for me; none of them really grabbed me all that well. I also found the romance between Damien and Kat to be a dry and abrupt. Although I did enjoy Damiens parents and how they represented good and evil while still struggling with normal parenting issues.
Damien is incredibly snarky and funny and some of the dialogue throughout the book is incredibly fun. The whole story has a overtone of snarky playfulness throughout with just a hint of heartfelt sincerity here and there.
This book does a great job of showing how sometimes heroes fall short and villains can be heroic.
Overall I ended up enjoying this quirky and witty little book about the shades of grey between superheroes and villains. It was an entertaining read; although it took me a while to really get sucked into the story the second half of the book was very engaging. I am uncertain right now as to whether or not I will read the second book, The Trials of Renegade X. I would recommend to those who enjoy coming of age type stories with snarky superhero villains.
Damien is super excited for his sixteenth birthday, the day when the whorls on his thumb will arrange themselves into a V and he will be able to commit to the life of a supervillain. However things dont go according to plan when instead of a V he gets an X on his thumb...the dreaded third mark that means he has a superhero parent and a villain parent. He knows his mom is the villain but who is his dad? When he finds out his mom suggests (forces) him to spend a few weeks with his paternal superhero family which goes against everything hes ever known. Soon he will be forced to make a choice; will he chose the life of a villain which is all hes ever known or does the life of a superhero hold more promise for him?
The book starts a bit slow and it took me a bit to get into the story, but once I did I really enjoyed it. Damien is very snarky and witty and I enjoyed reading about him. It was entertaining to watch him try to navigate a world of black and white where he ends up as a shade of grey.
What starts out as a seemingly simple mystery where Damien is going to help a new friend track down her dad, ends up as an effort to save the world. While Damien is used to and determined to be a supervillain, he also has a bit of a soft spot for doing what is right. Its interesting to watch him struggle to straddle the two worlds while also trying to just be himself.
The side characters fell a bit short for me; none of them really grabbed me all that well. I also found the romance between Damien and Kat to be a dry and abrupt. Although I did enjoy Damiens parents and how they represented good and evil while still struggling with normal parenting issues.
Damien is incredibly snarky and funny and some of the dialogue throughout the book is incredibly fun. The whole story has a overtone of snarky playfulness throughout with just a hint of heartfelt sincerity here and there.
This book does a great job of showing how sometimes heroes fall short and villains can be heroic.
Overall I ended up enjoying this quirky and witty little book about the shades of grey between superheroes and villains. It was an entertaining read; although it took me a while to really get sucked into the story the second half of the book was very engaging. I am uncertain right now as to whether or not I will read the second book, The Trials of Renegade X. I would recommend to those who enjoy coming of age type stories with snarky superhero villains.
Jennifer W. (GeniusJen) reviewed The Rise of Renegade X (Renegade X, Bk 1) on + 5322 more book reviews
Reviewed by Karin Librarian for TeensReadToo.com
Welcome to Golden City, where superheroes and supervillains mingle with ordinary citizens.
We meet the main character, Damien Locke, on the eve of his 16th birthday - the day his "V" is supposed to appear in his thumbprint. The day his fate is officially sealed. The day he becomes a REAL supervillain. His "V" will ensure his admission to Vilmore, the university for aspiring villains.
So, standing in front of a crowd of people as the clock strikes midnight, Damien watches as his thumbprint shifts...
into...
an...
X.
The "X" has only been a rumor - until now. The shock of the "X" is bad enough to send Damien into a tailspin, but the cause of it is downright devastating. The "X" means he has superhero in him. He's never known his father, but always assumed he was another supervillain like his mother - but he was wrong. His fears are confirmed when he confronts his mother and she reveals she had a one-night stand with a superhero in the middle of a particularly heated battle.
Damien is thrust into a world he doesn't want anything to do with when his mother sends him to spend six weeks with his father and his superhero family. He attempts to maintain his supervillain persona in the midst of the enemy, and is forced to make his own decisions about right and wrong.
Damien Locke is a delightful character. His snarky personality fills the book with humor and causes the reader to fall in love with him. Even though Chelsea M. Campbell set THE RISE OF RENEGADE X in a fantasy world filled with superheroes and supervillains, Damien still deals with typical teenage problems. He has to deal with a rotten friend, a cheating girlfriend, and major parent issues.
THE RISE OF RENEGADE X is a fun story. The reader will love getting lost in Damien's world. I know I can't wait for the sequel.
Welcome to Golden City, where superheroes and supervillains mingle with ordinary citizens.
We meet the main character, Damien Locke, on the eve of his 16th birthday - the day his "V" is supposed to appear in his thumbprint. The day his fate is officially sealed. The day he becomes a REAL supervillain. His "V" will ensure his admission to Vilmore, the university for aspiring villains.
So, standing in front of a crowd of people as the clock strikes midnight, Damien watches as his thumbprint shifts...
into...
an...
X.
The "X" has only been a rumor - until now. The shock of the "X" is bad enough to send Damien into a tailspin, but the cause of it is downright devastating. The "X" means he has superhero in him. He's never known his father, but always assumed he was another supervillain like his mother - but he was wrong. His fears are confirmed when he confronts his mother and she reveals she had a one-night stand with a superhero in the middle of a particularly heated battle.
Damien is thrust into a world he doesn't want anything to do with when his mother sends him to spend six weeks with his father and his superhero family. He attempts to maintain his supervillain persona in the midst of the enemy, and is forced to make his own decisions about right and wrong.
Damien Locke is a delightful character. His snarky personality fills the book with humor and causes the reader to fall in love with him. Even though Chelsea M. Campbell set THE RISE OF RENEGADE X in a fantasy world filled with superheroes and supervillains, Damien still deals with typical teenage problems. He has to deal with a rotten friend, a cheating girlfriend, and major parent issues.
THE RISE OF RENEGADE X is a fun story. The reader will love getting lost in Damien's world. I know I can't wait for the sequel.
Stephanie S. (skywriter319) -
All Damien Locke wants for his 16-year-old is to see the V appear on his thumb--the V that will indicate that he will become a villain, just like his supervillain mom. To his horror, an X appears on his thumb, indicating that his father was a superhero! Damien gets carted off to live with his father, the Crimson Flash, and his family, with the hopes that the hero within him may awaken.
Damien would rather go back to his old life of pranking and hanging out with his best friend and ex-girlfriend, Kat. However, an unexpected friendship with Sarah Kink turns his life upside down when he gets sucked into a battle of good versus evil, and he must decide which side he stands on.
THE RISE OF RENEGADE X is an astonishingly interesting debut YA novel that subverts the usual paradigms of the YA genre and our preconceptions of good and evil. And it does this all in the most entertaining way possible!
The gem of this novel is Damien's voice. A perfect balance of snark, sincerity, and your typical adolescent male stupidity, Damien will charm you into falling for his screwed-up ways. I took a kind of perverse pleasure in liking an irreverent character so much: it's not every author who can make readers like an obnoxious, mouthy, and crass protagonist!
The plot meanders through family subtleties, adolescent complexities, and the absurdity of a comic book, and so does get a bit choppy at times. However, despite the rather sudden climax and resolution, it is the character development of THE RISE OF RENEGADE X that you'll remember after reading. The love triangle between Kat, Damien, and Sarah is marvelously believable, lacking the flatness that can often occur in such satirical situations. Damien's family members are well-rounded and believable in their (sometimes twisted and misguide) support of Damien.
It's hard to adequately describe THE RISE OF RENEGADE X, as it's like a subgenre of its own. All I can say is that, plotting issues aside, it is one enjoyable ride for anyone who likes superheroes, supervillains, giggle-inducing adolescent humor, and a great narrative voice.
Damien would rather go back to his old life of pranking and hanging out with his best friend and ex-girlfriend, Kat. However, an unexpected friendship with Sarah Kink turns his life upside down when he gets sucked into a battle of good versus evil, and he must decide which side he stands on.
THE RISE OF RENEGADE X is an astonishingly interesting debut YA novel that subverts the usual paradigms of the YA genre and our preconceptions of good and evil. And it does this all in the most entertaining way possible!
The gem of this novel is Damien's voice. A perfect balance of snark, sincerity, and your typical adolescent male stupidity, Damien will charm you into falling for his screwed-up ways. I took a kind of perverse pleasure in liking an irreverent character so much: it's not every author who can make readers like an obnoxious, mouthy, and crass protagonist!
The plot meanders through family subtleties, adolescent complexities, and the absurdity of a comic book, and so does get a bit choppy at times. However, despite the rather sudden climax and resolution, it is the character development of THE RISE OF RENEGADE X that you'll remember after reading. The love triangle between Kat, Damien, and Sarah is marvelously believable, lacking the flatness that can often occur in such satirical situations. Damien's family members are well-rounded and believable in their (sometimes twisted and misguide) support of Damien.
It's hard to adequately describe THE RISE OF RENEGADE X, as it's like a subgenre of its own. All I can say is that, plotting issues aside, it is one enjoyable ride for anyone who likes superheroes, supervillains, giggle-inducing adolescent humor, and a great narrative voice.
