Dreadnought
Ratings39
Average rating3.9
trigger warnings for: transphobia, lesbophobia/homophobia, rape mentions, multiple secondary character deaths, amputation, physical violence, emotional abuse
An #ownvoices novel with a teen trans lesbian superhero protagonist!! Sign me up.
Honestly it was the protagonist that completely drew me to this book, and I have come out the other side adoring Danny.
Dreadnought follows Danny Tozer, a 15 year old transgirl who witnesses the death of Dreadnought, the strongest superhero in her city, and inherits his powers as a result. The story then follows her immediate transition (being given Dreadnought's powers gives her her ideal body), her navigating what it means to be a superhero, and subsequent investigation and battle with the novel's Big Bad.
Dreadnought definitely felt like a decent premise for a comic (and I got the feeling that April Daniels might have a little bit of a preference for Marvel), but it also totally works as a book. I LOVE that trans superheroes are coming to the forefront as central characters, with Alters (again those comic leanings) last September, and now with Dreadnought.
Another one of the strong points of Dreadnought, that I wish we saw more of, was the relationship between Danny/Dreadnought and Sarah/Calamity. I loved that they learned things from each other and that Danny finally had someone in her life who she could trust and be safe with, even if she usually seemed to be in the most danger she'd ever faced with Calamity. Their friendship (though I really wouldn't mind if it developed into more) was definitely one of the most enjoyable parts of the story for me.
I think the world building was good, as were the two ending battles. The idea of Danny being able to see a lattice as part of her powers was interesting to me because I haven't read anything like that before, and I'd love to see Danny exploring her powers a bit more in the future.
One of the reasons why I didn't give this book five stars, is the sheer amount of transphobia and homophobia that Danny experiences. It really really made me uncomfortable, but I know that this is probably realistic. Danny receives it from almost everyone she encounters in the book. After coming out to her friend and rejecting him, he says he hopes she gets raped, which is frankly disgusting.
Honestly most of the men in this book are absolute garbage, and the ones who aren't as bad as the rest end up dying, which ended up making me feel tired and distressed on Danny's behalf.
I also think some parts of the story weren't given enough time, like Danny's interactions with the Legion (I thought they'd play a bigger part), Danny discovering and developing her powers, Utopia's motivations, and some of the secondary characters. Some of these may be addressed later but I'm not entirely sure.
The difference between the majority of the female (I'm including Doc Impossible in this) characters and the majority of the male characters really highlighted how strong the female characters were, and I loved it, but I would've liked it better if Danny had some support from some male characters too, or just more support from the ones who did support her.
Whilst Dreadnought isn't perfect, it is mostly a fun read and I am really looking forward to the sequel which is out this July.
Read this book for Danny (and Sarah).
Read this book for on page trans and lesbian rep, with those words being used multiple times.
Read this book for the ending.
This book meant so much to me when I was searching desperately for trans lit that felt like it was for trans people, not cis people. I'm glad teens now have more and better.
Honestly I was never going to like this book. Never in my life have I felt the need to read trigger warnings for a book but I should have read these. The amount of slurs and transphobia in this is ridiculous. I picked this because it said it was inspiring. Fucking how.
It's also just really bad writing. The characters are all very one dimensional and I couldn't empathise with them at all. The main characters whole thing is being trans and that's basically all she thinks about all the time. This book isn't about superheroes, its about a girl who has no friends or hobbies or a life and is only trans.
Not to mention she gets multiple choices to get away from her parents and be safe and she takes none of them. The dialogue is cringy as fuck and the story is boring. I was never going to finish this book.
Dreadnought is about a closeted trans teenager gaining superpowers and transitioning in one life-changing, sudden moment. By allowing Danny's body to match her sense of self as that same body gains superhuman strength and the ability to fly, Daniels throws power dynamics off-kilter in a moving, fascinating way.As we all know, many (real and fictional) coming out stories are prefaced with apprehension about how family and friends will react. Especially when you're dependent on parents for food, clothing, and shelter, coming out can be dangerous for closeted youth. By contrast, Danny gets to come out right after gaining the ability to bend metal with her bare hands as easily as origami paper. She can run incredible distances at incredible speeds without fatigue. She can fly. Needles and bullets bounce off her skin. Anyone who might wish her harm will have a hard time making good on their threats. She is not at anyone's mercy; if anything, they're at hers.But then the other shoe drops. Just because someone can't beat you up, doesn't mean they can't hurt you. No matter how fast you can run, no one can outrun the emotional toll of abuse and trauma. No one can outrun loved ones who react to you being openly yourself with selfishness, aggression, and cruelty—not even a superhero. And so Dreadnought is a story that upends power dynamics while emphasizing their pervasiveness. It's a story about deciding to believe in yourself when the people who should always have your back turn their backs on you. It's a story about how people can make your life more about them than you, and victimize themselves while attacking you. It's a story about a teenage girl who doubts herself but is more capable than she realizes, aka, a story about a teenage girl. It is fast-paced, heart-wrenching, but ultimately hopeful and even fun. And for obvious reasons, it's an especially refreshing time to read a trans #ownvoices fantasy book written for young people. If you like [b:Fierce Femmes 32279708 Fierce Femmes and Notorious Liars Kai Cheng Thom https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1480517872l/32279708.SY75.jpg 52903547], [b:The Refrigerator Monologues 32714267 The Refrigerator Monologues Catherynne M. Valente https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1477836652l/32714267.SY75.jpg 53293963], [b:I Wish You All the Best 41473872 I Wish You All the Best Mason Deaver https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1538483349l/41473872.SY75.jpg 61277384], or Netflix's I Am Not Okay With This, you might like Dreadnought.
This is both the ultimate transgender wish fulfillment story and a horrific family drama, striking a balance between superheroics and rough scenes in Danielle's private life. Yes, the antagonizing voices surrounding her gender identity are harsh and unfortunately realistic, but as affected as she may be, she never backs down when it comes to knowing who she is. It's rare for me to feel this represented by a novel. It touched me deeply from the very start, and the capeshit is just a bonus specifically invented for me. What more would you need in life than a trans superheroine?
While I like the story and it was pretty much EXACTLY what I hoped it would be, this book was difficult to read at times. Honestly, the stuff Danny goes through from her parents - you know, the people that are SUPPOSED to love you no matter what - was painful. (Made even worse for me because I could see shades of my father in Danny's.) But, I like Danny and she has already grown and developed wonderfully as a character so I'm very excited to see how she keeps growing. And special mention must be made of Sarah who is pretty cool herself and I love her and Danny's friendship. (Maybe more? It seems like she's got a bit of a crush on Danny.)
This is such an amazing book!
Wow, I'm so glad I picked this one up. There are not that many superhero books out there, so this one fills a much needed space, even more so since it features a transgender, lesbian main character. Absolutely brilliant.
Danny is a ‘real' character in that she doesn't seem fake or overly amazing, she is just a person who is given superpowers and her biggest wish, so she tries to make the best of it....even when it feels like her whole world is against her. Everyone responds to her changes (gender and ability) in different (real-seeming) ways. It sucks, it can be brutal, it brings hope, and it all feels so real that it sparks tears.
The side characters are diverse both in how they act as well as representation. Danny is not the only queer character and there are non-white characters too! Shocking, I know. One thing I found awesome about this book is that just because a person is known to be amazing doesn't mean that they are accepting of everything.... and as weird as this seems I enjoyed how the mom was perceived– seemed more realistic to me.
The plot never lagged to me. It was a great pace, although I was wishing for more as I slowly crept towards the end of it. I'm seriously wishing I had the sequel in my hands, I really want to explore more of Danny's journey.
The action scenes were well written too! I usually wasn't lost while reading the scenes. This would be a fantastic movie, tbh. I do want to see those scenes ^_^
I recommend this to everyone! Go read it!!
Pros: complex issues, great world-building, transgender protagonist
Cons: a few minor complaints
When the superhero Dreadnought dies in front of Danny, he gives the teen his mantel, which changes Danny's body from male to female. Now in the body she's always wanted, Danny's never been happier, though she feels guilty about how she got it. Her new body also causes her new problems, as her parents and schoolmates finally see the real her, and not everyone's happy with her transition. The superhero community is different from what Danny's always believed, and she faces several difficult choices - including whether to go after the supervillain who killed Dreadnought.
The book deals with several complex issues, not the least of which is Danny's gender transition. I appreciated that the author didn't pull punches, and showed Danny's conflicted emotions and real consequences for both long term and short term actions.
It was great seeing a transgender protagonist, and the author showed how difficult things are: from coming out to friends and family, dealing with opposition, and learning to feel good in your skin. I especially appreciated the scenes where Danny learns about make-up and gets her first bra. While the book didn't make me cry, I did feel for Danny on multiple occasions and was frankly shocked by a lot of the things that happened.
While Dreadnought is described as being invincible - his death notwithstanding, Danny quickly realizes she has limitations and can still feel pain and hurt herself. So there was tension and actual concern during fights that things might not go well for her.
I also appreciated that there was no romance in the book. There were times I thought the author was heading in that direction, but Danny had so much to deal with already, I think a love interest would have been too much. Having said that, I wouldn't mind seeing a romance develop in later books.
The world-building is quite good, with some basic history into where super humans come from and how they've impacted recent history. While you don't learn everyone's backstories, some of them - specifically Calamity's - are very realistic. Others are brushed off as comic book style transformations (specifically ones dealing with mythological or mystical origins).
The plot is great. while I saw one or two of the complications that cropped up, I was blindsided by most of the plot twists. The mystery of Utopia's identity kept me guessing, and I enjoyed seeing Calamity teach Danny the ropes of ‘caping'.
I had a few minor complaints, like Danny's insistence that her best friend would come around to her new body quickly. Considering the fact that Danny didn't feel she could share that she was transgender with him, something about her friend must have tipped her off to the fact that she couldn't trust him with the news.
I also had trouble picturing the action in some of the airplane rescue scenes, though the author did a great job explaining Danny's powers in other scenes.
This is a fantastic debut and I'm really looking forward to seeing how the series progresses.