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Hench #2
Villain
Not yet published
Expected 19 May 26The Boys meets Starter Villain and Assistant to the Villain in Natalie Zina Walschots’s electrifying, sharp, violent, and hilarious sequel to the highly acclaimed novel, Hench, in which the Auditor must confront the near-impossible in order to right the many wrongs in the superhuman industry…or cause more of them. She’s not picky.
Anna, better known to superheroes as the Auditor, has carved out a name for herself. Any hero unlucky enough to cross her path knows her potential and powers. Surely, success should taste she has an incredible job with lots of perks, and her boss will literally annihilate anyone who crosses her, and her greatest enemy, the former hero Supercollider, has been utterly defeated and literally ground to a pulp.
But Anna still has her sights set on a greater destroying the Draft, the organization that makes, trains, and manages the world’s most powerful superheroes. These “heroes” have shown time and time again that they do more harm than good, and now is the time to stop the damage at its source.
Yet all is not well for the Auditor and her fellow evildoers. Her employer, Leviathan—the world’s most feared supervillain—is not coping well with Supercollider’s defeat at someone else’s hands. Moreover, her unlikely ally and unexpected friend, Quantum Entanglement, has vanished without a trace, leaving Anna to examine all the ways they deceived each other. Tension and uncertainty fill the air, and fear that this moment of triumph is about to crumble looms over all of them.
Anna soon finds herself facing down an opponent unlike any she’s taken on before—not another superhero, but someone like her…someone much more the Draft’s Chief Marketing Officer. This isn’t a test of physical prowess, but ideas, and as the fight spirals deeper and deeper, with new foes popping up every day—she’ll need more than just her superpower—data research—to keep ascending through the supervillain ranks.
It’s guerrilla ad warfare, and the Auditor might have finally met her match.
Anna, better known to superheroes as the Auditor, has carved out a name for herself. Any hero unlucky enough to cross her path knows her potential and powers. Surely, success should taste she has an incredible job with lots of perks, and her boss will literally annihilate anyone who crosses her, and her greatest enemy, the former hero Supercollider, has been utterly defeated and literally ground to a pulp.
But Anna still has her sights set on a greater destroying the Draft, the organization that makes, trains, and manages the world’s most powerful superheroes. These “heroes” have shown time and time again that they do more harm than good, and now is the time to stop the damage at its source.
Yet all is not well for the Auditor and her fellow evildoers. Her employer, Leviathan—the world’s most feared supervillain—is not coping well with Supercollider’s defeat at someone else’s hands. Moreover, her unlikely ally and unexpected friend, Quantum Entanglement, has vanished without a trace, leaving Anna to examine all the ways they deceived each other. Tension and uncertainty fill the air, and fear that this moment of triumph is about to crumble looms over all of them.
Anna soon finds herself facing down an opponent unlike any she’s taken on before—not another superhero, but someone like her…someone much more the Draft’s Chief Marketing Officer. This isn’t a test of physical prowess, but ideas, and as the fight spirals deeper and deeper, with new foes popping up every day—she’ll need more than just her superpower—data research—to keep ascending through the supervillain ranks.
It’s guerrilla ad warfare, and the Auditor might have finally met her match.
464 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication May 19, 2026
11 people are currently reading
9940 people want to read
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Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this early review copy.
It's been a LONG wait for this novel!! And it is everything you want it to be. This will be one of the best books I read this year.
I have tried for weeks to properly gather my thoughts and give this masterpiece the review it deserves. I have failed. This is the best I can do. In the author's note, Walschots says that writing this book nearly killed her, she re-wrote it four times. Her hard work and dedication (and blood sweat and tears, perhaps) shows. This book is brilliant, a work of genius. I often had to pause and remind myself I was reading a novel , not a documentary.
I was worried that I would have forgotten a lot of important details over the years (yes my memory is a sieve, which is why I always write a review - to help ME remember!), but Walschots managed to include all the information you need, without EVER making it feel like she was just info-dumping. Her writing feels effortless.
Every line of dialogue, every speech, every description - it all flows naturally. Instead of being distracted by the writing, I was THERE, immersed in the story. Every plot development feels organic, every step builds on the previous step.
I took my time reading, savoring every aspect, every plot development, every passage of dialogue. As a result, this took me several weeks to finish, but I'm glad I did not rush. This deserved a slower pace to fully appreciate it, to let my mind dwell on it during the day when I was not reading.
I never quite knew where the story was headed. (Unlike the Auditor, I am not a genius at predicting the future based on past events). I could not imagine how it would end.
The ending is left open-ended, which normally feels unsatisfying, but in this case it felt fitting. The characters will continue their lives, making choices, moving forward . I am glad they continue to live and evolve, in my head. Is it left for the reader to imagine what comes next? Or will Walschots write another sequel? (I am so HERE for it if she does!!)
character list (in case there's another book and I need to remember - its not really a spoiler, just uninteresting):
words I looked up:
narthex - an antechamber, porch, or distinct area at the western entrance of some early Christian churches, separated off by a railing and used by catechumens, penitents, etc.
gelid - icy, extremely cold.
pauldron - a piece of armor covering the shoulder where the body piece and arm piece join.
tasset - a piece of plate armour designed to protect the upper thighs
chelicerae - appendages on the head of spiders and other arachnids: often modified as food-catching claws
contrapposto - Contrapposto is an Italian visual arts term that describes a human figure in a natural pose with most of their weight concentrated on one leg. With both feet on the ground, the body forms an asymmetrical shape—the shoulders and hips tilt in opposite directions, while the torso and pelvis do the same. One leg is teso, or tense, and the other is rilassato, or relaxed
********
I don't even need to know what this book will be about - you're promising me more-book in the Hench world? that's all I need to know. Give it to me.
It's been a LONG wait for this novel!! And it is everything you want it to be. This will be one of the best books I read this year.
I have tried for weeks to properly gather my thoughts and give this masterpiece the review it deserves. I have failed. This is the best I can do. In the author's note, Walschots says that writing this book nearly killed her, she re-wrote it four times. Her hard work and dedication (and blood sweat and tears, perhaps) shows. This book is brilliant, a work of genius. I often had to pause and remind myself I was reading a novel , not a documentary.
I was worried that I would have forgotten a lot of important details over the years (yes my memory is a sieve, which is why I always write a review - to help ME remember!), but Walschots managed to include all the information you need, without EVER making it feel like she was just info-dumping. Her writing feels effortless.
Every line of dialogue, every speech, every description - it all flows naturally. Instead of being distracted by the writing, I was THERE, immersed in the story. Every plot development feels organic, every step builds on the previous step.
I took my time reading, savoring every aspect, every plot development, every passage of dialogue. As a result, this took me several weeks to finish, but I'm glad I did not rush. This deserved a slower pace to fully appreciate it, to let my mind dwell on it during the day when I was not reading.
I never quite knew where the story was headed. (Unlike the Auditor, I am not a genius at predicting the future based on past events). I could not imagine how it would end.
The ending is left open-ended, which normally feels unsatisfying, but in this case it felt fitting. The characters will continue their lives, making choices, moving forward . I am glad they continue to live and evolve, in my head. Is it left for the reader to imagine what comes next? Or will Walschots write another sequel? (I am so HERE for it if she does!!)
character list (in case there's another book and I need to remember - its not really a spoiler, just uninteresting):
words I looked up:
narthex - an antechamber, porch, or distinct area at the western entrance of some early Christian churches, separated off by a railing and used by catechumens, penitents, etc.
gelid - icy, extremely cold.
pauldron - a piece of armor covering the shoulder where the body piece and arm piece join.
tasset - a piece of plate armour designed to protect the upper thighs
chelicerae - appendages on the head of spiders and other arachnids: often modified as food-catching claws
contrapposto - Contrapposto is an Italian visual arts term that describes a human figure in a natural pose with most of their weight concentrated on one leg. With both feet on the ground, the body forms an asymmetrical shape—the shoulders and hips tilt in opposite directions, while the torso and pelvis do the same. One leg is teso, or tense, and the other is rilassato, or relaxed
********
I don't even need to know what this book will be about - you're promising me more-book in the Hench world? that's all I need to know. Give it to me.
Want to read
May 20, 2024Expected publication October 24, 2023
heavy breathing
Update: Expected publication October 1, 2024
Maaaaaan! I'm willing to wait for quality though
Update 5/20/2024
Noticed Amazon has the title listed as "Villain."
As we all know, the real villain is pivot tables. I assume the Auditor will have many worthy fights ahead of her in this novel.
heavy breathing
Update: Expected publication October 1, 2024
Maaaaaan! I'm willing to wait for quality though
Update 5/20/2024
Noticed Amazon has the title listed as "Villain."
As we all know, the real villain is pivot tables. I assume the Auditor will have many worthy fights ahead of her in this novel.
Want to read
February 27, 2024GIVE IT TO ME WHY AM I STILL WAITING
Want to read
January 3, 2023hmmmmmMMMMMM? Hench sequel? I am very intrigued…
November 23, 2025
* thanks to William Morrow for the NetGalley review copy (pub date: May 19, 2026)
I have been stalking NetGalley for this book for YEARS - the pub date changed a bunch of times, but now it’s coming out for real, and it was worth the wait. Longer review TK but goddam I loved this.
I have been stalking NetGalley for this book for YEARS - the pub date changed a bunch of times, but now it’s coming out for real, and it was worth the wait. Longer review TK but goddam I loved this.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I could read 100 more books set in this world. I want all the fascinatingly mundane inner-workings of the superhero/supervillain industries!
Stepping into her role as the Auditor, Anna (and the rest of Leviathan's retinue) are taking on a new foe: not a lone superhero, but the institution that empowers them, known as The Draft. In this complicated chess game of corporations, politics, violence, and (perhaps) love, is Anna a queen or just another pawn?
This series is so joy-inducing that I even had fun writing that blurb. Don't get me wrong, it's still dark and messy as hell, but I lapped up every bit of it. Hench totally surprised me by being one of the best books I read this year, and I can't say I like Villain as much (it would have been a very hard bar to reach), I'm so delighted with how this series is continuing. I think the 'problem' with Villain is that it definitely has some middle-book syndrome where it's clearly setting up a lot for later so there are long stretches where a lot is going on but little is being resolved.
That said, I just really like Anna, okay? It's that simple for me. I don't really care about plot if the characters are good and Anna (as well as the supporting cast) are great. Leviathan is bringing a whole new level of drama in this book, and weirdly I'm kind of glad that he's not...a good person. Like, he is annoying and dangerous and not great at boundaries, which makes him an unreliable boss and a pretty shitty partner. But like....he's a supervillain. I didn't want him to be this nice normal guy under the scary exterior, partially because that wouldn't make sense consider the amount of trauma he's experience and also because that would be boring to me! I want mess! There are some heartbreaking scenes in this book where his pain is at the center, and I loved those. Anna also becomes more unhinged in this one, and thank god she does! Go crazy, girl!
I love what's being built up with Quantum Entanglement/Decoherence. I love Mom as a new antagonist. I love the plot line with the other auditor. I love that Anna and June's relationship doesn't get magically fixed and that's going to be an ongoing conflict. I love Anna and Molly's presentations. I love all of the drama going on with the Future. I love Keller and Jav and Vesper and Doc Proton!!!
I need more right now (or whenever Walschots decides to put out the next book. Please, take your time. No Rush. I'm dying over here but No Rush. No, but seriously I can wait).
Thank you to Natalie Zina Walschots and William Morrow for this ARC in exchange for my full, honest review!
Happy reading!
Pre-review: I GOT THE ARC OMG GUYSSNJDJDJSKSKS
Stepping into her role as the Auditor, Anna (and the rest of Leviathan's retinue) are taking on a new foe: not a lone superhero, but the institution that empowers them, known as The Draft. In this complicated chess game of corporations, politics, violence, and (perhaps) love, is Anna a queen or just another pawn?
