REVIEW: She's Bad News by Elle Spellman

Title: She’s Bad News
Author: Elle Spellman
Publisher: Elle Spellman
Publication Date: November 2017
Genre: Women’s Fiction
Buy the Book: Amazon

Description: What would you do if you woke up with super powers?

For Bella Brown, life hasn't gone according to plan. She's almost thirty, still living in her uneventful hometown, and her dreams of becoming an investigative reporter have fallen by the wayside.

That is, until she wakes up one morning to find she's been gifted with some amazing new abilities. What’s a girl to do with heightened senses, super speed and the ability to lift a truck one-handed? Bella quickly discovers that her new powers can easily help her land front-page leads at local newspaper, The Hartleybourne Gazette.

Soon Bella's out every night chasing down local criminals for stories, while keeping her powers a secret from everyone besides flatmate Chloe. But when a burglary-gone-wrong accidentally turns her into the mysterious Hartleybourne Heroine, Bella finds herself on the front page for the wrong reasons. Her secret becomes harder to keep as she tries to track down the source of her powers, and especially when crime reporter Matt Gilmore is intent on unmasking the town's new vigilante...

Suddenly, having an extraordinary life is far more dangerous than she ever imagined.

My Thoughts: She’s Bad News by Elle Spellman is campy and over the top, but a lot of fun.

Bella Brown is a features writer at a local newspaper who dreams of becoming a major investigative journalist in London. Instead, her awful boss assigns her dull, menial stories that drain her creativity. Assigned to cover an up-and-coming diet pill, Bella is disgusted by the body-shaming trend behind it. After defiantly taking one, she wakes up with heightened speed, vision, strength, and hearing—like Supergirl without the cape or flying.

Bella becomes an anonymous vigilante, but her actions draw attention from the people behind the pill, who want to keep its effects hidden.

I enjoyed Bella and her escapades. The plot moves well, and the characters are easy to know. The ending feels implausible, especially Bella’s confrontation with the villains, but it fits the story’s over-the-top tone.

Overall, She’s Bad News is an entertaining, fast-paced story with a playful superhero twist and an easy-to-root-for main character. While the ending stretches believability, the book’s humor, energy, and campy charm make it an enjoyable read.