"Exceptional" is the sequel to the Sir Julius Vogel Awards finalist "Watched", and continues the story of super-powered Prodigies Jason and Rory in their battle against the all-seeing Watchers. While Rory pursues their leader, Chaos, in the Dark universe, Jason is forced into an uneasy alliance with AEGIS, a militarised intelligence agency that seems to know more about Prodigies than it should. A storm is coming. Jason will determine its course, but there are truths waiting for Rory in the dark that will change everything. Both must decide where they stand before the storm breaks.
I wanted to like this book. It had mammoth potential and Hollywood-worthy ideas. The novel is clearly a labour of love. It fell short of the mark, however. I really think it would have benefited from a heavier edit. There were so many adverbs and adjectives. Nearly every chapter was loaded with bumbling roll-on sentences and an overabundance of dialogue. There were heightened emotions all of the time, 24-7. No down-time. For me, that made for several unreadable passages and an overall draining reading experience.