A review by beckyyreadss
Apprentice to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

adventurous emotional funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I wanted to read this book because I enjoyed the first and debut book of Hannah’s and loved her videos long before. I loved the idea of a bad guy having a fluffy assistant and how the bad buy was getting feelings for her even though he shouldn’t be. I was wondering how she was going to carry on with this book and I enjoyed it but felt like it was a bit more slow-paced than the last book.  

This book has two points of view. The first is Evie Sage and she has never been happier to be the assistant to The Villain. Who would have thought that working for an outrageously handsome evil overlord would be so rewarding? Still. The business of being bad is demanding. The forces of good are annoyingly persistent and said forbidding boss is somewhat out-of-office. The second point of view is The Villain, AKA Trystan and he has been captured by the King Benedict and has no hope of getting out and now Evie is apparently dead and now Rennedawn is in grave trouble, and all signs – Kingsley's included – point to catastrophe. Something peculiar is happening with the kingdom’s magic, and it’s made The Villain’s manor vulnerable to their enemies. Now it’s time for Evie to face her great challenge: protecting The Villain’s lair, all of his nefarious work, and maybe the entire kingdom. It's time to step out of her comfort zone and learn new skills. Like treason. Dagger work. Conspiring with the enemy. But what happens when the assistant to The Villain is ready to become his apprentice?  

This book is still a cute and funny read. I was still squealing and kicking my feet at Trystan and Evie. I love that the whole office knew that there was tension between them and just let them play out their moments. I loved the character development of Becky and why she liked control and order. I liked that Becky and Evie are now showing support for each other and actually becoming friends. Especially when Becky told Evie that there was no assistant job that was needed but he just hired her. I love how Evie is becoming so confident and how she is wanting to become an apprentice and not just an assistant.  

The thing I struggled with the book compared to the first one is the repeated information. I lot of things we already knew was stated again and again. The first bit comes out with all guns blazing and you are in the driver's seat, and you know it’s about to be a fast-paced book with a lot of action and then it just lost its momentum. I was just sort of skimming over the repeated information and the slow bits in the book because I was getting bored. Then within the last five pages, it went up a notch so that it ended on a cliffhanger. It just felt like a filler book at times – introduce the brother that we can’t trust, build the ever-growing tension between Evie and Trystan, some fight scenes and then done. 

I have a feeling that the next book in the series is going to be better because of the cliffhanger and how everything has led up to this book. Hopefully we get Evie and Trystan skipping off into the sunset, but I have a feeling it’s going to take a while to get to that point. Also, I don’t trust Evie’s family like any of them besides Evie.  
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