Starter Villain

Stephen reviewed Starter Villain by John Scalzi

Fine

4 stars

This is alright, I preferred Kaiju Preservation Society. As I read more Scalzi (and I enjoy his work so I will continue to do so) I haven't quite worked out why I like some books more than others. This one I felt I was missing some American references as it felt like there were more than usual.

I think one thing for me is the story is both a "fish out of water" story as the protagonist is introduced to this new world of villainy, and also a "quiet competence" one of he just makes all the right decisions. But his character is that he's also ruined his life, so why is he suddenly much better at all this stuff? Yeah that's it, I didn't really get the main character, unless it's an unreliable narrator and he's just taking credit for everything.

Entertaining though.

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.

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!

bigethan@sfba.club reviewed Starter Villain by John Scalzi

I really wanted to like this book

2 stars

I mean, the blurb is amazing! But the plot lacks any nuance or tension whatsoever. I like fun shallow books, but this reads like a swear-y version of a Bond-like for 8 year olds.

enne📚 reviewed Starter Villain by John Scalzi

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 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.

Cross-posted at my website.

Soh Kam Yung reviewed Starter Villain by John Scalzi

How to be a villian, but not be too evil.

4 stars

A humorous and interesting story involving the usual clueless main character who discovers that he has been given a massive inheritance from a deceased relative. Only here, the relative is an uncle who turns out to have been a villain (complete with evil volcanic lair) who now wants him to run his evil empire.

As the story develops, it turns out the empire he inherits is not quite so evil after all. It does work for various governments and agencies. But it then quietly reuses the technology developed for other purposes. For example, a laser technology used to make rain gets repurposed (and boosted) to take down satellites (yes, it does get used in the story).

The main story involves the character interacting with other villains in the world who, while not plotting to take over the world, do want to accumulate vast wealth. And the death of his uncle …

A humorous and interesting story involving the usual clueless main character who discovers that he has been given a massive inheritance from a deceased relative. Only here, the relative is an uncle who turns out to have been a villain (complete with evil volcanic lair) who now wants him to run his evil empire.

As the story develops, it turns out the empire he inherits is not quite so evil after all. It does work for various governments and agencies. But it then quietly reuses the technology developed for other purposes. For example, a laser technology used to make rain gets repurposed (and boosted) to take down satellites (yes, it does get used in the story).

The main story involves the character interacting with other villains in the world who, while not plotting to take over the world, do want to accumulate vast wealth. And the death of his uncle opens up an opportunity for them to take over his business; and possibly get rid of him too.

The writing is fun and fast moving, with witty dialogue and explanations for why his uncle's evil empire does what it does. Perhaps, in the end, he doesn't turn out to be the villain he is expected to be, and the world might end up becoming a better place, if he survives the takeover attempts.