A trans teen is transformed into a superhero in this action-packed series-starter perfect for fans of The Heroine Complex and Not Your Sidekick. Danny Tozer has a problem: she just inherited the powers of Dreadnought, the world’s greatest superhero. Until Dreadnought fell out of the sky and died right in front of her, Danny was trying to keep people from finding out she’s transgender. But before … out she’s transgender. But before he expired, Dreadnought passed his mantle to her, and those secondhand superpowers transformed Danny’s body into what she’s always thought it should be. Now there’s no hiding that she’s a girl.
It should be the happiest time of her life, but Danny’s first weeks finally living in a body that fits her are more difficult and complicated than she could have imagined. Between her father’s dangerous obsession with “curing” her girlhood, her best friend suddenly acting like he’s entitled to date her, and her fellow superheroes arguing over her place in their ranks, Danny feels like she’s in over her head.
She doesn’t have time to adjust. Dreadnought’s murderer—a cyborg named Utopia—still haunts the streets of New Port City, threatening destruction. If Danny can’t sort through the confusion of coming out, master her powers, and stop Utopia in time, humanity faces extinction.
“I didn’t know how much I needed this brave, thrilling book until it rocked my world. Dreadnought is the superhero adventure we all need right now.”—Charlie Jane Anders, author of All the Birds in the Sky
“A thoroughly enjoyable, emotionally rich, action-packed story with the most exciting new superheroes in decades. Unmissable.”—Kirkus Reviews
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I did not like this book at all. Very hard to read and follow. I would not recommend this book.
This is an incredible superhero novel that features a trans teen that not only has to navigate the scary world of suddenly having powers, but also coming out to her family and new super team. Written by a Trans woman, this book didn’t pull punches on the difficulties and heartbreak trans teens have to face when they have family that doesn’t understand or accept them. It was hard to read at points because my heart just broke for her. But, I also couldn’t put it down. Action-packed with a fantastic origin story I was riveted. The world is future but familiar and all the trappings of the Superhero genre were on full display. Loved this book!
Are you kidding me?!? Give me more transgendered superheroes please! Danielle is amazing and good hearted and wants to make the world a safer place. She is pushed around and bullied by people like her dad (asshole) and others. Unfortunately, when you hear all that negativity all the time, you might start to believe it. And then when it’s time to be the hero, how do you believe in yourself? I loved this and I am SO excited to read the next in the series!!
DREADNOUGHT is the first novel of the Nemesis series. The premise is Danny Tozer, young transgender girl, is there when Dreadnought the world’s greatest superhero is killed. Danny inherits the power of Dreadnought but also becomes her idealized self (effectively Supergirl).
This is problematic since Danny is still hiding her trans identity from her transphobic parents as well as schoolmates. She is, after all, only fifteen. But there’s more to her life than dealing with them. There’s an entire army of evil she needs to defeat as the other superheroes have nothing on Dreadnought–and the world needs a Dreadnought.
I really liked this book and have to say that April Daniels did an excellent story of superheroics and a Spiderman “coming of age” origin while also telling a tale of a trans teen coming to terms with their new identity. Danielle is completely aware of who she is and what gender she is meant to be but is hiding it from her father.
Danny wants to be a hero, at least a little, but is mostly happy that she’s been blessed with teenage supermodel looks that reflect how she wish she had been born. Danielle doesn’t jump into superheroism automatically but deals with a lot of conflicting emotions regarding the process. The older superheroes of the setting are clear that it is a demanding and sometimes traumatizing life.
There are some people who will ask whether this is more a transsexual awakening book or a superhero book. It’s definitely both and the two don’t conflict too much. There’s perhaps a bit too much time spent on the father (who is, sadly, a one-dimensional piece of crap–but that’s just how some parents are) but it is about Danny coming to terms with fact they don’t have to be afraid anymore. They are the most powerful girl in the world and that liberation is a universal escapist fantasy that I think will appeal to all readers.
I like the supporting cast and appreciate virtually every character except Danny’s family. Graywytch is an ugly bigot but is at least interesting in her reasoning (it offends her witchcraft-based religion), Valkyrja is very entertaining in her attempts to be supportive to Danny, and Doctor Impossible (no, not the one from Soon I will be Invincible) is highly entertaining. I think I loved the character of Calamity, a black teenage cowgirl vigilante, the most.
If I had one complaint, it is the fact that Danny does have to deal with such ugly and vile transphobia throughout the book. It’s not that it isn’t important for the book but that it is an unfortunate thing that makes the book uncomfortable. That it is something we have to deal with in the real world so often and that it must sadly also be confronted in our escapism. So a warning on the content as it doesn’t shy away from the slurs thrown at many transteens in RL.
So, did I like it? Oh yes. I picked up the sequel immediately.
9/10
The crossing of a superhero origin with a transgender coming out tale worked brilliantly. The way others treat Danny, after her change, is anywhere from uplifting for the understanding to horrifying for the bigotry, hate, and blind, stupid prejudice. The plot is well thought out, suspenseful, and scary, and the action… April Daniels writes superhero action that is as entertaining as comic-book fight scenes have ever been.
This book? It’s just plain WONDERFUL!