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PG-PG-13 (dark themes, grief, tragedy, but nothing particularly inappropriate for older kids/teens/kids at heart)
A wonderfully emotive color palate and art style instantly caught my eye before I even read the synopsis. Came for the art, stayed for the plot.
I’m sure everyone can read a book synopsis themselves, so I’ll keep it brief:
Young potion brewer barista Hawthorne struggles to feel accepted and is convinced they’ll be part of a society far too rigid for their tastes. Doomed to a boring, unseen life. Until the coolest evil brigade in all the land sends out recruitment flyers that is! Hawthorne leaps at the opportunity with all the passion in their (presumably) dark heart.
But, when a teensy mistake finds Hawthorne the new leader of all things evil, they find maybe being a villain isn’t as simple as they thought. After all, how can a real villain just be evil-“ish”?
Overall, I enjoyed the experience, but wished for more character depth out of most of the cast. The ending made sense, but was rushed. Still, I’d happily read any further adventures of Hawthorne, Maple, and co.

Thanks to Netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

A YA graphic novel about a young person who dreams of joining a notoriously evil and powerful group, despite being not as evil as they think themselves to be. An accident results in their acceptance into the group, but things aren't quite what they expected...

This was an entertaining portrait of teen angst with a non-binary main character, though I was left wanting more from the story. It's wrapped up a little too neatly and doesn't get as deep into the subject matter as I might have liked. But it was still fun and the artwork is excellent. I received a copy of this book for review via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.

Evil-ish is a book that is both satisfying to look at (the colors and design choices are spectacular! I can't stop looking . . . ) and a reminder of my own past.
It was both an uncomfortable reminder and a wonky, lovely book. I've struggled to write this review because it is such a simple story and yet so . . . truthful. I don't think I would read this as a teenager--in a way it would be too real. Even now, I somewhat identify with Maple which scares me.

Hawthorne was me in my teens.
Maple is me in my twenties.

#netgalley #netgalleyreview

Hawthorne can't wait to join the local band of villains. Despite her initial rejection, Hawthorne is surprised when she ends up becoming the leader of the Brigade of Shade. But when her teammate Maple gets some very evil ideas and things get out of hand, Hawthorne has to decide if she truly wants to be evil.

This graphic novel is super funny, full of magic and beautiful illustrations, and includes engaging characters. Fans of Nimona and Maelstrom will enjoy this one as well.

The art, the vibes, the story!! I JUST LOVED IT ALL!! this was an adorable tale, from beginning to end. I was smiling and giggling from page to page and the ending made my whole heart glow with happiness.
Thank you for this cute little cozy moment.

Hawthorne is a perfect protagonist! Lots of great thoughts here about our place in the world and our ability to decide for ourselves what kind of person we want to be. I like the art style as well.

Evil-ish is such a fun romp through the world of villainy. I loved Hawthorne as a main character. They are an outsider and desperately want to join the "Brigade". Hawthorne is such great representation for the teenagers who never feel like they quite fit into their town, and I loved their storyline. The art is fantastic, and Maple was a great addition to the story.

Definitely one to check out! Thanks to NetGalley, Kennedy Tarrell, and Macmillan for the chance to read and review. My opinions are my own.

Evil-ish was created for me, specifically. There's something I find so appealing in a book where characters have to audition or prove themselves to become a villain.

We follow Hawthorne on their journey to join the villains squad, and wreak havoc on the world. However, things don't always go as planned, and we follow them on their journey of what being a villain entails.

I was utterly delighted by the art style - it was gorgeous, colorful, and carried the story well. I found so much joy reading Evil-ish and look forward to sharing it in the future!

This is a perfect quick read of a graphic novel. It moves fast with beautiful, bright illustrations through a fantastical world of potions, magic, evil societies, and more. The plot is a little bare bones, but it kept me very entertained and flipping the pages, so I'll likely recommend it to teens.

This was so entertaining! I really loved the artwork in this and thought it matched the vibes of the overall story. It's basically about this kid, Hawthorne, who wants to join this league of villains. Because of reasons, they end up accidentally becoming a leader of that organization.This was a quick read, but I think it did a good job of telling the story in its short length. This was funny, fast-paced, and surprisingly sweet in some spots. The themes are handled nicely and I loved how, in the end, Hawthorne found how to be their best self,

This is a very cute YA graphic novel with beautiful artwork! If felt like I was in an episode of an old school Nickelodeon cartoon and I loved that. I also liked that there is a non-binary main character, whose primary focus isn’t coming out or finding a partner.

I think that the story explores otherness in an interesting and accessible way for young readers, and I really enjoy the story progression through Hawthorne’s eyes.

I read this in a breezy 30 minutes, and it was well worth my time. I wish it had been a little bit longer so that we could explore some of the side characters a bit more, because I think that there is a lot of room for growth and expansion there, but overall I thought this was very cute.

Thank you to the publisher for sending me an e-arc in exchange for an honest review through NetGalley.

