Rhapsody

Hearts of Heroes #4

by Molly J. Bragg

Megan Harwood never wanted to be a hero. She just wanted to indulge the two great loves of her life, woodworking and music, and for the last few years, she’s done just that running a small guitar making business in Sun City Florida with her dad’s help. But when Megan refuses to sell her shop, she ends up on the hit list of the Unitarium, an organized crime syndicate made of up supervillains and their minions.
After being grabbed off the street and used as a test subject in one of their experiments, Megan begins hearing a woman’s voice in her head. A voice that turns out to be Eurion, the beautiful woman Megan has had a crush on for the past year. A woman who also claims to be an ancient red dragon. With Eurion’s guidance, Megan is able to escape from the Unitarium’s clutches, and in the process, she discovers that they have infiltrated the Department of Metahuman Affairs.
Before Megan can decide who to trust, she finds herself framed for Eurion’s murder, putting her squarely in the crosshairs of some of the world’s most powerful Superheroes. Frightened, alone, with only the voice in her head for guidance, Megan has to find a way to rescue Eurion and clear her name, before Eurion’s friends hunt her down.

Genres: Romance, Fantasy, Superheroes, Science Fiction, LGBT, Audiobook, Urban Fantasy

355 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 15, 2024

About the author

I’m a trans woman with a degree in Astro-physics and a love of storytelling. I love science fiction, superheroes, and giant robots. My hobbies include collecting transformers, watching way too many crafting videos on YouTube, and complaining bitterly about the way a certain comic book company treats my favorite superhero.

Reviews

[emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m conflicted on this one, and at this point, the whole series and maybe the author herself as well. Truly, it’s abt a 2.5 read for me, but I’m rounding up.

I remember really enjoying the first book, and due to my reaction to each subsequent book, I’m wondering if maybe I’m looking back at the first one with rose colored glasses. Because here’s the thing, I love the concepts the author comes up with!! I WANT to love these books. I was excited specifically for a Eurion love story and I felt kinda let down by this one. Queer superheroes is all I ever want in life, but I think unfortunately the author’s writing style is just not it for me. There was a LOT of this book that felt unnecessarily repetitive and I remember thinking that often as well in the second book. There were MULTIPLE scenes where the MC is introduced to a new character, and gives them a (full, detailed) long chunk of a recap about what has happened to her. It happened at least 3-4 times and it was incredibly frustrating.

In general, I’ve noticed the author tends to have characters do long info dumps of dialogue a lot, and it just isn’t something that works for me. It’s frustrating because I WANT to love these books, and I think many of her others have fantastic concepts that otherwise should be right up my alley, and some really interesting characters, but I just think the writing is not for me.

I also think that maybe the world is a little.. not confusing necessarily, but maybe bloated? There are superheroes and that’s the main thing, but we’ve also got dragons, magic, and angels and catholic mythology, and while I personally love all of those things, all of them together makes the world a feel a little off. Idk. I’m bummed. I really want to love them. I MIGHT come back and read another but at this point I’m feeling like might be a case of the author is not for me. Which always sucks.

[Lady Olenna · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 Stars

Different. But good different. I haven’t actually read a book with a trans woman as lead and it was nice. I liked my experience of having a glimpse into the world of how it is to live as a trans woman and the challenges they face.

The superhero bit of the story was fun to read too. My only point of contention would be the recapping of events. It seemed like there was more than one time a story was recapped and it felt like a filler which isn’t really great if you’re reading book. I just wish authors would stop doing that.

[Sophia Turner · Rating 3 out of 5]

I...am not sure exactly what to say.

Giving this a score with how I feel in the moment would be between 2.5 and 3 stars. Let's go with 3.

The book starts off on a high note. The main character is very likeable, and we follow along in her day and her world in a way that lets us get to know her. It feels inviting, easy to read, and relatable. Once I got to the quarter way point I thought "if it stays this good, I'll want it on the shelf."

It's at this point the book starts to falter for me. The HoH world is very elaborate and continues to grow with each book. This means intermingling of not just the present cast of characters around the MC, but all the extended cast that we met in previous books, as well as a mix of religious and mythological beings. It's a lot to handle. There were many points in the middle of the book I wanted Molly to simplify just because the cast was too darn large.

There are some other narrative issues that I struggled with as well. There are at least four times in the book where the story gets recapped. It's way too much. I ended up skimming through sections of the book looking for anything that was new plot.

I also find myself writing this after having just finished it feeling nauseous. I won't give any spoilers for the ending, but how it ended let me feeling a bit ill.

That's not a feeling you want a book to leave you with. I don't think I want this for my bookshelf.

[Issy Waldrom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it! A great blend of action and suspense, romance, healing, and cute fluffy moments, it's an engaging story in its own right as well as expanding on the overall plot for the setting as well, with the true villains finally pushed out into the spotlight. And hey, what's to complain about with a trans lesbian lead and a dragon ^^ Definitely my second favourite of the series after Scatter, and very much looking forward to seeing what Molly does with the next entry in the series.

[Hess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fabulous.

After the last two, I was nervous about starting this book.

I needn't have worried.

Rhapsody addresses all of the issues I had with Transistor and Aether - while delivering a genuinely good story.

Without wanting to spoil too much, this book is darker, grittier, and more action packed than previous titles. It takes a hard swing at transphobia, police brutality, and police prejudice, while still delivering a saucy romance on the side. Our lead is in a pretty good place (in terms of her social circle, personal priorities & work) before the book kicks off, and I love that the story builds on this. Unlike previous titles, this is not a book about a woman who gets airbrushed into perfection and then has a "modern girl in Thedas" moment with a bunch of superheroes. For one, the superheroes in this book are flawed *swoons* and two, Megan is very much a trans girl who needs her meds, deals with the reality of being post-op and absolutely *doesn't* need (or want) someone like Chance to fix all of her problems for her.

Megan is strong - perhaps the strongest character in the entire series.

My fawning wouldn't be complete without mentioning Eurion, who is very much present in this book & gets to have her (their?) own character development. The dynamic between these two was just *chef's kiss*.

As always, Bragg cameos every lots of characters from previous books, plus ~5 new ones. I would have found it overwhelming if I hadn't just read Aether.

These cameos were mostly well-done, folding smoothly into the story, although there is one conference scene that gets a little OTT.

There were also several in-story story recaps (where the MC tells other people what's been going on) that could have been cut or severely shortened.

None of these hampered my enjoyment.

4.5 out of 5.

[Sydney · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was quite the book. It is probably the most in your face of her superhero universe books. It is also the most political any of her books have gotten. Very much an ACAB vibe throughout the book. It's not set in a vacuum though, and the sentiment definitely makes sense for Megan. There should be a CW on this book for transphobia, because dang Bragg did not hold back on what some of the characters did and said. This is also the first of the superhero books where the MC doesn't automatically decide they want to be a hero, and again it makes perfect sense for the character. Anything else wouldn't have been authentic, and you can see that coming from pretty early in the book.

I loved that Eurion finally got her girl! Woo, she's been having a rough go of it. Having another trans woman character was great. Many of Megan's experiences were different and the same as Naomi's from Transistor. Kind of like most trans experiences. Their love story is great. It was interesting to see a more subdued, almost shy Eurion at times. Oh, there was a super spicy scene in this book. It was almost like Bragg felt she needed to make up for the lack of one in the last book by being extra spicy in this one. Also, kudos for a more realistic portrayal of sex with a post op trans woman than often appears in other stories.

Loved that everyone made another appearance in this book. I feel like it might be easy to say that Naomi, Chance, and Anika are Bragg's favorite characters because they seem to get the most "screen time" in every book. Especially Chance. Looking forward to Cinderella's love story eventually. It has to happen, I'm sure of it.

There is of course, no third act breakup in this book. Not sure Bragg has or will write one, and I love that. But just when it feels like things should be winding down for the finale, in comes more drama and action. This might have been the most violent of Bragg's books, I'm not sure. It definitely has the highest body count though. And the mental health consequences of everything are dealt with very well I feel.

[Rey Hawke · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

[Katherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boy, what a disappointment. I've liked the Hearts of Heroes to various degrees so far. Scatter was excellent. Transistor was okay, but entertaining. Aether, was really good. And this? I don't know. It felt like the author just kind of phoned it in. I think she's gotten tired of the setting and it shows. I don't want to say it was lazy writing, because work was put into it. But there were... shortcuts.

First and foremost at about the third-way mark of the book, the main character gets a chance to explain her situation, so she does so. In length, almost three times in a row. She tells one character who takes her to another character and tells her to tell them, which she does, who then takes her to yet another character and tells her to tell them which she does. Again. In detail. I ended up skipping most of these recaps because they were just blocks of text saying the same thing over and over again, without interruption. It was really frustrating.

Secondly, the power that the main character receives is... Venom. She gets an 'augment' grafted to her that works exactly like the Venom symbiote, save for a few upgrades. I mean, sure, there's enough to legally distinguish the two but at the end of the day it's just... Venom. It's rather disappointing since the powers and abilities from the other three novels were unique and interesting.

The only good thing that the book did, in my opinion, is that at the end of it, the main character decides not to become a superhero. Not enough superhero media gives that option any serious thought. 'With great power must come great responsibility' and all that. What about the responsibility to yourself? What about your own happiness? Should you throw that away just because you've got alien goo coursing through your veins? The option to just live your life as a regular person is always shown as giving up, letting the bad guys win, and letting everybody down, and I like that in this book, they try to do that to the main character and the main character spits in their face with a 'fuck you, I'll live as I please.' Couple onto that, the main character is trans, so the sentiment hits much harder.

Unfortunately, that's not enough to overcome the book's other shortcomings. I really hate giving a fellow trans author such a low score for their work. It feels like a betrayal. We should stick together and lift ourselves up, which means that I'm more likely to give trans authors a little more leeway with my reviews but... there's only so much leeway I can give. I'm giving this book two stars, but I do recommend at least giving Scatter and Aether a try. They're both excellent books and you can read them independently of each other.

[Vi · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars

I'm kind of sad to write this review because I've enjoyed this series up until this point and I really liked Eurion as a character.

The problem with this book is there just... isn't much in it. Hardly any substance, very little development. It is all 'Tell', no 'Show'.

At least 30% of this book was just repeating the same things over and over and over. Every time stuff happens and the plot creeps forward, a new character that is out of the loop shows up and they need to be told everything leading up to that point. In detail. Just a wall of text that gives a beat by beat explanation of everything I already JUST read. Then, the plot moves forward a little, ANOTHER character shows up that is out of the loop and then now we gotta tell this guy. In DETAIL. AGAIN.

Pages and pages of this book is just rehashing everything I've just read. Why? Nothing new is added, no new information is learned in the retelling. I can only assume it was to pad out the length?

At one point, early in the book, Megan is running for her life after nearly dying and just decides to pop a squat and fill in Eurion on her Dad's entire backstory. PAGES of backstory on her father being in a band and the dude is BARELY in this book. Why?

That is how the entire book goes, too. You learn about Megan entirely by her rambling about her life story, you don't actually SEE much of her doing things to develop her character.

None of the characters feel alive. Not even the older ones that reappear from earlier books (except Chance. For some reason, they are the only ones that stood out somehow). It all felt SO robotic, the dialog is stilted, no chemistry. Eurion didn't even seem like the same character I'd read about in earlier books.

I stuck with this cause I wanted to like it. I want to see more trans representation, more trans authors, etc. But this book felt hollow all throughout and I found myself skimming through most of it just because of how repetitive it became.

[Mark Phillips · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot of characters from previous entries in the series are back, often in more than just token cameos. Megan is a trans luthier who just wants to work on designing and building electric guitars. But when she is kidnapped by metahuman gangsters and experimented on, she is fused with an alien survival suit that has absorbed the powers of more than a dozen metahumans. She is also in mental contact with the red dragon, Eurion, who is also a prisoner. When Megan is framed for the apparent murder of Eurion, her life is torn apart.

There are flaws: With a cast of dozens of named characters whose voices often sound too much alike, having Nomi talking to Naomi or Megan speaking to Maggie can be really confusing (Bragg does provide a cast list at the beginning, which helps some). After the 50% mark, there is a long lull in the action, where the characters talk endlessly about feelings and house design, until the pace finally picks up with a big battle. The "augment" that fuses with Megan is perhaps too similar to the symbiote suit Spider-Man wore before it revealed its malevolent nature as Venom. The Eurion/Megan telepathic dialogue is just too similar to the Naomi/Chance/Anika dialogue of earlier novels.

