Advent Calendar Review: Hero for the Holidays (Spandex and Superpowers) by Charles Payseur

Reviewed by PizzyGirl

TITLE: Hero for the Holidays

SERIES: 2018 DSP Advent Calendar, Spandex and Superpowers

AUTHOR: Charles Payseur

PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press

LENGTH: 49 pages

RELEASE DATE: December 1, 2018

BLURB:

A Spandex and Superpowers Story

Cody travels from Metro City to the Caribbean island lair of Dr. Devious to look after the place while the supervillain is in space for the holidays… and maybe to mend his broken heart. With Christmas fast approaching, Cody is desperate to avoid reminders of his recent disastrous breakup, and a few weeks of sun and relaxation sound perfect—until a drunk (but very cute) superhero crashes the party by literally crashing onto the beach.

And that’s just the start of Cody’s problems—angry shark-men, mysterious lava creatures, and a malfunctioning AI all make his holiday getaway anything but relaxing. Amid the chaos of his adventures in lair-sitting, though, Cody might find just what he needs—a new chance at love.

REVIEW:

I thought this story was super cute and fun. It was like “Despicable Me” meets “The Incredibles” with a twist!

This story was extremely OTT and did not even take itself the least bit seriously. It was so much fun and with each passing page, things just kept getting more and more ridiculous. The supervillains and superheroes were all just a little bit like the off brand version of real supervillains and superheroes. They were so innocently evil and not quite good and it was fantastic to see them interact. They really reminded me of people who try their hardest, and have the best intentions, but don’t quite know what they are doing or how to do things right.

I also thought the story was very sweet. Cody’s developing relationship with Sonny was adorable. Fair warning there was very little heat in this one, but it worked for me. This was just the introduction to a larger story and so there was no need for a full on relationship development. This was just a taste to whet our appetites for what could be good or hell, could be a flop. But I know I am intrigued enough to want to find out more about both men.

Finally, I really enjoyed the “suspense” of the story. Figuring out who the real bad guy was and how the conflict would be resolved was fun. And the various diversion that needed to be addressed were also interesting and entertaining.

Overall, I enjoyed this short story. It wasn’t very Christmas-y, and other than coinciding with the holiday timeline, it wasn’t a true holiday story but it was unique and very entertaining.

RATING: