For one superhero, the good guys can be deadlier than the bad guys.Jillian Johnson, known as the mighty Battlecry, was born into a superhero cult. She craves a life of freedom, far away from her violent and abusive team leader, Patrick. With no education, no money, and no future to speak of, she’s stuck in the dangerous life…until she meets the mysterious and compelling Benjamin, a civilian … compelling Benjamin, a civilian with superpowers. When Patrick confronts her, she fights back–and then runs for her life. One by one, her ex-teammates join her until a new team has formed.
But Patrick will not let his upstart teammates get away so easily. Humiliated and hellbent on vengeance, he waits for his chance to strike back and kill the new team, and he is happy to murder superheroes and civilians alike. On top of that, Benjamin has joined Jillian and her comrades, angering his own lethal family. Jillian’s enemies begin to close in from all sides.
Desperate and in hiding, Jillian must shed everything she thinks she knows about what it means to lead. Can she rise up to the challenge of defeating Patrick? Can she save Benjamin from his family? Or will she die like every other superhero who’s dared to challenge the cult?
If you like the gritty, understated superheroes in Netflix’s Jessica Jones and the raw urban fantasy of Veronica Roth, you’ll get sucked into USA Today Bestselling Author Emerald Dodge’s Battlecry!
Pick up Battlecry, and join Jillian’s team today!
“So if you like superheroes, female characters finding their strength, a touch of fun banter, heartwarming friendship and romance, and a peek into the dark corners of the human condition, this is the book for you.” – Amazon reviewer
“Hang on tight because this book starts with a bang–an actual bang–and it doesn’t let go. I LOVED how Dodge breathed life into this group of heroes, showing that not all heroes are ‘good guys’ and not all villains are ‘bad.’” – Amazon reviewer
“I am so in love with the characters that it’s easy to forget to mention the plot of the book, but suffice it to say it’s fast-paced, minutely well crafted, and boasts one of the most perfectly hateable villains I have ever read about.” – Amazon reviewer
“This book was amazing! Captivating from the first page, I couldn’t put it down!” – Amazon reviewer
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Holy freaking superheroes. This book explodes with awesomeness from start to finish!!
Jillian was born into a highly-controlled society. Food, clothing, entertainment, and education are strictly regimented by the Elders, who operate at the top of a strictly-enforced ‘Umbrella of Authority.’ Obedience is mandated. Rebellion against the status quo is intolerable. It’s a system primed for abuse, and no one in the ‘civilian’ world knows anything about it. Possessed of superior strength, speed, agility, and senses, she tends to be relegated to the position of ‘Muscle.’ Her abusive team leader makes a point of disparaging her intelligence, looks, and personality. Her other teammates are subjected to their own trials in the run-down house where they all live. In public, all of them smile anyway.One small rebellion brings Jill into contact with a superpowered civilian named Benjamin, and their developing relationship sparks a series of deadly events that cause Jillian to question everything she thinks she knows, and may splits her team apart.
I’ve never read a superhero book before, so I wasn’t sure what to expect when I opened Battlecry. What I got was one part Jessica Jones, one part gritty urban fantasy, and another an introspective experience coming from an oppressive cult environment. And that might sound depressing… It is, but our heroine, Jillian Johnson, takes us through it with an incurable hope and optimism that has you rooting for her throughout. And her interactions with her fellow teammates/friends and budding love interest, Benjamin, help ground this deeply psychological drama/adventure in the personal realm, keeping the focus on the characters rather than a sprawling and remote world map.
The characters are, far and away, this book’s strong suit. They want to help people, to be safe, to be happy, and they’re easy to relate to even while having super strength, telepathy, or even the power of the sun. What separates Battlecry from your average superhero story is the oppressive cult system the superheroes are born into–with rules for rules for rules brainwashed deep into the psyche. They’re not allowed more than a pittance, are taught that libraries are evil, must look/act a certain way, and this would sound outlandish if not for the uncomfortable events in history where such systems turned into infamous tragedies. But even when brainwashing, how long can you oppress a superhero?
Patrick Campbell–the violent and cruel team leader, Atropos–pushes Jillian (Battlecry) to the edge, and I wanted to cheer for her at full volume when she decided enough was enough! Her breaking away from this intolerable environment and exploring what a normal life might be (Benjamin! *swoon*) touched me deeply, and of course the action was awesome. The final battle took the cake for me–with the stakes pushes BEYOND the limit (you’ll see what I mean!)–and the ending was SO satisfying (Helios MVP!!!) while still making me want to read book 2 to find out what happens next.
So if you like superheroes, female characters finding their strength, a touch of fun banter, heartwarming friendship and romance, and a peek into the dark corners of the human condition, this is the book for you. Hint: read “Ignite” first from the author’s website. And read on a weekend… you won’t be sleeping much. 🙂
HOLY COW! From the first page I was hooked, I could not put it down. The main character is the kind of complex female character and hero that I can’t find enough of in books these days. Read this book!
Being a superhero isn’t much fun. The constant exposure to the threats of supervillains takes a lot of psychological strength, and having a cruel sociopath as team leader makes even downtime unpleasant. Add to that the numerous restrictions against ordinary pleasures like coffee, ice cream, associating with civilians, and you wonder who would choose the life of a superhero. Turns out, superheros don’t have a choice, they are born into the life and given strenuous training from an early age. This is Jillian’s story, known by her superhero handle “Battlecry”.