Have you haver found a book that you wanted to absorb yourself into that world? You couldn’t get enough of it and hoped the author would keep writing more? The Supervillain Rehabilitation Project world by H. L. Burke is one of those for me. I fell in love with her characters and have picked up every book she’s written here. Her newest venture is a young adult spin off where the main characters from the SRP have retired from superhero work and now run a camp for troubled teens.

In book 1, Power On, there are three teens who join, but Jake is really the first. I was able to sit down and interview him.

Interview with Jake

Introduce yourself!

Jake: Hey, I’m Jake. Um, I’m sixteen. I’ve been working with my uncle’s supervillain gang for a few years now, but I recently got caught, and now they’ve got me at some sort of lame reform camp for superpowered kids.

Where were you born and where do you call home?

Jake: I was born in California, but I’ve moved around a lot. The Sand Fox gang has multiple lairs and hideouts all over the southwest. We generally don’t stay in one place for too long. We also needed to be able to pack up and leave at a moment’s notice so sometimes we’d be in sleeping bags in the back of my uncle’s truck or something like that.
At camp it’s kind of weird, always being in the same bed every night. It’s kind of a nice break, I guess.

It’s Saturday at noon. What are you probably doing?

Jake: A video game or maybe a comic book and snacks. I got pulled out of school when I was eleven to work with my uncle’s gang, so my reading is kind of rusty. Prism has started getting my graphic novel versions of books so that I can get my reading level up again.

How would you spend a night out?

Jake: Nights are the best time for supervillainy, so I spend a lot of them working and sleep in the day. I guess if I could go do whatever I’d want I’d maybe want to go to a movie or something. I like science fiction.

What is one strong memory that has stuck with you from childhood?

Jake: When my brother and I were too young to work with the gang, we lived at our great aunt’s house. She didn’t care what we got up to as long as we didn’t make too much of a mess inside, so we roamed around the empty lot behind her house. We’d dig holes and build forts. It was pretty awesome. One night she forgot to check that we’d come in and we stayed out way past dark. Me and my brother just hung out, talking, in our fort. She eventually realized we were missing and came screaming for us to get inside and take showers, but while it lasted it was pretty cool.  

Do you have a secret?

Jake (snorts): If I did I certainly wouldn’t tell you about it. Or anyone for that matter. (shuffles his feet) Fade and Prism keep finding out things though. I don’t know how they keep doing that.

Who are the people you’re closest to?

Jake: Meh, I don’t know. I mean, being close to people is risky. Uncle always says you shouldn’t have ties you aren’t willing to cut. I guess my brother is the exception, and even if the gang isn’t close, we all look out for each other. Now that I’m here at Camp Sable, Prism really wants me to be friends with the other kids. I don’t need friends, but it does get kind of lonely sometimes. 

About the book

Jake’s family ties have turned to cuffs. 

Born with the ability to fragment his body at a molecular level, Jake Lucas has devoted his life to his uncle’s supervillain gang. When he’s captured by superheroes, he’s certain his life is over at only sixteen.

To Jake’s surprise, he doesn’t end up in prison but at Camp Sable: an intervention project for at-risk super powered teens. Jake’s not interested in rehabilitation. As far as he’s concerned, the camp mentors are just a barrier between him and his true family, the Sand Fox gang.

Forced to work alongside the likewise screwed up duo of fire-powered Marco and electricity manipulator Laleh, Jake waits for the perfect escape opportunity. Having friends and the chance at a real family is more appealing than Jake originally thought, but going soft can cost a supervillain his life. Jake soon finds the forces fighting to control his life threatening to tear him apart. 

Will Jake choose to remain the villain his uncle made him, or become the hero his new friends think he can be?

A Young Adult Superhero series featuring found family, friendship, and one superpowered ferret

Where to find the book and the original Supervillain Rehabilitation Project

You can pre-order Power On for 99 cents, and if you’re curious about the rest of the world, you can start with Reformed (book 1 of the Supervillain Rehabilitation Project) for 99 cents as well. The rest of the SRP adult series will be available for 99 cents starting Thursday.

Power On for pre-order

Reformed for 99 cents

About the author

H. L. Burke has written more books than she can count—because she’s written a lot of books, not just because she can’t count very high. 

Easily distracted by shinies, she has published in many subgenres including fantasy romance, Steampunk, and superhero, and always creates story worlds with snark, feels, and wonder. 

Married to her high school crush, she spends her time writing, spoiling her cat, and supervising her two supervillains in training (aka her precocious daughters). 

An Oregon native, she wilts without trees and doesn’t mind the rain. She is a fan of delicious flavor, a follower of the Light, and a believer in happily ever after.

You can find her and her dragon Theodore on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, her website, and Amazon.

See more in Power On’s Blog Tour

Why-A? Guest Post Live: 9/28

Book Spotlight Live: 10/7

Review Live: 10/9