We first met Cade Ombra, a former Glorian Justiciar (think: holy warrior) turned mercenary mage, in the Malevolent Seven (thus causing widespread confusion on what happened to Malevolent One-through-Six, no doubt, especially when the third book arrives ;)), during the course of which he gathers his band of malcontents and they save the world, more or less. Maybe a bit less, because here in book two the gang is still dealing with the aftermath and indeed, fighting to save the world. Again. Oh, but this time they have a vampire… kangaroo?!… on their side. Mostly 😉

This book follows quite closely from the first, so yeah, absolutely have read that first. But if you enjoyed it, then you’re going to enjoy this, too, as it’s more of the same bumbling heroics, things going wrong at every turn, and bigger – dare we say nigh-on impossible – challenges to overcome.

However, I found that I didn’t enjoy this one quite as much as the first. It’s still a whole lot of fun, but … hmm. Let’s see.

Somehow, the rag-tag group is now supposed to be this band of ‘brothers’ (sisters, demons, angels, whatevers!) and the people Cade (still his point of view narration) loves more than anything in the universe… but, I’m not sure that came across in any other way than being told it was so. Yes, the events at the end of book one (no spoilers!) could be that bonding-in-trauma level, but it also feels like we’ve missed a chunk of said bonding, somehow. And the rest of the group – somewhat more lightly sketched than being in Cade’s head all the time – don’t really act like it, more that they’re sticking together for lack of anything better to do? And then we’ve got the new character – eventually an explanation, but to begin with, sort of appearing from nowhere and just a little… well, your mileage may vary on vampire kangaroos of limited (albeit hilarious) vocabulary, shall we say.

Still, they work well together for the sake of the plot. Which – hmm again – sort of worked for me? It does well at following on from where we left the first instalment, and it does reach a conclusion while leaving the door open for more. But somehow I never quite felt entirely in the flow of it all, perhaps too much of a disparity between the literal war-of-the-gods and more, world-ending kind of level, and the main opposition being… our guys? Really? And then Cade is entirely distracted by a new character, who probably isn’t exactly trying to kill him, but will probably end that way anyway…

And yet. I didn’t love this as much as book one, but wow it is still rollickingly great fun! de Castell can write well, and you want to keep reading. The humour is excellent – just dark enough, while also providing some brevity from e.g. some rather gross torture scenes. And there is a strong link to the author’s other series, Spellslinger, reminding me that I really have to go finish reading that.

I do wonder if I would have enjoyed it all more if I’d read it immediately on the back of Malevolent Seven – I could well believe that some of my ‘issues’ were feeling a little too detached from some of the supporting cast, who don’t get a huge amount of page time here. Continuing their stories from book one – yeah, that might make more flow. And as noted above, there absolutely is a Malevolent Nine due and I am hugely looking forward to it!

It was an absolute joy to receive a copy of The Malevolent Eight by Sebastian De Castell in exchange for an honest review.

"What the world needed now wasn't a good guy. It needed a hero"

I have to be reminded through the books, that this band of mercenaries are not the good guys... But damn they are good heroes.
In this second romp through The Malevolent series realm, the characters and the world continue to grow and develop. The banter remains the same, though I feel we follow more of Cade's character and how/why we have a massive, vampire kangaroo hopping about the place.

The other piece of excitement as a reader of De Castell and The Spellslinger series, comes in the form of a Spellslinger actually landing in this world. It makes me wonder if the author has further plans to merge these worlds in future books.

Does the book have its flaws? I guess someone somewhere would find them, but for me I loved every minute and they must have passed me by if there were any. * Shrugs *
It's fantasy, good vs evil and pure, laugh out loud moments which is thoroughly entertaining.

I think the author has a truly wonderful way of telling a story. Whilst we have fun and banter throughout, there are some more serious and thoughtful reflections made by the characters. And the story is put together well, with good pacing and reveal timings.
The characters are wonderfully written; with backstories, their own development as well as their relationshipswith each other. I'm absolutely invested in them. (Is there artwork in the UK for this series? I would love to see them brought to life)

The Malevolent Eight is a fabulous second book and delivers all the fun and entertainment of the first. It will be a series I will definitely be recommending.

Side note/ message for author
Dear Mr De Castell,
Only you could have brought a vampire kangaroo to a story and made it make sense. (I shouldn't have been so surprised after Reichis the squirrel cat) The Malevolent series has truly captured my imagination and heart - it's fantasy at its best. I can't wait to see what book three has in store... You are writing book three right? In the words of Temper: Motherf$$ker

I was ecstatic to see that the Malevolent 7 would get a sequel (I believe there are two further instalments in the series to come) and the mercenary wonderists do not disappoint. Even if they are not the good guys, the main protagonist is more that a little reminiscent of Falcio of the Greatcoats and fans of that series might recognise shades of the characters in this band of misfits, who following the events of the Malevolent 7 have found themselves cast as reluctant heroes trying to prevent the apocalypse.

The early third of the book feels a little flat, for reasons that I cannot quite convey; do not be put off as before you know it, the pace settles and you will wonder if you imagined it. The book is a worthy sequel and I’m looking forward to the next instalment.

Thanks to NetGalley and Quercus Books for the ARC. This is my honest opinion.

The Malevolent Eight is a solid follow-up to The Malevolent Seven. It's fun, it's fast-paced, and it introduces a whole lot more chaos to an already chaotic world. In short, it's a great book! However, it's also a book that suffers somewhat from middle-book syndrome. For a reasonable chunk of it, there's not a whole lot going on and, while it's still a good read in those moments - it's not one of those books that drags at all - it does result in a 3.5-stars-rounded-down rating from me. I maintain that's still a good rating and, after that ending, it's easily still a series I want to continue. Much of what's exciting about this book is the way it tears down what you thought was true from the previous book, and also introduces new possibilities into the world of the series. It was a book I didn't want to put down for all of the time that I was reading it. All of this being said though, I do think de Castell's attempt at a romance between Cade and another character (I may have forgotten her name already) was incredibly weak. Good thing that's not remotely why I'm reading this series, is all I can say.

Everything you could want from a Sebastian de Castell book! I like that every one in the group (the eight) all have their own backgrounds and stories that impact the group. It reminds me a bit of the tv show 'Dexter' - You shouldn't be rooting for this group of people, but somehow, you do!

Until The Malevolent Eight by Sebastien de Castell popped up on NetGalley, I had not realised that this was going to be a series. I loved the previous book and was excited to find that the story continued! The hijinks and chaos continue, somehow managing to surpass the events in the first book. At the end of The Malevolent Seven, the ragtag group of wonderists had been duped. Believed to be saving the world by defeating the Seven Brothers and therefore, stopping the Pandoral realm invasion, they found out that they had instead opened the way for the Aurorals and Infernals to enter the mortal plane. They were now free to start their long-foretold Grand Crusade, an epic battle where mortals are the cannon fodder.

There has to be something wrong with anyone who wants to get in the middle of that battle. Cade and his group more than fit that bill, especially when they’ve got a bone to pick after being set up. Taking on both sides of the war, they aim to do anything, kill anyone, to protect the mortal realm from an apocalypse they had no choice in. With an ex-Glorian Justiciar, tempestuous thunderer, vengeful angelic, traumatised blood mage, skilful Rat mage, zealous infernal and bloodthirsty kangaroo (yes, you read that correctly), they might stand a chance… or at least die trying.

They’re ready and willing to do just that, picking battles on either side one by one. It seems like a pretty solid plan until a mysterious figure appears and warns them off their plan. Promising dire consequences, they give a show of power that shows they can deliver. What puzzles Cade is that the stranger claims a history with him, one he has no recollection of.

As their simple plan to cause chaos and die trying becomes more complicated, Cade keeps a dangerous secret from his companions, one that will change everything between them.

The Malevolent Eight had me screaming – in all the right ways. More outlandish, more drama, and more chaos. This is one of those books that is hard to put into words. De Castell pushes the boundaries even further with every moment of chaos carefully constructed and connected. There are some huge surprises in this book, including a massive easter egg for de Castell fans. Then, of course, there is the bloodthirsty kangaroo who is, in a word, magnificent.

As with the previous book, this is a dark, bloody book with plenty of cursing and will not be everyone’s cup of tea. If that sounds like it is right up your alley, then pick up book one, The Malevolent Seven, ASAP!

Enjoyed this continuation of the adventures of Cade and his merry band of idiots. Was a great romp. A little too much digression for me at times but overall very enjoyable.

Thank you to Quercus books and Netgalley for approving me to read this book, I’m rating it 3.5 stars.

