악역의 엔딩은 죽음뿐 1 [Ag-yeog-eui Ending-eun Jug-eumbbun 1]

Villains Are Destined to Die (Novel) #1

by Gwon Gyeoeul

〈SYSTEM〉 선택지를 [ON] 하시겠습니까?
[예. / 아니오.]

역하렘 공략 게임의 악역,
에카르트 공작가의 하나뿐인 공녀이자 입양아 페넬로페로 빙의했다.

그런데 하필 난이도는 극악!
뭘 해도 엔딩은 죽음뿐이다.

‘진짜 공녀’가 나타나기 전에 어떻게든
여주의 어장 중 한 명을 공략해서 이어져야 한다!

사사건건 시비를 거는 오빠 1, 2,
모든 루트가 죽음으로 이어지는 미친 황태자,
여주바라기 마법사와 충직한 노예 기사까지!

‘일단 가망성 없는 놈들은 바로 버리자.’

“그동안 제 주제를 잘 몰랐어요.
앞으로는 쭉, 신경 쓰실 일 없이,
쥐죽은 듯 살겠습니다.”

근데 왜 자꾸 선을 그을수록 호감도가 오르는 거야?!

Genres: Fantasy, Light Novel, Romance, Young Adult, Historical, Manhwa, Novels

468 pages, Paperback

Published September 18, 2020

About the author

권겨을

Reviews

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Volume 1: (Chapters 1 -57)

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am 100% into this series. I love the manhwa and I love this light novel. I am HOOKED and am seated, quivering in my chair for the next installment.

I have ordered this from my store and have it sitting prominently on my "keepers" bookcase, next to the manhwa volumes that are out thus far.

If you love the isekai villainess sub-genre, this is one of the truly great ones that are out there. I have scraped the bottom of a LOT of barrels to scratch that particular sub-genre itch and this one is CHEF'S KISS.

Penelope is smart and determined, though she doesn't do things perfectly all of the time, she is focused on her goal and won't stop until she reaches it. Of course, if she stops, she's kind of dead, so you can say she is like a shark in that respect. As such, she doesn't let herself relax and actually FEEL anything for anyone other than herself, and I think while that makes sense in what she is going through, that is her Achille's Heel.

I love how she isn't perfect, she's very human, but she is MAGNIFICENT despite, or maybe even because of it. She isn't OP, her struggles are real, and you want her to vault over each and everything that blocks her path. When she does, it is so cathartic!

I know my ship won't sail for this one, but that's ok. The final ship is one I can also get behind. I highly recommend this series, both the manhwa and the light novel. It's all amazing and one I re-read when I need to break a book slump.

5, I can't give any less to Mai Queen Penelope, stars!

My thanks to NetGalley and Yen Press/Ize Press for an eARC of this book to read and review.

[Laura A. Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

FIRST IMPRESSION VIDEO HERE: https://youtu.be/Vr6n0HQNxoE

Wow! What a read!

I am not even sure what to fully say, except that the manhwa is a VERY good adaptation of the novel, as there were SO many times when I could see the panels unfolding in my head, which I thought was awesome!

In fact, they were so similar that I struggled a little bit in the beginning because the information was being "repeated" twice and was ready to get to the "good part," so to speak! That was a first for me, and don't get me wrong in saying that! The novel WAS good! But I was surprised how closely they matched, as I think I was fully prepared for scenes and information to be missing, but there wasn't.

That aside, I found the story to have a darker? More serious tone? I felt Penelope's frustration a lot harder in the novel than I did reading the manhwa. It's the same story, I realize, but something about this hit differently, and I can't quite pinpoint what it is.

I know for certain that Eckles and Winter seem MUCH more intense than they did in the manhwa! I remember Eckles being the first one I really shipped with Penelope, and while that feeling has since changed, there is much more darkness surrounding him that I don't think I fully realized until now. I would especially say that was true for Winter, because unlike the manhwa, his affection meter dropped VERY low at one point, and was absolutely shocked! He might be a gentleman, but the novel showed he can be just as dangerous and scary as everyone else!

Funny enough, I did not hate Derrick's character nearly as much in the novel. He is just as cold as ever and definitely blames Penelope for every little thing, but I wonder if not seeing an illustration of his face helped him in this case? Don't worry, though! I came to fully hate him all over again at the scene on the hill because when Penelope compared herself to a microbe, saying she at least didn't want him to see her as a parasite, it reminded me of how he treats her so horribly, to the point she doesn't even feel he sees her as a human!

I feel my review is more of a comparison to the manhwa, which isn't my intention because I really enjoyed reading the "original source"! There were small moments I enjoyed reading about that weren't in the manhwa, that made this feel like a personal treat (especially the scene when Penelope makes a joke with the maids)! I feel the passage of time was slower and really helped me to slow down and take everything in, good and bad.

Overall, I think the manhwa will still be my favorite way to read this story, but I definitely will continue reading the novels! I hope the second volume doesn't take too long to release because after I finished reading this, I went to read the next part in the manhwa! LOL!

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Does this prove that the manhwa is a very faithful adaptation? Yes, yes it does. Is it still an excellent read that fully understands the otome game genre and adds some more context for Penelope's life in South Korea? Also yes. It's worth it.

[Mad Soul Child · Rating 5 out of 5]

Побольше бы подобных новелл, минимум ненужных описаний, резину не тянут, легко и интересно.
Конкретно в этой новелле где то первые 3-4 тома манхвы, так что удобно, учитывая что 3 я уже прочитала

[Jamey [Longhollow.Lore] · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 ⭐️’s

What a fun, immersive read! We’re pulled into the world of a video game right alongside our FMC, and the way the two stories mirror each other is such a clever storytelling choice. We follow her as she navigates not just Penelope’s life, but also her own growth and reflection.

Our FMC has played this game countless times before, but now, trapped in Penelope’s body, every decision matters. What do you remember from past playthroughs? How can you survive when every wrong move could be fatal? Though the game seems innocent at first, darker themes and cunning strategies quickly come into play.

Will she win the affection of one of the love interests? How will the story change now that she’s in it, instead of it being “just a game”? Reading this feels like following a high-stakes chess match, where every move counts and we’re figuring it out right along with her.

Fun, suspenseful, and surprisingly thoughtful, this is a fantastic start to a series that balances romance, strategy, and character growth.

A special thank you to Yen Press and NetGalley for the advanced digital copy; All thoughts and opinions are my own.

[Cali · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read all 231 chapters in like 3 days and this webnovel was amazing! I loved Penelope! She really did not go there to play, she went there to win and she did not stand for anybody's shit! It's really refreshing to have such a practical heroine who doesn't get swayed by the potential love interests! The world building was fleshed out, the characters were distinctive and the plot was pretty good as well. The only thing is that the translations for this webnovel are pretty awful because I think they're mostly machine translated so basically from google translate.

Summary: A girl gets addicted to a game where she has to get 100% favorability from one of the five main guys in order to win. She unlocks a hidden ending and gets transported to the body of the female villain of the story. Her real life backstory isn't that different from the villain's and she works to try to get the favorability of the guys before the main girl arrives. In the game, she's the spoiled and temperamental step-daughter of a duke and the main girl is the bio daughter who disappeared 6 years ago. The main male leads are her two asshole step-brothers, the crown prince, a marquess mage and a slave who becomes her bodyguard.

[mikaela (spinebreaker) · Rating 4 out of 5]

spectacular gimme 14 of 'em

4.5
look this is really only going to hit if you're into the manhwa as well- we meet every single character in this first volume and if you don't have visuals for them already? you're probably cooked. however, i DO have visuals for them and I already love them (I have also already read this via fan translation which was an Experience that i may have to repeat). My only complaint is that, because there are so many "male leads" for her to interact with, we basically just get introductions to all of them, except for Eclise (not Eckles-I will die on this hill) who will easily make his way into the hearts of all the obsessed-man-loving fangirls (me)

The translation is pretty good, and I don't have a ton of experience with translated novels, but there were some issues with flow and the word choices made the reading experience a bit clunky. Still, I'll take all the content for this series that I can get. More, please.

