Fantastic! This reminded me quite a bit of “Spider-Man,” as Jonathan Tibbs is very much a nerd who doesn’t expect to, nor does he want to, become a superhero. But there’s a significant twist: his challengers come from another dimension, and when he fights to defend the earth and vanquishes them, the timeline in which the battle occurs ceases to exist… which means no one can ever learn his secret. They can when he gets “activated,” but then no one remembers–hence “The Never Hero.” He realizes that this is a secret he must always carry alone, but for the mysterious visitor called Hale who seemed to imbue him with the power to do intergalactic battle in the first place.
Meanwhile, we learn that there’s a shadowy government group that’s investigating him–they know that Hale has tapped him for something, but they don’t know what. One of their operatives infiltrates the house under cover of dating his roommate, so that he can keep tabs on Tibbs.
Much of the story is Tibbs coming to terms with his new identity, dropping out of school, and training like a fiend to fight for his life while fending off the mistrust and concern of his friends who can’t possibly understand. But the tension is so well done here, and the characters are compelling and likable. I immediately purchased the next book.
My rating: *****
Language: plenty but not too much, for me
Sexual content: present but moderate I guess
Violence: fantasy only
Political: none
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