Book 1 will always be my favourite and although I like book 2, it wasn’t as good as book 1. It still had the truly chaotic and outrageous nature of book 1, and it still definitely had me mentally saying WTF often (in a good way), it just fell a little flatter for me than book 1.

I will still recommend these books to anyone who enjoys a dark anti-hero style fantasy with dark humour and even darker turns. The characters are truly some of the most unique & concerning characters I’ve read on a page and I really do love that.

I had a lot of fun reading this book. The characters are brilliant and I love the friendship between them all, especially Cade and Corrigan. There was a section where our unlikely heroes all reply to Cade, and no names are given, yet you know exactly who's speaking because their personalities are so distinctive. I would love to learn more about the other characters, even though I enjoyed how much time we got to spend with Cade. He might be one of my favourite characters to read. If you like the first book you will love this one. It lived up to all of my expectations. Books that make make me laugh are my favourite, so I really hope this isn't the end of the series. I think there will at least be another with how it ended. Great introduction for the 'spellslinger' too. I actually have the spellslinger series, not knowing it was by the same author. Now it will have to be my next read.

De Castell is an absolute genius. I love his books. I have read loads of them, although I missed The Malevolent Seven somehow, and I actually thought this one was part of a different series. I quickly realised this was book two of a series I hadn't yet read, so I bought book one, and fell in love immediately.

The worldbuilding and magic system are out of this world. Literally. I love that the magic system has well-defined rules and follows them. Each wonderist can only perform one type of magic, unless you're Cade Ombra, of course.

Cade is a brilliant character, quick to tell you he's not the good guy and not the hero of the story. There's definitely some morality issues, but overall, he is good, and you can't help but like him and his ragtag crew.

And I adore Temper! Again, de Castell... Genius!

The humour is brilliant. It's so different from the Greatcoats books. It was a really refreshing read. Loved it.

This greedily unhinged second outing for the Malevolent Seven is no less action-packed, spell-slinging, or oddly philosophical than the first. In a world beset by angels and demons hell bent on (or heaven-sent to) destroy each other, with the mortal realm pitched as naught but collateral, Cade, Corrigan, Galass, Alice, Shame, Aradeus and a secret seventh "friend" 🦘 have taken it upon themselves to stop the apocalypse, much to their own annoyance. Cade, however, is still full of secrets (not all of which are intentionally hidden) and his often-crass, irreverent drawl hides a paradoxical figure - is he smart and strong enough to lead his band of magical misfits through the mess they've got themselves into, or does he have no courage or common sense whatsoever, and us in fact careening towards his doom? Truly, that's the trick. Usually, it's both. This book also takes the first steps into a Castell- built multiverse,an act so exciting for me that I did squeal out loud on a packed train. Regardless of whether you've read Castell's other series, this sequel is still a high-octane good time!

This was my first book by Sebastien de Castell and I really enjoyed it. I enjoyed the characters, the story and I’m excited to read on.

The Malevolent Eight by Sebastien de Castell is the sequel to the amazing The Malevolent Seven which I read when it was released and fell in love with immediately. It is always difficult to review the second book in the series without spoiling book one, and this is not a book that I think would work well as a stand alone, you really need to be familiar with the characters and events of that book before heading into this one. What I can say is that if you enjoyed the tone of that book you will find more of the same here, with lots of rude, crude and very very funny banter between characters, running jokes that crop up at the most unexpected moments and characters that you somehow find yourself caring about despite their not seeming to have a single redeeming quality between them. Readers who are familiar with the author's other series will find some interesting crossovers and I loved how this was incorporated into the story. There were some minor pacing issues, especially in the first half of the book but that really did not deter me, I was having too much fun with this band of misfits to mind very much, and when the story starts to come together it does so beautifully with an ending that surprised me with its emotional impact and left me intrigued as to where the author intends to go next.
I read an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

This was another amazing book by Sebastien De Castell. I didn’t want to put the book down as soon as I started reading it. I enjoyed the characters in which we followed throughout the book, especially with the whole storyline in which it had. I loved the development this story had and I didn’t want to put the book down. And with the ending of the book, I am excited to see what the next book will have install, and what else this characters will have to go through.

This is a wildly hilarious and enjoyable sequel to The Malevolent Seven. It kind of reads like an awesome game of Dungeons and Dragons. The action in this story was to die for (pun intended). Can't wait to see what is next for this series.

The Malevolent Eight continues following our ragtag bunch of definitely not heroes who are trying to save their world, in their own violent way. The Aurorals and the Infernals are finally getting their big apocalyptic battle on the mortal realm, and our crew are trying to stop it, one gruesome death at a time.

It is full of the humour you expect from Sebastien de Castell, just darker and more irreverent than ever. There is so much action, plenty of blood and gore, and perhaps more references to genitalia than I needed! The crude humour won't be for everyone, but if you enjoyed the previous book in the series you'll be fine with this one.

There was a really surprising crossover with another series of the author that I enjoyed, and I definitely benefitted from my background knowledge, but it's not necessary.

If you enjoyed The Malevolent Seven, you will enjoy this. It's very similar, just turned up a notch - more dark humour, more torture, more intensity.

thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review! <3

’Nobody’s suffering gives them a license to take away someone else’s freedom’

The Malevolent Eight is the equally hilarious, very well-written sequel to The Malevolent Seven, and one that brings even more explosive action, gore and violence.

Following on from the previous entry, Cade Ombra and Co are working to stop the so-called ‘Great Crusade’, the large-scale conflict the Aurorals and Infernals have been dreaming of for thousands of years. Alas, demons and zealots are not the only obstacles in their path - they also have to contend with the enigmatic Spellslinger, who seems to know everything about them….

It’s hard to talk about this book in terms different from how I spoke about its predecessor. The characters are the same, and very little development can be found in their overarching personalities, the setting is the same, i.e., it is still pretty neglected in favour of dialogue and plot progression, and the antagonists are the same, aka the Aurorals and Infernals. In a sense, The Malevolent Eight does suffer from middle-book syndrome even though the third book is yet to be written. It’s hard to describe, but reading this book I just could sense its position as a place-holder, I could tell by the way very few meaningful events occurred until the last 100 pages. And this isn’t a criticism necessarily, SDC has such brilliant and engaging writing that I never felt bored or frustrated with the lack of, to be blunt, stuff happening. But I think when looking back at this series after its conclusion, it’ll be plain to see.

I think my main gripe with this book is that I don’t particularly feel the bond between its characters, I don’t see how they are all so close. Cade constantly comments on how he ‘loves them’ more than he’s ever loved anyone, and while I can see that with regards to Corrigan and Galass, I’m not sure that I believe it in reference to Alice or Aradeus. And this is where the lack of development comes into play. I can see that Cade goes through some changes, as the pov and main-character, but not anyone else, and I don’t see any reason why Cade should feel so much love and adoration for most of his group. I see the bond between Cade and Corrigan, Cade and Galass, Shame and Aradeus, but not between, let’s say, Aradeus and Alice, who hardly seem to interact at all. They don’t feel like a group of inseparable friends, they feel like work colleagues. It’s just not believable, and I’m not sold on their friendships. SDC’s dialogue may be witty and hilarious, but it doesn’t mask the fact that these people don’t seem all that enamoured with each other.

Despite my issues with The Malevolent Eight, I’m still giving it 4/5 stars, simply because it’s so incredibly entertaining. I may have issues with it, but I also had a really fun time reading it. It’s a bit of an oxymoron, I know, but that’s just how it is. I’m looking forward to the sequel!

There were some pacing issues and a few predictable moments, but overall, the strengths outweighed the weaknesses.

Raucous, magic filled battles with death, Gore, maiming, and Gods and Demons being shown their place, and of course the Malevolent Seven back for more with an extra One - who would have thought - always only a breath away from disaster and death. I love the humour and overall plot. Maybe Sebastien de Castell lost me in some of the thicker parts of the narrative. But I’m willing to forgive because he finds themselves perfect way to keep you involved, and the ending is superb. Thank you to Quercus Books and NetGalley for the ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.

This is the second instalment in this highly entertaining series. Cade is exactly the sort of protagonist I adore; morally grey, sarcastic, the absolute epitome of the anti-hero. I adore the boldness of the characters in this series, from Corrigan and his lewd jokes to a rat mage and a few new, rather unique characters. You're certainly not going to find a character like Temper in any other book.
This is more darker and grimmer series from Castell, but I absolutely love it. It's a huge amount of fun and had me laughing out loud at many points.
I'm really looking forward to seeing where this series goes.
Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publishers for providing an arc in return for an honest review.