Renegades

Renegades is by Marissa Meyer and is the first book of a new series by the same name.

Secret Identities. Extraordinary Powers. She wants vengeance. He wants justice.

The Renegades are a syndicate of prodigies—humans with extraordinary abilities—who emerged from the ruins of a crumbled society and established peace and order where chaos reigned. As champions of justice, they remain a symbol of hope and courage to everyone...except the villains they once overthrew.

Nova has a reason to hate the Renegades, and she is on a mission for vengeance. As she gets closer to her target, she meets Adrian, a Renegade boy who believes in justice—and in Nova. But Nova's allegiance is to a villain who has the power to end them both.

The Breakdown:
1. I feel like I finished this book ages ago, but I have taken forever to get around to reviewing.  I had a lot of feelings about this book, both good and bad.  First I will start by saying I found the world that Meyer has created fascinating.  There are these prodigies, most of whom develop powers in stressful/dangerous situations, but there are those born with them.    In the beginning they were hunted and persecuted, but then there was a revolution.  At first chaos of individual gangs of them ruled and then there were the Renegades, aka superheroes, that now are restoring order.  It is definitely a complex world and back story.

2. Nova considers herself a villain, but she is a lot more complicated that just clear cut bad.  She has her reasons for hating the Renegades, but honestly, she seems to be a good person at heart.   For someone who considers herself a villain, she does some pretty heroic things at times.

3. Adrian is a interesting foil and love interest for Nova.  He is the biological son of a slain Renegade and the adopted son of  two other Renegades.  Kind of love that he is raised by a gay couple, on that note.   He has the amazing ability to bring whatever he draws into the real world.  He is keeping some major secrets from his dads and the his Renegades team.

4.  One of the things I like most about this book is the supporting characters. I really liked Ruby and Oliver, and actually want more of them and their awkward flirts.  There are some interesting villains, both of the Anarchist and in the Renegades.  I think they help to prove that good and bad are not always black and white.  But my absolute favorite is Max.  I want so much more of him and how his powers work.

5.  I did have some problems in this book.  I felt that Meyer got a little too wordy at times.  The book did seem to drag in some places. I was also confused why all the heroes and villains had code names/secret identities, but they all seemed to know each others real life names. What is the point of the secret identity if everyone knows who you really are.  Then there is Nova-Adrain romance.  At times it works well, but sometimes it feels too forces.

6. Last thing, I promise, that ending was fantastic!  OMG, the big secret at the end blew me away.  It definitely has me hooked for the next book.  Plus, I feel like there is more to the story to Nova's parents' death than she has been told, and it could really connect her to Adrian.

To Read or Not to Read:
Read