Review:  What Could Go Wrong? (A Subpar Superhero story) By Toshi Drake

Rating: 3.25🌈

What Could Go Wrong? By Toshi Drake is another in the multi-author series about a group of people labeled subpar superheroes who work for the secret agency SPAM. 

Most of them have abilities that are considered less essential or powerful to society or the agency, hence the label.  

In Drake’s book, What Could Go Wrong?, the best elements of this story are the two main characters and their new developing relationship.   It starts with Ezra, an awkward records clerk for SPAM. Enthusiastic about his unseen employer, April, naive about exactly SPAM does, and sort of unaware about his own weird powers, Ezra’s attempts to prove himself to himself and his boss powers the events. 

And it’s how he accidentally but not really meets Chauncey “Chaz” Adams, retired subpar agent with a weird power of his own. 

It’s a case of goofy, enthusiastic , out of his depth employee meets grumpy, bitter retired agent, they have a instant attraction, get ensnared in a  muddled investigation involving Big Foot, that further develops into just a narrative plot line quagmire.

What does work here is the dynamic between Ezra and Chaz. It’s built slowly as they get to know each other under adverse conditions, further adjusting to each other’s expectations and differences in sexualities.  It’s developed around respect and mutual understanding. They treat each other as responsible adults and with support for each other’s issues, whatever they feel they might be. 

It’s a lovely romance and Ezra and Chaz make the story entertaining and sweet.

But the investigation and case they fall into is a narrative bungle.  It makes little sense, it’s choppy in execution, and its overall plot is muddled. Even their powers aren’t clearly defined.

So read this if you’re a fan of the author, the series, and for the relationship, which is lovely.

Subpar Heroes series- 15 books:

🔷The Accidental Necromancer by Liv Rancourt 

🔷Behind the 8-Ball by A. E. Wasp

🔷Transparent Is a Color by Kaje Harper❤️

🔷Impossible Things by Alexa Land 

🔷My Not-So-Super Blind Date by Allison Temple ❤️❤️

🔷An Ex-Hero’s Guide to Axe Handling by Jenn Burke ❤️❤️

🔷In The Nick of Time by Elle Keaton 

🔷Static/Cling by Jaimie Samms

🔷Spiritual Guidance Not Required by Jacy Braegan   8/1/2024

🔷What Could Go Wrong? By Toshi Drake

🔷License to Chill by Chantal Mer 8/8/2024

🔷Code Name Dolittle by Lynn Michaels. 8/22/2024

🔷Signed, I’m Yours! By Rhys Lawless 8/29/2024

🔷A Taste of Danger by Morgan Brice. 9/5/2024

Buy link:

        What Could Go Wrong?

    

Blurb

All Ezra has to do is deliver a message to retired clean-up agent, Chauncey Adams, and he’ll become the go-to person for SPAM’s Canadian office. Drive to Chauncey’s, hand off the papers. That’s the mission.

What could go wrong?

Everything. Everything could go wrong. A random phone call, unexpected magic words and a grumpy retired agent are just the beginning. The end? Finding Bigfoot on the Bruce Peninsula.

Between dead bodies popping up and being kidnapped by incompetent bad guys, Ezra and Chaz have to solve the mystery of what happened before they get stomped out for good. These secret agents are more laughable than lethal, but they’ll have to rely on each other–and the growing spark between them–if they want to survive.

What Could Go Wrong? is a part of the multi-author Subparheroes MM romance series.

• Publication date: August 6, 2024
• Language: English
• Print length: 194 pages