Assistant to the Villain – Book Review

Once Upon a Time meets The Office in Hannah Maehrer’s laugh-out-loud viral TikTok series turned novel, about the sunshine assistant to an Evil Villain…and their unexpected romance.

ASSISTANT WANTED:Notorious, high-ranking villain seeks loyal, levelheaded assistant for unspecified office duties, supporting staff for random mayhem, terror, and other Dark Things In General. Discretion a must. Excellent benefits.

With ailing family to support, Evie Sage’s employment status isn’t just important, it’s vital. So when a mishap with Rennedawn’s most infamous Villain results in a job offer—naturally, she says yes. No job is perfect, of course, but even less so when you develop a teeny crush on your terrifying, temperamental, and undeniably hot boss. Don’t find evil so attractive, Evie.

But just when she’s getting used to severed heads suspended from the ceiling and the odd squish of an errant eyeball beneath her heel, Evie suspects this dungeon has a huge rat…and not just the literal kind. Because something rotten is growing in the kingdom of Rennedawn, and someone wants to take the Villain—and his entire nefarious empire—out.

Now Evie must not only resist drooling over her boss but also figure out exactly who is sabotaging his work…and ensure he makes them pay.

After all, a good job is hard to find.

This was one of the books that is popularized and hyped on Tiktoks. But this wasn’t as great as I thought it was going to be but this wasn’t really a bad book either.

Evie is from a poor family and after a fallout with a blacksmith causing her to lose her job, she goes around the town looking for a job when she comes across the Villain–the notorious murderer feared by many in the kingdom and the most wanted man in the kingdom. When Evie unknowingly saves the Villain from the King’s men, the Villain offers her a job–to work as his assistant in the Massacre Manor. While working at the manor, Evie finds that someone had been acting as a spy right in the manor and a small romance is brewing between the Villain and Evie.

The story was great. I really like the author’s writing–it was really engaging and she did a good job of drawing the reader into the story making the reader feel like a part of the story. The story is told from Evie’s and The Villain’s POV. I do how the friendship and bond is formed between Evie and the Villain. Though the book was labeled as funny, I unfortunately didn’t find any funny parts in the book but that’s fine. It wasn’t boring but then it wasn’t really great either. Nonetheless, I cannot wait to read the next book of the series as the ending of the book ended with a cliffhanger.

Overall, I rate this book 3.5 stars.