The good things: Having old friends back was fun. I particularly liked Megan's steadfast refusal to abide the injustices, hypocrisies, and official bigotry perpetrated on her just for being trans. Her distrust of the police is hard-won and perfectly appropriate as the novel progresses. Bragg has built a world that houses tensions, and those tensions are brought to the fore as she exposes the corruption brought on by power, especially official power and oppression under the cover of law. Bragg's righteous fury finds expression through the voice and actions of a fully rounded character that I was rooting for. After reading the news of the day, I needed to read about some loathsome bigots suffering some violent karma. It was refreshing.

[Caitlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

A copy of the book was provided to Sapphic Book Club in exchange for an honest review.



4.5 Stars

This book is my prayers answered. I asked for more Eurion and here it is and it is as wonderful and enjoyable as I was hoping for. This book follows Megan, a guitar maker, that has a crush on "The Englishwoman", a fellow business owner a few stores down, who happens to be the Walsh Dragon, Eurion. Megan thought her biggest problem was getting the courage to talk to Eurion, but she would have been wrong. In a matter of days, Megan finds herself kidnapped, experimented on, framed for murder, and a fugitive on the run.

This is the fourth book in the Heart of Heroes series and continues to build off the collection of metahuman/alien/dragon superheroes. It was wonderful to see many of the characters from the previous books, especially getting more Eurion, who has been a wonderful side character in many of the other books. Eurion is as wonderful, caring, and fierce as she has been in other books. Megan was a wonderful addition to the series. She is strong, brave, caring, and a bada$$. Megan and Eurion are well paired for each other, and I really enjoyed their journey.

Another wonderful book in the Hearts of Heroes series. I would highly recommend reading the series in order to better understand the dynamics of the other characters and some of the history that led to the events in this book. While this story is done, the greater plot has yet to reach its climax and I am very excited for more stories in this universe.

All in all, a wonderful book. I would recommend it for fans of the series.

[Ziya Tinsley · Rating 5 out of 5]

JUSTICE!

This is a piece of perfection! I consume these books multiple times within the months of owning them! As a GenXer, the phrase about wearing out my cassettes comes to mind!

Content (contains spoilers!): 10^27484773828373784837737839602/10

This book continues a very beautiful canon filled with past characters and loves (though I would have loved to have heard Maxine’s thoughts on Megan). The obvious scream that exited my body as Eurion mentions our digital friend…beautiful way to get them involved! As much as I’ve loved Jia Li throughout the series was seriously quashed by her actions here! The seething hatred I felt against ID and Airheart was heartbreaking! There are still many questions left unanswered and while I’m hopeful, I understand if there are no more books for this series. The biggest storyline for me was finally wrapped up for me in this book and even for as many times as I’ve consumed them, I still cry at the end. And thank you for letting Chance have some fun too! They deserved it!

[John B · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m a big fan of Molly’s book, and Rhapsody is an excellent addition to the Hearts of Heroes series. Eurion is consistent as a character with her appearances in the first three books and Megan is delightfully snarky co-lead. The book’s pacing is good and never lags. A host of characters from the previous books show up, and that might be my only complaint. Given that something like thirty or so characters from the first three books show up, it felt a bit crowded in spots with all of them competing for page time. Still, a minor thing.

There’s some richly deserved comeuppance dished out at the end, and some very amusing references to the past books as well. I’m very much looking forward to what happens in HoH book 5. I can’t recommend this book enough, though if you’ve not read the first three (Scatter, Transistor and Aether) do yourself a favor and read them first. Then go read the rest of Bragg’s book after finishing this one. They’re all fantastic.

[3DKing · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every Heart of Heroes book is a bit different. Each main character has a different personality, experiences a different story and has different powers. This time Megan gets parts of Eurions dragon powers and has to fight against a whole Super-Villain-Corporation. Roughly 50% of the story are focused on Megan escaping and communicating with Eurion. The plot isolation helps getting to know Megan and add more background to Eurion, which we already knew since Danny punched her in Book 1.

The other 50% are an 80s action flick full of fast paced plot decisions, violence, questionable motives and so much more. Just like Transistor we get a big third act fight and a big supporting cast.

Sometimes there are too detailed recaps, sometimes the violence feels a little misplaced, sometimes it feels like characters are maybe not affected enough by certain events. In the end it's a worthy addition to the Heart of Heroes series with another very unique main character.

[Sandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although part of a series, this book stands alone well. Megan is Trans. This is my first read with a Trans lead. I enjoyed the perspective. There are lots of characters found in the story. It is not always easy to keep them straight. It is an Urban Fantasy set in modern America, but makes all the arms of law enforcement the bad guys. There were too many to keep track of in the story. Who were really the "bad guys?". The love story was good and felt really tender. The book never delved too deep and moved along so quickly that it felt like and expanded graphic novel. I wanted a bit more depth and a good character guide as an addendum.

[Cara Ramsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Great Addition To The Heart Of Heroes Series!

This story goes in a little bit different direction than the first three books did. But the bringing together of so many characters from prior books made this story a real treat!

It’s fast paced and a lot happens in this book so be prepared! And definitely read the first three books before reading this one. You’ll get to meet most of the superheroes who appear in Book 4 by doing so.

I enjoyed this story and recommend it to anyone who like superhero Sapphic romances.

[Mayra Luria · Rating 5 out of 5]

another fantastic story

I discovered Molly J. Bragg by accident searching for something unique to read and the universe loved me that day. Molly writes some of the most beautiful and intricate fantasy while sharing the painful truths of being seen as different. Her writing speaks to me on many levels - engaging and dynamic characters, great story, and clear precise language. This entire series is wonderful.

[M L Brooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some complaints

Okay so the preface I've liked this series so far, admittedly to vary degrees. First of all I like Megan and Eurion, however... This is the third character in this limited series that had at least for part of the story the whole mind within a mind thing going on, what with Transistor and the other character who is an AI and a human and as plots go it could do with shaking up.

[Sylver Poulsen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fantastic

I love how every book follows someone new, and it actually feels like you are following someone new, rather than just a reskin of one of the previous heroes.
And when one of said previous heroes does show up, it is never in a pandering way, it actually feels necessary to the telling of the story.
It is like if the MCU was better written. And a whole lot gayer.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting story and fairly well written, but the stakes in this series don't feel real. There isn't much real threat in the conflict, no doubt that its going to be a happily ever after, and no doubt that the main characters will end up together. So in essence, this is a romance book, but it spends far too long pretending to be a action/fantasy series. That sounds like I'm saying its a horrible book, but I'm not. it was a fairly good read and enjoyable, it just somehow doesn't feel robust.

[Agatha Kett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Possibly my favorite book ever, definitely my favorite series ever. I started reading Scatter and devoured the rest of the series, slowed down only by when I could get access to library copies of the next book. This series made me cry more than anything else I've ever read (in a good way!)
So much beautiful lesbian romance, two beautifully written transgender heroines, superheroes, magic, DRAGONS! I cannot recommend this series highly enough.

[Toni · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5
I have never before been a fangirl of anyone or anything but Molly J. Bragg has totally got me doing just that. Each book in this series has been phenomenal. Top quality writing, unique imagination and fantastic characters! I am so here for it all and long may it continue, yes I mean this series too! Lol

[Jaime Alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

"That's just grief. All grief is selfish. Grief is a longing for the joy, comfort, and happiness that what you've lost brought to your life. There's nothing wrong with that."

"There's magic in any act of creation."

"You're the first person I've ever met whose love I don't doubt."

"My home is wherever you are.

"You, of above all else, are my favorite treasure."

[Jeanette Weger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely My Favorite (so far)

Thank you thank you. First off. I love your writing. But the icing is how you seem to change it a little each time. A few things followed a similar path. But the twist were also a little different. Looking forward to more from you.

[Anastasia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally!

Ive binged every book this week of the series and getting Eurion was by far my favorite! I’m so so happy she finally gets a win and I appreciate the bit of hero twist in this one. What a fantastic world.

[Fray Crowett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just fantastic, as always.

It's a fantastic queer book. It's the fourth book of my favorite book series and I'm ecstatic that it came out.

[Robin Thaxton · Rating 5 out of 5]

yaaaasss!!

I love this series and I think this book tops the whole f’ing cake! Amazing simply amazing! No notes! Just keep it comin’!

[A · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely amazing

The fourth book of the Heart of Heroes series is phenomenal. It's a bit darker than the first three books. It's so well written.

[Eve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Medium 4

[Kellie K · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my favorite book in the series and I do love this series. Feels really rushed and busy unfortunately.