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Lightning & Thunder
Not yet published
Expected 29 Dec 26DELUXE 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?
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?
336 pages, Paperback
Expected publication December 29, 2026
About the author
Sara Raasch
23 books7,856 followersSara 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.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
Want to Read
December 28, 2025Hero? Villain? Or a secret third disaster bisexual with a savior kink?
Sign me the fuck up.
Sign me the fuck up.
remind-me-once-out
May 10, 2026I need it, in my hands, right now.
Want to Read
December 17, 2025👀👀👀
Want to Read
December 18, 2025Percy Jackson meets Thunderbolts? Hero x villain action adventure romcom? Say less!
March 1, 2026
Incredible and everything I’ve come to love about her romcoms. Also THE NEXT ONE IS SAPPHIC?! Sign me tf up!
Want to Read
December 18, 2025I'm so ready to inject this book into my veins
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
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!
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.
I could have read 100+ pages more of it tbh. I want to know more!
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.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Sara Raasch’s Heroes and Romance series kicks off with a bang in “Lightning and Thunder,” where god-descended heroes fight monsters and keep humanity safe - or so they think. When the Hero Council’s leader, Castor, descended from Zeus, mysteriously disappears, it’s up to his younger brother, Pollux, ”Lux”, pulled from (alleged) criminal-ish anonymity and thrust into the spotlight, to prove there’s something much more sinister to Castor than meets the eye.
“Lightning and Thunder” is a whirlwind of lovable god-descended heroes who are more than they seem, friends-to-(sort of)-enemies-to-lovers romance (not to mention down-and-dirty spice), and a sassy, matchmaking, reality-tv-addicted AI sidekick.
Raasch handles Lux’s past abuse and trauma with care, giving him room to address is fears, face them head on, and come out stronger on the other side. I absolutely cried my eyes out for Lux, and I felt a surge of pride when the Council brought him into their fold, giving him the loving and protective family he absolutely deserves.
By the end, I was completely obsessed. Every character felt distinct, messy, funny, and deeply lovable in their own way. (And I am beyond thrilled at the set up for the next book in this series!)
The pacing never lets up, balancing emotional gut-punches, action, humor, and romance so effortlessly that I flew through it. And the spice? Genuinely excellent: hot, tension-filled, and perfectly woven into the emotional stakes of the story instead of feeling forced in for the sake of it. This was one of those books where I finished the final page already desperate to spend more time with these characters.
“Lightning and Thunder” is a whirlwind of lovable god-descended heroes who are more than they seem, friends-to-(sort of)-enemies-to-lovers romance (not to mention down-and-dirty spice), and a sassy, matchmaking, reality-tv-addicted AI sidekick.
Raasch handles Lux’s past abuse and trauma with care, giving him room to address is fears, face them head on, and come out stronger on the other side. I absolutely cried my eyes out for Lux, and I felt a surge of pride when the Council brought him into their fold, giving him the loving and protective family he absolutely deserves.
By the end, I was completely obsessed. Every character felt distinct, messy, funny, and deeply lovable in their own way. (And I am beyond thrilled at the set up for the next book in this series!)
The pacing never lets up, balancing emotional gut-punches, action, humor, and romance so effortlessly that I flew through it. And the spice? Genuinely excellent: hot, tension-filled, and perfectly woven into the emotional stakes of the story instead of feeling forced in for the sake of it. This was one of those books where I finished the final page already desperate to spend more time with these characters.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I enjoy Sara Raasch's books, but these last few have been relying too heavily on romance tropes and not enough on plot.
Like, yes, we get it, Erik is huge and muscly and Lux is small and geeky. There has to be more to it than that though, or the book gets old fast.
There was some plot. I was even pretty invested in it. But I got so tired of the size difference repetition and the instant attraction. It was somewhat mitigated by being a situation where both of them have been in love with each other for years, but it still overtook the plot far too often.
