Moira Quirk’s performance of Sarah Rees Brennan’s writing is incredibly fun, going from deliciously and unabashedly evil to contemplative about the very nature of a life. At times if felt like Monty Python descended on Robert Jordan’s desk and did as they pleased lol A character jumping into a story is always going to be very meta and self-referential, but here everything is grounded by Rae facing terminal cancer and at such a young age. I got very emotional reading it. I think this book will be especially great for fantasy readers who jump in knowing the genre conventions and get all the in-jokes and critiques (I don’t know if I quite got everything) Excited for Book 2!

Honestly one of my top reads this year. As a fan of manhwa’s where the fmc dies in the real world and gets reincarnated in a fantasy world, this was right up my alley. I could not get enough of the characters and their motivations, they were incredibly relatable. At times they may have been a little cringy, but honestly it just played into the comedic aspect of this book and how the characters truly played up their roles as villains as if they were putting on a performance. The Cobra was also an incredibly lovable character, who was incredibly well portrayed as the misunderstood villain. The narrator also did an amazing job! Would definitely recommend giving it a listen!

This book has me obsessed!!! the plot, the characters, the twists! I loved every second of this audiobook the naration was done perfectly and I can not wait to read more so please let there be a second book

This was such a wildly fun and trope-busting ride! I already love Moira Quirk as a narrator of many other fantasy works, and I remain in awe of how she does a brilliant job of making such a large cast of characters so vivid. Who among us avid fantasy readers hasn't wanted to climb into our favorite series and live as our favorite characters. Especially during difficult times in our lives. This is a story where the protagonist embarks on a journey where she knows all the plot twists and yet the plot twists out from under her. Add to that the gravitas of a young adult watching her life slowly eaten away by cancer, given a quest in her favorite book series which might cure her, you already have SO MUCH potential for meta commentary, and the author does not miss any of it. While there's wall to wall hilarious banter and hijinks as Rae and her growing Viper Gang of Evil keep breaking the known narrative of the books, it is not without heavy and brutal consequences. There is much sneaky introspection on illness, agency, personal narrative, morality, and power, and yet it rarely feels preachy or like a slog. Because this is NOT a short book. Which brings me to my Sarah Rees Brennan shaped annoyance at fantastic lengthy "first book" in a series with no follow up in sight (looking at you In Other Lands). This ended with me being as invested in the fate of the central characters as possible, all literally in the middle of a battle, separated and in peril. I'll be real upset if a sequel doesn't materialize in my lifetime.

5/5

Do you believe in love at first sight? The moment I saw this book, I knew I would love it. And I did.

Now, this isn't without caveats. The first 20% of the book was a climb (I am not typically a hiker). The "I'm a villain" song and dance during the ball were wildly cringy. Though, that may be more of a personal pet peeve. It's a scene that is better seen than read or described.

Once you get through that--it was everything I wanted and everything I needed. This book is so quotable, that it made me annotate. This book has the type of energy I want when I start a book that says it's for someone who loves the villain. Not apologetic. Not remorseful or guilt-ridden. You are out for yourself and are morally grey, in the truest sense. And there is character growth! Brilliant, beautiful, please put me down for the sequel as soon as it's available for the public eye.

My highlights:
-Key being Key. I cried, I laughed, and I highlighted so many quotes.
-Rae and the Cobra's friendship. So good. We should all be so lucky to find someone who wholly matches your vibe, and understands the aesthetics of being a villain.
-I hope to see Emer grow. She was such a stealthy character, that I didn't care about her until I found myself completely invested by the end.
-Lia, I was ready to roll my eyes the entire time she showed being the "clumsy heroine who everyone automatically loves" that is chronically underdeveloped beyond that. This is a story about sisters being sisters to each other and I loved her relationship with Rae.
-Marius's "corruption" arc. Is it truly corruption though if he is better for joining the side of the villains?
-I didn't know the words, "I'm your number one fan," could make me cry, Here I am, typing this, and tearing up.
-Key and Rae's relationship took me by surprise. It shouldn't have, but it did and I was so giddy.
-The Cobra. Just him. I love an opportunist. Especially when they are competent. But next time let Marius finish his sentence! If not for you, for me.
-I also love choices having consequences. Every choice Rae makes ripples the events of the Time of Iron plot points. It's fantastic!

I was not only fortunate to get an early ebook version, but also the audiobook through Netgalley. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

The audiobook really drew me in and kept me in the world, Moira Quirk did a terrific job! My only small gripe was that there were long pauses between the end of one chapter and the start of the next. It was long enough for me to wonder if the app had crashed or if my headphones died.

In summary, I absolutely loved this world and the characters and I can't wait for the next one.

Thank you Netgalley for the audiobook copy of the book. I feel like this book falls a little short for me. Parts of the book seem to drone on and with the narrator I would zone out a bit, then having to go back and register to the missed parts. I like the premise of the book but just did like the execution.

I have so many thoughts about this book. I’ve been sitting and thinking about it for hours since finishing. A story within a story that is actively changing into the story we’re reading (defiantly meta). This flexed my brain a bit. Life is doing it's thing for me, and my comprehension skills aren’t up to snuff where they usually are. I think I’ll be rereading this prior to book 2 coming out (it is definitely a series) to make sure I understand as much as I can.

I love the villainous characters this story creates. I LOVE THEM. Key and Cobra, with Marius joining in as well, are all of what I love about morally grey characters. You have no idea what they’re up to or what you’re in for. They make you fall for them, then rip your heart out - or do they? - and you’re freaking happy about it. They stole the show for me. The MC, Rae, is good. Her character is lovely, and does she does her job well narrating the adventure. However, I’m not here for her (sorry sister). If you don’t have opinions/feeling/thoughts/tingles/ANYTHING for Key, I don’t think we read the same story. He delivers this book for me. I don't want to say much, but man, I'm in deep.

I have so many questions. Some are basic plot line eyebrow raises that I don’t think are meant to have answers. This book’s concept is very complex. There are just going to be things that are unanswered to keep from bogging down the reader. Some questions I expect to have answers for on page 4 of book 2 because I need to know the tea NOW! I have ships that need to be shipped!

I do think it’s important to know that there is strong call for a cancer trigger warning in the beginning of this book. Depending on one’s experience with cancer; if you’ve seen it up close with a loved one, the first handful fo chapters may be difficult. It is not a graphically detailed theme throughout the storyline but is detailed in those first few chapters.

I have the pleasure of having an eARC and audiobook ARC for this book. The audiobook was really good. I enjoyed the narration throughout. I do think the complexity of the meta concept here may be difficult for readers who don’t have great auditory processing abilities. I strongly prefer audiobooks to eyeball reading and still had a hard time keeping names straight. I think ideally, this would be a fantastic combo read. Having both definitely helped me.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sarah Rees Brennan, Orbit books, and Hachette Audio for the opportunity to dive into this world within a world!

it was a chaotic villainess mess and I kind of loved it. a magical realism fantasy set inside the FMC fantasy books. It was an original story and set up the world building up for success. There were laughs and emotional moments and definitely was rooting for the villain.

I’ve already reviewed the book, so more commenting on the narration. I really enjoyed the narrator! It was engaging and well paced. I wasn’t taken out of the story at any point which is rare for me. I felt she embodies the main character well

Listen, this book may not be for everyone, but just give it a shot! Specifically if you enjoyed the humour in The Locked Tomb — this is for you!

We have a female main character who is near death but then finds her saving grace by going into the book her sister loves. The catch is she doesn’t quite remember enough about it, however, she tries her best to remember as much as she can to make sure it stays on the proper path. The kicker — she’s the heroine’s evil stepsister.

The concept nearly always plays on stereotypes in the characters, and even in gender roles — often times making things funny. There’s dry humour that comes through which really helps lift the storytelling. I did find some of the world building muddied and confusing, especially at the beginning with so many new names / concepts to understand. It does get better as the story goes on and THAT ENDING is just wild. I’m looking forward to book 2!!

I wish I could do the humour justice in my review but just read it to see. The commentary on popular book concepts and even media is hilarious and spot on. I really enjoyed the banter throughout. Yes, there were some lulls but the build up to the end is well worth it. This was refreshing and different which may intimidate some people. Buckle up and enjoy the ride!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

Long Live Evil follows a dying young woman as she makes a life-saving bargain that requires her to enter her favorite fantasy series. This book is full of humor, twists (even to the character that thinks they know the story), and a slew of "evil" characters that you can't help but root for.

AND THAT ENDING?!?! I need Book 2 ASAP.

I received an ARC and ALC from Orbit Books and Hachette Audio via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Moira Quirk remains one of my favorite narrators with her incredible performance.

I devoured the audiobook for this... reading it I don't think it cam out that well what was happening, the characters muddled and the world building expected me to know what happening. The audio helped me get pulled in better and I loved it even more

This was a rough one. I normally love everything from Orbit, but this didn't work for me. Maybe because it's YA? I don't know.
I thought the pacing was all over the place, the beginning was rough to get through. I had a good time in the middle and then slogged through the end.
I also didn't love the characters.

If this sounds good to you, definitely give it a go. I think this was a me thing, and not necessarily the book. I just don't enjoy stories that go from present day to a medieval setting and take the sayings, etc., back there too. It pulls me out of the story. This is the second book like that this year, and I am not a fan. I should have known this wasn't for me, but I wanted to give this type of book another try.
Again, a me thing and not the book.

I think the only reason I finished it and gave it 3 stars is because Moira Quirk is brilliant. She is one of my favorite narrators, and I would probably listen to her read just about anything.

I received an e-arc and audioarc through Netgalley all opinions are my own.

One thing about me is that I love isekai. And this book did not disappoint. It was funny and gripping. I was on the edge my seat because I did not expect those plot twists!

I really enjoyed this book, and had a hard time putting it down.

The audiobook is good, but did confuse me at times. With the changing chapter povs. Also sometimes the narrator sounded a little off putting to me, but otherwise I still enjoyed the narration.

Audio Review: audio is a great way to take in this story. The story really comes to life through the narration.

Long Live Evil is a very unique story for a specific reader, let me help set you up. Also please check trigger warnings there are some heavy topics throughout.

I really enjoyed the main character and the story when it first started. However, as it went on I felt that it was really disjointed and had a hard time finding a balance between world building/ lore dropping and meaningful storytelling. It has a very unique concept, we go inside a dying persons favorite book series and she becomes a villain. On paper, this could have been a new favorite book, however it just didn't quite make it there for me. My biggest difficulty was finding it so disjointed it was hard to keep up with the story and what exactly was happening which made it hard to care and feel connected.

One plus is there were a lot of really good quotes just dropped. Quotes about life, love, meaning, storytelling, books, characters and so much more. I was quite impressed when these random quotes were dropped and felt so meaningful. I just wish I could have fully connected with the story. May be one I try to read again in the future and see how it hits.

I could not get past the narrator used in this audiobook. The narration was really poorly done and in general the book started out slowly. The concept was interesting but I ended up giving up on it

This book was definitely an experience, still trying to decide if it was a pleasant one.

The beginning was pure torture to get thru, it was too many things at once and idk what was going on. Later it got better in the middle, when I started to understand the world building I could enjoy it more.

Really liked the court intrigues and trying to outsmart people who want you dead. And basically everyone wanted her dead. There was too much modern language in fantasy setting. Like I get it, she's from "real world", but it felt forced, like older people trying to write in slang.

Honestly writing “Seriously, you will be powerful A.F.” or “May I speak in tongues at nature’s treasury?” during romantic scene should be banned. Many times I cringed so hard I needed to close the book and take a breather, cus my eyes were bleeding.

The povs other the main character were boring, plain and unnecessary, would be better if it was single pov. The ending was predictable, but nice.

Thank you Netgalley for providing digital advanced copy in exchange for honest review.