The Dark Lord's Guide to Hostile Corporate Takeover: The Dark Lord’s Guide Series

The Dark Lord's Guide #1

by Timothy W. Long

From ruling the underworld to battling co-pays and deductibles—evil has met its match.

When Dark Lord Morthisal Ebonwrath escapes certain death, he expects to land in another realm he can conquer. Instead, he wakes up in a flimsy mortal body belonging to Vince Logan—a stressed-out Seattle office worker with bad health insurance and worse life choices.

Now stripped of his power (mostly), Morthisal must survive a world ruled not by dark sorcery, but by HR departments, co-payments, and the maddening magic of “Wi-Fi.” His attempts at domination earn him suspicious looks, psychiatric evaluations, and a growing list of people who think he’s having a mental breakdown.

Yet there is power in this world—electricity—and every time he taps into it, echoes of his former might return…for a price.

And then there’s Yvette Sterling, the terrifyingly competent CEO who might be the first mortal he’s ever feared—and the first he might actually want.

Because in this world, the true boss battles aren’t fought with swords and spells—they happen in boardrooms, over contracts, mergers, and corporate treachery.

Perfect for fans of Terry Pratchett, The Office, Legends and Lattes, and The Magicians.

Genres: Fantasy

410 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 17, 2025

About the author

When not sitting around watching Rick and Morty reruns in a bathrobe, Timothy W. Long writes stuff. He has a predilection for weird literature and sometimes drinks Coke for breakfast. Don't tell his mom.

Tim is the author of over 30 novels in genres ranging from cozy/Isekai, to all manner of post-apocalyptic because no one has managed to take away his word processor.

Tim is an active member of SFWA, HWA, and Thriller Writers. He recently signed a three-book deal with Aethon Books for his Dark Lord Reborn Series.

Reviews

[Buffin]

Unrated. DNF 27%.

OK, I saw an advertisement on Facebook for this book, and both the synopsis and the title really had me hooked (honestly, the title is FANTASTIC imo, very catchy!). I'd say even the first 20% had me hooked. I love the idea of an (almost) all-powerful being getting lost in the world of corporate daily life!

I think if you're a vibe reader, this is probably a great time! I am, sadly, not a vibe reader, and there are a few grammatical and technical errors that took me right out of the story (it's stupid, I'd really like to be able to overlook them. But seeing typos is like a pebble in my shoe, or eyelash in my eye, and I can't seem to move past it).

I wanted to love this so much, it had little bits of pop culture, the characters were amusing. There are moments in the writing where I audibly laughed...but overall something just didn't click, which is a bummer for me.

[Anand Mehta · Rating 4 out of 5]

distinctive title

Sooo. I’ve read the companion novel. So I knew the gist and a couple of the references. Morthisal was great. I squealed that the romance, laughed at the comedy. All in all fun isekai bs. Thoroughly enjoyed.

[Jim Phillips · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a hoot

This is a just go with it book. Totally unique premise, good writing interesting characters and lots of food. Really fun read. Epilogue was fairly good as well. Bring on Hollywood!

[Cody · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well worth the read

This book was entertaining and provided a great view of the corporate world. Vince got to say things many of us have wished we could. It's also well written and keeps the reader engaged. Highly recommend

[PB · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoroughly enjoyed the ride. A fun, great paced read and cannot wait for the follow up novel to come out in Feb. I
liked the characters and plot development and the good bad guy is a great balance.

[Marian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun

Such a fun idea, with much opportunity for silliness. I loved Vince getting involved with the indie film, and picking up minions at random.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very funny story that shows a Dark Lord can become quite successful in all of his endeavors (corporate climbing included) on Earth. Also entertaining was his slow but inevitable path to humanity.

[Suzanne Y. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very amusing adventure!

I always wondered about what happens to defeated dark lords. Turns out they have quite a few somewhat positive skills that can lead to their success.

[Douglas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entertaining

Throughout the whole novel, Pactric Stewart was the voice of the MC while I read. Quite entertaining. Good twist of the genre.