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The Supervillainy Saga #1
The Rules of Supervillainy
Gary Karkofsky is an ordinary guy with an ordinary life living in an extraordinary world. Supervillains, heroes, and monsters are a common part of the world he inhabits. Yet, after the death of his hometown's resident superhero, he gains the amazing gift of the late champion's magical cloak. Deciding he prefers to be rich rather than good, Gary embarks on a career as Merciless: The Supervillain Without Mercy. But is he evil enough to be a villain in America's most crime-ridden city? Gary soon finds himself surrounded by a host of the worst of Falconcrest City's toughest criminals. Supported by his long-suffering wife, his ex-girlfriend turned professional henchwoman, and a has-been evil mastermind, Gary may end up being not the hero they want but the villain they need.
240 pages, Paperback
First published June 8, 2015
332 people are currently reading
2007 people want to read
About the author
C.T. Phipps
93 books670 followersC.T Phipps is a lifelong student of horror, science fiction, and fantasy. An avid tabletop gamer, he discovered this passion led him to write and turned him into a lifelong geek. He is a regular reviewer on Booknest.EU and for Grimdark Magazine.
He's written the Agent G series, Cthulhu Armageddon, the Red Room Trilogy, I Was A Teenaged Weredeer, Lucifer's Star, Psycho Killers in Love, Straight Outta Fangton, The Supervillainy Saga, and Wraith Knight.
Blog: http://unitedfederationofcharles.blog...
Website: https://ctphipps.com/
C.T. Fanclub: https://www.facebook.com/groups/14917...
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ctphipps
He's written the Agent G series, Cthulhu Armageddon, the Red Room Trilogy, I Was A Teenaged Weredeer, Lucifer's Star, Psycho Killers in Love, Straight Outta Fangton, The Supervillainy Saga, and Wraith Knight.
Blog: http://unitedfederationofcharles.blog...
Website: https://ctphipps.com/
C.T. Fanclub: https://www.facebook.com/groups/14917...
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/ctphipps
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 325 reviews
December 14, 2015
This superhero/supervillain novel turned out to be just the sort of fun romp it promised from its synopsis.
Gary Karkofsky is just a normal guy living in a world filled with all sorts of people with superpowers. He lives with his wife in the suburbs and used to work as a bank teller before he lost his job. Opportunity knocks for Gary when the magical cloak of his home towns greatest superhero gets delivered to him in the mail. Rather than take up the selfless mantle of the heroic Nightwalker Gary instead decides to indulge in his life long dream of becoming Merciless: The Supervillain Without Mercy!
The whole story was as crazy and as fun as it sounds. Gary was an easy to root for guy. He loved his wife, cared for his friends, and was not quite as evil as he wished he was. Though he did have his villainous moments!
The world was pretty fun. It was the sort of over the top type of superhero world that you get while watching a movie like Marvel's Avengers. Which is great. This actually had a similar tone to the Avengers movies with plenty of humor and crazy action mixed in with likeable characters who were never short of a witty bit of banter.
The only real flaw I can spot is that this was such a short story. With the open ending I hope we do not have to wait long for the sequel.
Rating: 4 stars.
Audio Note: It is tough to rate Jeffrey Kafer's performance. He got the tone of the story and has a perfect voice for narration, but he did struggle a tiny bit to differentiate between a few of the characters voices which made some of the exchanges hard to follow.
Gary Karkofsky is just a normal guy living in a world filled with all sorts of people with superpowers. He lives with his wife in the suburbs and used to work as a bank teller before he lost his job. Opportunity knocks for Gary when the magical cloak of his home towns greatest superhero gets delivered to him in the mail. Rather than take up the selfless mantle of the heroic Nightwalker Gary instead decides to indulge in his life long dream of becoming Merciless: The Supervillain Without Mercy!
The whole story was as crazy and as fun as it sounds. Gary was an easy to root for guy. He loved his wife, cared for his friends, and was not quite as evil as he wished he was. Though he did have his villainous moments!
The world was pretty fun. It was the sort of over the top type of superhero world that you get while watching a movie like Marvel's Avengers. Which is great. This actually had a similar tone to the Avengers movies with plenty of humor and crazy action mixed in with likeable characters who were never short of a witty bit of banter.
The only real flaw I can spot is that this was such a short story. With the open ending I hope we do not have to wait long for the sequel.
Rating: 4 stars.
Audio Note: It is tough to rate Jeffrey Kafer's performance. He got the tone of the story and has a perfect voice for narration, but he did struggle a tiny bit to differentiate between a few of the characters voices which made some of the exchanges hard to follow.
December 16, 2019
Welcome to an alternate universe where superheroes and villains are the norm. This is a world where supervillain psychology is a normal class you can take in college and later on get a masters degree in. Gary Karkofshy was fascinated with supervillains all his life and today is his lucky day because a cloak of a former superhero just showed up on his doorstep so now, he has some fun powers to play with.
Who says its everyone’s dream to be a superhero, it was actually Gary’s dream to follow in his brothers footsteps and play for the other side. With a talking cloak fueled by deaths powers Gary now has his wish to become the supervillain Merciless the merciless (TM), much to his cloaks disappointment.
The good news is that Gary isn’t your normal supervillain, at least not yet. I mean he has only killed bad people so far and other supervillains and as we all know from Hollywood killing people doesn’t count if they’re bad. Then there is his marriage, I mean how many supervillains out there have a well-adjusted relationship let alone a marriage? And while his wife isn’t thrilled, he chose the supervillain route as long as he follows some basic rules, she will support his decision.
This book made me laugh. First, it gave a shout out to one of my favorite movies Gross Point Blank (John Cusack doesn’t get enough credit for that role) and many other pop culture references that just made me laugh. Second, I really liked Gary, I mean he is a pretty likeable guy overall, he is a good husband and not a bad boss. Plus, he needs to use the cloaks powers or the dead are going to rise so it is a tough job but someone has to do it. Then there is cloak, who not really happy that he has fallen into Gary’s hands has some fun banter with the fledgling supervillain.
Overall, I had a great time getting to know both Cloak and Gary along with his new hench people. I can’t wait to see where the story goes from here and especially what the dynamic of Gary and his wife will be now that they each have a career path in mind.
Hopefully things don’t get to Karflagled from here, or maybe they should get all kinds of karflagled.
July 11, 2017
With great power comes great responsibility. Unless you’re Gary Karkofsky. Then, great power is merely the first step in the path to unrivaled supervillainy.
I have mixed feelings about this book. There were a couple passages that had me laughing out loud, but the frequent pop culture references were distracting to me. I think that fans of Christopher Moore will enjoy this book more than I did. It has that same irreverent, grim tone.
I have mixed feelings about this book. There were a couple passages that had me laughing out loud, but the frequent pop culture references were distracting to me. I think that fans of Christopher Moore will enjoy this book more than I did. It has that same irreverent, grim tone.
