'Laugh-out-loud funny, intricately plotted and big-hearted' - SFX Warning: supervillain in training. Risk of world domination. Locus and Hugo Award-winning author John Scalzi brings us Starter Villain, a turbo-charged tale of a family business with a difference. This one comes with a hidden headquarters, minions, talking cats and villainous rivals worthy of James Bond. Divorced, broke and emotionally dependent on his cat, Charlie hasn't been loving life. Then he finds out his recently deceased Uncle Jake has left him a top ...
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'Laugh-out-loud funny, intricately plotted and big-hearted' - SFX Warning: supervillain in training. Risk of world domination. Locus and Hugo Award-winning author John Scalzi brings us Starter Villain, a turbo-charged tale of a family business with a difference. This one comes with a hidden headquarters, minions, talking cats and villainous rivals worthy of James Bond. Divorced, broke and emotionally dependent on his cat, Charlie hasn't been loving life. Then he finds out his recently deceased Uncle Jake has left him a top-secret, international supervillain business. And, as if this wasn't problematic enough, Jake's vengeful rivals ambush the funeral. Charlie must decide if he should stay stuck in his rut, or step up to take on the business, the enemies, the minions, the hidden volcano lair . . . Even harder to get used to are the talking, computer-savvy cats - and the fact that they're management. If Charlie says yes to his inheritance, could this lifeline become a death wish? Or could it finally be his chance to shine? 'You will laugh so loudly you will wish you weren't reading in public' - New Scientist 'Prepare to be delighted' - Daily Mail 'The book had me hooked from page one' - London Weekly News
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Add this copy of Starter Villain to cart. $6.50, fair condition, Sold by Goodwill of Greater Milwaukee rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Milwaukee, WI, UNITED STATES, published 2023 by Tor Books.
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Seeing the cover of John Scalzi's Starter Villain, with its stylish and suited cat was more than enough to make me want to read it - but if that didn#t convince me, the blurb certainly did!
Charlie is down on his luck, running out of money and fighting with his family to keep his home. When a distant relative dies, he finds himself inheriting a Super Villain company and his life will be changed forever!
I always worry when I get my hopes up for a new book as expectations don't always live up to the reality of the words on the page. I needn't have worried about Starter Villain, it's a fast-paced, fun and absurd read which kept me hooked. You do, of course have to suspend your disbelief for this one; there's super villains, cat masterminds and rude dolphins at every turn with assassination plots and schemes aplenty.
Charlie is a great narrator for the story, he's used as a normal person thrown into this bizarre world and asks all the questions that the reader is also asking such 'why can my cat talk?', 'why does this person want to kill me?' and 'why can't this Super Villain use Zoom correctly?'. The dry humour and witty writing style really help to engage the reader, and some big events are introduced in just a sentence that sometimes you have to go back and check you did just read what you thought you did!
It's a short book and it's also a standalone (in terms of Charlie's story anyway), although I would love to read more. The plot itself is well constructed and there's some great characters, particularly Hera and Persephone - the two cats on security detail. There's also a lot of fun poked at governments, tech bros and corporations. I would love to read more about the universe in general even without Charlie in future.
Overall, Starter Villain is a book not to miss - a fun and absurd fast-paced read and one of my Kindig Gems for 2023. Thank you to NetGalley & Pan Macmillan - Tor Books for the chance to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
