Book Review: We Could Be Heroes by Philip Ellis

In case you’re wondering, yes, I did decide to read We Could Be Heroes by Philip Ellis this right after We Shall Be Monsters because of the symmetry between the titles. And yes, I do think it would work even better if they were in opposite order, but I’m at the mercy of library hold timing here, I’m doing the best I can.

Title symmetry aside, these books are nothing alike. We Could Be Heroes is a M/M contemporary romance (leaning towards rom-com) between an actor in an MCU-style franchise, and a bookselling drag queen. As soon as I heard about it, I thought it was the perfect summer read, and I wasn’t wrong.

Patrick feels a bit Chris Evans-esque. He’s blond, well-built, your real All-American leading man, playing a popular superhero that the studio is trying to use to really launch a franchise. He’s also deeply in the closet, because Hollywood still likes its leading men straight, and this studio in particular has a morality clause, which… ick.

By day, Will sells books, and at night, he takes the stage as Grace Anatomy (the drag names in this book are a real delight). He’s struggling to make ends meet and reeling from the one-two punch of a recent breakup and a recent bad performance that went minorly viral in the local scene.

A series of romcommy hijinks result in Patrick and Will having a meet-cute and feeling a spark of attraction that eventually turns into a fling. But because Patrick is in the closet, there’s an NDA, sneaking around, misdirecting the paps, and of course, a time limit imposed by the fact that once filming is done in Birmingham (UK, not AL), Patrick will be heading back to Hollywood.

Ultimately, this is a story about deciding what you’re willing to put up with love (or really good sex at least) and what you’re willing to give up for your career. Will chafes under the secrecy of the NDA. Patrick worries that if he’s outed, he’ll not only lose his superhero role, but tank his entire career. Is a short-term relationship worth all the stress, for either of them?

Of course, this is a true romance novel, so you know they’ll find a way to work it out in the end. Without getting into spoilers, the ending felt like rather than a guaranteed Happy Ever After, it was a strong Happy For Now with long-term potential. Importantly, it felt like the choices that Patrick and Will made along the way were the right choices for them as human beings, regardless of how long the relationship lasts.

Another thing I liked was that there was a secondary story about the creators of Captain Kismet, the character that Patrick plays. I really enjoyed these characters, the glimpses into their life, and the ways they found to be true to themselves in a time when it wasn’t safe to be out.

This book wasn’t perfect. A rather mean-spirited bisexual joke made by a gay character early on soured the tone for me (the book was eventually slightly redeemed by introducing an actual bisexual character). The middle felt a bit aimless, and there’s a second-act breakup that honestly probably needed to happen, but seemed to happen a bit abruptly. But these are minor drawbacks, and if you’re looking for something fun and gay to read this summer (or any time your day could use to be brightened), We Could Be Heroes is a good choice.

CWs and TWs: Homophobia, including that scary McCarthy era stuff, but also the modern day “gentrify the gay bars out of our neighborhood” variety; moderate sexual content; references to WW2 and the Holocaust in the historic secondary storyline; comic book/superhero movie level violence within those scenes.

Source and Format: I read this as an ebook from Sno-Isle Libraries.

Book Bingo Prompts

SAL/SPL Adult Summer Reading: Queer Joy. What could be more joyous than a drag queen hooking up with a hot actor? This is a story about both characters finding joy in their identities and their community. It even explicitly references queer joy in the description.

SBTB Summer Romance: Rockstar or Musician. Grace Anatomy’s negative viral moment came when she botched an attempt to sing rather than lip sync, and Will has to find the well, will, to try to sing again. His nibling is also in a rock band that changes names about half a dozen times through the course of the book.

Book Bingo Progress

Nook & Cranny (Card 1): 17 out of 25 prompts complete. 2 bingos.

Nook & Cranny (Card 2): 15 out of 25 prompts complete. 1 bingo.

SAL/SPL Adult Summer Reading: 14 out of 23 prompts complete, 2 bingos.

SBTB Summer Romance: 3 out of 24 prompts complete, 0 bingos.