Lightning & Thunder

by Sara Raasch

DELUXE EDITION--featuring stunning sprayed edges!

Percy Jackson meets Thunderbolts in this action-adventure romcom where the descendants of gods protect humanity, and Zeus’s snarky, vigilante heir is forced to team up with the globally beloved descendant of Thor.

As a Zeus descendant, Pollux “Lux” Keraunos never intended to be a villain. But if the cyber-crime hat fits, he’ll wear it to destroy the tyrant Hero Council led by his brother.

Then his brother vanishes (not Lux’s fault). Zeus’s line must continue, and the Hero Council turns to Lux as the heir—with the caveat that he trains under Erik Thorson, his brother’s Viking-wannabe BFF. Lux’ll use this to bring down the Council, and he isn’t falling for Erik’s smoking hot with a heart of gold persona—

Even if Erik didn’t know Lux’s brother was corrupt.

Even if Erik actually helps people—and believes Lux can, too.

As Lux tries the good guy role, the truth behind his brother's disappearance surfaces, and he’ll have to decide if he still wants to destroy the Council . . . or if he wants someone else more.

Hero? Villain? Or a secret third disaster bisexual with a savior kink?

Genres: Romance, Fantasy, Adult, Mythology, LGBT, Queer, Fiction

336 pages, Paperback

Expected publication December 29, 2026

About the author

Sara Raasch has known she was destined for bookish things since the age of five, when her friends had a lemonade stand and she tagged along to sell her hand-drawn picture books too. Not much has changed since then — her friends still cock concerned eyebrows when she attempts to draw things and her enthusiasm for the written word still drives her to extreme measures. Her debut YA fantasy, SNOW LIKE ASHES, the first in a trilogy, came out October 14, 2014 from Balzer + Bray. It does not feature her hand-drawn pictures.

Reviews

[Lance]

👀👀👀

[Sophie (lambsbooks)]

Hero? Villain? Or a secret third disaster bisexual with a savior kink?

Sign me the fuck up.

[Ri]

Percy Jackson meets Thunderbolts? Hero x villain action adventure romcom? Say less!

[Jessica Porche · Rating 4 out of 5]

Incredible and everything I’ve come to love about her romcoms. Also THE NEXT ONE IS SAPPHIC?! Sign me tf up!

[Rayne]

I'm so ready to inject this book into my veins

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 ⭐ -- I absolutely loved this! Lux and the side characters were amazing, and the world was so fun. It was funny, oddly heartbreaking at times, just really good.

I could have read 100+ pages more of it tbh. I want to know more! More of Lux's backstory, like why this child genius got into hacking/IT and is there a reason he can/kinda can't use Zeus god powers? The flying made sense with what Castor did, but everything else, is it just because he never tried because of the bullying? Or did it just not come naturally like it did for other heroes? I want to know more about Ophelia's powers, so I'm PSYCHED the next book is her and Hattie because I totally felt their vibe and had a feeling our little harley quinn was either jealous of the Mayor's son, or the son was evil but we just didn't go down that road.

One thing I wished the book had explored more was the emotional buildup between Lux and Erik. It combines two great tropes — a bit of a second chance romance with the childhood crush that could never be + the brother’s best friend. There was so much potential there that I kept wanting a bit more development. A lot of the story focuses on the hero complex, guilt, and regret Erik carries, which makes sense given everything with Castor. But because so much attention goes to that trauma, the romantic tension didn't quite get the same build up. We know Lux has had years of complicated feelings, but Erik’s emotional history with Lux isn’t explored in the same way. You can tell Erik cares about him, wants to atone and protect Lux, but the groundwork for those feelings isn’t built up as much on the page, so the shift into romance ended up feeling a little sudden.

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to Edelweiss for the ARC of this book. Sara Raasch is one of my favorite romance writers and autobuy authors and this book definitely solidifies that decision. This book was a gods dammed delight from start to finish. This was an amazing black cat, golden retriever romance. I loved seeing Lux and Erik’s relationship develop. I loved that Lux started out seeming like a villain but ended up being the hero of the story. The way he brought everyone on the team together to make their work as heroes more effective and less harmful with collateral damage after his brother purposely tried to separate them was so great. One of my favorite aspects is that while this book had some heavy influences from mythology when it comes to Greek and Norse mythology, it didn’t solely focus on that and brought some less commonly used mythologies from Egypt, West Africa, and Japan. My only complaint is that the sequel won’t be released until 2027 so I have to wait even longer after reading this book so early.

[Simplekind · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Edelweiss for an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book snuck up on me! It just popped up one day on my Edelweiss page so of course I downloaded it and read it in one day. Raasch sure knows how to write characters who are funny and caring and have a shit-ton of emotional baggage. Definitely my go-to storyline.

I'm usually not one for stories centered on mythology but this book wasn't really about that. It is about the "spare" who doesn't fit in his family and does his best to negate the poor choices of his brother and about the brother's friend who finally understand his BFF isn't who he thought he was. Not even a little bit. Fame and fortune sure can go to some people's heads. A solid read by Raasch. At this point I will read what ever they write.

So we know, thanks to the teaser at the end, who the next book will be about. But if Tristan and Rameses don't get their own story I WILL RIOT.

[Chloe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think getting stabbed would inspire less emotion than what reading this did to me. I was grinning like a MANIAC the entire time, while also simultaneously getting my heart ripped out. It is so raw, in it's depiction of feeling unworthy, but also craving intimacy and relationships. And how terrifying falling into love can be. It's so good, and an absolute blast to read.

[Erin McLaughlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Edelweiss for the ARC!

I know what I'm getting when I read this author's work, in terms of tropes it's getting a tiny bit formulaic, but the character dynamics and setting really put it apart. The hero dispatch center is a cool idea, and having a mystery to go along with the romance really helped the pacing.

[Hannah Lochen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had so much fun reading this book! I love the way that Sara Raasch writes her books and how the characters always have such good banter with each other. I loved Pollux and Erik and seeing them come back together and seeing how Lux learns more about the hero council and how maybe what he thought wasn't correct. I can not wait for the next book in the series.

[Gretal · Rating 4 out of 5]

I generally don't think of myself as someone who enjoys superhero books, but I had a lot of fun with this one and I'm very excited to read the next one, even though it's friends to lovers.