When I tell you that I started and finished within four hours on my bus ride to Chicago, I am not joking. It was exactly what I needed to dissociate my troubles away. My favourite trope, characters, and increasingly complicated storyline helped ease the boredom of a tediously long bus ride. Evie Sage continues to be a delightful conundrum of positivity, but growing a sharp little blade that I am delighted to see honed in by her interactions with the villains. There’s romance. There’s drama. There’s a frog with signs. I implore you, pick up this series if you’re looking for characters you’ll want to put in your pocket and protect. I absolutely love this series, and am so glad that I got to read it.
This is the third book in the series, so there will be spoilers. Please read my previous reviews if you’re curious, but I HIGHLY encourage you to scroll away if you don’t want to find out anything that is important to previous parts of the story.
Evie Sage has had a tremendous promotion. From her humble assistant beginnings, Evie is now the right hand to the villain, where she is knee-deep in nefarious plots, assassination attempts, mayhem, and so much more. Moreover, she’s still nursing her inappropriate crush on her boss, the broody villain. With the prophecy unravelling, suspicious acting frogs, and more assassins, she’s going to have to figure out how to survive it all without setting the kingdom ablaze. Hopefully she will survive with her dignity intact.
This book had me in a chokehold from start to finish. Over the course of the three books, I have LOVED seeing Evie Sage’s character growth. She’s always had her sunshine personality of course, but it’s so wonderful to see her actually bringing down that sunshine armour that protects her and allow readers to see the anger within. There were glimpses in previous books, but like the prophecy is unravelling, it feels like we are also watching Evie unravel as well. Actually, lots of things are beginning to unravel, but I’ll be deliberately vague to avoid spoiling some key aspects of this story.
What I was expecting when I picked this up was for readers to be headed to an ending. Halfway through my reading of the book I realised that there was not enough time for us to truly wrap everything up the way we should, and while I was a bit disappointed that this wasn’t going to be a trilogy, I do believe we are being set up for something quite remarkable in the next book. I absolutely love where the plot is headed, and although some of it was a tad predictable, it remained satisfying nonetheless. We got to see more perspectives added to the story, which I genuinely appreciated, because I feel like they were woven in well. We continue to get sprinklings of other romances and stories that WE ABSOLUTELY NEED TO KNOW. Obviously, the main romance is still working through some of its kinks, but I was very please to see some more action than in the previous books. Slow burn is not for the weak.
Character development is the name of the game for this book, and EVERYONE is going through it. The villain especially, as he works through his own feelings toward his accomplice, as well as all the other things going wrong in his world. He’s suffered so much, and it is SO incredible to see his growth. His relationship with Kingsley is further explored (as Kingsley becomes a bit more critical to this story than the comedic relief we’ve experienced thus far). The other characters also have their own moments as well, and I appreciate that Hannah takes the time to give each character their due. Even if they don’t have a chapter perspective, they have scene time with one of the main characters and we get to see those characters reflected in a different way (in my opinion). I love the developing friendships, romances, and acquaintanceships that are happening.
Since this story is setting up what is to come, I think some might feel it a little unnecessary. There are critical plot points to be sure, but overall, some might consider it a bit of a side quest in a bigger storyline. I loved this, because it was the necessary detail I needed to make a more fleshed out world than I had originally envisioned, and I felt like I was able to truly relate to the characters in a deeper way.
Overall, this story was a 10/10 for me. It hooked me from the first chapter, and I wasn’t able to put it down until the very end. I truly encourage you to put this on your TBR, especially if you’re looking for a story with more levity, yet still has moments of drama and gravity.
Accomplice to the Villain is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore.
Will you be picking up Accomplice to the Villain? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis
Once Upon a Time meets The Office in Hannah Nicole Maehrer’s laugh-out-loud viral TikTok series turned novel, about the sunshine assistant to an Evil Villain…and their unexpected romance.
REWARD OFFERED: Apprentice to The Villain wanted for treason (light), magical property damage (alleged), and one incident involving a weaponized scone (accurate). Frequently seen with a grumpy frog (crowned, judgmental). Answers to “Evie” or “Stop that.”
Evie Sage didn’t mean to become the right-hand woman to the kingdom’s most terrifying villain. One minute, she was applying for an entry-level position that promised “light paperwork and occasional beheadings,” and the next, she was knee-deep in magical mayhem, murder plots, and an entirely inappropriate crush on her brooding, sharp-jawed, walking disaster of a boss.
Now, with a magical prophecy unraveling, assassins showing up in the break room, and a suspicious amount of frogs wearing crowns, Evie has to figure out how to survive her job without setting the kingdom on fire―or her dignity, which is hanging by a very sarcastic thread.
Being evil-adjacent was never part of the five-year plan. But then again…neither was falling for The Villain.
A magical office comedy with grumpy bosses, snarky frogs, and definitely-not-feelings.
