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No More Heroes #2
Scratch & Sniff
Sequel to Push Comes to Shove
No More Heroes: Book Two
Being a hero has its drawbacks.
Real-life superhero Push knows that better than anyone. When the Cape Cabinet decided to boost their numbers and commissioned the release of Wrath, a former supercriminal, Push and his best friend, Scratch, got the arduous assignment of rehabilitating Wrath and showing him heroism's ropes.
Now all three are stuck in Shove Point, Arkansas, lying in wait for one of Wrath's evil villain ex-buddies. Between the mysterious plane crash in the center of town and the spacecraft that self-destructed, Shove Point is weird enough. Then the utterly straight Scratch suddenly professes his undying love for Push.
As the situation heats up—between him and Scratch and in Shove Point—Push decides to call in reinforcements. Giant robots stomping all over the small town do not help matters, nor does a rampaging cyborg, nor Push's unresolved attraction to Wrath. Then they discover there’s a mole in the Real-Life Superhero association. Whatever their differences, the newly formed team must put aside their baggage and work together to prevent an even greater tragedy.
No More Heroes: Book Two
Being a hero has its drawbacks.
Real-life superhero Push knows that better than anyone. When the Cape Cabinet decided to boost their numbers and commissioned the release of Wrath, a former supercriminal, Push and his best friend, Scratch, got the arduous assignment of rehabilitating Wrath and showing him heroism's ropes.
Now all three are stuck in Shove Point, Arkansas, lying in wait for one of Wrath's evil villain ex-buddies. Between the mysterious plane crash in the center of town and the spacecraft that self-destructed, Shove Point is weird enough. Then the utterly straight Scratch suddenly professes his undying love for Push.
As the situation heats up—between him and Scratch and in Shove Point—Push decides to call in reinforcements. Giant robots stomping all over the small town do not help matters, nor does a rampaging cyborg, nor Push's unresolved attraction to Wrath. Then they discover there’s a mole in the Real-Life Superhero association. Whatever their differences, the newly formed team must put aside their baggage and work together to prevent an even greater tragedy.
216 pages, ebook
First published January 29, 2013
1 person is currently reading
35 people want to read
About the author
J.L. O'Faolain
12 books30 followersJ.L. O’Faolain was born the youngest, with four older sisters, in the backwoods of the Deep South. Those that have braved getting to know him have attributed this to being the root of his growing insanity. A teased bibliophile in his youth, O’Faolain spent his years prior to getting published as a cook, laundry man, delivery boy, grease monkey, and retail stocker. He has a plethora of skills and abilities, none of which would work well on a job application. In his spare time, O’Faolain enjoys weightlifting, philosophy, deconstruction, reading, writing, porn, and the Internet in general. Aside from becoming a successfully published author, he would very much like to pilot a giant robot while Two-Mix’s “Rhythm Emotion” is playing in the background. Either that, or travel the world in a dirigible. In short, the general consensus by all, including himself, is that he is a mighty strange fellow.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
May 6, 2013
Book 2 Scratch & Sniff was a mixed bag; the same as book 1.
+ the characters
The first half of the story moved lackadaisically, which I wouldn’t mind if I wasn’t busy trying not to be annoyed by the characters. The story began with a vulgar scene that intended to drive home the fact that Sloth was an evil mastermind and that it would take great deal of luck to catch him. Instead, it ended up serving as another example of the superheroes’ lack of competence. Their plan sucked. All the things I have seen Sloth do have been things that anyone with normal intelligence could execute; there was nothing super about his villainy.
In sum, the story failed to convince me that Sloth was a supervillain and that our good guys, Push, Scratch, and even Wrath, were capable superheroes. I gave the characters the benefit of doubt in book 1, but now in book 2 they have not showed any improvement. What irked me more was Push, the protagonist.
Because of his insecurities, Push refused to believe Scratch’s love confession. I sympathized with Push’s insecurities, but it was frustrating to watch him push away Scratch and ultimately push away the possibility of true love and happiness. It took a lot of effort from Scratch to make Push accept him. I was very grateful for Scratch’s patience with Push for the entire story because mine ran out by the third of the story.
While I waited for Push to accept Scratch’s love, I really liked that it didn’t stop the two from having sexy times. Huzzah for smut! The scenes were graphic, ample, and lengthy. They abated my annoyance with Push and his angst. Once Push finally accepted Scratch, the romance was a sweet ride from there on out.
Regarding the other characters, in book 2, Wrath remained stagnant in character development. I wished the story would stop piling on pity for Wrath. He had a bad childhood and made bad decisions because of bad influence. Alright already. I got the point.
The new superheroes were a breathe of fresh air. I loved Professor Trixter, Scarlet Queen, and Wiccan Witch. I loved that the former defied stereotypes for being a black, brawny scientist and the latter two were sweet, loyal, and best of all fangirls. The gals were responsible for my favorite scene in the story. It was the scene when they accidentally (which seconds later turned into intentionally) interrupted Push and Scatch’s sexy time, and I learned bets were made.
+ the setting
I didn’t mind the small town stereotype in book 1, but I began to in book 2. Almost every towney was hostile to the superheroes. Sheriff Black in particular was a caricature and a convenient antagonist. I could not think of one towney who was thoroughly a good guy.
+ the plot
The pace picked up halfway through the story upon the arrival of new superheroes. Finally, there was some humor, much needed backup, great battles, and a gleam of the story arc. Speaking of the story arc, I liked the conspiracy and how it foreshadowed a superhero apocalypse.
Unfortunately, the execution of the story arc was cumbersome, and I developed doubts as to whether the series could pull the apocalyptic climax off. My gut instinct told me to keep low expectations.
The worst part of the plot was the nonsensical epilogue. Just like what happened with book 1, book 2 tacked on a different story as its epilogue, meaning it took place in the same world, but it had a different cast of characters, conflict, etc. However, unlike the epilogue in book 1, I actually saw the relevancy of book 2’s epilogue, i.e. how it related to what Push and company were going through. The epilogue further developed the conspiracy.
Nevertheless, just the same as book 1’s epilogue, I was pissed off with book 2’s epilogue. The series’ epilogues continued to be a WTF. There I was enjoying the nice romance between Push and Scratch after a long wait and then at the end the story rudely switched to another couple and threw angst and infidelity at me. Talk about a mood killer. It looks like I’m going to have pretend those epilogues never happened in order to maintain a simulacrum of enjoyment.
In Conclusion
I rate Scratch & Sniff 3-stars for I liked it. I only recommend the series if you’re into smut and superheroes and don’t mind a serial style of pacing. If you do read the series, I recommend you don’t read the epilogues, or at the very least skim them to minimize your confusion and anger.
+ the characters
The first half of the story moved lackadaisically, which I wouldn’t mind if I wasn’t busy trying not to be annoyed by the characters. The story began with a vulgar scene that intended to drive home the fact that Sloth was an evil mastermind and that it would take great deal of luck to catch him. Instead, it ended up serving as another example of the superheroes’ lack of competence. Their plan sucked. All the things I have seen Sloth do have been things that anyone with normal intelligence could execute; there was nothing super about his villainy.
In sum, the story failed to convince me that Sloth was a supervillain and that our good guys, Push, Scratch, and even Wrath, were capable superheroes. I gave the characters the benefit of doubt in book 1, but now in book 2 they have not showed any improvement. What irked me more was Push, the protagonist.
Because of his insecurities, Push refused to believe Scratch’s love confession. I sympathized with Push’s insecurities, but it was frustrating to watch him push away Scratch and ultimately push away the possibility of true love and happiness. It took a lot of effort from Scratch to make Push accept him. I was very grateful for Scratch’s patience with Push for the entire story because mine ran out by the third of the story.
While I waited for Push to accept Scratch’s love, I really liked that it didn’t stop the two from having sexy times. Huzzah for smut! The scenes were graphic, ample, and lengthy. They abated my annoyance with Push and his angst. Once Push finally accepted Scratch, the romance was a sweet ride from there on out.
Regarding the other characters, in book 2, Wrath remained stagnant in character development. I wished the story would stop piling on pity for Wrath. He had a bad childhood and made bad decisions because of bad influence. Alright already. I got the point.
The new superheroes were a breathe of fresh air. I loved Professor Trixter, Scarlet Queen, and Wiccan Witch. I loved that the former defied stereotypes for being a black, brawny scientist and the latter two were sweet, loyal, and best of all fangirls. The gals were responsible for my favorite scene in the story. It was the scene when they accidentally (which seconds later turned into intentionally) interrupted Push and Scatch’s sexy time, and I learned bets were made.
+ the setting
I didn’t mind the small town stereotype in book 1, but I began to in book 2. Almost every towney was hostile to the superheroes. Sheriff Black in particular was a caricature and a convenient antagonist. I could not think of one towney who was thoroughly a good guy.
+ the plot
The pace picked up halfway through the story upon the arrival of new superheroes. Finally, there was some humor, much needed backup, great battles, and a gleam of the story arc. Speaking of the story arc, I liked the conspiracy and how it foreshadowed a superhero apocalypse.
Unfortunately, the execution of the story arc was cumbersome, and I developed doubts as to whether the series could pull the apocalyptic climax off. My gut instinct told me to keep low expectations.
The worst part of the plot was the nonsensical epilogue. Just like what happened with book 1, book 2 tacked on a different story as its epilogue, meaning it took place in the same world, but it had a different cast of characters, conflict, etc. However, unlike the epilogue in book 1, I actually saw the relevancy of book 2’s epilogue, i.e. how it related to what Push and company were going through. The epilogue further developed the conspiracy.
Nevertheless, just the same as book 1’s epilogue, I was pissed off with book 2’s epilogue. The series’ epilogues continued to be a WTF. There I was enjoying the nice romance between Push and Scratch after a long wait and then at the end the story rudely switched to another couple and threw angst and infidelity at me. Talk about a mood killer. It looks like I’m going to have pretend those epilogues never happened in order to maintain a simulacrum of enjoyment.
In Conclusion
I rate Scratch & Sniff 3-stars for I liked it. I only recommend the series if you’re into smut and superheroes and don’t mind a serial style of pacing. If you do read the series, I recommend you don’t read the epilogues, or at the very least skim them to minimize your confusion and anger.
March 11, 2020
I enjoyed this book, but the epilogue was a bit confusing, hopefully it will be explained in later books.
January 30, 2013
4 Hearts
Review written for MM Good Book Reviews
http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com/
This story is part of a series and must be read in order. Push, Scratch and Wrath are stuck in Shove Point trying to find an escaped supercriminal, Pranksta Gayngsta, and a wanted supervillain, Sloth, but things still aren’t going their way and having giant metal monsters and alien slime, as well as a strange pod to find means they call in help from their friends. Too many things happening in Shove Point and the experimental equipment they find, points to a mole in the Real-Life Superhero association.
This story continues from where Push Comes to Shove ended (if you ignore the epilogue). The story broadens in this instalment of No More Heroes, we see Push and Scratch come to an understanding between them, they are still trying to capture Sloth and more things crawl out of the woodwork which means they call in a friend to help them. In the last book the team had aliens to deal with, well in this one they have metal monsters to contend with. We get to know more of the superheroes in the shape of Professor Trixter, Wiccan Witch and Scarlet Queen and we discover a little bit more about the main characters Scratch, Push and Wrath.
I enjoyed this story for the simple reason that it was a complex storyline, and it is looking to get even more involved and complex as time goes on. Push and Scratch and their relationship is moving forward even with Push’s doubts about Scratch’s feelings, so there is much questioning in Push’s mind, especially because Scratch is straight. We also see confusion in what the men have gotten into just by being at Shove Point, everything seems to be happening at once and there is no end to the strangeness that heads their way. Their bosses seem to be ignoring the aliens and they discover that people are being lied to, and pinning Sloth down isn’t as easy as they hoped.
The relationship between Scratch and Push begins to move forward and we see some hot scenes between them, although Push tries to hold back at first because of his fears. The storyline and plot really begins to pick up and I can honestly say I haven’t got the foggiest idea where it’s headed… I can’t wait to find out though. I have to warn readers that if you are hoping for answers, then all you will find is more questions, and doubts, *sigh* just when you think that maybe you are getting a handle on what is happening, something happens to throw you off kilter. I must admit that the epilogues to these books leaves me guessing, who are these men? What part do they have to play? And most importantly when will we find out?
I have to recommend this to those who love superheroes, great characters, metal monsters, incredible situations and a storyline that leaves you guessing.
Review written for MM Good Book Reviews
http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com/
This story is part of a series and must be read in order. Push, Scratch and Wrath are stuck in Shove Point trying to find an escaped supercriminal, Pranksta Gayngsta, and a wanted supervillain, Sloth, but things still aren’t going their way and having giant metal monsters and alien slime, as well as a strange pod to find means they call in help from their friends. Too many things happening in Shove Point and the experimental equipment they find, points to a mole in the Real-Life Superhero association.
This story continues from where Push Comes to Shove ended (if you ignore the epilogue). The story broadens in this instalment of No More Heroes, we see Push and Scratch come to an understanding between them, they are still trying to capture Sloth and more things crawl out of the woodwork which means they call in a friend to help them. In the last book the team had aliens to deal with, well in this one they have metal monsters to contend with. We get to know more of the superheroes in the shape of Professor Trixter, Wiccan Witch and Scarlet Queen and we discover a little bit more about the main characters Scratch, Push and Wrath.
I enjoyed this story for the simple reason that it was a complex storyline, and it is looking to get even more involved and complex as time goes on. Push and Scratch and their relationship is moving forward even with Push’s doubts about Scratch’s feelings, so there is much questioning in Push’s mind, especially because Scratch is straight. We also see confusion in what the men have gotten into just by being at Shove Point, everything seems to be happening at once and there is no end to the strangeness that heads their way. Their bosses seem to be ignoring the aliens and they discover that people are being lied to, and pinning Sloth down isn’t as easy as they hoped.
The relationship between Scratch and Push begins to move forward and we see some hot scenes between them, although Push tries to hold back at first because of his fears. The storyline and plot really begins to pick up and I can honestly say I haven’t got the foggiest idea where it’s headed… I can’t wait to find out though. I have to warn readers that if you are hoping for answers, then all you will find is more questions, and doubts, *sigh* just when you think that maybe you are getting a handle on what is happening, something happens to throw you off kilter. I must admit that the epilogues to these books leaves me guessing, who are these men? What part do they have to play? And most importantly when will we find out?
I have to recommend this to those who love superheroes, great characters, metal monsters, incredible situations and a storyline that leaves you guessing.
March 17, 2013
I had forgotten my issues with the previous book in the series before picking up this one. There are still problems with this book/series though I found it moderately better then the last. The plot pings around like one of Scratches special balls. Quite a few scenes appear to have no purpose other then to fill pages. Once again the ending leaves more questions open than answered and falls into the serial trap. I understand that comics are serials so perhaps that is intentional. I'm just not feeling it.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews