Thank you NetGalley for the audiobook!

Just want to say that the narrator did an amazing job. So many different accents and were well delivered, o don’t imagine it’s easy to do several different accents for several different characters. Great narration.

However, the audiobook itself is too confusing to have many different accents. The different accents make more sense later on but, starting out was not a great call. Narrator is speaking with an English accent but the FMC has an American accent. No context for the reasoning whatsoever. Then the characters in the other world had their own accent. Listening was so hard to differentiate the diff POVs. So confusing, better to read this physically.

As for the book, was not a big fan. This book felt like it was written by an English author and their take on how an American talks based on American reality shows. Did not enjoy the valley girl FMC in an olden fantasy setting. Felt it was super annoying and took away from the idea of going into a fantasy book. Also, was no one questioning why she would have a diff accent? I’m sure the book did not say that bc the audio didn’t say that so not sure why the decision to have diff accents came into play.

Don’t think I really liked anybody in this book. Pretty much ESH.

This book had potential. Sooo much potential.

This book is what I imagine when someone says chaotic evil. It is a romp of a good time for all of us who are intrigued by the villains. There is a LOT going on, but I feel like it all weaves together quite well. The start of a series that I am definitely curious to finish! 3.75 rounded up!

This book was a lot of fun! It was perfect for those of us who grew up always rooting for the villain or us queers who always had a crush on her. I will say I did read a book with a very similar concept that I felt did this quite a bit better. For that reason I am only giving the three stars. I still greatly enjoyed this book though and I look forward to the rest of this series.

'Long Live Evil' is an epic fantasy comedy that brings to mind those anime about reincarnation in an alternative universe (see That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime Weekly & Monthly ... Fans!)

The story is pretty unique, with some interesting premises that blend an epic fantasy tale with humor and contemporary details.

The book also is filled with twists (especially the final one was chef's kiss) and turns and the worldbuilding is smooth. Fortunately, the romance was an afterthought for this one, so it was more focused on the characters and developing the story rather than throwing in a half-baked love story. Though, I can see some romance in future books, but, by then, the characters and the story would have developed enough so that the dynamics would be believable.

However, I would have to point out that, and even though the switch was one of the smoothest I've read so far, the multiple povs didn't work for me at first, especially since we didn't know the characters yet and it was confusing. It got better though in the second half of the book.

Finally, the narrator of the book did a great job presenting all the characters with different dynamics for each one. The production was also splendid.

First, I’m going to preface this by saying I listened to the audio and think I may have enjoyed it more as a physical or ebook. This isn’t about the narrator at all, there was just was a lot going on, and I personally found it tricky to keep up with all the details via audio.

Rae is given a second chance at life when she wakes up in the castle of one of her favorite fantasy series - except she doesn’t know much about the book she is transported to at all. The world building felt a little all over the place to me. It was hard to keep up with what was happening and which characters were involved. There were so many moments that I did laugh out loud throughout the book. Sarah Rees Brennan definitely has a sense of humor! I love the overall premise of this book and I’m planning on trying it again once I have a physical copy.

While I struggled with the plot via audio, the narrator spoke clearly and did a great job giving each character a distinct voice.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the ARC!

Was this a perfect book? No. Was this the perfect book for me? Possibly.

This book is pure camp, pure meta. I ended up loving the characters despite a lot of them feeling pretty one-dimensional, but isn’t that kind of the point?

I cannot wait to see where this series goes and if its inherent silliness will strike the same chord for me in future installments.

the narrators really sold this book, I do not know if I would have enjoyed it as much had I just read it myself.
Thank you Hachette Audio Orbit for letting me listen to this amazing audiobook

Long Live Evil is a fun mess all around. I often think about what life would be like if I were a little evil and this book is the perfect getaway for that.
Rae and Key were their own brand of crazy and I enjoyed every second of it. I wish there was more of a plot but the the character driven narrative still saved the book from being boring. All the charcaters were so funt to get to know. I am looking forward to the reading the rest the series.

3.75/5

3.5 stars. Thank you to the author, NetGalley and Hachette Audio for providing me with an audiobook copy in exchange for an honest review.

When I saw Sarah Rees Brennan has a new book coming out, I had to jump at the chance to read it early. I sadly don’t remember the plot of either Demon’s Lexicon or The Unspoken because I read both series so long ago, but I do remember how much I adored those books. The characters still hold a special place in my heart.

Long Live Evil lived up to my expectations in many ways but there were also elements that I was kind of bothered by. I loved all the side characters who, despite essentially all being comic relief villains, turned out to have some intriguing depths. The Cobra and Marius were my favorites and all I want out of the next book is for them to be happy. And I didn’t even realize when I became obsessed with Key. At first, he was a goofy stereotype and then suddenly I was finding him kinda hot lol. What a truly unhinged character. I love him. Rae was…. okay but I didn’t love her sense of humor, and I often got irritated by how unwilling she was to adapt to the world she was in and see the characters around her as real people.

The audiobook narrator did a great job, she speaks clearly, she has a very pleasant voice, and I enjoy how distinct her voices for different characters are. Sometimes fantasy books are hard to follow if you don’t have the words in front of you but that was not the case with this book at all, I never had the desire to flip to the right page and check spellings or make sure I’d heard something right.

However, I don’t think I struggled this much with the author’s humor back when I first read her older books. I’m SURE I wouldn’t struggle this much if I reread the Demon’s Lexicon now. The book is fun, campy and isn’t meant to be taken too seriously but at the same time all the slightly outdated online slang and memes just didn’t land for me personally. I found many jokes genuinely funny (for example, there’s a horse named Google Maps) and I think the author is clearly very witty, the writing just strayed too often over the line of what I find tolerable. Especially in the beginning. I got more into the book as its’ more earnest heart slowly got revealed but sometimes Sarah Rees Brennan unexpectedly still hits you with a truckload of cringe that leaves you reeling. Nothing against the author, like I’ve said I’m a huge fan of hers, I just don’t think anyone can seamlessly integrate a musical dance number into a book.

At the end of the day the author had fun writing this and you can feel that while reading. Even though it comes across as silly, goofy, messy and a bit hectic at times, it has an underlying sincerity, and it subverts fantasy tropes in a clever, interesting way. I think it’s a good book but whether you’ll enjoy it very much depends on your sense of humor and how much chaos you can take. Go into this when you want to have fun, not when you’re in the mood for a serious read.

Thank you NetGalley and Hatchette audio for this advanced copy of Long Live Evil.

Overall rating 4.5/5 rounded up to 5 Stars

Okay, this book is definitely not going to be everyone’s cup of tea but I loved it. It’s high fantasy with a comedic twist and it’s quite the journey. At first you have to really pay attention to the world building. But as the story progresses it’s an interesting look into how much we actually care about our favorite characters vs. the characters that are required for a story. It has you question what you would do in the protagonists place. Does the story belong to the reader, or the author? Are we willing to risk our morals in the protagonist shoes? What makes someone a villain?

I loved this, and I really can’t wait for book 2.

I am in shock and the brilliance and darkness of all this.

The story starts out with Rae, who is seriously ill and facing down death, being given a chance to visit her favourite story (A Grimmdark fantasy) to get a flower to come back to her life healthy. The problem is she wakes up as the Villain in the story. Rae, as a spectator of the story, loved the dark cruel “burn the world” characters in theory, but when she starts to have to live in it, things get more complicated.

There are a lot of poking fun at Romantasy as a genre, all the Something and Something names, the Court of Air and Grace, the Flower of Life and Death. There is also some poking at character tropes, and you can see people straining slightly at their roles. What do you do when tears are your only weapon, what does it actually meant to be the Good Guy when you can’t figure out how to balance truth and mercy. And while the story starts off light, it goes to some really dark places.

I enjoyed the twists and turns, and there were a few places where I full out gasped is shock and needed to take a minute to get myself back together.

The narration of the audiobook was fantastic. The accent choices really worked for me. To have Rae with a more US accent, and the rest of the court and narration in a variety of accents from across the UK really worked to help reinforce the subtle otherness of Rae. I particularly liked Marius (the Last Hope) with the slight Sean Bean vibes.

This was brilliant and heart-breaking and amazing and I am now DESPERATLY hoping that it will be a series!

Moira Quirk is my all-time favourite audiobook narrator and I’ve now listened to more books from her than any other narrator and she never disappoints.
I was intrigued by the premise for Long Live Evil but unfortunately, I found Long Live Evil failed in it's execution; disorienting with modern modern vernacular from MC while in a fantasy setting, the pacing was a little off, characters felt two-dimensional, and the twists could be seen way to far ahead.
While I’m not the biggest fan of this book, I know there are going to be tons of readers out there who will absolutely adore this unique fantasy adventure with campy vibes and an interesting exploration of archetypes.

This was a very unique book! I LOVED the fmc and her whole character! The story line was very entertaining and I enjoyed the whole concept. I would highly recommend this book to readers.

I can't remember the last time I had this much fun reading. This book is a wild ride but it's FUN.
Listen, if someone gave me a bargain and a second chance at living that allowed me into my fantasy book series, l'd JUMP ON IT. This book was such an interesting concept and I enjoyed it a lot!
Definitely a book you need to pay attention to. There's a lot going on especially in the beginning but keep going as it's worth it!
Not 5 stars only bc the other POVs added too much confusion to it imo. It also felt a little unnecessary.

The idea behind this book is excellent. I’m not sure my experience with the story was at the same level. I felt a lot of information was missing because it’s based off of a series of books but we don’t know anything about them and our FMC also doesn’t really know a lot about them. I didn’t dislike my time in this world but I do think there was the capacity for me to have loved this but I have lukewarm feelings. Im undecided if I will continue.

While the concept of this story had me itching to get my hands on it, unfortunately this one wasn’t for me. The premise of the story is that Rae gets transported to the world of her favorite fantasy series, and I wanted to live vicariously through her just for that fact. Imagine: me? Stuck in Game of Thrones? Call the police, I’d be so down!! …However, I find it extremely unbelievable that a Big Fan of a Popular Fantasy Series hasn’t read the first book. Anyone who’s ever read epic/high fantasy knows that the first book is CRUCIAL to world building and character development. Ain’t no way Rae doesn’t know what happens in the first book, which she gets transported to, although that works as a plot device for her journey.
Anyway, I got so lost in the sauce while audiobooking this. I really believe I would have had a different experience with this having physically read it (and I might try that when my Fairyloot box comes in for this month, as this is rumored to be the August pick). However the world building was strangely paced, and I found it difficult to keep up with what was Rae’s story and what was the fantasy world she was in; that is, there was So Much telling instead of showing in terms of what happened in what book and which character does this, etc. and I found it difficult to keep up with the world building at times. Although the second half of the book got so much better, I still find that the parts writing in the side characters’ POVs was flat and unnecessary. I think this novel would have worked so much better as a 1st person POV.
Overall, the ending was satisfying, if predictable.

This book was INCREDIBLE! I absolutely loved it! Think of Magic Kingdom for Sale by Terry Brooks, or the Frugal Wizards' Guide to Surviving Medieval England by Brandon Sanderson. Only, it's female and a thriller fantasy, but ITS JUST THAT GOOD. Gah, I loved this book and can't wait to tell everyone about it.

