With superheroes being one of the in things right now, there is no shortage of titles allowing young adults a peak into that life style. In this first novel, readers meet Avery Pirzwick, a pretty average guy with some pretty un-average abilities. He is super-strong and can fly, but he is not too keen to let everyone know about it because he is worried that he might end up as someone's test subject.

He does struggle with his abilities since he doesn't have complete control of them. The previous year, he had to quit the wrestling team after hurting a teammate. He also tends to do some heavy damage as he is using them to help people. His parents worry that he might be turning into a hoodlum, so they register him with at a school for troubled teens.

This turns out to be just what he needed, though not for the reasons his parents believe. While there, he meets up with a small group of other super-powered beings. First, there is Darla, who has an amazing intelligence. Then there is Catherine, who has razor-sharp claws and the abilities to talk to felines. Sophie has the unfortunate ability to ooze a substance from her skin that will allow her to stick to anything. Nicholas has a vortex that develops in his chest, sucking everything in. Finally, their is Julian, who has the ability to chill things down.

Of course, there is usually bad that comes along with the good in these superhero stories. In this instance, it is Julian's mom Cherchette. She has the same abilities Julian, but they are stronger and she is better able to handle them. She is actually moving around trying to recruit the teams while insisting she is really hoping to teach them to use their abilities safely. This would seem perfect for people like Avery and Nicholas. With that said, Darla questions Cherchette's motives, which is probably partially due to the fact that Cherchette is pretty selective with who she is hoping to recruit ... she only wants the strong and useful kids.

The kids are basically all looking to better get a handle of who they are and where they stand in the world, a common theme in books for the age group. While much of their insecurities tie in with their abilities, they are also unsure in the same ways that most kids there age are.

Each of the characters is pretty well developed. The one exception seems to be Cherchette, but she seems to flesh out toward the end of the book as things start getting resolved. I really liked the story line, but I thought it could have been tightened up a bit. There are some moments when I thought things were getting a bit bogged down in conversation. With that said, I really liked the story and thought it was a nice addition to the genre.