Starter Villain

Excellent book. I enjoyed every aspect of this book. The protagonist is lovable with his love of cats and it is cute how he buys "meow mix" for them. But, things take a turn when he inherits his uncle's "villain business". He discovers a secret world of smart cats and dolphins and other villains who want to dominate him. Will he win? What's going to happen? The ending is as good as it was unexpected.

I've long been a fan of John Scalzi. He does what no author does, in my experience. He takes iconic concepts in speculative fiction and develops stories that explore their hidden nooks and crannies. He did this with his tribute to Star Trek with Redshirts. Recently he wrote the Kaiju Preservation Society and how it went about looking after Godzilla-like creatures. Now he's gone James Bond on us. We find out what it's like to be a super villain, complete with volcanic lair and a cat or two.

Another reason for my love of his stories is the balance he maintains between humour and excitement. It's not easy. His topics generate excitement readily enough. Any story with rampaging monsters, space battles and the like are going to have lots of ways to keep your reader turning the next page. But for there to be humour as well, that's a different thing completely. The humour must be grounded. We need to believe in the premise.

To sustain this belief is even more difficult. It can only be done one way. The story's characters need to be engaging and they need to be real. The premise can be fantastical. The characters cannot.

Scalzi achieves this perfectly with his protagonist in Starter Villain. Charlie is a nice guy. Life has treated him badly. He'd been made redundant from his job as a business journalist and he's earning a living as a substitute teacher. Except it's hardly a living. He's divorced and lives with his cat, Hera. His step-siblings want the family home sold but that would leave him homeless. And there we are, engaged and rooting for someone who needs help. He's real. We know people like this.

Into Charlie's plight steps someone who turns his life upside down. To avoid spoilers, I'm going to keep things vague from this point. Suffice to say, Charlie rapidly discovers himself in a very different life, as a super villain. At least, in a company which deals with other super villains. And yes, his base is a volcanic island. Even here, Scalzi makes a point of explaining how such a thing is possible. He leaves you wondering if such a sequence of events could have happened. It's not impossible!

Of course, events unfurl with increasing speed. Poor Charlie is faced with extreme dangers and his life is placed at risk repeatedly. But that need for credibility is there. With his background established, Charlie deals with things using his life experiences. We believe that a failed journalist cum substitute teacher might work things out as he does. Even when they are wonderfully bizarre.

If, like me, you enjoy stories that make you giggle while you are frantically turning the page, you will love Starter Villain and all Scalzi stories. He is unique in his style and the kind of stories he writes. I loved this one especially because of the way it tips its hat at so many of the classic Bond moments. It's fair to say I will never look at cats in the same way again. Or dolphins for that matter too!

I'm grateful to @NetGalley and @PanMacmillan for an ARC of this book. It is released in September. I strongly recommend you get a copy!

bwahahahahahaha. I laughed so much, tea came out my nose. Taken out of context that might seem completely inappropriate for a funeral scene (it isn't!). The modern day Art of Villainy has substantially evolved from the traditional Bondesque Villain template, including an impressive update in Catitude. Sweary dolphins, villainous PowerPoint presentations (is there any other type?), Evil as a Subscription Service, volcano lairs, spy satellites, cackling nemeses' - this book has it all! It was a LOT of fun and definitely one Scalzi fans will want to pick up.

Recommended for fans of: Christopher Brookmyre, Blake Crouch, Caimh McDonnell, Randall Munroe, All Systems Red, Mickey7, The Mad Scientist's Guide to World Domination, Hench, Confessions of a D-List Supervillain, The Rules of Supervillainy, Supervillainy and Other Poor Career Choices, The Henchmen's Book Club

Thank you to Netgalley and Pan Macmillan for the ARC.

Oh, no spoilers - Ok, Hmm. How do I describe this book then? Brilliant, fun, a blast, villains, cats, satirical humour, and so much more! Just don’t expect Villains to be nice, by definition they are not, and also they might not be honest, but if you do by chance get involved with them…. well… maybe not the best life insurance plan! Thank you to Pan Macmillan and NetGalley for the ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.

I got an ARC of this via Netgalley for a honest review.

I don't know how John Scalzi does it. He thinks up these serial scenarios; in this case someone that has inherited a Super Villain business (complete with volcano island lair, lasers, and cat) from their estranged uncle. But then he thinks "ok, if this strange thing was true, how would it work in the real world?".

It makes for something that is strange in concept seem believable, it gives the humour something to jump off from.

And it works, and it's hilarious, and there is a reason that John Scalzi is one of my favourite authors.

John Scalzi never disappoints, so it's with confidence i started reading.
The story is absolutely brilliant, Kid inherits a supervillain business, and has to find his way through it all. Hilarity ensues.
I had lots of fun with the quirky characters, it was an absolute pleasure. Sad it's over - but I'm sure Mr Scalzi is already knee deep into his next novel!

5*

John Scalzi, for me, just can't miss. All the tropes of any well-known villain's operations, plus sentient cats? Yes, Scalzi, you had me at "hello".

Fans of tongue-in-cheek comedy with real bite and heart will love this story, reminiscent of Scalzi's previous work, including Kaiju Preservation Society.

I recommend this to anyone with eyes.