February 9, 2017
TL;DR Review
3 stars. This gif sums the whole thing up.
Longer Review
Gary Karkofsky is an ordinary citizen living in a city filled with heroes and villains. After receiving a magical cloak that once belonged to the city’s most beloved hero, Gary does what any self-respecting ordinary person would do when gifted such power. He becomes a supervillain. Except he’s not very good at it. However, that doesn’t stop Gary. He has his ambitions set to becoming the city’s most notorious villain as long as it doesn’t require him to kill anyone or inconvenience anyone less fortunate than himself. He just wants to make money. Aided by his wife and a few villain friends, Gary sets down the path of making the city tremble at its knees one bad pun at a time.
This is a by the book hero–ahem, I mean villain–story. It crams all the superhero and villain cliches in it that you could ever want. Everything is over the top and exaggerated in a way that can be a little exasperating at times. Gary is a bit bumbling in his quest, but no one can ever accuse him of lacking the proper motivation. He often finds himself at odds with other villains in the city such as the Typewriter who wears a–wait for it–large typewriter on his head and spouts phrases from bygone eras. In other words, this book is extremely campy. What I really enjoyed about this story was Gary’s relationship with his wife. Early in the book, he makes this statement: “Supervillainy seemed like the sort of thing you needed to be upfront with your spouse about.” His wife sets down ground rules of his reign of terror which includes only stealing from people who deserve it, no killing, and not bringing his work home. It was fun to see a positive relationship being portrayed in a heroic story, as Gary sees his wife as one of his biggest allies.
Given the way this is written, and this is a criticism that I could level at most superhero stories, this does come off extremely immature at times. The characters aren’t developed that well and had a tendency to disappear when they were all used up, but this relies more on its quips and Gary’s clumsy adventures in supervillainy. So, I can’t expect this story to be a shining example of character. Parts of the story just seemed to drone on about things that didn’t seem important to the plot at all. Jeffrey Kafter fit the part of Gary well, and the quips rolled off his tongue with ease. Some of his voices for the characters weren’t distinct enough, but overall, he did a fine job.
This isn’t a bad story, but I was expecting something more. However, the premise for this was an excellent one, and I did find myself smiling at Gary’s misadventures. I’m curious enough to continue this adventure and see how Gary’s story progresses. I waffled on whether to rate this a 2.5 or 3, but decided to go with a 3 since it did manage to make smile a fair bit.
Narrator: Jeffrey Kafer | Length: 6 hrs and 42 mins | Audiobook Publisher: Amber Cove Publishing (June 8, 2014) | Whispersync Ready: Yes
3 stars. This gif sums the whole thing up.
Longer Review
Gary Karkofsky is an ordinary citizen living in a city filled with heroes and villains. After receiving a magical cloak that once belonged to the city’s most beloved hero, Gary does what any self-respecting ordinary person would do when gifted such power. He becomes a supervillain. Except he’s not very good at it. However, that doesn’t stop Gary. He has his ambitions set to becoming the city’s most notorious villain as long as it doesn’t require him to kill anyone or inconvenience anyone less fortunate than himself. He just wants to make money. Aided by his wife and a few villain friends, Gary sets down the path of making the city tremble at its knees one bad pun at a time.
This is a by the book hero–ahem, I mean villain–story. It crams all the superhero and villain cliches in it that you could ever want. Everything is over the top and exaggerated in a way that can be a little exasperating at times. Gary is a bit bumbling in his quest, but no one can ever accuse him of lacking the proper motivation. He often finds himself at odds with other villains in the city such as the Typewriter who wears a–wait for it–large typewriter on his head and spouts phrases from bygone eras. In other words, this book is extremely campy. What I really enjoyed about this story was Gary’s relationship with his wife. Early in the book, he makes this statement: “Supervillainy seemed like the sort of thing you needed to be upfront with your spouse about.” His wife sets down ground rules of his reign of terror which includes only stealing from people who deserve it, no killing, and not bringing his work home. It was fun to see a positive relationship being portrayed in a heroic story, as Gary sees his wife as one of his biggest allies.
Given the way this is written, and this is a criticism that I could level at most superhero stories, this does come off extremely immature at times. The characters aren’t developed that well and had a tendency to disappear when they were all used up, but this relies more on its quips and Gary’s clumsy adventures in supervillainy. So, I can’t expect this story to be a shining example of character. Parts of the story just seemed to drone on about things that didn’t seem important to the plot at all. Jeffrey Kafter fit the part of Gary well, and the quips rolled off his tongue with ease. Some of his voices for the characters weren’t distinct enough, but overall, he did a fine job.
This isn’t a bad story, but I was expecting something more. However, the premise for this was an excellent one, and I did find myself smiling at Gary’s misadventures. I’m curious enough to continue this adventure and see how Gary’s story progresses. I waffled on whether to rate this a 2.5 or 3, but decided to go with a 3 since it did manage to make smile a fair bit.
Narrator: Jeffrey Kafer | Length: 6 hrs and 42 mins | Audiobook Publisher: Amber Cove Publishing (June 8, 2014) | Whispersync Ready: Yes
December 15, 2015
Hot mess. I understand the author was going for campy, but this was just making it up as it went along. Nothing is set up properly. The book starts something like the day after the main character gets a magic cloak making him a super villain. Not the day he gets the cloak. Not the day before, to set up who he was before getting the cloak. The day after. Um, ok. Every chapter, we meet a new super hero or villain, as is convenient for the story. In the last third, we find out about the world's best super-hero. And his daughter. But you don't care at all because you've never heard of them until the very sentence the character runs into them. Sidekicks get dropped halfway through the book, never to be mentioned again. The main character's wife, who is a major plot point the first half of the book (and quite a good set up for a plot that inexplicably never develops) also disappears. Oh, and the chapter titles give away most of the action. So, I guess you could say I wasn't a fan. Also, any book that constantly uses dialogue like "touche" I generally hate, and this had that kind of weak dialogue the whole way through, but that's neither here nor there.
January 15, 2016
Read 2 times
08/10/2015
It was fantastic!! Zany and exciting but with great emotional connection to the characters as well. Hoping a sequel comes along some day!!!
01/14/2016
Frenetic and high-energy slapstick still amuses me!!! Noticed typos and edit-y... stuff more this time though, mostly unclear antecedents?
Yay, now I'm get to read the next one!!!
08/10/2015
It was fantastic!! Zany and exciting but with great emotional connection to the characters as well. Hoping a sequel comes along some day!!!
01/14/2016
Frenetic and high-energy slapstick still amuses me!!! Noticed typos and edit-y... stuff more this time though, mostly unclear antecedents?
Yay, now I'm get to read the next one!!!
August 16, 2019
I've heard a lot about this series, and have sampled CT Phipps works before. Besides, who doesn't like superheroes?
This was a quick, fun read with lots of situational humour and fast paced action. Recommended to fans of the genre - if you've enjoyed Deadpool, The Boys, and the like, you should add this to your reading list.
What to Expect
A superhero story like the comics, with mind-bending twists and hilarious humour. As Phipps says in the introduction, this is born out of love for the genre, with plenty of tropes and no attempt at logic -- just like the comics.
While not as dark as The Boys or as explicit as Deadpool, I still think it would appeal to their fans. Gary aka Merciless(tm) isn't quite the super-villain he likes to be. He *doesn't* suffer from a cliche heart-of-gold, nor is he an anti-hero like the punisher. He's definitely a supervillain... he just likes the world to survive the space monsters and zombies long enough for him to rule it.
What I liked
The humour is in line with Phipps other works, with plenty of situational jokes, slapstick, snide commentary, and fanboi jokes.
The characters are amusing, and if they aren't exactly deep and emotional that fits well with the genre. It's more about the insane plot twists anyway.
What to be aware of
This book is more about chaotic humour than sensible plot, always going for the cheesy jokes. Then again, it's why I like it.
Summary
If you like the super-powered genre, if you enjoy comics and would like a quick laugh-out-loud read, this is a book for you.
--
Assaph Mehr, author of Murder In Absentia: A story of Togas, Daggers, and Magic - for lovers of Ancient Rome, Murder Mysteries, and Urban Fantasy.
This was a quick, fun read with lots of situational humour and fast paced action. Recommended to fans of the genre - if you've enjoyed Deadpool, The Boys, and the like, you should add this to your reading list.
What to Expect
A superhero story like the comics, with mind-bending twists and hilarious humour. As Phipps says in the introduction, this is born out of love for the genre, with plenty of tropes and no attempt at logic -- just like the comics.
While not as dark as The Boys or as explicit as Deadpool, I still think it would appeal to their fans. Gary aka Merciless(tm) isn't quite the super-villain he likes to be. He *doesn't* suffer from a cliche heart-of-gold, nor is he an anti-hero like the punisher. He's definitely a supervillain... he just likes the world to survive the space monsters and zombies long enough for him to rule it.
What I liked
The humour is in line with Phipps other works, with plenty of situational jokes, slapstick, snide commentary, and fanboi jokes.
The characters are amusing, and if they aren't exactly deep and emotional that fits well with the genre. It's more about the insane plot twists anyway.
What to be aware of
This book is more about chaotic humour than sensible plot, always going for the cheesy jokes. Then again, it's why I like it.
Summary
If you like the super-powered genre, if you enjoy comics and would like a quick laugh-out-loud read, this is a book for you.
--
Assaph Mehr, author of Murder In Absentia: A story of Togas, Daggers, and Magic - for lovers of Ancient Rome, Murder Mysteries, and Urban Fantasy.
November 7, 2022
Uf, no sé muy bien si me ha parecido flojo por las expectativas, por el nivel del idioma o porque realmente es flojo. El caso es que no me ha atrapado en ningún momento.
Aunque el argumento es original los personajes me han parecido normales, y sobre todo el tipo de humor no ha encajado conmigo...
Pues eso, muchas cosas regulares. Le pongo 3/5 en vez de suspenderlo porque parte de la culpa seguro que es mía.
Aunque el argumento es original los personajes me han parecido normales, y sobre todo el tipo de humor no ha encajado conmigo...
Pues eso, muchas cosas regulares. Le pongo 3/5 en vez de suspenderlo porque parte de la culpa seguro que es mía.
June 8, 2019
Review originally posted at RabidReads.ca.
4.5 stars
This book came on my radar when I posted my review of Villain's Rule by M.K. Gibson read by Jeffrey Kafer. Melissa @ My World...in words and pages, who saw that review on Twitter, pointed out this book to me. I'm so glad that she did. It was another really fun listen for me.
So, The Rules of Supervillainy is an interesting story. It focuses on Gary Karkofsky. Gary is just a guy, until he finds a package. It turns out to be the cloak of the newly deceased superhero. Now Gary isn't the superhero type. He is more of the supervillain type, so he decides to use the cloak for bad instead of good.
So, Gary decides to go in and break of a bank robbery for his first villainous act. He stops the bank robber and even kills some of them, which sounds good right? But he makes off with the loot instead of letting the bank have it back.
He then takes a call from the police chief. A rich man's daughter is kidnapped. The police chief wants the cloak-wearer to help. Gary, aka Merciless: The Supervillain Without Mercy! (which his sentient cloak reminds him is redundant). Gary agrees, but wants the reward that was offered.
Back to the cloak. It is sentient. The cloak knows a lot from being worn by superheroes over the many years. It keeps that knowledge as it moves from one wearer to another. Merciless is the first supervillain to wear the cloak, and this isn't something that the cloak likes. It wants to see Gary help people. Luckily, Gary isn't all bad. But you can feel the cloak's dismay sometimes.
I won't go into the whole story. Just know that this is pretty funny. There some really funny villains that Merciless fights, like Ice Cream Man and the Malt Shop Gang who shoot acid ice cream and freeze rays and Typewriter, who actually wears a typewriter on his head.
Then there are two characters who turn on their boss to takes sides with Merciless. Cindy Wakowski a.k.a Red Riding Hood. Cindy and Gary knew each other before becoming villains. They even had a fling back in the day. Gary is now happily married though. There is also Diabloman, who was at one time the most notorious villains of all time, until an ailment made it difficult for him. He is now acting as a henchmen for bad villains (as in not very good at their job), that is until Gary offers to pay him to mentor him in villainy.
This was a great start to a series. There are plenty of laugh out loud moments. I'm excited to pick up the next book in the series (which I've already downloaded).
Narration
So the first full-length book that I listened to with Jeffrey Kafer is very similar to this one. They are both funny books about villains. I was a little worried when I first started they would sound the same. However I needn't be worried, he tackled these two stories completely differently. With Villain's Rule, Jackson Blackwell is a very dry character that Jeffrey Kafer voiced very dryly. Gary Karkofsky in not a dry character, so Jeffrey didn't voice him dry at all. He does a great job with women's voices. I just love how he took two books that were very similar in premise, but he tackled them in a very different manner.
4.5 stars
This book came on my radar when I posted my review of Villain's Rule by M.K. Gibson read by Jeffrey Kafer. Melissa @ My World...in words and pages, who saw that review on Twitter, pointed out this book to me. I'm so glad that she did. It was another really fun listen for me.
So, The Rules of Supervillainy is an interesting story. It focuses on Gary Karkofsky. Gary is just a guy, until he finds a package. It turns out to be the cloak of the newly deceased superhero. Now Gary isn't the superhero type. He is more of the supervillain type, so he decides to use the cloak for bad instead of good.
So, Gary decides to go in and break of a bank robbery for his first villainous act. He stops the bank robber and even kills some of them, which sounds good right? But he makes off with the loot instead of letting the bank have it back.
He then takes a call from the police chief. A rich man's daughter is kidnapped. The police chief wants the cloak-wearer to help. Gary, aka Merciless: The Supervillain Without Mercy! (which his sentient cloak reminds him is redundant). Gary agrees, but wants the reward that was offered.
Back to the cloak. It is sentient. The cloak knows a lot from being worn by superheroes over the many years. It keeps that knowledge as it moves from one wearer to another. Merciless is the first supervillain to wear the cloak, and this isn't something that the cloak likes. It wants to see Gary help people. Luckily, Gary isn't all bad. But you can feel the cloak's dismay sometimes.
I won't go into the whole story. Just know that this is pretty funny. There some really funny villains that Merciless fights, like Ice Cream Man and the Malt Shop Gang who shoot acid ice cream and freeze rays and Typewriter, who actually wears a typewriter on his head.
Then there are two characters who turn on their boss to takes sides with Merciless. Cindy Wakowski a.k.a Red Riding Hood. Cindy and Gary knew each other before becoming villains. They even had a fling back in the day. Gary is now happily married though. There is also Diabloman, who was at one time the most notorious villains of all time, until an ailment made it difficult for him. He is now acting as a henchmen for bad villains (as in not very good at their job), that is until Gary offers to pay him to mentor him in villainy.
This was a great start to a series. There are plenty of laugh out loud moments. I'm excited to pick up the next book in the series (which I've already downloaded).
Narration
So the first full-length book that I listened to with Jeffrey Kafer is very similar to this one. They are both funny books about villains. I was a little worried when I first started they would sound the same. However I needn't be worried, he tackled these two stories completely differently. With Villain's Rule, Jackson Blackwell is a very dry character that Jeffrey Kafer voiced very dryly. Gary Karkofsky in not a dry character, so Jeffrey didn't voice him dry at all. He does a great job with women's voices. I just love how he took two books that were very similar in premise, but he tackled them in a very different manner.
February 5, 2019
One-sentence summary: it ain’t deep, but it sure is fun.
The book has all the spices a Superhero book needs, fun names (Tom Terror, Psychoslinger, Merciless etc), breakneck pace, twists, and secrets intricately woven into the story. CT Phipps has done a superb job of mixing pop-culture references, clever plot, and relatable villains.
Gary Karkofsky is an ordinary guy living in a world full of Supervillains and Superheroes. One day Gary gets a deceased hero‘s magical cloak in the mail. After a short consideration he pursues his dream and becomes the Merciless: The Supervillain Without Mercy.
I raced through the pages, enjoying most of the jokes and twists. It entertains and never drags. Characters, while cartoonish and over-the-top, remain relatable and likeable the way Suicide Squad’s members are.
If you’re in the mood for a fast-paced, loud and violent book with humour both proper and improper, give it a go. One warning - it ends with a cliffhanger (kinda) so don’t expect to see all loose ends tied up. But there’s good news - the series counts five books and you can read them all.
The book has all the spices a Superhero book needs, fun names (Tom Terror, Psychoslinger, Merciless etc), breakneck pace, twists, and secrets intricately woven into the story. CT Phipps has done a superb job of mixing pop-culture references, clever plot, and relatable villains.
Gary Karkofsky is an ordinary guy living in a world full of Supervillains and Superheroes. One day Gary gets a deceased hero‘s magical cloak in the mail. After a short consideration he pursues his dream and becomes the Merciless: The Supervillain Without Mercy.
I raced through the pages, enjoying most of the jokes and twists. It entertains and never drags. Characters, while cartoonish and over-the-top, remain relatable and likeable the way Suicide Squad’s members are.
If you’re in the mood for a fast-paced, loud and violent book with humour both proper and improper, give it a go. One warning - it ends with a cliffhanger (kinda) so don’t expect to see all loose ends tied up. But there’s good news - the series counts five books and you can read them all.
August 5, 2017
it's almost like i'm on a losing streak with books these days.
I'm not completely sure what i was expecting when i picked up this novel, no scratch that, i expected humour i guess and something kinda serious. This just felt like i was reading a novel with Looney Tunes characters. So not for me. Not a bad book really but for me it was soooo meh. Heck if this book was marketed as some sort of parody of the whole superheroes, supervillians thing i'd probably have enjoyed it more.
As it is i have really no strong feelings over this book except maybe to say i felt the shenninigans were pusing the button on ridiculous.
Basically my expression through out this book:
December 18, 2016
The Rules of Supervillainy by C.T.Phipps is an unusual superhero book. The supervillain is not super bad and married to someone who wants to be a superhero. Come to find out, the cape was suppose to go to her and not him. There are lots of crazy drama of trying to cause crime but stopping crime in the process. Having to decide to give his wife the cape or not. He has 'teachers' to teach him how to be a villain. It is all good silly fun. The dialogue is clever and plot fun. Characters unique and likable, even the 'bad' ones. A good read overall.
July 28, 2019
Rating 2.0 stars - DNF
I am having a little bit of bad luck recently with my audio books. I have had quite a few DNF books recently. This book was just too ..... simple for me. There wasn't really a story here. It was like watching a cartoon. A lot of silliness, a lot of zoinks, and a ton of sarcastic humor. It felt like Scooby doo of supervillainy. Some people like stories like this and I'll admit that so do I at times but about 1/2 way through I just felt like I was wasting my time. No matter what happened in the end, I knew I just wouldn't care so I stopped. It wasn't terrible, just wasn't worth my time.
I am having a little bit of bad luck recently with my audio books. I have had quite a few DNF books recently. This book was just too ..... simple for me. There wasn't really a story here. It was like watching a cartoon. A lot of silliness, a lot of zoinks, and a ton of sarcastic humor. It felt like Scooby doo of supervillainy. Some people like stories like this and I'll admit that so do I at times but about 1/2 way through I just felt like I was wasting my time. No matter what happened in the end, I knew I just wouldn't care so I stopped. It wasn't terrible, just wasn't worth my time.
February 22, 2016
I loved this, it was an extremely entertaining and fun listen, I can’t wait for more to come out in audio. So I’m not sure where to start. Merciless is a supervillain but is not truly evil, really just your every day average guy who happened to get the Reapers Cloak…..he is a bit clueless at times (Ultra Girl) but it helps make him a more likable character. Along the way he gets a mentor and a “Hench Wench” or more politically correct “Hench Person” and ends up doing quite a bit of good while trying to be evil. I am not really comic book reader but this makes me want to go give them a try. The book had me hooked from the intro, and had me laughing throughout. And, did you know there really is an Evil Overlord List with the top 100 Rules for Supervillainy….my husband pointed that out to me while we were listening (he loved this one too), but before I get to the list I just need to say that as usual Jeffrey Kafer did an awesome job on the narration…..the dry sarcastic tone he gave Gary was perfect. I really hope he continues to narrate the series.
So, here are the rules to supervillany from the Evil Overlord list……I only included the first 20 in the review but please click on the link to read the rest….
This Evil Overlord List is Copyright 1996-1997 by Peter Anspach.
The Top 100 Things I’d Do If I Ever Became An Evil Overlord
1. My Legions of Terror will have helmets with clear plexiglass visors, not face-concealing ones.
2. My ventilation ducts will be too small to crawl through.
3. My noble half-brother whose throne I usurped will be killed, not kept anonymously imprisoned in a forgotten cell of my dungeon.
4. Shooting is not too good for my enemies.
5. The artifact which is the source of my power will not be kept on the Mountain of Despair beyond the River of Fire guarded by the Dragons of Eternity. It will be in my safe-deposit box. The same applies to the object which is my one weakness.
6. I will not gloat over my enemies’ predicament before killing them.
7. When I’ve captured my adversary and he says, “Look, before you kill me, will you at least tell me what this is all about?” I’ll say, “No.” and shoot him. No, on second thought I’ll shoot him then say “No.”
8. After I kidnap the beautiful princess, we will be married immediately in a quiet civil ceremony, not a lavish spectacle in three weeks’ time during which the final phase of my plan will be carried out.
9. I will not include a self-destruct mechanism unless absolutely necessary. If it is necessary, it will not be a large red button labeled “Danger: Do Not Push”. The big red button marked “Do Not Push” will instead trigger a spray of bullets on anyone stupid enough to disregard it. Similarly, the ON/OFF switch will not clearly be labeled as such.
10. I will not interrogate my enemies in the inner sanctum — a small hotel well outside my borders will work just as well.
11. I will be secure in my superiority. Therefore, I will feel no need to prove it by leaving clues in the form of riddles or leaving my weaker enemies alive to show they pose no threat.
12. One of my advisors will be an average five-year-old child. Any flaws in my plan that he is able to spot will be corrected before implementation.
13. All slain enemies will be cremated, or at least have several rounds of ammunition emptied into them, not left for dead at the bottom of the cliff. The announcement of their deaths, as well as any accompanying celebration, will be deferred until after the aforementioned disposal.
14. The hero is not entitled to a last kiss, a last cigarette, or any other form of last request.
15. I will never employ any device with a digital countdown. If I find that such a device is absolutely unavoidable, I will set it to activate when the counter reaches 117 and the hero is just putting his plan into operation.
16. I will never utter the sentence “But before I kill you, there’s just one thing I want to know.”
17. When I employ people as advisors, I will occasionally listen to their advice.
18. I will not have a son. Although his laughably under-planned attempt to usurp power would easily fail, it would provide a fatal distraction at a crucial point in time.
19. I will not have a daughter. She would be as beautiful as she was evil, but one look at the hero’s rugged countenance and she’d betray her own father.
20. Despite its proven stress-relieving effect, I will not indulge in maniacal laughter. When so occupied, it’s too easy to miss unexpected developments that a more attentive individual could adjust to accordingly
Please click here to read the rest of the list http://www.eviloverlord.com/lists/ove...
So, here are the rules to supervillany from the Evil Overlord list……I only included the first 20 in the review but please click on the link to read the rest….
This Evil Overlord List is Copyright 1996-1997 by Peter Anspach.
The Top 100 Things I’d Do If I Ever Became An Evil Overlord
1. My Legions of Terror will have helmets with clear plexiglass visors, not face-concealing ones.
2. My ventilation ducts will be too small to crawl through.
3. My noble half-brother whose throne I usurped will be killed, not kept anonymously imprisoned in a forgotten cell of my dungeon.
4. Shooting is not too good for my enemies.
5. The artifact which is the source of my power will not be kept on the Mountain of Despair beyond the River of Fire guarded by the Dragons of Eternity. It will be in my safe-deposit box. The same applies to the object which is my one weakness.
6. I will not gloat over my enemies’ predicament before killing them.
7. When I’ve captured my adversary and he says, “Look, before you kill me, will you at least tell me what this is all about?” I’ll say, “No.” and shoot him. No, on second thought I’ll shoot him then say “No.”
8. After I kidnap the beautiful princess, we will be married immediately in a quiet civil ceremony, not a lavish spectacle in three weeks’ time during which the final phase of my plan will be carried out.
9. I will not include a self-destruct mechanism unless absolutely necessary. If it is necessary, it will not be a large red button labeled “Danger: Do Not Push”. The big red button marked “Do Not Push” will instead trigger a spray of bullets on anyone stupid enough to disregard it. Similarly, the ON/OFF switch will not clearly be labeled as such.
10. I will not interrogate my enemies in the inner sanctum — a small hotel well outside my borders will work just as well.
11. I will be secure in my superiority. Therefore, I will feel no need to prove it by leaving clues in the form of riddles or leaving my weaker enemies alive to show they pose no threat.
12. One of my advisors will be an average five-year-old child. Any flaws in my plan that he is able to spot will be corrected before implementation.
13. All slain enemies will be cremated, or at least have several rounds of ammunition emptied into them, not left for dead at the bottom of the cliff. The announcement of their deaths, as well as any accompanying celebration, will be deferred until after the aforementioned disposal.
14. The hero is not entitled to a last kiss, a last cigarette, or any other form of last request.
15. I will never employ any device with a digital countdown. If I find that such a device is absolutely unavoidable, I will set it to activate when the counter reaches 117 and the hero is just putting his plan into operation.
16. I will never utter the sentence “But before I kill you, there’s just one thing I want to know.”
17. When I employ people as advisors, I will occasionally listen to their advice.
18. I will not have a son. Although his laughably under-planned attempt to usurp power would easily fail, it would provide a fatal distraction at a crucial point in time.
19. I will not have a daughter. She would be as beautiful as she was evil, but one look at the hero’s rugged countenance and she’d betray her own father.
20. Despite its proven stress-relieving effect, I will not indulge in maniacal laughter. When so occupied, it’s too easy to miss unexpected developments that a more attentive individual could adjust to accordingly
Please click here to read the rest of the list http://www.eviloverlord.com/lists/ove...
April 1, 2018
I'll admit, I was a little unsure about this book going in. Over the years, I've tried reading novels about some of my favorite comic book characters but could never really get into them. I was of the opinion supers didn't really translate well to a purely written word form. That went out the window pretty much right away with this book.
The Rules of Supervillainy is as much comedy as anything else. The protagonist, who calls himself Merciless, cracks wise about as much as the likes of Deadpool or Spider-Man. The world is colorful and, while I wouldn't say it goes as far, comparisons to The Tick did come to mind more than once. The comedy is funny, sometimes dark, and leans into comic book tropes in a self aware sort of way.
One odd thing about the book, and I can't even really call this a complaint, is that the book seemed to end more than once. There were at least two points where it could have wrapped up before it did and I would have felt satisfied. That said, the way it continued from those points didn't feel forced or like filler, they were legitimate and entertaining continuations of the story.
In the end, this book tells a complete and satisfying story on its own and could easily be read that way but it also feels like an origin story or a first episode. To me, that's perfect for the first book in a series (which this is, I believe there are three more already and another on the way.)
I'd also highly recommend the audiobook as the narrator really brought the whole thing to life perfectly.
In conclusion, I went into this book not expecting to like it and then had to stop myself from buying book two right away (the only reason I didn't is my Audible backlog is in need of attention.) Your mileage may vary due to the genre, but I'm giving this one a five out of five.
The Rules of Supervillainy is as much comedy as anything else. The protagonist, who calls himself Merciless, cracks wise about as much as the likes of Deadpool or Spider-Man. The world is colorful and, while I wouldn't say it goes as far, comparisons to The Tick did come to mind more than once. The comedy is funny, sometimes dark, and leans into comic book tropes in a self aware sort of way.
One odd thing about the book, and I can't even really call this a complaint, is that the book seemed to end more than once. There were at least two points where it could have wrapped up before it did and I would have felt satisfied. That said, the way it continued from those points didn't feel forced or like filler, they were legitimate and entertaining continuations of the story.
In the end, this book tells a complete and satisfying story on its own and could easily be read that way but it also feels like an origin story or a first episode. To me, that's perfect for the first book in a series (which this is, I believe there are three more already and another on the way.)
I'd also highly recommend the audiobook as the narrator really brought the whole thing to life perfectly.
In conclusion, I went into this book not expecting to like it and then had to stop myself from buying book two right away (the only reason I didn't is my Audible backlog is in need of attention.) Your mileage may vary due to the genre, but I'm giving this one a five out of five.
December 10, 2015
OK, I finished this a while ago but have only gotten around to writing my thoughts now, and that's simply because on finishing this the only thought in my head was phenomenal. I couldn't think of anything else to say about this!! Trying to write the review after finishing would of been like this: Plot - phenomenal, characters - phenomenal, overall - phenomenal! Doesn't make for a detailed review, but it's all I could think of! Let's hope after a few weeks of simmering that I can come up with something better ;)
Gary is a normal guy who, on receiving a magical cloak through the mail, turns into a supervillian (well, so he thinks anyway). i think the blurb pretty much explains it all so I'll try to make sense of my thoughts!
I'm hesitant to read Superhero/Supervillians books because a lot of them have fallen flat, that is until I read a certain other book called Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson and it blew me away! So upon starting this, I lowered my expectations from that book and plugged in my earphones. Well, I think this more than lived up to what I hoped and indeed, surpassed my hopes. It's right up there with Steelheart!!
This was such a fun and often times, hilarious listen. So many times I was laughing and snickering at the witty dialog and banter between Gary and the cloak, Gary and the supervillians and Gary and every other character! Its extremely well written and I loved pretty much everything about it.
All the characters were awesome but Gary was the best. He wants to be rich so decides that he will become Merciless: The Supervillain Without Mercy but ends up doing good things while thinking he is bad. His bond with the cloak was such fun because the cloak belonged to a brilliant superhero but now Gary owns it. It felt like, the cloak was rolling it's eyes at Gary and his antics! It was hilarious listening to the two of them!!
The world the author created was amazing too. There isn't any backstory, per say, but we don't need it. The author makes it such a way that you believe the world and are ready to dive right in. Magic is real, superheroes/villians are real and the normal folk just have to live with it. It's an amazing world and on I want to jump into again!!
Anyway, I loved everything about this, from it's fun and witty dialogue, to it's enjoyable cast of characters, and from it's well written and developed world to it's engaging plot, this is a must read! I am so impressed with this and am really really hoping book 2 comes out soon. It's definitely one that needs more exposure and one I hope gets it too!! Such a brilliant book and one I can't recommend enough.
Once again, Jeffrey Kafer nails it. He has such an easy voice to listen to and gives just the slightest change of tone to characters, that you find yourself glued to your earbuds. I always enjoy his narration and he is one narrator I will always recommend.
*I received this in exchange for an honest review from Audio Book Blast.*
Gary is a normal guy who, on receiving a magical cloak through the mail, turns into a supervillian (well, so he thinks anyway). i think the blurb pretty much explains it all so I'll try to make sense of my thoughts!
I'm hesitant to read Superhero/Supervillians books because a lot of them have fallen flat, that is until I read a certain other book called Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson and it blew me away! So upon starting this, I lowered my expectations from that book and plugged in my earphones. Well, I think this more than lived up to what I hoped and indeed, surpassed my hopes. It's right up there with Steelheart!!
This was such a fun and often times, hilarious listen. So many times I was laughing and snickering at the witty dialog and banter between Gary and the cloak, Gary and the supervillians and Gary and every other character! Its extremely well written and I loved pretty much everything about it.
All the characters were awesome but Gary was the best. He wants to be rich so decides that he will become Merciless: The Supervillain Without Mercy but ends up doing good things while thinking he is bad. His bond with the cloak was such fun because the cloak belonged to a brilliant superhero but now Gary owns it. It felt like, the cloak was rolling it's eyes at Gary and his antics! It was hilarious listening to the two of them!!
The world the author created was amazing too. There isn't any backstory, per say, but we don't need it. The author makes it such a way that you believe the world and are ready to dive right in. Magic is real, superheroes/villians are real and the normal folk just have to live with it. It's an amazing world and on I want to jump into again!!
Anyway, I loved everything about this, from it's fun and witty dialogue, to it's enjoyable cast of characters, and from it's well written and developed world to it's engaging plot, this is a must read! I am so impressed with this and am really really hoping book 2 comes out soon. It's definitely one that needs more exposure and one I hope gets it too!! Such a brilliant book and one I can't recommend enough.
Once again, Jeffrey Kafer nails it. He has such an easy voice to listen to and gives just the slightest change of tone to characters, that you find yourself glued to your earbuds. I always enjoy his narration and he is one narrator I will always recommend.
*I received this in exchange for an honest review from Audio Book Blast.*
August 15, 2021
I can't remember when I had so much fun with a book for the last time! The Rules of Supervillainy is hilarious!
Imagine someone would drop a cape at your door that gives you superpowers. What would you do? Save the world? Protect the weak? Hunt bad guys?
None of this is an option for Gary. When he gets his hands on said cape, there's only one goal for him: becoming a supervillain.
Gary is a hilarious character. He's a nerd and clearly not the smartest cookie in the jar, but for some reason manages to attract a bunch of hot women, one of them even a superhero.
He has no idea how to achieve his goal to become a supervillain and stumbles from one catastrophe to the next - yet somehow always manages to get out of them alive.
Following Gary on his journey of becoming the world's most famous supervillain is super fun. We meet plenty of quirky, crazy and well-crafted characters, such as: Cloak, a talking cloak; Mandy, Gary's wife who's not really amused about her spouse's plans but nevertheless supports him, loving wife as she is; Cindy, a slightly less insane version of Harley Quinn; Diabloman, Gary's loyal henchman and finally Ultra-Goddess, the world's most famous superheroine - and Gary's ex.
This book is very well written and entertaining, not only for comic and Marvel fans. Personally, I'm not really a fan of superheroes and still had a blast with this book.
I listened to the audio version and can highly recommend it to everyone. Jeffrey Kefer is a fantastic narrator and an absolute delight to listen to.
This is the perfect read for fans of superhero books and well-crafted comedy.
If you love The Boys, you'll also love this.
Imagine someone would drop a cape at your door that gives you superpowers. What would you do? Save the world? Protect the weak? Hunt bad guys?
None of this is an option for Gary. When he gets his hands on said cape, there's only one goal for him: becoming a supervillain.
Gary is a hilarious character. He's a nerd and clearly not the smartest cookie in the jar, but for some reason manages to attract a bunch of hot women, one of them even a superhero.
He has no idea how to achieve his goal to become a supervillain and stumbles from one catastrophe to the next - yet somehow always manages to get out of them alive.
Following Gary on his journey of becoming the world's most famous supervillain is super fun. We meet plenty of quirky, crazy and well-crafted characters, such as: Cloak, a talking cloak; Mandy, Gary's wife who's not really amused about her spouse's plans but nevertheless supports him, loving wife as she is; Cindy, a slightly less insane version of Harley Quinn; Diabloman, Gary's loyal henchman and finally Ultra-Goddess, the world's most famous superheroine - and Gary's ex.
This book is very well written and entertaining, not only for comic and Marvel fans. Personally, I'm not really a fan of superheroes and still had a blast with this book.
I listened to the audio version and can highly recommend it to everyone. Jeffrey Kefer is a fantastic narrator and an absolute delight to listen to.
This is the perfect read for fans of superhero books and well-crafted comedy.
If you love The Boys, you'll also love this.
July 15, 2015
A solid 4*. Let me preface by saying this book took me longer to get through than it should have. It is genuinely funny, and comedy is incredibly hard to write. Mainly, I'm just not a superhero buff. Aside from the occasional superhero movie, I'm just not into them. But the author does a great job turning the genre upside down and making light of many of the tropes associated with superheroes and supervillainy. It was kind of like a novel version of Spaceballs only with superheroes.
I found myself chuckling at passages like this: "It's going to take a while to adjust my mental image of you to include badass commando, Ultragoddess, and my geeky ex-girlfriend. You're like Sarah Connor meets Willow Rosenberg meets a black Michelle Rodriguez who can fly." Hah!
All-in-all a very good offering. If you are into quirky comedy, tit-for-tat exchanges between characters, and superheroes (and villains) you'll love this book.
I found myself chuckling at passages like this: "It's going to take a while to adjust my mental image of you to include badass commando, Ultragoddess, and my geeky ex-girlfriend. You're like Sarah Connor meets Willow Rosenberg meets a black Michelle Rodriguez who can fly." Hah!
All-in-all a very good offering. If you are into quirky comedy, tit-for-tat exchanges between characters, and superheroes (and villains) you'll love this book.
July 16, 2017
Gary Karkofsky is a happily married man living an ordinary life in world populated by heroes and villains with superpowers....at least he's ordinary till a mystical cloak gets delivered to his doorstep. Gary then does the last thing expected of him and embarks on his life-long dream of supervillainy.
This is a fun book that had me laughing out load a few times along the way. Its probably most enjoyable anti-hero book I've read since Confessions of a D-List Supervillain. Gary is a mixed up, complicated man who wants to rule the world, but deep down still has a heart of gold. Its one of those e-books you sometimes read and you get to the end and then get a print version to put on your bookshelf to flip through and re-read sections. I'm looking forward to the next book in this series.
This is a fun book that had me laughing out load a few times along the way. Its probably most enjoyable anti-hero book I've read since Confessions of a D-List Supervillain. Gary is a mixed up, complicated man who wants to rule the world, but deep down still has a heart of gold. Its one of those e-books you sometimes read and you get to the end and then get a print version to put on your bookshelf to flip through and re-read sections. I'm looking forward to the next book in this series.
January 4, 2018
This was far and away one of the most hilarious books I've ever read. Anyone that has read Kings of The Wyld and is looking for intelligently written sarcastic humour in a fantasy type setting must read this fantastic series debut by Charles Phipps.
While much of the story can be more greatly appreciated by having at least minimal knowledge of comics and superheroes , Phipps keeps it easy and fun for any reader by focusing more on the outrageous situations lead protagonist Gary Karkovsky gets in to, and the real life issues that are altered by his situation.
If you like smart, sarcastic dialogue, laugh out loud one liners, and have ever appreciated Kevin Smith's movies you will be ready to devour all four already released volumes of this brilliant series, which Phipps has mentioned will be ongoing.
If you are simply looking for something different, give it a try. I guarantee you'll be hooked.
While much of the story can be more greatly appreciated by having at least minimal knowledge of comics and superheroes , Phipps keeps it easy and fun for any reader by focusing more on the outrageous situations lead protagonist Gary Karkovsky gets in to, and the real life issues that are altered by his situation.
If you like smart, sarcastic dialogue, laugh out loud one liners, and have ever appreciated Kevin Smith's movies you will be ready to devour all four already released volumes of this brilliant series, which Phipps has mentioned will be ongoing.
If you are simply looking for something different, give it a try. I guarantee you'll be hooked.
May 1, 2017
I received a copy of this audiobook free of charge in exchange for my honest feedback.
The book compares favorably to books like Soon I Will Be Invincible and the D-List Supervillain series, but is arguably the weaker of that group. It was entertaining if you are now or ever were a fan of super hero comics and/or movies.
The main character, Merciless, isn't too likable, but he is evil after all. However, he is the most likable character in the book which is why I didn't rate the book higher. While enjoyable in bursts (I actually chuckled out loud a few times), I just didn't care about what happened to Merciless or any of the other characters.
Narrator Jeffrey Kafer is very well suited for the role. I enjoyed him equally on the D-List Supervillain books. He brings the right level of snark and believability to his reading.
The book compares favorably to books like Soon I Will Be Invincible and the D-List Supervillain series, but is arguably the weaker of that group. It was entertaining if you are now or ever were a fan of super hero comics and/or movies.
The main character, Merciless, isn't too likable, but he is evil after all. However, he is the most likable character in the book which is why I didn't rate the book higher. While enjoyable in bursts (I actually chuckled out loud a few times), I just didn't care about what happened to Merciless or any of the other characters.
Narrator Jeffrey Kafer is very well suited for the role. I enjoyed him equally on the D-List Supervillain books. He brings the right level of snark and believability to his reading.
June 11, 2016
I love movies about heroes and villains. So why not read a book about them? This was my first and it was very interesting.
OK, I start by admitting that I was very distracted while listening to the audio of this book. The narrator was great. I took to his voice right away. Even with my distractions, this book was a fun, funny romp through a world fun of Super Hero and Villains.
I’m still not sure Gary Karkofsky, understands were he fits in. He wants to be a Villains but he does quite a bit of good while trying to be evil…. OK, he also killing people (bad guys), robbing banks and extorting people for money. “I’ll save your daughter (or was it his wife) if you gave me $3 million dollars (or was it $1.5 million)”. Like I said I was distracted.
Good world, nice characters! Gonna give it a re-listen one day to see what I missed.
OK, I start by admitting that I was very distracted while listening to the audio of this book. The narrator was great. I took to his voice right away. Even with my distractions, this book was a fun, funny romp through a world fun of Super Hero and Villains.
I’m still not sure Gary Karkofsky, understands were he fits in. He wants to be a Villains but he does quite a bit of good while trying to be evil…. OK, he also killing people (bad guys), robbing banks and extorting people for money. “I’ll save your daughter (or was it his wife) if you gave me $3 million dollars (or was it $1.5 million)”. Like I said I was distracted.
Good world, nice characters! Gonna give it a re-listen one day to see what I missed.
February 21, 2018
Everyone wants to be a superhero but it's the villains who have all the fun. Who wants to have the backbreaking job of watching Metropolis 24/7 versus living the high life as Lex Luthor? Gary Karkofsky was inspired by my vision of what would have happened if someone with the wit of Spiderman, the powers of Harry Dresden, and the sheer selfishness of your typical fanboy got thrown into your typical superhero universe. I admit, a part of why I made this world is I wanted to play with the toys of DC and Marvel (or at least legally distinct analogs) but who doesn't. Either way, I'm very glad I got to create a character who a lot of fans have stated to be their idea of the worst (or best?) supervillain of his world.
October 21, 2016
I have had this book sitting on my Kindle for quite some time now. Why did it take me so long to read it? It was so much fun and absolutely hilarious! I burst out laughing quite a few times. Anyone who's a fan of comics and the Superhero genre will love this book. My favourite thing about the book is how real life drama is woven into Gary's quest to become a Supervillian, therein lies the humour, even with powers you still have to deal with human issues. I can't wait to read the next book in the series, I'm hooked and need to geek out some more!
December 15, 2017
I will be giving a full review up on the podcast The Nerd Book Review.
These books aren’t going to win a Pulitzer for literature but they are all kinds of entertaining and a quick fun read.
These books aren’t going to win a Pulitzer for literature but they are all kinds of entertaining and a quick fun read.
June 18, 2021
This book has been on my TBR list for quite a while. Which, in retrospect - is a crying shame. The debut of Gary Karkofsky (aka Merciless) is funny, quirky, and a great escape into an urban fantasy world that has comic vibes.
From the start the protagonist is relatable, a genuinely nice guy who is absolutely hellbent on becoming a supervillain, and thanks to a stroke of luck, he has inherited a magical cloak that provides him that opportunity.
He forms his team of villains (who bring their own funny flavor to the story) and launches his career in crime by driving his crew around in his minivan. The plot unfolds with good pacing, and Gary quickly finds himself in over his head.
The story has a few twists that feel right and make for a promising plot for the next in series books. Be prepared for a lovable protagonist, a lot of one-liners, and plenty of pop-culture references to keep you chuckling.
Well done, CT.
From the start the protagonist is relatable, a genuinely nice guy who is absolutely hellbent on becoming a supervillain, and thanks to a stroke of luck, he has inherited a magical cloak that provides him that opportunity.
He forms his team of villains (who bring their own funny flavor to the story) and launches his career in crime by driving his crew around in his minivan. The plot unfolds with good pacing, and Gary quickly finds himself in over his head.
The story has a few twists that feel right and make for a promising plot for the next in series books. Be prepared for a lovable protagonist, a lot of one-liners, and plenty of pop-culture references to keep you chuckling.
Well done, CT.
August 25, 2017
A story of superheroes and super villians? You expect a tale of a titanic struggles for huge stakes against crazed opponents wielding enormously powerful weapons. Check - that's all there.
What you get in addition is a surprisingly human tale with a side order of debate about the role of superheroes in society and the morality of vigilante justice in a corrupt world.
What you get in addition is a surprisingly human tale with a side order of debate about the role of superheroes in society and the morality of vigilante justice in a corrupt world.
January 4, 2021
A good start to a quirky series - I am likely to continue to see where it leads.
January 8, 2021
Phipps has a style and voice as distinct, as unique as any of today's great authors, and it is front and center in this, his most popular (to date) novel. As in any Phipps work, the plot is almost secondary to the characters and their wacky, flippant interchanges, which are both funny and chock-full of pop culture references.
Still, there IS a plot. And it's as nerdtastic as you could possibly hope. Without giving away too much, Gary lives in a world where superheroes and supervillains exist and are practically commonplace. He suddenly comes into possession of a sentient cloak that grants him superpowers, allowing him to fulfill a lifelong dream of becoming a supervillain.
Easier said than done, as Gary is about to find out...over and over, to comic effect.
If you read a lot of grimdark and horror, as I do, this book will prove an wonderfully refreshing change of pace. And, even if you don't, you should check it out.
Still, there IS a plot. And it's as nerdtastic as you could possibly hope. Without giving away too much, Gary lives in a world where superheroes and supervillains exist and are practically commonplace. He suddenly comes into possession of a sentient cloak that grants him superpowers, allowing him to fulfill a lifelong dream of becoming a supervillain.
Easier said than done, as Gary is about to find out...over and over, to comic effect.
If you read a lot of grimdark and horror, as I do, this book will prove an wonderfully refreshing change of pace. And, even if you don't, you should check it out.
November 18, 2019
This was the perfect time for me to discover this novel. Just coming off the long run of Avengers and saying good-bye to Iron Man and Captain America I needed something else. Then there is the fact that Deadpool is one of my absolute favorite movies! I needed The Rules of Suppervillainy.
Kafer delivers the sarcastic, witty banter in such a sardonic manner that it just adds so much to the characters and the story, which is so funny and ridiculous at times yet needs to be a movie because it would do fantastic. Where is this multiverse?
I loved Gary and his magical cloak. Their interaction and conversations were hilarious. Then when he hires on Cindy and Diabloman as henchmen or hench-persons. It is ridiculous on funny, and I enjoyed every moment.
I am rating The Rules of Supervillainy: The Supervillainy Saga Volume 1 five Boundless Stars, now on to book 2.
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Kafer delivers the sarcastic, witty banter in such a sardonic manner that it just adds so much to the characters and the story, which is so funny and ridiculous at times yet needs to be a movie because it would do fantastic. Where is this multiverse?
I loved Gary and his magical cloak. Their interaction and conversations were hilarious. Then when he hires on Cindy and Diabloman as henchmen or hench-persons. It is ridiculous on funny, and I enjoyed every moment.
I am rating The Rules of Supervillainy: The Supervillainy Saga Volume 1 five Boundless Stars, now on to book 2.
http://www.boundlessbookreviews.com
https://www.facebook.com/BBReviews
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