Mom had been hibernating for the better part of two years. Why did she have to rise in terrible glory now, of all times?...Couldn’t she have begun her ascension at a time when Pat was not right in the middle of patching up his relationship with Silver Paladin’s alter ego? [p. 174]
Patrick West is studying to be an urban designer, and takes a job as night manager for superhero Silver Paladin, a.k.a. Nick Andersen. When Nick asks his household AI to 'send up a guy', Nick answers the call, only to discover that Nick is expecting a prostitute. Pat embraces this new duty with enthusiasm... and, several days later, finds himself needing to be rescued by Silver Paladin, who is perplexed to find his latest hookup on a rooftop, attempting to retrieve a rare CD.
Nick is somewhat clueless, but Pat makes up for it in sheer bravado: they end up dating, though there are quite a few things that Pat doesn't share with Nick. Such as 'I am a part-time minion for whichever villain -- sorry, 'challenger' -- needs staff'. And, ah yes, 'my mother is the legendary supervillain Serpentissima'.
This was great fun, though I confess I did not warm to Pat, who likes frat parties and wears a baseball cap. Nick seems considerably more mature (his date of choice is a trip to see The Magic Flute), and devoid of family ties in a way that Pat emphatically isn't. Perhaps that's why it felt as though there was a larger age gap between the two than is actually the case. I could see why Pat liked Nick, but not necessarily vice versa.
I liked the worldbuilding: this world is quietly but distinctly not our own, with its infowebs and stasis containers, and its small towns that seem American but have ancient castles at their heart. I also liked the relatable humanity of the villains! One, the steampunkish Sir Toby, requires 'a tribute of all high-quality imported teas and biscuits': Doctor Destiny is enraged by big-name bookstores, 'a morally decrepit sell-out of a chain with an abysmal selection'. And the West family, technically if not actively villains challengers, are mostly very likeable: Pat's elder sisters tease him mercilessly but are also wholly on his side, and always ready to set up a fake company (for the 'escort' business) or provide dating advice.
A lighter-hearted take on the 'heroes and villains' theme than Hench: possibly I should not have read it immediately after that novel. (NB: there's quite a lot of explicit M/M sex in this one, but much less violence than in Hench.)
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