Thank you to Macmillan-Tor/Forge and NetGalley for an advanced copy of the book.

All of Us Villains is the first installment in a new YA Fantasy series by writing duo Amanda Foody and Christine Lynn Herman- great for fans of The Hunger Games!

In the city of Ilvernath, a tournament is held every generation to decide which family will control the city’s supply of high magick. The book follows seven champions (one from each family) who are thrust into a fight to the death.

This book excels in both shocking horror and thrilling action. Readers will find themselves gaping at the page in utter disbelief, as this tale is full of sinister surprises. What else would you expect from villains? It can be easy for a multi-POV novel to lag in some parts, as you “speed read” to get to the more exciting bits. But not this one! Every champion’s storyline is equally compelling, and readers will be deeply invested, hanging on to every single word.

The most significant area of growth for All of Us Villains is the tying of loose ends to justify the many subplots of the novel. This is the first in a series, so it’s perfectly normal for there to be cliffhangers and/or questions that lead into the next installment. However, in this case, the intended cliffhangers come off as uncertainty and lack direction. There are so many elements introduced throughout the book, that readers may feel dissatisfied when they reach the end to find there is no true moment of catharsis. The story feels incomplete as a book on its own.

While the ending is somewhat abrupt and uncertain, it is undoubtedly an engrossing novel that will leave readers eagerly awaiting its sequel.

CW: mental health

3.0/5.0

*Thank You to Tor Teen, the authors and Netgalley for an E-ARC of "All of Us Villians" in exchange for an honest review*

This was a really dark, villious read. I have to say Alistair is probably my favorite character. I really liked how all of the kids are morally grey.

This book was so evil but amazing! I absolutely loved the characters and where the author took the story. I loved it so much that I read it in 1 day!

I was given an arc for this book on netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I loved this book! It was just as dark as I was hoping it would be, and it filled my dark soul well. The characters were intriguing nd each perspective was well written. Multiple perspectives can be tricky and sometimes the characters blend together and while the happened a bit for me in the beginning, I was able to know each character and perspective better as the book went on.
The book was well paced and the writing was smooth and easy to read. The world building was very well done and the magic system was creative and easy to follow.
I loved the dark atmosphere but I also liked the touch of light and hope so it didn't feel like drowning in darkness.
This book is perfect for everyone who is more in touch with their dark side and is a little bit wicked.
I will he recommending this book to everyone!

👉🏻 I can’t believe I have to wait until November for the physical copy of this book to be published — I need it now to decorate my prestigious 5-star shelf! 🤩 This was a 24-hour bingefest and a heck of a wild ride.

#SpoilerFree #BookReview: “All of us Villains” by Amanda Foody and Christine Lynn Herman

🧟‍♀️ Fantasy 🧟‍♀️

“Blood Before All.”

📚 Every generation 7 children from great magical families are chosen as champions to fight for Ilvernath’s secret store of high magick, long eradicated across the world. But this year, a salacious tell-all novel has come out thrusting the once secret tournament into the limelight, and all of its villains with it.

👍🏻 The Good: I knew from chapter 1 that this book was a five star read. The premise is stellar — think Hunger Games with old magic and monsters, and with curses and spells woven into jewelry. Magic is everywhere in this book, from daily chores to fierce battles there is a spell and a strategy for everything. The writing is impeccable, with lush descriptions and witty one liners that had be cracking up. You can’t tell that it was written by two authors as the writing flows beautifully throughout.

I am a HARSH critic of multiple POVs — they are so often disappointing. But the POVs here all have great unique voices, and each character flourishes with distinct desires, morales, and shades of villainy. They are all wickedly broken and willing to sacrifice it all — I honestly can’t pick a favourite out of the bunch! (Maybe Alistair cause I love my dark and brooding men ha)

The world building is done well and has good pacing, unlike many magic worlds that often are info-dumped onto your lap. This will clearly have at least one sequel, and the set up for what’s to come had me at the edge of my seat!

If you’re into magic, morally grey characters, and risk-it-all competitions then you need to keep this book on your radar 🙏🏻

Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Plot: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Characters: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
World Building: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Writing: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

All of Us Villains is about 7 families who hold a competition to the death every 20 years to see who can take power of the high magic that is left in the world. Each family submits one teenager to the competition, which lasts 3 months or until only one is left. It is told from multiple POVs from the competitors.

This unfortunately, did not live up to what I had in mind. Once I head Hunger Games, magic competition to the death, I was 100% down, but it just fell really short for me. There were some good action/violent parts that kept it interesting, but I just did not like any of the characters. Not because they were all for the most part morally grey, but because they were all just so whiny. I just could not get into the magic system, and I felt like I lot of it was unexplained. I had high hopes when I heard the concept, but just ended up really not liking it. 1.5 stars.