A genre-savvy, emotionally grounded superhero tale with equal parts kick and conscience…
In Rayburn’s witty and high-energy second foray into the HV-verse, a near-drowning in the Pacific leaves a Japanese-American couple with more than just survivor’s guilt. Karate instructor and ICU nurse Hideo Okamoto, hoping for a relaxing boat ride with his Texan wife Jen, instead finds himself battling masked criminals as the newly christened “Mr. Danger.” When a strange man knocks on their door and hints at alien interference and a cosmic accident, the couple is swept into a conspiracy that stretches from the ocean floor to the stars.
The novel functions as both a superhero origin story and an off-kilter buddy comedy, with Hideo wrestling with spiritual questions while Jen embraces the vigilante lifestyle like she was born for it. The duality of their lives feels as absurd as it does grounded. Rayburn smartly weaves in nods to comic lore and gives his characters room to evolve without losing the book’s brisk pace or tongue-in-cheek tone. Those new to the HV-verse can dive in here without much confusion, though series loyalists will appreciate the international expansion and Easter eggs scattered throughout.
Fun through and through.
FriesenPress
Pub date May 8, 2025
ISBN 978-1038332837
Price $30.49 (USD) Hardcover, $17.99 Paperback, $6.99 Kindle edition
