Hero by Perry Moore

Title: Hero	Loved it	Graded
Author: Perry Moore
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Hyperion
Elements: Superhero
Series: Stand alone '

Thom Creed is used to being on his own. Even as a high school basketball star, he has to keep his distance because of his father. Hal Creed had once been one of the greatest and most beloved superheroes of The League-until the Wilson Towers incident. After that Thom's mother disappeared and his proud father became an outcast.

The last thing in the world Thom would ever want is to disappoint his father. So Thom keeps two secrets from him: First is that he's gay. The second is that he has the power to heal people. Initially, Thom had trouble controlling his powers. But with trail and error he improves, until he gets so good that he catches the attention of the League and is asked to join. Even though he knows it would kill his dad, Thom can't resist. When he joins the League, he meets a motley crew of other heroes, including tough-talking Scarlett, who has the power of fire from growing up near a nuclear power plant; Typhoid Larry, who makes everyone sick by touching them, but is actually a really sweet guy; and wise Ruth, who has the power to see the future. Together these unlikely heroes become friends and begin to uncover a plot to kill the superheroes. Along the way, Thom falls in love, and discovers the difficult truth about his parents' past.

This is moving, funny, and wonderfully original novel shows that things are not always what they seem, and love can be found in the unlikeliest of places.

At heart, Hero is a story about the relationship between a boy and his dad. Thom was so alone, he had no one but his dad to count on. His dad is Hal Creed, ex superhero who is now shunned by everyone in the community. Thom is also shunned by association.

So when one day Thom finds out that he has superpowers, and is asked to join the same superhero community that rejected his dad, Thom is torn. The real problem however, lies in the fact that Thom is gay. His dad, and almost everyone else in the Hero universe has a prejudice against gay people. I found it slightly disorienting that in a land where superpowers and superheros are rampant, no one can accept gay people.

Hero was very well written. The thing that most interested me about Hero, other than its plot, is that it was written by Perry Moore, the executive producer of the Chronicle of Narnia movies. Since the movies had been... executed excellently, I expected nothing less than the same from the book.

Seeing the lengths Thom went to for his father, and vice versa, was very touching. The ending reminded me a bit of the Watchmen comics, and made me tear up even though it seemed a little abrupt. I'm definitely looking forward to the sequel to find out what happens after.

I also liked reading how Thom grew into his own. It was a bit depressing reading how lonely and friendless he was. After joining the League though, he grew more confident, and had a much brighter outlook on life which makes it more fun to read when he gets into all sorts of trouble.

As for the action scenes... whoa. I could see every little scene playing out in my head, just like watching it on a TV screen! There are talks about a series based on the book. I hope the actors won't disappoint. With Stan Lee and Perry Moore at the helm, if the project ever comes to fruition, I think it can be an award winning series. I know, I know, it's high expectations but they can definitely surpass them.

Only one word to describe this novel: EPIC!