Villain

A Novel

By: Natalie Zina Walschots

Narrated by: Alex McKenna

The Boys meets Assistant to the Villain in the electrifying, sharp, violent, and hilarious sequel to the highly acclaimed novel, Hench. Filled with a queer and neurodiverse cast, Villain asks the question: what happens when a diabolically brilliant henchperson looks back at their already storied career and thinks, I can be so much worse.

The hench once called Anna, now known to her colleagues and enemies as the Auditor, has carved out a wicked name for herself. Any superhero unlucky enough to cross her path knows her potential and powers. Surely, her recent success should taste sweet: she has an incredible job with lots of perks, her boss will literally annihilate anyone who crosses her, and her greatest enemy, the former hero Supercollider, has been utterly defeated—literally ground to a still-living pulp.

But the Auditor still has her sights set on a greater work: destroying The Draft, the organization that makes, trains, and manages the world’s most powerful superheroes. These “heroes” have shown time and time again that they do more harm than good (she has the spreadsheets to prove it), and now is the time to stop the damage at its source.

Yet all is not well for the Auditor and her fellow evildoers. Her employer, Leviathan—the world’s most feared supervillain—is not coping well with Supercollider’s defeat at someone else’s hands. As their relationship deepens, her work-life balance increasingly involves navigating the feelings of someone who doesn’t believe they have any. Moreover, her unlikely ally and unexpected friend, Quantum Entanglement, has reappeared, forcing the Auditor to confront all the ways they deceived each other. Tension and uncertainty haunt the Auditor, and the fear that their triumph is about to crumble looms over all of them.

The Auditor soon finds herself facing down an opponent unlike any she’s taken on before—not another superhero, but someone like her, someone much more dangerous: The Draft’s Chief Marketing Officer. Their conflict isn’t a test of physical prowess, but ideas, and as their fight escalates, she'll need more than preternatural pattern recognition, data analysis, and a horrific imagination to meet this challenge. It’s guerrilla ad warfare, and the Auditor might have finally met her match.

Wickedly funny, thought-provoking examination of this setting

I was a big fan of "Hench" so I've been waiting for this sequel since it was first mentioned. It didn’t disappoint. The character examinations are fascinating, the writing is as sharp and clever as the first book, I don't want to spoil anything but it was an absolute treat to be back in that world again. I'm really hoping this will he a trilogy.

I waited 5 years for this?! 😡 I’m so disappointed and disgusted.

I have to start off by saying the narrator was awesome and I don’t want my negative review to reflect on her in any way. That being said, I was extremely disappointed. I waited years for this story to continue, but I feel like the author lost all interest in the plot after Hench, and just threw a storyline together in response to the demand from readers.

The Auditor turned into someone I couldn’t respect or even root for anymore, and then the book ended with a cliffhanger, which I HATE in any series. I think each book should wrap up the main storyline before it ends, even if it’s part of a larger story. But particularly in this case, where we waited so long in between books, I think we deserved a more satisfying ending. How many years will it take now for us to get the next installment? Honestly I don’t know if I even care anymore.

VALID!

good sequel need that 3rd book tomorrow. final part is way too good, need more.

So much more compelling than I could have imagined.

I LOVED Hench. it was such a good intro into a really well thought out world with some great commentary, amazing characters, and comforting queer representation. Villain, though? it took everything I loved about Hench and cranked it up to 11.

in my opinion, the strongest part of these books have always been the characters. not just the main characters, but she side ones. the ones that only appear for maybe a chapter. of course the main characters are great (The Auditor is such a relatable yet terrifying villain to follow), this book excels in making you care so deeply for random henchmen, villains, heros, and civilians. the way each character is given their own little moment in the spotlight, along with their very in depth descriptions, gives the impression that there's a whole other story going on that we're only seeing a glimpse of. every character feels like they could be the main character in another story. every character feels like they should be played by a well known actor. I found myself getting emotional over 2 random henches who died during an operation, or a pair of twins who were abused by the foster system.

not only does this make every character feel so achingly real, it also reenforces the entire point of The Auditor's story. To her, everyone's life holds value even if she actively hates them. that doesn't mean she shys away from cruelty, but it means she carries the responsibility of every death she causes. you feel just as overwhelmed as she does by the sheer amount of loss on both sides. This story has made me see other superhero media so differently. Now I wonder if the random goon a hero beats up has a family. has friends. whether or not they even want to be a part of all this.

Anna/ The Auditor is such a fascinating character, too. In some ways she's so self aware it borders on some kind of disassociation. In other ways, she has absolutely no idea who she is or what she's doing. Somehow, that doesnt feel inconsistent. I genuinely don't know what she's gonna do next, but I get the feeling that she does even if she doesn't like it. She's almost a victim of herself in a really fascinating way. The one scene with her former friend gave me chills. I knew she could be scary, but that scene really showed just how horrifying she could be. you never doubt for a second that she is 100% a villain.

I don't know if the author will ever see this review, but I just want to say thank you. This series is wonderful and I simply can't wait to see where it goes next. On top of all that, having a series like this that is so casually queer and diverse warms my soul.

Super disappointing

The first book was about using people's own flaws and hubris to expose corruption. This book is about murdering people, but only when and how your emotionally abusive boyfriend tells you to. Also, emotional abuse is normalized. I hope the author is okay, but I'm also upset I waited years for this emotionally icky book.