This book was the most fever dreamy book I’ve ever fever dreamt. I had so much fun reading this and it had this very nostalgic quality to it that came with our main character Rae, being a fan of the series (if she can be called a fan lmao). In a way, she was a very self-insert character but in the sense that, as an avid fantasy reader, I’ve always somewhat wanted to be a part of the fantasy world I was reading about, and Rae got to be that very thing. However, she also had an amazing and extremely witty personality that was a result of her experiences in the real world, and she was absolutely hilarious. This book is just a series of « what ifs? », taken to the extreme and turned into a parody but still with a compelling plot, a fun world-building and hilarious characters. The author used very common fantasy tropes (especially in those older fantasy published in the 80s/90s) and added their own twist to them so that they created this super refreshing storyline. My only thing was that it was maybe a bit too long and the 60 to 80% mark dragged a little in my opinion but it was still such a good time and I truly recommend. 4.25 stars

<b>”by the time I’m done with it, the story will beg <i>me</i> for mercy”</b>

⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

<b>Long Live Evil</b> follows Rae, who is dying of cancer and is given a chance to live by being added to the fantasy book ‘Time of Iron’ and stealing the flower of life & death when it blooms.
She is added to the story as the heroine’s evil step sister who is due to be executed tomorrow, & she immediately begins rallying all the evil doers & discovering what being the villain truly means for her.
⚔️
<i><b>”if they curse your name, at least they remember it”</b></i>
⚔️
I will say a lot of the things I’ve seen in other’s reviews are things that were done intentionally - like the modern into the fantasy. I mean she was literally yoinked from her hospital bed into a fantasy book.
The characters are archetypal and expected because they are <i>supposed</i> to be - it challenges typical tropes and makes you confront the fact that things don’t happen based on your expectations (even if you know how the book ends 😉).

🗡️

The narrator was fantastic and seamlessly transitioned between accents. This book is so funny and I feel like she contributed much to that - there were times I was literally laughing out loud and texting quotes to my husband.

<b>”all this slut shaming and no slut praising”</b>

The beginning did feel a bit clunky to me and it became a lot more coherent and easy to follow around halfway through.
That being said, the ending was <i>fantastic</i> and had me thinking I will be reaching for book 2 when it comes out.

<i><b>”being nice was nice, but being nasty got shit done”</b></i>

Thank you to NetGalley, Hachette Audio, & Orbit for the ARC 💕

<i><b>”time to take evil to the next level”</b></i>

Long Live Evil by Sarah Rees Brennan is a very interesting story. It follows Rae, a young woman who is very sick and makes a bargain to enter the world of her favorite book series. Only when she enters, she find that she has actually taken the place of the villain character. What else can she do but embrace it?

The biggest thing about this book is it is very campy. If you do not like things that are a little silly and goofy, this isn’t the book for you. Rae is in a story book world and is constantly using modern terminology and having to explain what it means to the other characters around her. This is really funny in the book but I know it could get on some reader’s nerves if they want something a little more serious.

I really had a good time with this one. I was laughing out loud more than once and I thought the main plot was intriguing. There is a large cast of characters but I think the author does a good job giving everyone a distinct personality.

My only issue with this book is that it feels long. Some parts seem kind of repetitive and it makes the pacing feel a bit off. I think fifty pages could probably have been edited out and it would have helped a lot. But it was still an enjoyable read.

Moira Quirk narrates the audiobook. She is one of my favorite audiobook narrators and I thought she did great in this book. Her voice matched the type of story very well.

Thank you NetGalley and Hachette Audio for the arc of Long Live Evil by Sarah Rees Brennan. After her chances of surviving cancer are dwindling, Rae gets the chance to enter the world of her favorite book series, Time of Iron. However, after waking up she realizes that she is in the body of the stories villain, who is the heroine’s stepsister. She uses her knowledge to recruit other villains for her cause as well as navigating the unfolding plot.

The concept of this book is really fascinating, as it depicts the POV of a villainous character in a different light. I also really enjoyed Rae using modern day phrases and words. The world building could have improved a bit, as it was introduced all at once. I read this book in an audiobook format and really liked the narration. The characters were really brought to life by using the different voices.