[Nadia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Что напрягало, это с каким предубеждением героиня относится к братьям, несмотря на то, что их симпатия к ней растет. Героиня за деревьями не видит леса, но это даже мило. Думаю, если бы мы попали в такую ситуацию, еще неизвестно, как бы сами на это реагировали. Но захватывает.
Я пока не поняла, кто из мужских персонажей мне нравится и с кем бы хотелось бы зашиперить героиню. Дерек пока кажется самым перспективным, но и макриз вроде бы ничего такой. Но она обоих вычеркнула из списка.

[Jos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley for giving me an advanced digital copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.

I've heard a lot of things about the webtoon adaptation of this novel but I never got around to reading it, so when I was approved to read the English translation of the first volume of the original novel, I was really excited.

I have to be honest, I've read many isekai/reencarnation novels before. I like them, they're my cup of tea, it's the trope that will always work for me along with the regression trope. But this one hit different.

First of all, our protagonist (the actual Korean college student who got isekai'd and the real Penelope) is a commoner, someone who understands trouble, misery, hunger and abuse in a way few people do and no one should have to suffer. She's not fighting an already existing FMC who will take everything away from her, but everyone is set against her. And I get her. Intentionally or not, the aithor did a great job making a critique of royalty, nobelty and colonialism through both Penelope and Eckles' characters. But I am getting ahead of myself, let me start from the beginning.

Our protagonist is a Korean archeology student who starts playing a famous otome game per insistence of her friends. As a Love and Deepspace player myself, I found this very relatable. However, this game got popular because of its two playing modes with different main characters: Normal Mode, following Ivonne Eckart and Hard Mode, following Penelope Eckart.

Ivonne Eckart is the true daughter of the Eckart family who is long lost, Penelope Eckart is their adoptive daughter, and the latter has an awful reputation and and even worse relationship with her adoptive family.

After our protagonist clears every love interest's route on the Normal Mode, she finds out it is impossible to clear even one route on the Hard Mode, and the game is very graphic on the grousome fate Penelope faces everytime she loses.

So, after pulling an all-nighter trying to clear even one route on the Hard Mode, she faints and wakes up in the world of the game as Penelope Eckart.

Now, here's the kicker, Penelope's story starts like half a year before Ivonne is found, so she's set on getting 100% affection of any of the love interests before that happens to prevent death.

We also find out Penelope is a victim of abuse at the hands of her second eldest adoptive brother and almost every single servant of the house, which sadly mirrors the in-real life our protagonist previously had.

So, she decides to embark herself on a quest to avoid the adoptive brothers as soon as possible and look for the love interest who don't have any kind of bias against her.

Something I really liked about this book is that we don't know for sure who the male lead is, and we get to actually know a little bit of all of the characters involved, including the NPCs.

It's a story I highly treasure and I cannot wait for January 6th to come around so I can finally read the second volume.

[Becca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never read a light novel before that was based on an existing Manhwa, but I am obsessed. This was an interesting story line about a woman getting trapped in a dating simulator. I listened to the audiobook and had a great time with it. It captivated me a lot more than I was expecting and I'm looking forward to reading more!

[Aria · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perro coraje que me da todo el trato que recibe Penelope.
Ch 1 - 57

[Maja · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the future, I probably won't pick up another South Korean web/light novel. Everyone has their taste when choosing what to read, and this type of story just doesn't fit mine. But I'm glad that I come to this conclusion by giving it a fair chance.

Pros:
- It reads quickly since 90% of it is straightforward dialogue;
- It's emotionally fulfilling if you fantasize about avenging your wounded inner child against your childhood abusers;
- An interesting reevaluation of the male romantic stereotypes in otome games;
- Beginning is really good, keeps you on edge.

Cons:
- At times, it becomes excessively dramatic and emotionally draining;
- It's too long. You need to be committed 110% to get to the end of this, which turns out I'm not;
- It's predictable since the writer uses the same formula over and over. Something happens > Penelope gets blamed > she accepts the quest > completes it > demolishes her abuser's ego. It's fun and empowering the first 10 times, but I grew bored after a while;
- It left me wishing for happier moments between the characters. Two or three times I was too depressed to continue reading.

[Alisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series consumed my life. It’s seriously so good. And the main character is very different from typical female protagonists. She has feelings but she’s not ruled by them, she uses her head and makes calculated decisions in order to survive. Love it, can’t wait to continue.

[Lanie Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

A young woman wakes up in the body of Penelope Eckhart, the villainess from the Otome game she'd been playing when she fell asleep that night. Furious that she's been taken not just from her own life but trapped in the body of a character who is destined to die she sets out to at very least keep the five love interests from killing her on the spot. Given Penelope's reputation as the "Mad Dog of Eckhart," this seems nigh on impossible. Especially since the longer she lives as Penelope the more she realizes that she may have had some valid reasons for being a villain after all.

This is going to be a long one, so TDLR: Excellent Villainess story.

I was really excited pretty much immediately as honestly, it seemed like this game that our MC gets sucked into was basically made for her. Penelope's life is eerily similar to the MCs; both girls are orphans adopted into rich families, both have brothers that seemingly hate her, a negligent father, and in both cases, the girls enter their adopted families' lives after a tragedy struck. The big difference between the two girls is how they react to things the MC avoids her adopted family at all costs while Penelope is dedicated to making everyone's life a living nightmare. The MC spends much of the book talking about how abused/neglected she and Penelope were/are, which they definitely are, while she completely misses that she's been a brat. Which is understandable to an extent given how young these characters are, however, it becomes less so as Penelope and the MC age. The MC consistently reminds us of how unfair her situation is while never once considering how unfair and confusing it must have been for her IRL brothers and Penelope's.

And that is what makes the MC the Villainess. It's not that she does anything exceptionally evil in this it's that she's lacking in empathy. She's unable to see past her own pain to see that those around her are suffering just as much as she is both IRL and as Penelope. She's the only possible victim in all situations, even when there is evidence to the contrary. In all cases for the love interests, there is clear-cut evidence that these men are facing incredible challenges from having a stepmother trying to assassinate one to slavery in another and she completely disregards how this affects them. And while yes in the love interests' reactions are over the top they aren't any worse than the MC's manipulation of them or events.

She is the perfect Villain. She's absolutely infuriating at times, her choices make little to no sense over and over again. Whatever sympathy she establishes for herself and Penelope comes crashing down in the next chapter as she projects her IRL life onto those who now surround her as Penelope. She refuses to see the people in Penelope's life as anything but characters in a game and treats them as such. She is essentially stunted at whatever age she was when she joined her IRL family, she is so dedicated to the fact that she is the victim that she is virtually incapable of interpreting events in any way that may make her even slightly responsible for any of her existence. She's gloriously evil.

I will definitely be continuing this series as I have a strong feeling Penelope is going to have a rude awakening very soon!

As always thanks to Yen Press and NetGalley for the eArc!

[Crina · Rating 5 out of 5]

So, I am giving it a 5 star for the manhwa ( just loved the animation). After reading the novel, I kind of wanted to give it a 4 star since towards the end our heroine became very annoying.
Spoiler [I mean, did she really needed the Crown Prince to beg her to stay beside him? And it’s not like he didn’t said it to her many times that he loved her and wanted to marry her…I like my ML to be dominant until the end, thank you very much, not to look like a pussy]
Can’t wait for the manhwa to be finished though..

[Kamons · Rating 5 out of 5]

สนุกแบบจะบ้า ไม่คาดหวังแต่ได้เกินไปมาก ที่ซื้อมาเพราะปกสวย ผู้ชายหล่อแค่นั้นเลย ไม่ได้คาดหวังเนื้อเรื่อง แต่ก็แอบมีสงสัยนิด ๆ ว่าทำไมมันขายดีจนของขาด แล้วเราได้ราคาอีบุ๊คมาแบบไม่แรงด้วยเลยซื้อเก็บ ๆ แค่นั้นเลย แต่พออ่านแล้ว นางเอกนี่มันชีวิตต้องสู้จริงว่ะ ตอบคำถามยังไงไม่ให้ตาย ต้องดูสีหน้าท่าทางพระเอกเหล่านี้ แล้วพระเอกผีเข้าผีออกมากแต่ละคน คือสมมติตอนเป็นพระเอกในเนื้อเรื่องของนางเอก (พาร์ทปกติ) ตัวจริงดูดีมาก แต่พอมาในช่วงตัวร้ายทำไมมันประหลาด ชั้นเป็นเพโนโลปี้(นางเอก) ก็ไม่ไหวอ่ะ ปล่อยให้ฆ่า ๆ ซะ จบ พอละ เหนื่อยจะดูสีหน้าท่าทางพวกนี้ แล้วไม่แปลกใจเลยทำไมเพเนโลปี้ (นางร้าย) นางจะเทิร์นเป็นนางร้าย ก็ตัวละครตั้งแต่คนใช้ยันพระเอกแต่ละตัวบีบซะ

[Px4 Manga · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantasy, transmigration, romance novel series. This volume collects chapters 1-57 of the original webnovel. The Korean physical publication of the novel is a total of 5 volumes, with 1-4 completing the main story and vol 5 containing side stories and so it is likely we can expect the same of the English release.

When a college student with a tragic past picks up the video game Daughter of the Duke’s Super Love Project, she immediately sees herself in one of the characters. Not the adored heroine of easy mode, Ivonne, but the protagonist of hard mode, misunderstood villain Penelope. Little did she know that she’d fall asleep playing the story…and wake up in Penelope’s body! But with affection meters starting in the negatives a single wrong move could mean her demise…

I loved this!
The story and characters are entertaining, our MC is a badass & the MLs are interesting to say the least. I enjoy isekai stories with game elements so this was a fun read!

Playing the game of love on hardcore mode.
I love the concept of a dating sim where hard mode means playing as the stories bad guy. Penelope risks life and death with her every interaction and the sakes make it all the more exciting.

Penelope or more so the woman who has woken up in her body is a great character. Because of the similarities between their lives our MC is forced to relive her own trauma again and again. The opening scene in chapter one is disturbing but sets the tone really well for us to understand that there is more behind Penelope’s character than just being a villain.

The love interests are a bit crazy and require their own approaches. I decided to use my markers to track every shift in their affection as well as Penelope‘s reputation status.
I feel very meh towards the brothers but am excited to see more progress with the other 3, especially the prince who we saw the least of in this vol. He seems the most psycho, and I like that.

Thank you Ize Press for sending this volume over for me to check out ❤️

[Cecilia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you Netgalley for a copy of this story!

I loved the Manhwa for this but since its not finished have been very interested in reading the novels.

I have to say they adapted it very well it is so close to the original. Despite knowing what was going to happen I still loved this and think it's worth the read even if you've read the manhwa. The concept of this is very different from anything else I'm reading so it really just draws me in. This actually covered more than I thought it would. I can't wait to read the next novel.

[Masha Kly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Совсем неплохо для легкого чтения. Интересно и даже порой остроумно.

[N · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️
It was a bit boring

Penelope & Callisto

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

why is this man on the first cover lol🤨

[Kerensa]

i picked this up on a whim but then somehow i got kind of invested and ended up reading the manhwa adaptation until 3am. oops!

[Марија · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitivno mnogo pozitivnija recenzija zbog stripa koji sam već dva puta čitala (ne znam otkud tolika opsesija sa ovom pričom 😅). Likovi su mi manje više kao u stripu i oduševljena sam koliko dobro prati priču 😁

[alyona · Rating 3 out of 5]

this is far from being a great piece of literature but i had so much fun reading it. definitely gonna finish the series.

[Maricar (BookOaths) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has got to be my favorite manhwa.

Truth is, I have finished the manhwa (up to the latest chapter) and proceeded to read the MTL version - it was the first time that I have done that. The reason why I am only marking it as finished today is I was stuck reading the side chapters. lol. I think my brain just got fed up a few months ago - it was hard to read a poorly translated novel. Kinda wish we can get a proper translation for this.

Anyway, Callisto is ♥️

[❆ ғany ❆ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Volume 1: chapters 1 - 57

[Catching Shadows · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was extremely excited to see this book on Net Galley! Volume One of Villains are Destined to Die comprises the first five chapters of the original novel. Our Protagonist is a young woman named Siyeon Cha, who is just entering college after leaving a stressful and abusive home environment. She hears about a popular dating game/visual novel on campus and immediately becomes addicted to it. (Despite having misgivings concerning the plot, which seems to be the typical “good pure character winning the love of the male leads” vs. “the horrible villainess/rival who is trying to ruin the good and pure character.”) Despite the villainess being a villain, Siyeon Cha ends up feeling sympathy for Penelope Eckhert, whose backstory somewhat mirrors her own.

(Penelope was taken in and adopted due to her resemblance to Ivonne Eckhert as a child. She was abused by the household staff and her adoptive brothers. In turn, Siyeon Cha was an illegitimate daughter taken in after the death of her mother. She was also abused by her older brothers, the household staff, and her father.)

After playing in “normal mode” (as the “real daughter,” Ivonne Eckhert) she gets a notification of a “secret” ending, and the opportunity to play “Hard Mode” which is from the point of view of Penelope! Despite the expense, Siyeon Cha immediately acquires the expansion so that she can play Penelope. She then discovers that “Hard Mode” might as well be called, “Murder Mode,” with how often Penelope dies. Of course, she gets obsessed about it…and encounters isekai method: “Died of Overwork/Exhaustion.”

Now Siyeon Cha is playing Penelope Eckhert in “real life” with Original Character on lock. (This means that at first she can only select a limited number of actions or dialog until she can disable the prompts.) “Penelope” must now figure out how to survive and escape her terrible situation before the beginning of “Normal Mode.” (“Hard Mode” takes place a few months before the reappearance of Ivonne Eckhert.) To do this, she has to “win the love” of the male leads–which seems nearly impossible to do, since in most cases their “affection percentage” is at zero, and in some cases, in the negatives. This as you can imagine, is a problem.

Siyeon Cha is smart, strategic and actually kind of manipulative! She is hampered only by her high-key fear of male authority figures, incredibly maladaptive coping mechanisms and extensive C-PTSD! (Which are actually pretty severe handicaps.) She manages to grovel (read: manipulate) her way past the first few death flags, only to get herself into some pretty terrible situations due to not being great at “reading” the room. (Yes, you can be good at manipulation but terrible at understanding what people are thinking or reacting to. She thinks she’s giving little taps, and doesn’t realize she’s essentially delivering gut punches, and frankly, no one should tell her because she might stop.)

I really enjoy this novel which is fun and full of complicated feelings. It should be noted I am mostly reading for the feelings and Penelope/Siyeon Cha trying to survive the game. There are a lot of things that are not really accurate to a pseudo-European country or culture–the worldbuilding is very shaky in this regard! We’ve got an “Empire” with only one Duchy, as a very small example. (Which would make this a very, very small Empire.) This is of course a minor point, and really I’m reading it because Siyeon Cha/Penelope is a very complex and interesting character and watching her try to avoid death flags while trying to pick the “right” male lead so she can escape the game. This means she makes some really, really bad mistakes that will come back to haunt her.

In short, I loved the first volume of this novel! There’s some interesting discussion of trauma and the way it kind of screws people up. (And causes them to make terrible, terrible life choices.) Penelope/Siyeon Cha is a intriguing, well written character and the over all plot is a winner.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

Actual rating is 4.5 but I rounded up because I really do like this series!

As a fan of the Manhwa the moment I saw this I was committed to getting my hands on it! Thank goodness I didn’t have to wait until it was publicly released! Thank you Yen Press!!!

Transported into the world of a video game and the body of the Villainess, Penelope, there is only one option to survive; charm at least one of the main love interests, lay low as possible and pray for survival. Only this Penelope isn’t going to lay low and let other people decide her fate!

The novel follows the events of the manhwa pretty flawlessly. It makes some things a little more intense, perhaps because you get a lot more detailed context. Some support characters seem more extreme, others you can understand a bit better, and some you just hate even more. Eckles, for example, is creeper in this book then I found him in the manhwa. Maybe I just didn’t fully pick up in his vibe off the manhwa, but in this book it’s pretty darn clear.

This written word version also gives you both more detail and less at the same time. For example, there is a bit more information about the MC’s life back in South Korea provided than in the manhwa, but less details on the clothes she wears to key events. Which is fine, but the beautiful pictures of her dresses in the manhwa…the written word cannot do those pictures justice and they don’t even seem to try. Nor does the book fully capture the expressions of some of the characters at key points. Unlike some other adaptations this one does not include pictures from the manhwa/manga it’s based off of, which is a shame in some places. The manhwa pictures would have really enhanced a few key plot points, but you do get a lot more info on how some of them are feeling, or how their ‘vibe’ is coming off to Penelope.

The start is a little slow, just because everything is usually set up in the first volume of most manhwas/mangas making for a slower start. Since it is mirroring the manhwa, the start had to be a bit slower. Things do pick up after the hallway point, I’d say around 150 pages, and we were hurdling towards the first major event…and then we weren’t because the book was over. I may have protested out loud with a “no, you can’t stop there!!!” But it did and now I have to wait for who knows how long to read the next one. So, I may have rushed to my bookcase in order to pull out the manhwa that’s currently physically released in order to read about the hunt!

Long story short

This novel version does do the manhwa justice, following the plot to a T, giving a little more insider information into the feelings of many of the characters, but it obviously can’t compare to some of the beautiful artwork. Unlike other manhwa/ manga light novel adaptions, this one does not provide those random beautiful pictures to enhance the reader’s experience. This is the one thing I was a little disappointed about and why it scored 4.5 stars out of 5. Some dresses and facial expressions just cannot be translated into words once you’ve seen the ‘real thing.’

I cannot wait for the next one to come out though! I am a huge fan of reading stories I love in multiple forms to try and catch all the nuances for a ‘deeper’ understanding of the characters and their motivations. I really hope this gets turned into an anime…

[Susanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Villains Are Destined to Die is a Korean isekai reverse harem/dating game light novel set in a fantasy empire. A Korean college student gets hooked on a dating game where a long-lost daughter of a duke returns and wins the hearts of her five suitors despite the fake daughter, Penelope, trying her best to kill her. There’s also a hard mode of the game, where one plays as Penelope. But try as she might, she always dies on that mode.

And then she wakes up inside the game, as Penelope. Knowing that she’ll die, no matter what she does, she sets out to improve her odds of survival. It’s not easy for her though. Penelope’s circumstances are too much alike her own life as a reviled daugher by a mistress of a wealthy businessman. She’s angry even, having just fled her miserable life, only to land in a similar situation.

Step by step, she improves her life, like gaining the ability to say what she wants instead of having to rely on the game’s dialogue that always gets her killed. She needs to reach 100% affection with one of the five men for the game to end, preferably before the real daughter returns and ruins everything in a few months’ time, and some of the counts start at zero, or even below. She’s even more careful after she realises there’s no reset button in this game. If she dies, she’ll stay dead. And she’ll die if the affections of any of the five love interests drop below zero.

One by one, she meets the men. Two of them are her step brothers who hate her the most. There’s also an insane crown prince, a sorcerer, and a former slave she buys from an auction and makes her personal guard. All are difficult in their own way for her to make to like her, let alone love. On top of which, the entire household hates her and tries to make her life miserable.

This was a good start to a series. I’d read the first volume of the manhwa adaptation and liked it very much, but the book was better. It’s fairly fast-paced, well-written and engaging. The new Penelope is a very different person than the Penelope of the game, and little by little, she changes everyone’s perceptions of her.

I liked Penelope and all the love interests were interesting and potential end-games. I don’t know if she has to win over only one of them like in the game, in which case any one of them will do at this point, or if she’ll end up with all of them, which would be fine too. No one is a sure winner yet, even if her guard is in a lead, and it’ll take the whole series before 100% affection is reached. Looking forward to reading more.

I received a free copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.