Long Live Evil by Sarah Rees Brennan Series: Time of Iron #1
Published by Orbit on August 27, 2024
Genres: Fiction / Fantasy / Action & Adventure, Fiction / Fantasy / Humorous
Pages: 464
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780316568722ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES "BEST SCIENCE FICTION AND FANTASY OF 2024" AND "BEST ROMANCE NOVELS OF 2024"
THIS IS A TALE FOR EVERYONE WHO’S EVER FALLEN FOR THE VILLAIN…
This adult epic fantasy debut from Sarah Rees Brennan puts the reader in the villain's shoes, for an adventure that is both "brilliant" (Holly Black) and "supremely satisfying" (Leigh Bardugo). Expect a rogue's gallery of villains including an axe wielding maid, a shining knight with dark moods, a homicidal bodyguard, and a playboy spymaster with a golden heart and a filthy reputation.
When her whole life collapsed, Rae still had books. Dying, she seizes a second chance at living: a magical bargain that lets her enter the world of her favorite fantasy series.
She wakes in a castle on the edge of a hellish chasm, in a kingdom on the brink of war. Home to dangerous monsters, scheming courtiers and her favourite fictional character: the Once and Forever Emperor. He’s impossibly alluring, as only fiction can be. And in this fantasy world, she discovers she's not the heroine, but the villainess in the Emperor's tale.
So be it. The wicked are better dressed, with better one-liners, even if they're doomed to bad ends. She assembles the wildly disparate villains of the story under her evil leadership, plotting to change their fate. But as the body count rises and the Emperor's fury increases, it seems Rae and her allies may not survive to see the final page.★ "Rae’s adventure begins with tremendous wonder, and there are many laugh-out-loud moments as she revels in the fun of being a fictional femme fatale. But as Rae gets closer to her goal, Brennan brings the people and the world of Eyam to vivid, often heartbreaking life with such incredible skill that readers will be even bigger fans of Time of Iron than Alice. Absolutely wonderful.”―Kirkus (Starred)
★ "Brennan's adult fantasy debut is two great stories in one: the romantasy in the background and Rae’s adventure in the foreground."―Booklist (Starred)
If you’ve eve wondered what it’d be like to walk into your favorite book, then you’ll want to read this one! I haven’t laughed as much while reading a book in ages.
It did take me a moment to get into the novel cause it is different than other books I’ve read. I love how Rae leans into the villainess archetype because being a villain is so much more fun than being good sometimes. The other main characters definitely started as archetypes of fantasy characters (I mean they are since this is a book within a book) but over the course of the novel, Brennan delves deeper into the characters were they become more real instead of just their archetypes.
I was definitely surprised by the ending. When reading books, I read the very last line of the book (never the full last). I don’t know when I started this or why, but it’s what I do. Anyways, when I read the last line, I was intrigued about where this was going. Once certain events happened, I’m a bit embarrassed that I didn’t see the ending coming.
I’m upset that I can’t read the next book now and have to wait till autumn to read the next book!!
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