Please Don't Tell My Parents I'm a Supervillain Paperback – February 15, 2014

We thoroughly enjoyed the book, and we finished it quickly. As usual, we listened and read along with Whisper sync. The narrator is wonderfully immersive. We will be going straight into the next book!

Just because something is a children's book doesn't mean it isn't good, even really good. Such is the case with PDTMPiaSV. Holy cow, that's long even when abbreviated. Anyway, with my reviews I attempt to delve into what I liked and didn't like and why so that you may make your own decisions about if you want to read it or not. Comments are always welcomed.What drew me to this book is that I really really enjoy the idea of a bad guy main character point of view, which the title really insists you're going to be reading about. To be honest this isn't new or anything, the Artemis Fowl books are very much the same in that the morals of the main are a little questionable, but not too questionable because it's meant for kids. Personally I think that is where the Artemis Fowl comparison ends though because while that one tended to be very comfortable in the dues ex machina world of children's books, this one is going to be a lot more shockingly real feeling. In fact the only reason this is truly a children's book at all is because Richard Roberts, who by the way is a great guy and despite a lot of fame will respond to messages, doesn't like to write unhappy endings.So yes, if you're reading Richard Roberts you can bet that probably everything will work out one way or another, but does that mean everything is perfect? Not... really. The fact is that these books manage to walk this crazy line of children's book and young adult that just blows me away. The author may not like to kill people, but the threats will be real. There may not be a moment of emotional distress (for you the reader) but the characters will experience the gambit. Speaking of the characters, there is a lot of depth to them, even extremely side characters whom only show up a little bit. Issues? Yes this book covers that sort of stuff too, without including a direct LGBT theme, Roberts expresses a very love is love attitude with a single sentence.Now besides being a children's book, this story is very much firmly in the genre of super hero stories. These have been getting really popular of late and this is maybe the third I've reviewed so far, each one taking a slightly different approach to it. In this book super powers are really not that uncommon and you really get the impression anyone can acquire them with enough motivation. . Actually I take that back, the book straight up shows you that anyone can. This is refreshing because when you read a book about special people, part of the appeal is usually the sense of being better than someone else because say you won the super hero lottery. While some might like the chosen one approach to being special, I for one do not. I like my characters to earn it and in absence of that, at least be able to earn it. Though there really isn't any non-powered characters in this story, that's a fact that doesn't seem to matter much because anyone could be if they really sought it out and that's pretty cool.What compels the story I think the most is the mix of internal and external story telling. There is the action of a fight and the emotional distress of being in that kind of scary situation. There is the menace of a villain and the emotional betrayal of being led into a trap. The book manages to cover these things in near equal measure which a recipe for widespread appeal in any story. You can really get a sense for how various people are handling things as the story goes and often times these are complex emotions, especially for a children's book.There is a little bit of romance, which is never a high point for me. I tend to feel with romance you need a reason, not just toss it in wily nily because it gives the reader some sort of high. Generally speaking the best romance in stories is the kind that has some sort of relation to the armature or the moral. I can't honestly say that this is the case in this book, in part because I couldn't even tell you what the moral, if there is one, is. This doesn't mean it is a bad book per say, and the romance is so played down it hardly detracts, but it is something I noticed later on. Another thing you might want to know going into it is that there is going to be a lot of loose ends seeing as the book is one part of a serious. This doesn't bother me because I personally see life as a never ending story and books that try to tie everything neatly bugs me a great deal more.In the end I would recommend this book to most anyone, however I can see why some of the above points might turn off some readers. I'll be thrilled to get around to book two (when my reading list allows) and toss in a review then. In the meantime I'm happy to respond to any comments.

Has any of you ever watched Sky High? It's a super cool - and very underrated - movie about a kid whose parents are superheroes and he wants to be like them, but seems to be normal despite going to a high school designated to educate the future heroes and sidekicks. Well, the concept of Please Don't Tell My Parents I'm a Supervillain is pretty familiar in some plot points with that.Penelope "Penny" Akk has it rough. Her parents are the retired heroes Audit and Brainy Akk, two super geniuses, and the middle school girl cannot wait to get her own powers. Everyone keeps telling her to wait, but what do they know? She's so close to unlocking them, she can just feel it! So when her powers do come in a rather abrupt manner, she knows it will be better to keep it a secret and surprise her family later, when she has full control of them. But things never go as planned. A science fair goes wrong, and then her best friend slash crush, Ray Viles, goes picking a fight with Miss A, Original's sidekick. What's a girl to do? What else? She stands by his side and fights, too, and with the help of their friend, Claire Lutra, they win. Too bad they can't celebrate their victory. Now word is out that they're the new black in supervillainy - and heroes and sidekicks won't stop chasing them until they're down! Can Penny stop this madness that her secrets and rash decisions have caused and convince the public she's actually one of the good guys, before her parents find out? And what if, despite denying it, she's actually good at being bad?As Penny herself would say... Criminy! Who would have thought that I would end up cheering for supervillains? And middle school ones at that! But it's true. The Inscrutable Machine was one team I wouldn't mind to keep as the bad guys!Penny and her friends were the most refreshing trio I have read - ever since the all-too-famous Golden Trio, that is. They had their ups and downs, and the usual "problems" a middle schooler faces in life, but they tried to see the bright side, and always had a plan to get out of each mess they created - even if their plan rarely worked. They were, first and foremost, a TEAM. Sure, they came at odds with each other, and not all of their feelings were pure. Claire was too self-absorbed and shallow, Ray was a bit too much of a materialist and tended to forget he was the one who got the girls in the heroes' wanted list, and Penny would sometimes forget of anything else other than her own powers and would get unreasonably jealous of Ray mooning over Claire. Oh, yes, I almost forgot about the love trianle. Yeah, there was one, too.BUT! (And it's a big but, mind you)Here's the thing. You just can't stay mad at them. Or find it in your heart to dislike the romantic confusion among them. Why? Because Richard Roberts is apparently a genius in what he's doing! Early in the story, Penny informs the reader about the situation:"Love triangles suck."When I read that line, I freaked out. I hate love triangles. I avoid them as much as possible. But it turns out that Penny's admission of the problem did the trick, as it served to give a light and humoristic atmosphere. Sure, she was jealous of Claire because of Ray's attraction to her, but she never let that get in the way of their teamwork. She sulked a bit, but that was it. Claire was a shallow and sometimes naive girl, but she would cut her own arm off for her friends - and proved to be more mature and observative in rare occasions. As for Ray, while we never really found out what was his family situation was, it looked like he had missed out on lots of material goods, so it was somewhat natural for him to get dazzled by the sparkles that came with super powers and the cookies that the dark side had to offer.Now, don't go thinking it was just the characters that kept the story interesting. Not at all! Mr. Roberts has a way with words that makes you unwind and enjoy yourself, as you witness the adventures of this unlikeable trio. Their powers were a delight to read into full development. Their comments and the dialogues through the book were funny and sarcastic, and it was often hard to remember that, hellooo, these are NOT adults we're dealing with, but little kids! The only times when their age showed was when they "fangirled" or when they screwed up - and since this writer has obviously done his homework, this happened a lot, and with all the times having a specific gap between them so that it would not get boring AND add to the suspense and the character growth.With a plot that is so familiar and yet so new, three main characters that crack you up and make you want to cuddle with them, villains and heroes that never stay on their respectful sides but venture in gray areas whenever it suits them, and lots of fancy, intriguing gadgets, it's no wonder why I recommend this book wholeheartedly. The Inscrutable Machine are sure to guarantee you the best of times!***I was given an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The opinion stated in this review is solely mine, and no compensation was given or taken to alter it.***