The characters, as always were great. I really sympathized with Lux and enjoyed watching him hacking into things and being generally a geeky genius. Erik was pretty one-dimensional, but the other characters on the Hero Council and staff were all very interesting and I really enjoyed their interactions.
I'm looking forward to a sapphic book next! Maybe it can shake up the tropes Sara Raasch has been relying so heavily on these last few books.
I feel like all of the last few books have been trying to recapture the magic of the Nightmare Before Kissmas and failing because they sacrifice plot and unique characters for tropes. Maybe that's what the market demands right now but the books could be so much better with more interesting romance dynamics.
*Thanks to NetGalley and Bramble for providing an early copy for review.
Like, yes, we get it, Erik is huge and muscly and Lux is small and geeky. There has to be more to it than that though, or the book gets old fast.
There was some plot. I was even pretty invested in it. But I got so tired of the size difference repetition and the instant attraction. It was somewhat mitigated by being a situation where both of them have been in love with each other for years, but it still overtook the plot far too often.
The characters, as always were great. I really sympathized with Lux and enjoyed watching him hacking into things and being generally a geeky genius. Erik was pretty one-dimensional, but the other characters on the Hero Council and staff were all very interesting and I really enjoyed their interactions.
I'm looking forward to a sapphic book next! Maybe it can shake up the tropes Sara Raasch has been relying so heavily on these last few books.
I feel like all of the last few books have been trying to recapture the magic of the Nightmare Before Kissmas and failing because they sacrifice plot and unique characters for tropes. Maybe that's what the market demands right now but the books could be so much better with more interesting romance dynamics.
*Thanks to NetGalley and Bramble for providing an early copy for review.
March 17, 2026
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.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
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.
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.
June 1, 2026
This book honestly blew me away and might be one of my new favorite books by Sara. It follows Lux, the sarcastic disaster bisexual descendant of Zeus who’s basically one bad decision away from becoming a full villain and Erik the golden retriever descendant of Thor who somehow still believes Lux can be a good person. When Lux is forced to work with Erik after his brother disappears, the two get pulled into secrets, corruption, and a whole lot of unresolved tension.The mix of mythology, superhero chaos, romance, and humor was SO fun. It gave major Percy Jackson meets superhero team vibes but with older characters, way more flirting, and emotional damage everywhere. Lux was such a mess in the best way possible and his banter with Erik had me obsessed. I loved how wild and funny the book was while still having real emotional moments and bigger stakes underneath everything. Genuinely one of those books where I finished it and immediately wanted to reread it. I can't wait for the audiobook :)
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you to NetGalley, Tor Publishing, and Sara Raasch for the ARC ebook for this review!
I had a fun time! Sara Raasch’s characters are always so witty, and it’s something I look forward to when I pick up a book of hers. Lightning & Thunder didn’t let me down!
The main plot genuinely had me curious. It didn’t feel mashed together to accompany the romance. I didn’t expect the lore and some of the events! The inclusion of different pantheons was so cool.
The romance was very sweet and (mostly) fluffy. I loved the history between the two main characters. I wish the build up was longer because I feel like their relationship intensified in a hurry. But, it’s a smutty romance book, so whaddyagonnado? The smut definitely smutted, with raw and intense emotions.
I’m excited to see more from this series!
I had a fun time! Sara Raasch’s characters are always so witty, and it’s something I look forward to when I pick up a book of hers. Lightning & Thunder didn’t let me down!
The main plot genuinely had me curious. It didn’t feel mashed together to accompany the romance. I didn’t expect the lore and some of the events! The inclusion of different pantheons was so cool.
The romance was very sweet and (mostly) fluffy. I loved the history between the two main characters. I wish the build up was longer because I feel like their relationship intensified in a hurry. But, it’s a smutty romance book, so whaddyagonnado? The smut definitely smutted, with raw and intense emotions.
I’m excited to see more from this series!
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
I got really, really lucky with an arc.
Wait, okay. Once again I think I cried too much during this one. Sara Raasch knows how to up end your whole emotional system.
There's a beautiful story here of being better. Of breaking out of abusive relationships and habits and knowing that you aren't always the good guy when you're healing. Lux's view of making the world a better place is so important after all the trauma he's suffered.
I think the friendships Lux builds are my favorite part, unfortunately they can feel like such a small part of the book.
You can heal. You can grow. You might not be able to fly, but goddammit you can improvise.
(Also, yeah. If you were ever on AO3 in 2015/16 when the Avengers came out? Boooooy you're gonna love this one.)
Wait, okay. Once again I think I cried too much during this one. Sara Raasch knows how to up end your whole emotional system.
There's a beautiful story here of being better. Of breaking out of abusive relationships and habits and knowing that you aren't always the good guy when you're healing. Lux's view of making the world a better place is so important after all the trauma he's suffered.
I think the friendships Lux builds are my favorite part, unfortunately they can feel like such a small part of the book.
You can heal. You can grow. You might not be able to fly, but goddammit you can improvise.
(Also, yeah. If you were ever on AO3 in 2015/16 when the Avengers came out? Boooooy you're gonna love this one.)
Review of advance copy received from Author
Oh. My. Gods. This is the best Sara book I’ve read yet!
It calls into themes of what actually makes a hero and what is actually good. Doing good is not always enough at times and sometimes it extends more past that. It’s not about just stopping the crime it’s about rebuilding afterwards. That’s what Lux explores but because of his trauma he can’t see himself that way. He’s been told all his life how worthless he is how pathetic to the point where he believes that about himself and genuinely believes he’s not good when in reality he is the best of them all!
It’s an amazing adventure and you just can’t help but love Lux.
Also, Ophelia is amazing!
It calls into themes of what actually makes a hero and what is actually good. Doing good is not always enough at times and sometimes it extends more past that. It’s not about just stopping the crime it’s about rebuilding afterwards. That’s what Lux explores but because of his trauma he can’t see himself that way. He’s been told all his life how worthless he is how pathetic to the point where he believes that about himself and genuinely believes he’s not good when in reality he is the best of them all!
It’s an amazing adventure and you just can’t help but love Lux.
Also, Ophelia is amazing!
May 25, 2026
I. ATE. THIS. UP.!!!!! this made me giggle and i now have the urge to rewatch every MCU movie ever made! i loved both the main and side characters so much, i can't wait for the next book in this series. while i loved the story and its characters, it still felt a bit all over the place just after the halfway mark. it was as if the story was really getting good but then it just. fell flat. out of nowhere. but luckily, the author made up for it with how well the characters were written and tied together so this was still such an enjoyable read!!
thank you to netgalley & the publisher for an eARC!
thank you to netgalley & the publisher for an eARC!
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
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.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
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.
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.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
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.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
this book is the sexy version of Percy Jackson you didn't know you needed. my heart ached for Lux but that made his story even more powerful! I'm really impressed by how well the author combines steamy romance with heavier themes and showcases her heroes' (no pun intended) healing journeys. y'all aren't ready for this book!!!
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
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.
April 5, 2026
Did I just find my new favorite Sara Raasch book?? I think I did. I truly think I did
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
Another banger, finished this in 2 days and now I have to wait a really long time for the next one!
Thank you Edelweiss for the ARC, this book was like Percy Jackson meets The Boys but make it cute, spicy and queer. I thought it was really well paced and Raasch did an excellent job of creating a cast of characters who you really ended up caring about by the end. I can't wait for the sequel, which you get a little teaser of at the end!
Thank you Edelweiss for the ARC, this book was like Percy Jackson meets The Boys but make it cute, spicy and queer. I thought it was really well paced and Raasch did an excellent job of creating a cast of characters who you really ended up caring about by the end. I can't wait for the sequel, which you get a little teaser of at the end!
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews