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nivek1385's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
N.B. I received a free copy of this book via freeaudiobookcodes.com.
mellhay's review
5.0
Even though I have fun and enjoy the quick quips, jokes, and references, there's a serious side to Gary too. Gary has a lot going on with his family and friends. Gary takes it all in and goes with it as best he can, but he cares for them deeply. I enjoy seeing him react to the family he's made around him.
****FULL REVIEW TO FOLLOW****
****FULL REVIEW TO FOLLOW****
wetdryvac's review against another edition
4.0
That was. Something. Something. Lots of fun, random fun.
audiobookmel's review against another edition
5.0
4.5 stars
Review originally posted at BooksOfMyHeart.net.
So, it’s been a while since I’ve listened to a book in the Supervillainy Saga series, but I’m excited to be back in the world of Gary Karkofsky, aka Merciless. The Tournament of Supervillany is a bit different as Gary and the gang are put into a tournament, which is an interesting new challenge for Gary.
The author continues to follow several superhero tropes, while thumbing his nose at the tropes too. He also combines his universes with guest to Gary’s world. I loved seeing Agent G from Agent G series and Jane Doe from Bright Falls Mysteries series (the weredeer, whose family has a thing for puns). There is also Cassius Mass from Lucifer’s Star, which is one of two series I haven’t read by Phipps. If you haven’t read these other series, that’s okay, but you will want to read the earlier books in this series.
So Death puts Gary into this tournament with Jane, Agent G and Cassius (new to this series) along with his normal sidekicks. The person who wins the tournament gets an orb that will give you one wish, with no rules. Needless to say, everyone wants this orb. Death doesn’t want the other side to have it, because the other side wants to end the world with it. Hence, Gary saving the world once again.
Phipps also includes his trademark snark and cultural references. There is a comment in the book about having a PhD in Nerd, well, you don’t actually need a PhD, but a Master’s wouldn’t be bad. There are references to all the different superhero comics, not to mention a lot of Star Wars (and boy, did Phipps not like The Last Jedi), Buffy, and even Harry Dresden is referenced. I’m sure there are some jokes I didn’t get, because I just wasn’t familiar, but that’s okay. There are so many jokes, you’ll get enough of them.
This is a fun series. If you’re looking for a fun series with a supervillain who can’t help but save the world, this is a series you should really try.
Narration
Jeffrey Kafer does an amazing job narrating this series. He’s great with male and female voices (and there’s a lot of different voices in this series), not to mention Gary’s daughter Leia. Kafer is also great at bringing out the snark in a series. He even does writes a second forward to this book. Kafer is a great narrator. If you haven’t tried him yet, you really must.
**I like to thank the author for providing me with a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
Review originally posted at BooksOfMyHeart.net.
So, it’s been a while since I’ve listened to a book in the Supervillainy Saga series, but I’m excited to be back in the world of Gary Karkofsky, aka Merciless. The Tournament of Supervillany is a bit different as Gary and the gang are put into a tournament, which is an interesting new challenge for Gary.
The author continues to follow several superhero tropes, while thumbing his nose at the tropes too. He also combines his universes with guest to Gary’s world. I loved seeing Agent G from Agent G series and Jane Doe from Bright Falls Mysteries series (the weredeer, whose family has a thing for puns). There is also Cassius Mass from Lucifer’s Star, which is one of two series I haven’t read by Phipps. If you haven’t read these other series, that’s okay, but you will want to read the earlier books in this series.
So Death puts Gary into this tournament with Jane, Agent G and Cassius (new to this series) along with his normal sidekicks. The person who wins the tournament gets an orb that will give you one wish, with no rules. Needless to say, everyone wants this orb. Death doesn’t want the other side to have it, because the other side wants to end the world with it. Hence, Gary saving the world once again.
Phipps also includes his trademark snark and cultural references. There is a comment in the book about having a PhD in Nerd, well, you don’t actually need a PhD, but a Master’s wouldn’t be bad. There are references to all the different superhero comics, not to mention a lot of Star Wars (and boy, did Phipps not like The Last Jedi), Buffy, and even Harry Dresden is referenced. I’m sure there are some jokes I didn’t get, because I just wasn’t familiar, but that’s okay. There are so many jokes, you’ll get enough of them.
This is a fun series. If you’re looking for a fun series with a supervillain who can’t help but save the world, this is a series you should really try.
Narration
Jeffrey Kafer does an amazing job narrating this series. He’s great with male and female voices (and there’s a lot of different voices in this series), not to mention Gary’s daughter Leia. Kafer is also great at bringing out the snark in a series. He even does writes a second forward to this book. Kafer is a great narrator. If you haven’t tried him yet, you really must.
**I like to thank the author for providing me with a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
spazenport's review against another edition
5.0
All the way back to when the Jetsons met the Flintstones, and every dang Scooby Doo special, I've always loved a good Crossover. Most recently, the CW Superhero shows reminded me how much I love Crossovers. Crossovers are great because they mean that no longer are there no consequences in a story. The story is unequivocally effected by having the rules of each story's world suddenly become part of their own. I find it exciting and fun to know that the sandbox the creators are playing in is so much bigger. A beach more than a sandbox.
This love of Crossovers was reignited with a fury when I heard that the new Supervillainy book by C.T. Phipps was going to include a huge Crossover of all of his written worlds.
Unlike all of those other Crossover stories, though. It doesn't open with an even breakdown from every one of those separate worlds. We get a Phipps Crossover in the best way that we could: From Gary's point of view.
The story's plot is pretty straight forward. There's an orb that will allow anyone who possesses it one wish with absolutely no limits. Since all realities could be effected by a wishing device with no rules, Death's first champion, Entropicus put together a Tournament for champions from each reality to duel for the right to win the magical orb. Entropicus's goal is to win the orb for himself so that he can end all things. Death doesn't like that and sends her newest champion, Gary, to try and win the tournament.
Things go crazy from there as Gary starts to meet all of the other characters from other works of C.T. Phipps, including Jane Doe, Agent G, and Cassius Mass. While I would have liked to see John Booth from the Cthulhu Armageddon series, John has already shown a propensity for being woven into the very fabric of the multiverse, and I understand leaving him out to preserve the integrity of his potential universe hopping.
But dang, it'd be neat for Gary to learn Cthulhu was real...
I digress. The plot surrounding Gary and his crew of misfits isn't derailed by the Crossover event so much as enhanced by it. Gary's wife Mandy is acting really off and it's got Gary a little concerned, but he's too busy to deal with it as his other wife Cindy and his new/old girlfriend, Gabriel, also known as Ultragoddess, are also in the tournament and everything seems to be going to hell. People are getting killed, their new friends want to steal the orb, and everyone is terrified about what will happen should Entropocis get the orb.
All of this is happening while Gary debates whether or not he has the right to bring people back from the dead who have already died. In the world of comic books, returning from death is a common occurrence, but just because someone can do it, doesn't mean they should. It's a question that has both philosophical and real world consequences depending on how he, the chosen champion of Death, chooses to answer.
And of course, the best part of any Crossover, the interactions between characters from other worlds were spot on. Agent G's realization that his cyberpunk world isn't the greatest while Jane Doe's deer puns contagiously cross universes. Then there was all of the drama around Cassius Mass and ... wait ... how does he know Mandy?
This story had everything in it that first drew me to the Rules of Supervillainy series. From the pop-culture references to the kickass action scenes to the emotional moments that make you empathize with someone who continually fails at being a supervillain, but is a damned awesome anti-hero. Add in all of my favorite characters from other Phipps books and you have the perfect story. The perfect Crossover.
This was a 5 out of 5 book. Definitely give it a read.
This love of Crossovers was reignited with a fury when I heard that the new Supervillainy book by C.T. Phipps was going to include a huge Crossover of all of his written worlds.
Unlike all of those other Crossover stories, though. It doesn't open with an even breakdown from every one of those separate worlds. We get a Phipps Crossover in the best way that we could: From Gary's point of view.
The story's plot is pretty straight forward. There's an orb that will allow anyone who possesses it one wish with absolutely no limits. Since all realities could be effected by a wishing device with no rules, Death's first champion, Entropicus put together a Tournament for champions from each reality to duel for the right to win the magical orb. Entropicus's goal is to win the orb for himself so that he can end all things. Death doesn't like that and sends her newest champion, Gary, to try and win the tournament.
Things go crazy from there as Gary starts to meet all of the other characters from other works of C.T. Phipps, including Jane Doe, Agent G, and Cassius Mass. While I would have liked to see John Booth from the Cthulhu Armageddon series, John has already shown a propensity for being woven into the very fabric of the multiverse, and I understand leaving him out to preserve the integrity of his potential universe hopping.
But dang, it'd be neat for Gary to learn Cthulhu was real...
I digress. The plot surrounding Gary and his crew of misfits isn't derailed by the Crossover event so much as enhanced by it. Gary's wife Mandy is acting really off and it's got Gary a little concerned, but he's too busy to deal with it as his other wife Cindy and his new/old girlfriend, Gabriel, also known as Ultragoddess, are also in the tournament and everything seems to be going to hell. People are getting killed, their new friends want to steal the orb, and everyone is terrified about what will happen should Entropocis get the orb.
All of this is happening while Gary debates whether or not he has the right to bring people back from the dead who have already died. In the world of comic books, returning from death is a common occurrence, but just because someone can do it, doesn't mean they should. It's a question that has both philosophical and real world consequences depending on how he, the chosen champion of Death, chooses to answer.
And of course, the best part of any Crossover, the interactions between characters from other worlds were spot on. Agent G's realization that his cyberpunk world isn't the greatest while Jane Doe's deer puns contagiously cross universes. Then there was all of the drama around Cassius Mass and ... wait ... how does he know Mandy?
This story had everything in it that first drew me to the Rules of Supervillainy series. From the pop-culture references to the kickass action scenes to the emotional moments that make you empathize with someone who continually fails at being a supervillain, but is a damned awesome anti-hero. Add in all of my favorite characters from other Phipps books and you have the perfect story. The perfect Crossover.
This was a 5 out of 5 book. Definitely give it a read.
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