The four rules of freelance villainy are as follows: 1. Always wear a mask 2. Never hurt civilians 3. Never kill the heroes you’re paid to fight. 4. And the bad guy always loses.
As a villain for hire I followed those rules, facing down heroes in scripted fights to make them look good for the press and brand deals. Sure, losing every time was a pain, but the money was good. Well, decent. And it kept real heroes off my back. Well, usually.
But then I got called in to train a new villainess in the fine art of menace, and suddenly I'm dealing with rogue heroes, horny scientists, yandere psychics, and in the crosshairs of one of the biggest bad guys the world has ever known. It's a good thing I'm a villain, because it's time to start breaking some rules...
Villain for Hire is a humorous harem adventure through the world of heroes, superpowers, love, and villainy. Featuring nefarious plots, jobbing, dinner and unconventional use of magnets and fossils, this men's harem adventure is sure to delight.
I was drawn in by the concept despite the lurid cover, knowing I'd be skipping lots of sexual antics. Fortunately, the concept paid off with the originality I had hoped for and skipping the dumb bits was easy enough.
Victor is a workaday kind of guy with enough superpower to stay independent in the villain gig where his "job" is essentially to make up-and-coming superheroes look good by losing to them in a flashy way. I found it interesting that he doesn't actually make any money from crime, but rather from his PR work making heroes shine. It's a fun conceit and seeing him walk the line between more nasty, actually-evil villains and his own niche was entertaining.
I'm a bit sad that none of the women who attach themselves to him like limpets have any discernable personality. Okay, it's not quite as bad as that. They're all one-note characters, but each note is different and all of them are just a little bit bent (as befits people who would hang out with an avowed villain). But that's not the same as having any complexity or discernable motivations beyond hanging out with Victor and doing their schtick.
The plot is strong enough to keep me interested and with a good pace. There wasn't anything like a longer arc going on, but I did like seeing Victor go up against some of the world's big-bads and holding his own, demonstrating that his sideshow gig really is by choice. He isn't any more inherently villainy than any other normal(ish) guy and he really is in it for the freedom to pick his jobs and do the best he can in them.
I'm going to give this four stars, which is pretty much the maximum I can with a cover that lurid and harem shenanigans I have to skip to maintain any respect for the story. I'll admit, I'm likely to read the next just because I don't think the author has tapped out his creativity with this one and I'd like to see what happens next.
A note about Steamy: It's a harem story. There are three or four explicit sex scenes that would put this in the middle of my steam tolerance if I hadn't skipped them entirely. I'm sure they had all the acrobatic detail you'd expect from a story with harem as a theme and bad-girls demanding someone do them dirty.
Enjoyable. Feels like a fresh take The description of this book sounds just like 5 others I've already read. But from the very start, this book feels original. and Sooo much better than Saving super Villains I liked this MC. He's confident with out being arrogant, with a sense of professionalism that isn't stuffy. And thank god, he doesn't drool when he see's a nice rack. We'll see if Jay Aury can keep this magic going in book 2.
This novel hit hit hit all the correct notes. I've read some really awful harem books over the past year, but this novel hit the HIGHEST notes. I highly recommend this novel. It is amazing and awesome. Please🙏 I can't wait for the sequel. Please write another one!
This really didn't do much for me. Too much "magic cock" MC with women fawning on him and nothing else that made the story stand out. MC was OK, but that didn't offset the general "meh" of the story.
A Promising Start! Reminiscent of Saving Super Villains.
A decently original concept executed well enough to really enjoy and look forward to future installments.
Now I prefer SSV but I think Sentar has had his own time to find his groove. This book had enjoyable prose, especially in the beginning. It never felt like it was stalling or was so cringe I had to put it down. The series was actually a little less gritty than SSV so far. If that sounds good to you, give it a go. I do recommend it and hope to see more works from this author that are at least this good.
I do have some comments to add. The depth of the characters. I wouldn't say it was lacking...yet. But it could be if they're not developed more in the next books. I hope to start to see more and more of their souls as the story progresses. Otherwise the whole thing might fall flat. The world building is decent enough. I could see it going in a direction I like or one that annoys me. Hopefully the author can find the right balance for that.
I do feel like there's a risk of the relationships becoming/feeling too casual. One of the corner stones of most if not all harem stories and the like, in my opinion, is the tight nit nature of the core group/relationship(s). If I'm being honest I would probably read less harem lit if it was easier to find that in other genres. It's my favorite part.
The girls seem "committed(committable :-P)" enough, but the seem even more so "dependant." Now, enough people like yanderes I'm not going to complain about that, but I do hope to see a growth to their genuine effections and his. Likewise, I hope to see his "too cool for school" streak to shift into genuine competence and stoic astuteness as the story progresses as well.
In short, I have high hopes for the series and highly recomend it to fans of it's genres and SSV.
This is a novel with a fun cast of characters that I enjoyed reading about. The plot was satisfying, even if little in came as a surprise to me. The story balanced the idea of a working man playing at being a supervillain for a paycheck with the reality of what it'd actually be like to live like that fairly well. The mc let his little head do his thinking for him a little more often than I liked, but that's common enough in this genre it didn't bother me too much and it's much better here than the worst offenders in the genre. Overall a good read, especially from a new author, I'll be keeping an eye on his future works.
So you want to be a hero...er villain. Well those things take time, planning and such. So now we enter Jay Aury's hero and villain world. Where some heroes and even some villains are a part of the corporate world. Enter Magneron, villain for hire, when you need to bolster a new hero's reputation. For a fee you receive a professional villain. Fun and campy adventure with enough humor, tongue in cheek gags, and a smattering of well worn cliché. A definite fun read for those that love a good Ole fashioned hero villain, with a twist, slugfest.
As required by U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations and Audible requirements, I am disclosing that I was given a free review copy of this audiobook at my request. I have listened to the audiobook, and I have voluntarily left an honest review. Receiving a review copy did not influence my rating nor my review.
“Villain for Hire” is a very fun book about a generally ethical supervillain just trying to live his life.
Victor isn’t interested in power over others or building a team. He is hired to make superheroes look good on camera; he tries to avoid true do-gooder heroes and true supervillains, preferring a paycheck for mock battles. It’s a clever take on the super hero/villain theme; I only remember listening to one other book/series in which the main hero (Superman-like) was a vain popinjay always posing for cameras…but I can’t offhand remember the name of that book/series. I don’t think that the villain of the story worked with the superhero, though, so “Villain for Hire” is perhaps unique with this plot.
Victor is a very likable MC; he’s self-aware, intelligent and actually quite powerful. Think of Marvel’s Magneto if Magneto were chill.
The story is billed as haremlit, and at the end does begin developing as a harem (Book 2 is likely to be much more of a haremlit story). I would classify Book 1 more as erotica than haremlit. Victor’s, errr…., encounters with female acquaintances are well written, but seem more casual than mutually devoted.
Victor finds himself unable to turn down an offer to mentor a new supervillain for hire, and accept another one as his protege. These women, along with his Q-like (Bond, not Star Trek) colleague Dolly the self-enhanced sheepwoman (hahaha) work together and become friendly with Victor.
The best laughs are often when Victor is interacting with wannabe heroes or villains; I particularly enjoyed an interview at a restaurant with Red Death and his agent Chester!
The action sequences are fun, reminding me of the 1960s Batman TV series. I kept picturing the Wham, Blam and other over-the-top graphics appearing during the fights!
Narrator Edward Black is new to me; he and Ellory Lane did terrific jobs and I encourage you to listen to “Villain for Hire”.
At my request I received a copy of this audiobook in order to give a fair and unbiased review
Genre: Super villain harem adventure and slice of life
Power dynamics in harem: The girls all crush on the MC who is a well known villain Explicit/adult material: Explicit.
Summary: The MC is one of the best at making the heroes looks good. He knows his job and looks evil so they can look good. That is how he pays the bills. He never takes on sidekicks, but one job simply pays too well not to. So here is training and preparing this young beautiful ice-giftet girl for her first step into supervillainy.
Narrators Voice diversity: Very well done. Characters are easily recognisable with accents and speech patterns. Pacing and intonation: Well done. The telling matched the intensity and meshed well with the writing. Sex scenes: Very well done. Overall: 4.5 / 5 stars.
The book’s strengths. - The humour. The book plays with sterotypes and haves fun in the setup of heroes and villains and their roles in a society where superpowers are a thing. - The girls feel distinct both in their mannerism, the voice given and what they bring to the table. - It leverages pre-book established friendships and relationships to make the harem-buildup seem natural. - The narration.
The book’s weaknesses. - The book is a bit shorter than I would have prefered for an audiobook, but it is excellent and doesn't feel rushed.
Overall: 5/5 stars One of my best harem books this year! I am excited to see where this goes!
MC is a villain who makes his living by sandbagging fights for heroes. But someone wants to pull him out of that comfortable life. Shenanigans ensue.
It can be hard for superhero stories to cover gritty-realism without turning to a dark and un-fun storyline. That’s not a problem here! The world has history (without relying on droning exposition) and feels ‘real’; corporations, social media, & all the other daily hallmarks of the modern world.
The premise seems a touch silly, but the author sells it well. Going all in allows one to immerse themselves in the world setting. There's a good bit of mixing world building with action and doing things so it's not all info dump. Characters are interesting, even the women which is always an added plus. They could use some growth, but at least have quirks and have some reasons for their actions. Overall I enjoyed and have high hopes for the next in the series to expand on things and get even better
It's always fun seeing the other side of the superhero stories and this one is great fun. Our MC isn't interested in taking over the world, just making a living as the foil to superheroes that need attention. His training of his apprentice is key by reinforcing the stereotypes such as monologuing, matching henchmen outfits, etc. The book wraps up nicely with a lot of potential without a huge cliffhanger ending which is always appreciated.
Main character is supposed to be smart and experienced, but he is very, very dumb. That basically sums up my rating. The entire book I was screaming at the book "No don't do that you idiot!". If the main character didn't make such hilariously bad decisions for the sake of the plot this story has some pretty high potential. I loved the concept and world building, which saved this from being a 1 star rating.
This is a fun read. It's not high literature by any means but it's simple and fun. The MC is intelligent and experienced but not OP. It's a harem story, but without the blushing simp stammering and wetting himself when more than one woman wants to share him. Picture a Marvel movie but made for men and not drowned in woke pc bs. Dropped a star because it's very short. Really, it's a little short to be considered a novel. Still, I'll certainly check out the next one.
It has it's moment's, but it's overwhelmingly a three, maybe even a two in someplaces. Bad wish fulfillment, like the kind you need to turn your brain off for. It's very short, and a lot of it is wasted on cringy sex scenes, so a lot of the chemistry and even the powerset never really had a chance to get developed. Powers are all hand wavy, and the LI's are all insta over-heels throwing themselves obsevily at the mc...
This series had an amazing start! I love the concept of this world, and the idea of hiring villains feels surprisingly realistic; if superpowers existed in real life, I could totally see "Talent Agencies" doing the same thing. The smut scenes are well-written and not overdone, but they're easy to skip if that's not your thing. (but we all know why were here) I've already picked up the next two books in the series and can't wait to see how the story develops in the second and third installments.
I really enjoyed reading this and wish it didn't end so quickly. Good characters, probably the right amount of development for those characters, and if I had to pick where this book really shined, it'd be the...hype? Respect? Backstory given to General Winter. Looking forward to more from this author.
I’ve read a fair amount of villain stories and I have to say this one was up there as far as clever and fun stories go. Great cast of characters and action. Would not have thought such a power would be powerful but it was and I look forward to hopefully finding another one.
Not going to lie I love the overuse of cliche monologue and I thought that was hilarious. To me it felt like the story was too short and just a little bit unbelievable at the end. Felt to me like some of the character$ development at the end was again rushed. I honestly probably will not read the next book unless I'm in a law between books that I am reading.
The idea of using supers acting like villains for entertainment for the masses and the rich: awsom. Add to that to that the eroticism, the harem element. Hilarious also are the woman who are total psychos if left unchecked by the main character. The flavor of each woman regarding the psychoness is hilarious. I hope author can follow up with lot more in I hope a long series
This is not a book about the practicalities of villainy, but the aesthetic of it, the style. You can clearly feel the comic book inspiration and I love it. Plus, all the characters are great fun, though Psyren feels a bit exaggerated. Ultimately, I recommend the book, it caters very well to its niche, and who doesn't have a thing for bad girls?
I like this Series it appeals to me so much. Special Victor getting all the hot girls and having a marvelous action. Love it 🥰. I started to like and Love Glaciar She is my favorite of victor’s girls loyal and she has love and respect for our nice Villain Victor 🥰 story so far nice and characters decent but fun.
Honestly, I read a lot of this genre and I expect a certain amount of jank. Instead, Villain for Hire was smooth all the way through and was such an easy and fun read I was extremely disappointed it ended. I’m looking forward to the next book.
Villain for Hire is a fun and amazing new book by Jay Aury! I found it to be hilariously funny but full of action. MC Victor is badass! If there is a Book 2 I’m definitely getting it!
This is a fine superhero fantasy harem adventure novel. It is well written and edited. I especially like Dolly the mad sheep woman scientist. I anxiously await the sequel.
It was a good start to the story. I feel some things were rushed a bit, while others progressed smoothly. However, there were a few editing and grammar errors that irked me. Other than that, I'll be curious how the second book turns out and will go from there.
I enjoyed this read and am looking forward to the next one. I only felt like there was a lack of bang to most of the powers. Limited or lacking full explanations. Other than that very fun.
Loved this book. It was super fun and had a great take on this genre. The characters were great, the dialog and interactions were written and entertaining. Not much to say other than it was a fantastic book and I hope there will be a second.