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Oct 31, 2008

Bookaholics rated it:

Phenomenal Girl 5 (SHOMI) by A. J. Menden

Mass Market Paperback Paranormal Romance – October 28, 2008
5 Stars

Once I started reading this book, I literally could not stop!

This book began with good, light-hearted fun and intriguing characters. And then it became so MUCH MORE! It has surprising depth and explores the characters personalities and emotions in a way that makes you love them.

Phenomenal Girl 5 moved me to tears and prov More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 02, 2010

Jane rated it:

This is a new and different world. I wanted more action and emotional connection. There was more conversation than action.

STORY BRIEF:
Instead of Superman and Batman hiding their identities, this world has many super heroes seeking publicity, popularity and selling action figures. Lainey is strong and can fly. She has chosen the name Phenomenal Girl 5. The previous four didn’t work out or died. There are different groups of super heroes who fight villains. Lainey was prev More...

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May 19, 2009

Katie(babs) rated it:

Lainey Livingston has a dream of working for the Elite Hands of Justice, which has the best group of superheroes in the world. Lainey is a superhero herself and goes by the name of Phenomenal Girl Five. She excels at flying, has great strength, and is intelligent as well. Even though she comes quite recommended, she is given a preliminary membership until she can prove herself with the group. For the time being, she will train with the Reincarnist. The Reincarnist is the smartest man on Earth be More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Aug 10, 2010

Linda rated it:

When I think of a SHOMI book I want romance and action and, more importantly, a connection. I loved DRIVEN by Eve Kenin aka Eve Silver and COUNTDOWN by Michelle Maddox. Then there were some SHOMI books that I would rate at the bottom of the barrel. PG5 was OK, not bad...just not great.

Lainey Livingston has a gift and she is going to be trained by the Reincarnist, Robert Elliot. You'll see some action though not as much as I expected. And yes, there is a romance, but I just did n More...

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Sep 29, 2011

Linda rated it:

When I think of a SHOMI book I want romance and action and, more importantly, a connection. I loved DRIVEN by Eve Kenin aka Eve Silver and COUNTDOWN by Michelle Maddox. Then there were some SHOMI books that I would rate at the bottom of the barrel. PG5 was OK, not bad...just not great.

Lainey Livingston has a gift and she is going to be trained by the Reincarnist, Robert Elliot. You'll see some action though not as much as I expected. And yes, there is a romance, but I just did not fee More...

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Feb 17, 2011

Kay rated it:

This was a free book that I recently got for my Kindle. I was between books and looking for something different to read and decided to give this one a try. This was a very entertaining book. It is definitely more PNR than Urban Fantasy. The focus of the book is more on the relationship between the two main characters, but it was well done. The main characters are all super heros and this was a different take on the urban fantasy premise but it was nice to read something different. At first More...

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Mar 17, 2011

Urs rated it:

I had never heard of SHOMI books before reading this book, so I did not go into the book with any special expectations. The description was just interesting to me.

Readers going into this book should realize that it is primarily a light romance story between superheroes in a world where superheroes and villains are quite common. This book reads kind of like a Star Trek TNG episode plays in that there is some action here and there, but the real focus is on the relationships and situation More...

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Feb 04, 2010

Jess rated it:

Snarky characters, diabolical dialogue, intriguing premise.. and you got me reeled in. Thought it was great, and so different from other things I've read. The premise is that this is a world where there are superheroes and villians and alternate dimensions and magic. Phenomenal Girl 5 (Lainey) is just trying to find her place in the world and join in on EHJ. She has superstrength and can fly. She is teamed up with The Reincarnist (Robert) so that she can be trained for her new job. But of course More...

3 comments like (3 people liked it)

Feb 17, 2011

Bluemoon rated it:

Ok I only bought this book because it was free on Kindle, so technically I didn't literally buy it. Amazingly enough,though, I actually liked the book. It reminded me of Mystery Men (The movie), but these people actually have super powers. hehehehehe...

Anyways, I love the whole concept of the reincarnist. I just didn't really like what happened to the relationship between Robert and Lainey. It was weird what happened there and it took me awhile to get used to it. It just seemed like I More...

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Jan 19, 2009

icedtea rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Jan 11, 2011

Adam rated it:

Short review: I picked this up when it was free for kindle. Well worth it for free :)

It is a good comicbook superhero/romance. Nothing earth shattering, but well written. I get frustrated with some of the clichéd romance story lines. But this book I really thought about how much truth some of the clichés have. This was an enjoyable take. Had some magic and action with the superheros. And the romance portions were PG13.

Full review on my blog at http://www.mrshields.com/phenomenal-girl... More...

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Jan 04, 2009

Bitten_by_Books rated it:

Lainey Livingston has never really fit in. Orphaned as a child, she was placed in a foster home until her special powers earned her a place at The School. Being one of the youngest and kind of a nerd, she was picked on by the other kids...

For the entire review please go to the Best Paranormal & Urban Fantasy Review site on the web, Bitten By Books for the review of Phenomenal Girl 5 in it's entirety. You won't be sorry.
More...

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Oct 30, 2011

Anita rated it:

I had trouble with the beginning chapter of this book. I almost didn't make it to chapter two because the first few pages seemed too hokey for me. I was afraid the author was seting me up for a 1960's era superhero story - everything over the top and still perfectly tame for the kiddies. Then he heroine, Lainey, showed a little feminist rebellion that hinted the book might go in another direction, so I stuck with it. It was a bumpy read for me. There were a few more times when I groaned inwardl More...

1 comment like

Mar 11, 2011

Martina the Book Fairy rated it:

In a nutshell, I'd describe this book as a Superhero Romance. Lainey Livingston (aka Phenomenal Girl 5) has just been made a member of the Elite Hands of Justice, the world's topmost band of superheroes. It's a dream Lainey has been working for since she was a school girl. However, before becoming a full-fledge member, she must train for two years with The Reincarnist, Robert Elliot. Robert is a magician who, upon death, is instantly reincarnated as a 20 year old man who retains all previous mag More...

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May 02, 2009

Tez rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Jun 24, 2010

Lexie rated it:

Who hasn't wanted to be a superhero at some point or another in their life? Popular culture is filled to its seams with the various caped crusaders of Justice. So that's why I was more then a little shocked to realize that PHENOMENAL GIRL 5 is the first romance I've read that deals even partially with the idea.

The world of PHENOMENAL GIRL 5 is our own, except super powers are just a routine thing. Menden doesn't keep everything happy-go-lucky sweet, however—sure, there are altruistic More...

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Jan 31, 2012

Kim rated it:

This is the first book I reread within a single library loan period. It starts simply enough, with a new addition to a superhero team being trained up, but then the twists hit back and forth and froth up the story into a frenzy. I admit I cried, really hard, around the middle of the book, which made my husband poke his head into the bedroom to make sure I was okay. Luckily, the book continues and gets better and better, and I was smiling by the end. An excellent superhero/fantasy/romance mix.

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Mar 24, 2011

Steven rated it:

I enjoyed this book a lot but it could have been better. Sure it's a superhero book and well-written but it was a lot more 'romancey' than I would have liked. It probably should have been categorized as "Urban Fantasy/Romance" instead of "Leisure Fiction" but meh, no big deal and not enough to give it less than 4 stars because it was very entertaining and gave a very new (to me) spin on the superhero community.

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Mar 28, 2009

Jordan rated it:

Strike one: This obviously wasn't written for my demographic.

Strike two: I am screamingly jealous of the author and can be a hyper-critical lit snob when confronted with someone more successful than myself in the publishing world.

So I assumed I'd have to trudge through this and say some obligatory nice things I didn't mean. Luckily, that wasn't the case at all. I got drawn into it immediately and just kept turning the pages. Sure, I was still hyper-critical. (Using " More...

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Jun 29, 2009

Eric rated it:

This one's for all the people pining for a Power Girl and Dr. Strange team-up (weird as that may be). And since this book's a superhero/romance hybrid, I kept waiting for the spandex-ripping superheroic sex. As expected, Karen Starr and Stephen Strange get it on, but all the biff-pow action takes place off screen. By the hoary hosts of Hoggoth, how disappointing!

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Jan 15, 2011

Heather rated it:

Phenomenal Girl 5 was so much fun. I am a closet comic book collector and this book spoke to my inner nerd. It is also the best free Kindle book I have ever read. I loved Lainey! She is a kick butt heroine. Great Love Story + Adventure + Mystery To Solve = A Book That Sucks You In. This had it all and was hard to put down. I will definitely check out more books by A.J. Menden.

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Sep 20, 2011

Scottsdale Public Library added it

Phenomenal Girl 5, aka Lainey Livingston, falls for her mentor, the Reincarnist, only to find herself battling villains seeking world domination, heroes more intent on publicity than saving the world and her lover’s death and rebirth! This book was funny and poignant at the same time, keeping me hoping for a happy ending.

- Lynn H -

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Jan 18, 2011

Greymalkin rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Oct 20, 2010

Battyjac rated it:

I downloaded this as a free ebook and wasn't expecting much. The title is a bit cheesy. But it was a very enjoyable read. It has a good plot with twists and turns and likable characters. I had trouble putting it down. I would definitely read others by this author.

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Mar 06, 2011

Samantha rated it:

Another Kindle freebie, I was very pleasantly surprised!

My only complaint was that the ending was a little too quick and clean for my taste. I loved the two main characters and their chemistry and the love scenes were very nicely done.

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Jan 02, 2011

Garland Coulson rated it:

As a lover of superhero comics, movies, etc., I was pleased to find this as a free Kindle book. I read it on my iPhone with the Kindle app.

A little different than I expected - more like a superhero love story. But very well done.

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Feb 02, 2011

Heather rated it:

When I started this I wasn't at all sure I was going to like it as the superhero genre isn't really my thing. But the I liked the characters and found the story entertaining.

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Jul 19, 2010

Summer rated it:

Phenomenal Girl 5 sort of reminds me of Noble Causes. If you are less of a comic book nerd than me, Noble Causes is a comic series from Image about a superhero family that's commonly described as 'a superhero soap opera'. Only Phenomenal Girl 5 was more of a superhero romance story in novel form. It had all a lot of elements from comics that I do like with lot's of great action scenes and SUPERPOWERS. But it took out a lot of my gripes with some actual well written characters that didn't take th More...

1 comment like (1 person liked it)

Nov 08, 2008

Nicole rated it:

This is a very good book! (Not that I expected anything less.) I love the way superheros are treated as a normal part of society, and how the different teams have different focuses.

The romance angle is nicely done as well, with scenes that are sensual instead of explicit, and a romance that seems real.

The villains as well have some depth to them, though we don't get to see much of them (first person POV) to find out the details of that depth.

Pick it up and rea More...

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Dec 30, 2010

Sarah rated it:

Very fast, very fun read and an interesting take on the super-hero genre.

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