Reviews tagging 'Confinement'

Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer

64 reviews

shannnne_reads_words's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Terminal illness, Violence, Murder, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Child death, Confinement, and Torture

avacyn731's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny hopeful tense fast-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? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Sexual harassment, and Pandemic/Epidemic

citrarowan's review against another edition

adventurous funny mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

I am speechless and trying to understand why I liked this book so much. It’s not the most brilliant thing I’ve ever read, yet it has something that completely mesmerised me. And for the life of me, I never saw that coming (that plot twist at the end), I’m usually really good at figuring where the plot is going but I kid you not, I was dumbfounded by the last couple chapters. This book is so silly and it feels like a YA (even though it’s not, given all characters are in their 20s), but I’m not going to pretend to be pretentious and say it was rubbish when I genuinely enjoyed it. Evie is such an interesting character, I’m so happy to see a character that’s so true to themselves and even though there’s some character development going on, her true essence remains at the end (just more villain-y, which I LOVED). Picking up the second book RIGHT NOW!!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Torture, Blood, Kidnapping, and Sexual harassment

Minor: Animal cruelty, Confinement, Rape, and Death of parent

tayreads10's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I am not a fan of fantasy books, but this one had me captivated with the wit, humor, flirty romance and mystery. I look forward to reading the second book to continue from the cliff hanger ending!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

kp_reads_in_the_dark's review against another edition

lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I almost DNF this book, but I committed to seeing it through since I didn't want to feel like I'd wasted my money buying it. The first thing I got hung up on was that the lead female character is stereotypically "adorkable," small, and clumsy. I got exasperated very quickly with her constant stumbling and falling - which seemed to also be the primary way that the auther created chemistry between the two main characters. Thankfully the chapters are short. I slogged my way through it and finally felt like I got some payoff in the last 5 chapters (when the main mystery was solved). Although the book ends in a cliffhanger and I'm tempted to read the sequel to see how the story is resolved, I'm not sure I'd have the patience. I found the whole thing very one-dimensional (characters, dialogue, scenery), which is unfortunate because the premise has so much promise.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual assault

Minor: Confinement and Abandonment

I don't want to harp on this book or it's author (after all, it's her first) but man - it was a painful read. The dialogue felt forced, unnatural (at worst) or stilted (at best). (After I finished it, I realized that the main female protagonist's description matches the author's appearance, so take that for whatever it might mean.) In short, I had been looking for a story with more grit, maturity, and authenticity, but instead got something that felt more like a clunky, YA adaptation of a Disney movie.

arlaubscher's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious fast-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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Sexism, Sexual assault, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Body horror and Alcohol

indieandajean's review against another edition

adventurous funny lighthearted 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

4.0

Assistant to the Villain is an adorable fantasy rom-com with more emphasis on the "com". The slow burn in this book will be of no surprise to anyone who enjoyed watching the tiktok series it was based on, and it makes for a lot of exasperation from a reader's perspective when you read many chapters of pining and them "almost" getting to the point. This is a feature, not a bug.

The characters are lovable, the plot moves along at a decent pace, and it has just the right amount of tropes that one would expect from a slow-burn, mutual pining, workplace rom-com. It also has a dragon, which is always a positive. 

My only complaint is that at times the book was a little too slow. There were unnecessary scenes that did little to move the plot forward or deepen the reader's understanding of the characters.  I understand that the author was given a three book deal and that where there is a three book deal about a single romance, there is going to have to be some filler. That said, the story never dragged, even through these filler moments, and it was always fun to pick back up to read. 

My review is probably somewhat biased as I fell in love with Evie Sage played by Hannah Nicole Maehrer in her Tiktok videos that were the catalyst for the books, but I challenge anyone who loves a good underdog to watch the videos or read this book and not also love the character. She, the Villain, Blade, Tatiana, and yes, even Becky, are great characters and it was fun to see them more fully fleshed out in this book. 

I am very much looking forward to book two which is coming out this fall, particularly because of the cliffhanger ending!

I recommend this one for anyone who enjoys a bit of humor in their romances, morally grey fantasy villains, dragons, and strong female characters who overcome obstacles and earn the respect of people around them. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Chronic illness, Cursing, Death, Gore, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

Minor: Animal cruelty, Bullying, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

stories's review against another edition

dark lighthearted mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Good fun. Definitely for adults - some swears, quite a bit of lusting. Dual POV: Assistant & Villain. Mutual pining. 

Lots of mysterious backstories. 

Some fun characters, with solid side character development. Bonus points for at-odds lesbians. 

Some fun playing with traditional fairytale and fantasy tropes, alongside office workplace dramas. 

Working for a villain is all well and good, but when there’s a mole in the office, it’s not the *safest* workplace ever. 

Mildly cliffhanger ending, which was not my favourite. (Not least bc my library doesn’t recognise the existence of book 2 & 3 :c )

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Chronic illness, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal cruelty, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Sexism, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Murder, and Alcohol

Villainous deeds (murder, torture etc) occur, but off screen and typically presented in a tongue-in-cheek fashion.

p_markvart's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny inspiring slow-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

3.75

Loved it, then hated it, then loved it again

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Death, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Confinement

Minor: Child death, Sexual assault, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Sexual harassment

rightwhrleftme's review against another edition

adventurous funny lighthearted slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Confinement, Death, Gore, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail