Transparent Is a Color

De: Kaje Harper

Narrado por: J.F. Harding

Perry's mother told him he'd develop the superpower of flight, like his grandfather. She even named him Peregrine, so folks would call him "The Falcon." Spoiler— they don't. Because when he did come into his power, all he got was the ability to change colors. Not even himself, like some kind of Chameleon Man, but the color of objects. He can de-pukify the shade of his bedroom curtains, turn a bully's sweatshirt pink, or even turn a red traffic light green. (Not a good idea.) He hasn't told anyone except his disappointed mom about his power. What would they call him? The Interior Decorator?

Back in high school, under stress, he did convince his power that transparent was just another color. Now that ability's sometimes fun in an illicit way. Then one morning, in the mailroom at work, he turns a cardboard box transparent and sees a bomb inside. And Perry's ordinary life explodes.

Sergeant Deckard of the Nova City Bomb Squad never thought much about superheroes, or supervillains for that matter. He has plenty of work with ordinary humans and their explosives. Until he and his bomb-sniffing dog, Nix, get called to a possible-explosives situation in a highrise mailroom. The guy who reported the bomb is a nerdy twink in dark-framed glasses who pushes all of Deck's buttons. When he finds out the young man has a weird superpower and may be the target of a villain, every protective instinct comes into play.

Deckard's goal is to keep his job, his dog, Nova City, and Perry intact. His libido can just sit down, shut up, and take a number. But as their attraction gets hotter and the villain closes in, their future might be blown apart before it even has a chance to start.

Transparent Is a Color is a part of the multi-author Subpar Superheroes MM romance series.

(Content warning for abduction, parental emotional abuse)

©2024, 2025 Kaje Harper (P)2025 Kaje Harper

Not sub par at all!

Delightful, funny story. Narrator is fantastic - distinct voices for each character, and Deckard’s is a lovely film noir growl that adds to the fun. Hubby listened and laughed a lot - he’s not a romance or MM fan, but he’s a fan of comedy and superheroes.

I love this story! ❤️

I had fun listening to Transparent Is a Color. It's hilarious, action-packed, and absorbing. The voice actor for this audiobook is so cool!
Perry is funny and a sweetheart. I love his superpower. Deckard is so smart and yummy, and he has the cutest dog. They make me happy. 😊
I hope Kaje Harper decides to write more about them.

sweet and actiony

The subpar super hero series is fun and I have enjoyed a number of them. I love this sweet and action filled story. It seemes like those two ideas would not go together but that is exactly what this story is. Perry is perfectly adorable and Decker is so sweet in how he deals with him (even when trying not to be) and all the while the action just doesn't stop.
JF Harding does an amazing job.

Lots of fun - by Shana W

This book is just so much fun! The book is well written with excellent characters and some fun banter between them. All of the superheroes in the story have some funny twist to their power. I like that Perry and Deckard are open with each other, saying exactly what's on their minds. They seem to fit so well together. It's nice to see Perry get out of a job where he is treated like garbage, then find himself in personal and work situations where he is actually valued. And I love Deckard's dog Nix!  Be warned, the book is a page-turner that keeps you up long after your bedtime!
J.F. Harding is an excellent narrator. His pacing and expression are perfect for this story. I enjoyed the ebook, but it's even more entertaining as an audiobook.
I received an audiobook copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Interesting and enjoyable

I really enjoyed this! Perry is such a great character, he's sunshine and resilient and caring and wants to help others. Deck is also fun, but a bit of a grump. He's uncertain of Perry at first, but quickly realizes that Perry is one of the good guys and seeks to protect him from an unknown threat. Nix is the K9 who we all want to hang out with. I love the decorating idea, and how Deck accepts and appreciates Perry for who he is. There are some really funny scenes as well.

J.F. Harding is a new narrator for me, but I thought they did a great job! I'm definitely adding them to my list of narrators I enjoy.

Fun & Unique

Fun concept {superheroes with completely underwhelming powers}. Cute and funny moments with sweet and lovable MCs.

Never Judge a Superpower by Its Color!

This was a super fun listen, so I am glad I opted for the audible! J.F. Harding really notched up the personalities and quirky situations. I adored sweet Perry; he was kind of like a Rudolph the Red nosed Reindeer. Noone saw his potential! Deckard wanted to protect his little superhero. Bombs all around but never fear Nix the sniffing dog is here!

Loved It!

I loved this book. I've only read superhero romances a couple times, but I was fascinated by the concept of subpar heroes and the premise of this story intrigued me. Who would have thought of the ability to change the surface color of things to be a superpower, and transparent as a color? What a concept! Perry gets himself into quite the conundrum when making one of the boxes he's sorting transparent to peek inside and discovers a bomb! What would he do? He could get in trouble for snooping through mail. He could get in trouble for such a power, or risk being forcibly used by the government if they find it useful.

I could totally relate Perry's anxiety, nervousness, and rambling. I really connected with him. I liked the dynamic between Deck and Perry, and enjoyed the way their relationship developed. I love dogs, and Deck's dog, Nix, was as sweet as she was talented, so I was happy for her presence in the story. I also liked the supporting characters.

The story was interesting, suspenseful, and exciting from the start and I was completely hooked. It was my first book in this series and I would definitely check out more.

I listened to this on audiobook narrated by J.F. Harding. I thought he did a great job bringing these characters and this story to life and I had no trouble differentiating between the different characters' voices.

Overall: 5 stars
Performance: 5 stars
Story: 5 stars

Fun and action.

I love Kaje Harper’s writing and this book was funny as it was sweet.
I adored Perry, Deckhard and sweet Nix. Perry is a sweet, somewhat impulsive superhero with a power of changing colors, which, on the one hand he doesn’t think amounts to much, on the other he’s terrified of it being discovered and being exploited for it. He’s snarky, and funny and a bit naïve.
Deckhard is a seemingly hardened explosive-expert cop. Who has a huge soft spot for his canine partner, Nix, and as we find out, maybe an even bigger one for Perry, the main witness in his latest case.
Since Deck is determined not to act on their attraction until the case is closed, this book is full of UST, a lot of action and everything good and entertaining. I loved it!

fun

3.5⭐️
Audio: 4.5⭐️

This was fun. Perry’s power and its creative application is great. Between a mom who chipped at his self-worth and being bullied and friendless, his self-esteem isn’t great, but he’s good-natured and self-deprecating in a way that’s more “eh, this is my life” rather than severely insecure. He’s just impetuous and bratty enough to be slightly exasperating but loveable, and Deckard enjoys that side of him. He loves Perry’s kindness and desire to do the right thing even when it puts him in danger. Deckard is straitlaced, protective, and needs color in his life as much as Perry needs someone who sees him.

The villainous motives are comic book perfect. The SPAM subplot isn’t. It’s like a side plot in a multi-comic arc that had to be incorporated. It drags the pace, makes the book longer than necessary, and/or uses pages that should've gone to Deckard's development. To me it's not comedic and has no thematic weight. Perry doesn’t aspire to be a superhero so SPAM’s attention doesn’t matter. His mother made him feel useless and unwanted, and they could have helped that part of his journey but don’t. They’re successful as a matchmaker service though.

I also had a tough time with the older people Perry knows. They are all very acab and anti-establishment, which is fine, but the story gives contradictory vibes about them. The MCs give a nod of acknowledgement to the validity of why they feel this way, but then the story makes them caricatures.

J.F. Harding does a great job with the narration as usual. His pace and tone are good, and he nails Deckard’s gruff reluctance and Perry’s nature. How he voices Perry helps make his impulsiveness and brattiness softer. I think he made an enjoyable book even better.