Joerg reviewed Starter Villain by John Scalzi
Expository dialogue - the novel
3 stars
Expository dialogue for most of the book. Some truly funny bits though.
English language
Published Sept. 21, 2023 by Pan Macmillan.
Starter Villain
by John Scalzi
John Scalzi: Starter Villain (2023, Pan Macmillan)
- ISBN:
- 978-1-5290-8295-1
Copied ISBN!
4 stars
(8 reviews)
Inheriting your mysterious uncle's supervillain business is more complicated than you might imagine.
Sure, there are the things you'd expect. The undersea volcano lairs. The minions. The plots to take over the world. The international networks of rivals who want you dead.
Much harder to get used to...are the the sentient, language-using, computer-savvy cats.
And the fact that in the overall organization, they're management...
Flippin' 'Eck, Reader reviewed Starter Villain by John Scalzi
A fun, fast-paced modern satire
5 stars
This was a quick and easy read, with the plot zipping along at a rapid pace and not too many characters or complicated ideas to get straight in your head.
It's a fun parody of James Bond style villains but also quite a good satire of California techbros, VC funding, and mega-billionaires. If any of that group are on your "I don't like these people" list, you'll probably enjoy this book!
enneđź“š reviewed Starter Villain by John Scalzi
Starter Villain
4 stars
A classic Scalzi one-shot novel--a fluffy snack with some good twists.
The basic setup is that down-on-his-luck Charlie Fitzer unexpectedly inherits his estranged billionaire uncle's villainous empire and now has to fend with other villains who were pissed at his uncle.
Key features:
- volcano lair
- jerk dolphins who want to unionize
- zoom call power plays
Dah DJM reviewed Starter Villain by John Scalzi
If you love cats...
4 stars
I discoved Scalzi with this book. Liked the humor and many fun ideas...
Ian Brown reviewed Starter Villain by John Scalzi
Cat GIF goes here.
5 stars
Another genre-bending romp from @scalzi@mastodon.social. Fast and fun, this book was a great bit of mental floss to kick off another year of reading. As always Scalzi delivers laugh-out-loud lines with clever dialog and banter. Pick up a copy at your local bookstore or at the nearest public library ASAP.
DigitalRob@ramblingreaders.org reviewed Starter Villain by John Scalzi
If you read one book this year, make it this one... great fun!
5 stars
As I listened to this on my morning walks, I was caught cackling with laughter several times by my fellow neighborhood walkers. I’m pretty sure they wonder about me now. My sister and I also exchanged texts with some of the funniest lines.
Chapter four is the funniest funeral ever. Anyone receiving flowers and a vase with “Suck MFer,” can’t be all bad… right?!?!
Then there are the dolphins. Totally hard core, and death by “mass dolphin gender identification,” sounds pretty horrible.
The Pitch and Pitch, was also super fun. “Tetsticles as a service.” Bwahahaha!
The book didn’t end the way I expected. I kind of wanted an ending with a “to be continued…” motif, but one-shot books are great too. No worries about setting up another plot, so the ending is clean.
Charlie and Matti are great. I was pleased with how that relationship went. I was worried for …
As I listened to this on my morning walks, I was caught cackling with laughter several times by my fellow neighborhood walkers. I’m pretty sure they wonder about me now. My sister and I also exchanged texts with some of the funniest lines.
Chapter four is the funniest funeral ever. Anyone receiving flowers and a vase with “Suck MFer,” can’t be all bad… right?!?!
Then there are the dolphins. Totally hard core, and death by “mass dolphin gender identification,” sounds pretty horrible.
The Pitch and Pitch, was also super fun. “Tetsticles as a service.” Bwahahaha!
The book didn’t end the way I expected. I kind of wanted an ending with a “to be continued…” motif, but one-shot books are great too. No worries about setting up another plot, so the ending is clean.
Charlie and Matti are great. I was pleased with how that relationship went. I was worried for a while that it would become a cliche. I also like that as a former business reporter, Charlie has some chops in dealing with the other villains. Then there is Hera. She might be my favorite: “Dogs are the worst. They’ll sell you out for a treat and a head pat.” She is not wrong.
Kelson Reads reviewed Starter Villain by John Scalzi
A fun, fast read, parodying the James Bond Villain archetype. With talking dolphins and typing cats.
4 stars
A fun, fast read, parodying the James Bond Villain archetype. The main character is dropped into the deep end of supervillain society, complete with double-crosses, triple-crosses, assassination attempts, blackmail, framing...and of course the secret volcanic lair, superlasers, talking dolphins (who are really unpleasant and cranky) and a management layer of typing cats (who are much less so, depending on how well you feed and pet them).
Everyone knows he's way out of his depth and wants to take advantage of him. But he knows it too -- and between a background in business journalism and a willingness to listen to people with expertise (always considering that they have an agenda that might not be his own), he's able to manage better than anyone expects.
Of course, the skills that get you to the top of the backstabbing, chaotic world of villainy...aren't necessarily the best for financial stability. Or stability of …
A fun, fast read, parodying the James Bond Villain archetype. The main character is dropped into the deep end of supervillain society, complete with double-crosses, triple-crosses, assassination attempts, blackmail, framing...and of course the secret volcanic lair, superlasers, talking dolphins (who are really unpleasant and cranky) and a management layer of typing cats (who are much less so, depending on how well you feed and pet them).
Everyone knows he's way out of his depth and wants to take advantage of him. But he knows it too -- and between a background in business journalism and a willingness to listen to people with expertise (always considering that they have an agenda that might not be his own), he's able to manage better than anyone expects.
Of course, the skills that get you to the top of the backstabbing, chaotic world of villainy...aren't necessarily the best for financial stability. Or stability of any kind.
Will reviewed Starter Villain by John Scalzi
Go into it with no expectation except fun
4 stars
Like most Scalzi books this is a great story and a lot of fun. If you want some escapism then you've come to the right place. If you're looking for something deeper, this will not be satisfying at all.