Renegades Book Review

So I just finished reading Renegades by Marissa Meyer! I’m a huge fan of any of Marissa’s books, so naturally, I couldn’t wait to read this one. (On a side note, can I just fangirl about how cool the cover looks???) This book was just as awesome as The Lunar Chronicles and Heartless, and I could really see Marissa Meyer’s style through it. It had the perfect superhero vibe, from the cheesy aliases to the creative superpowers, and it was almost like a DC/Marvel retelling, like most of Marissa’s books.

In short, this book is set in the fictional superhero Gatlon City (which, I have to say, sounds a lot like Gotham City…) It’s about two rivaling groups of prodigies, humans with special powers: the Anarchists and the Renegades. The Anarchists are notorious for being the ‘villains’ of Gatlon City, while the Renegades are the renowned heroes that brought down the Age of Anarchy and established peace and order. One of the main characters is an Anarchist girl named Nova, who’s past gives her plenty of reason to despise the Renegades. One day, Nova meets Adrian, a Renegade boy who can see issues within the Renegade system. When the two alter egos meet, it sets the Anarchists and Renegades on a collision course: specifically Adrian and Nova. As a wild goose chase ensues, both prodigies are forced to question their loyalties, priorities, and beliefs about justice.

The sequel for Renegades, Arch Enemies, is set to release sometime in November this year.

(SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT)

“We were all villains in the beginning.”

One of the most unique aspects of this book, to me, was the fact that there was no clear protagonist or antagonist. The prologue itself seemed to imply this idea already, but as the story unfolded, it became more and more clear. I loved how the book was told from the perspective of both a Renegade and an Anarchist. Multiple POV books like this are always good for character development and keeping biases at bay, because the all characteristics of each group or individual are laid out for the reader to see, not just the characteristics that the narrator wants the reader to see. Based on the name, I went into the book expecting the Anarchists to be nothing but villains, but as I read more of Nova’s perspective, I could begin to see all the good things that the Anarchists had achieved for prodigies. Similarly, I expected the Renegades to be the invincible, save-all, solve-all superheroes in the story, but it was clear that they had their faults too, shown most prominently in their treatment of the Anarchists and especially in the revealing of ‘Agent N’ at the end of the book. Speaking of which, I’m really curious to see how that’s going to work out for them in Arch Enemies, which is Renegades 2!

“Heroism wasn’t about what you could do, it was about what you did. It was about who you saved when they needed saving.”

^^one of my favorite quotes btw^^

I don’t know why, but when I started reading Renegades, I truly expected Nova to be a Renegade. Not that, technically, she wasn’t, but I guess a biased part of me had always expected the main characters to be the ‘heroes’ and the ‘protagonists’. I love how this book showcased acts of a good heart from both the ‘villains’ and the ‘good guys’. Before it went sour, I loved the sister-like relationship between Ingrid and Nova and the father-daughter like relationship between Nova and Leroy. Even Winston keeping Nova’s secret during the interrogation despite Nova’s betrayal and the flashback of them playing together when Nova was a kid was just too cute for my heart. And despite how arrogant the Renegade Council seemed from Nova’s point of view, once I read Adrian’s POV, it was heartrending to see how much Hugh and Simon loved Adrian. And can we just stop for a moment and discuss the scene in the little boy’s birthday party at Cosmopolis Park? OMG, right??! I can just imagine Adrian trying to make all the kids happy by drawing them their wildest wishes, and Nova telling the little girl that you didn’t have to be a Renegade to be a superhero and how true it really was after everything she had been through…I’m literally going to break down and have a fangirl moment right in this blogpost. 

As long as I’m fingerling, I may as well mention how much I absolutely ship Adrian and Nova. They’re so awkward around each other but so incredibly obvious that even Danna notices…LOL!!! I do think they need to get their alter egos out of the way before anything else happens though, or else that will be LEGIT an awkward situation. Imagine the Sentinel and Nightmare crossing each other and discovering who the other was…ouch. 

And Max…my little Bandit. He reminds me so much of Angel from the Maximum Ride series. Unimaginable powers but so innocent and being used for that horrible Agent N…which, by the way, I’m super curious to find out more about, along with Phobia too. I’m kinda dying to know his real name. Is anyone getting any Kaz Brekker vibes from Phobia btw? I sure am!

Anyway, that was my book review for Renegades by Marissa Meyer! Have you read this book? Let me know what you think! Until next time, happy reading :)