I know I’m not alone when I say that I am so over vampires. And werewolves. And demons. And faeries. I crave originality. I long for fantasies that don’t leverage the tired old clichés of those supernatural beings. So you can imagine my glee when I found this urban fantasy that delivers on its promise of uniqueness.

As the story opens a group of children of the Ranger Corps, a band of good guy soldiers who possess superpowers, are being pursued by the evil Banes, those who would harm the Rangers. The superheroes are known as Metas. They possess enhanced abilities specific to each individual. These powers vary from super strength to the ability to control certain elements to inhuman flexibility. The common denominator for all is that they are the targets of the Banes led by the villain Spectre. The children have inherited their parents’ powers and are able to hold off the Banes’ assault for a while. But when the Banes confront them directly, the children suddenly lose consciousness, are stripped of their powers, and subsequently parceled out to foster homes.

Years later, under mysterious circumstances their powers return. Puzzled at the sudden onset of their powers and scattered across the U.S., this generation of superhero Metas comes together. They realize something big is about to go down and that they need one another to fight Spectre, who was thought to be imprisoned with the remaining Banes but has made his presence once again known. He has a nasty habit of possessing those who are injured or have weakened minds and doing evil deeds while inhabiting their bodies.

The story is told through the eyes of Teresa West, whose code name is Trance, the daughter and granddaughter of Metas. Trance is so named for her power to put others in a thrall or convince them to do her will. When her powers are returned to her they are altered. With her even stronger, enhanced powers that are more like her grandmother’s, Trance begins to lead her generation of Metas in their quest to destroy Spectre. Along the way she finds love with her childhood sweetheart Gage “Cipher” McAllister.

The opening scenes grabbed me from the first sentence. The story is packed with action from the prologue to the conclusion. The characters and their actions really came alive for me and I thoroughly enjoyed the scenes where the hero and heroine battle it out with the bad guys.

But, and this is a major plus in my opinion, the action did nothing to overshadow the actual romance between Trance and Cipher. The author does sexual tension very well. By the time Cipher kissed Trance I was breathless with anticipation. It’s been quite a while since I’ve had that experience while reading. The romance actually develops during the story, so this is a refreshing change from the old “fated mates” cliché.

With such strong characterizations the author really made me care for not only the hero and heroine but also many of the secondary characters. When Trance must make an agonizing decision my breath hitched and my heart broke for her. The emotions the characters evoked for me were genuine and intense throughout this book.

Trance evolves from hash-slinging waitress to superhero who rescues other from peril. But then she goes a step beyond that even into contemplating how the Metas may use their powers proactively to help society rather than reactively as the response to a crisis. I loved watching her mature emotionally and ponder how she may self-actualize and reach her potential.

Is Teresa as Trance a kick-ass heroine? My answer to that question would be “yes and no.” She is my favorite kind of fantasy heroine, the one who isn’t sure of herself yet is thrust into a leadership role and must rise to the occasion. She has doubts and fears. She questions her decisions and role as team leader. She lets herself fall apart when she needs to and pulls it together when she has to. Her strength is derived not from her superpowers but from her character.

My quibbles are minor. At times I thought there was a bit of infodump happening, particularly in the first third or so of the novel. But given the extensive backstory of the characters for me it was forgivable. I also felt like the brevity of the chapters worked against the book. I found myself laying the book down after a chapter and reflecting on what just happened. This created a rather fragmented reading experience, but did not diminish my overall enjoyment of the novel.

Amid a crop of vampires and were-beings Meding’s tale of superheroes stands out. I hope that there are many more installments to come of this delightful band of misfits.