Hawthorne Vandercast dreams of joining the Brigade of Shade -- an infamous group of villains who live in a castle and cause chaos. Working at their family's potion shop as a barista, they leave to audition for the Brigade, only to be outshined by the girl with flowers in her hair; the girl who has been coming into the shop daily to befriend them. After an accident end with Hawthorne leading the group, they begin to realize being evil isn't all it's cracked out to be and maybe, just maybe, they might not have been evil at all.

Okay so I love the art, but Maple was my favorite character. She's the real main character from the get go, and I feel like Hawthorne didn't compare to her at all. Like, for me personally, Hawthorne sounds like a spoiled brat from the very moment we meet them, wanting to join the Brigade of Shade because why, they were bored with their life? Like go do something else. Don't run the evil group and then get mad that they're acting evil. But whatever. Now Maple, she has a great character arc, her magic was badass, and I loved how she was drawn.

Overall this was a cute coming-of-age story about finding where you belong and discovering that maybe you just need to find the magic all around you in the mundane to make yourself happy, and sometimes all we need is to be seen.

Actual Rating: 3.75 stars

I honestly loved this. I thought it was really cute and I loved the art style. I loved how the author chose to portray Hawthorne and Maple together both finding their place in the world and I loved how the author decided to not make them love interests. They both have to grow whether that be together as friends or separately. This was short and sweet and I would definitely recommend it to anyone interested in reading it.

Hawthorne is evil or at least they want to be.

This is a queer story about wanting to fit in. Hawthorne fights for the top of an evil empire, even if they might not fit the malicious status quo. evil-ish is a cute one. The style and substance are both equally fun and easy to digest. I could imagine Hawthorne as the main character of a TV show. The only gripe I had was the characters. None of the characters felt well-rounded. All of them were one note except Mabel, but even her story was rushed.

A charming graphic novel for younger readers. While the plot may be a bit silly and predictable (saw the villain “reveal” coming) the moments of humor and kindness make this book a necessary bright light for our queer, trans, nonbinary, and gnc kids.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for me to review!

This one is very silly and sweet, queer af, and maaaaybe a little lacking in the plot reasoning department.

I LOVED IT.

Hawthorne wants so badly to be "evil" but finds out they only want that if it doesn't hurt people... and finding love along the way?? Precious. All of the art? A little bit sketchy with FABULOUS colours? Amazing.

10/10 would read again

Hawthorn, a non-binary youth who has wanted to be in the evil Brigade of Shade ever since they can remember. They don’t have super powers, or anything, but isn't it enough to want to be evil? They certainly don’t want to keep working at their mom’s potion shop, selling drinks to the people of town.

So, they go to the audition, and don’t get in, because, well, they don’t have any powers. But then, Mapel, who has powers, says, why not go back and plead your case. So, they go to the do just that, and the leader of the Bridgade of Shade is killed and Hawthorne has to take her place.

But is that what happened? And how can someone without powers lead an evil group. And what sort of evil do they want to do?

Fun look at what happens when good people want to do bad, because it looks cool, and then realize, perhaps it isn’t all it is supposed to be.

Kept me reading, to find out how it would all resolve, and what was the deal with Maple.

This book was a lot of fun. I loved the tropes of what was evil, and how the villagers delt with it.

This book will be published on the 22nd of July 2025. Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

Although the premise was attractive, the execution wasn't what I expected. This is more of a middle-grade story than young-adult, which doesn't make it bad automatically, but not what I expected. Therefore, there is not enough character development, backstory, The art is nice, the best part of the story, and the page layout is also attractive, with interesting dialogues and a simple world-building, but with a script and development that didn't live up to my expectations.

Moody, "evil" teen coming-of-age story? (spoiler alert, it's actually very wholesome.)

Hawthorne looks up to the Brigade of Shade, but isn't particularly evil (they remind me of the minions at the Villain-con). The only person fooled into believing they're evil is themself... They try to join the brigade and get passed on in favor of more evil people. It's a whole thing. They have a moment. Then plot happens, and things get interesting (so descriptive, I know. Just trust me, it's great).

The story is pretty straightforward. I saw the plot twist coming, but I still enjoyed the process of getting there. It's very wholesome, despite being called "Evil-ish." The art is great. It matches the story. Whenever I saw Maple, I just stared at her design. She's so pretty. As an artist, I want to steal her forever.

Thanks NetGalley for the arc copy!

this was a cute graphic novel !! very cool to have a nonbinary protagonist whos arc doesn't revolve around coming out, or facing discrimination, or even romance --- although at the very end there are perhaps some romantic vibes? maybe? up to interpretation really

i don't think the cover is very representative of the story --- there were a BUNCH of panels that i thought would work better. i love hawthorne and their evil ambitions anyway though! and maple :((( she reminds me of nimona in a way, i think if youve read/watched nimona you'll definitely see what i mean.

recommend! check this out if you want something fast but impactful