This series is so joy-inducing that I even had fun writing that blurb. Don't get me wrong, it's still dark and messy as hell, but I lapped up every bit of it. Hench totally surprised me by being one of the best books I read this year, and I can't say I like Villain as much (it would have been a very hard bar to reach), I'm so delighted with how this series is continuing. I think the 'problem' with Villain is that it definitely has some middle-book syndrome where it's clearly setting up a lot for later so there are long stretches where a lot is going on but little is being resolved.
That said, I just really like Anna, okay? It's that simple for me. I don't really care about plot if the characters are good and Anna (as well as the supporting cast) are great. Leviathan is bringing a whole new level of drama in this book, and weirdly I'm kind of glad that he's not...a good person. Like, he is annoying and dangerous and not great at boundaries, which makes him an unreliable boss and a pretty shitty partner. But like....he's a supervillain. I didn't want him to be this nice normal guy under the scary exterior, partially because that wouldn't make sense consider the amount of trauma he's experience and also because that would be boring to me! I want mess! There are some heartbreaking scenes in this book where his pain is at the center, and I loved those. Anna also becomes more unhinged in this one, and thank god she does! Go crazy, girl!
I love what's being built up with Quantum Entanglement/Decoherence. I love Mom as a new antagonist. I love the plot line with the other auditor. I love that Anna and June's relationship doesn't get magically fixed and that's going to be an ongoing conflict. I love Anna and Molly's presentations. I love all of the drama going on with the Future. I love Keller and Jav and Vesper and Doc Proton!!!
I need more right now (or whenever Walschots decides to put out the next book. Please, take your time. No Rush. I'm dying over here but No Rush. No, but seriously I can wait).
Thank you to Natalie Zina Walschots and William Morrow for this ARC in exchange for my full, honest review!
Happy reading!
Pre-review: I GOT THE ARC OMG GUYSSNJDJDJSKSKS
Want to read
January 21, 2024please i will give you my firstborn child for this book i beg of you
please … i can’t wait until October
please … i can’t wait until October
Want to read
December 5, 202512/2025, arc secured!
I've avoided arcs for months now, but I had to make an exception and apply for this one 😂
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03/16/2025, @4:35am
I've avoided arcs for months now, but I had to make an exception and apply for this one 😂
**************************************
03/16/2025, @4:35am
Want to read
November 5, 202511/4/25: I JUST GOT AN E-ARC LET'S GOOOO
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OH MY GOD A SEQUEL???
Coming out in 2026.
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OH MY GOD A SEQUEL???
Coming out in 2026.
Want to read
July 30, 2023this book is going to satisfy every piece of my soul I can feel it (in the meantime, I will sob until September 2024 because it’s not in my hands)
Want to read
November 19, 2025THIS BOOK FINALLY HAS A RELEASE DATE AND A COVER??
Want to read
March 7, 2023I am. Very. Looking forward to this.
Want to read
September 3, 2024i'm literally only halfway through hench and i'm already foaming at the mouth for this sequel!!!!!! evil queer women who love to analyze and strategize we RISE <333333
December 17, 2025
Pls pls pls NetGalley, Hench was my favorite book of 2020, I have been dying for this sequel for 5 years, PLEASE MAY I HAVE THE ARC
Update: Thanks be to William Morrow, NetGalley, and most of all Natalie Zina Walschots I GOT THE ARC
Finished the book update: RTC. Pls pls pls give me a third book. It can’t end like this.
Update: Thanks be to William Morrow, NetGalley, and most of all Natalie Zina Walschots I GOT THE ARC
Finished the book update: RTC. Pls pls pls give me a third book. It can’t end like this.
Read
April 28, 2023Two words - fuck yes.
Want to read
May 5, 2023I NEED THIS SO MUCH
Want to read
August 29, 2023I will be checking Edelweiss and Netgalley every week til I can finally read this. So so so excited!
December 17, 2025
Villain has quite a tonal shift from Hench; despite body horror and corporate evil and Anna descending into villainy in the first book, I found it to be kind of... lovely? I consider it a comfort book. Villain was not comforting to read, because all our beloved characters get a lot more complicated and a lot more messy. I was really impressed with how much depth Walschots was able to add to this cast of superpowered people. The bug supervillain who delivers grand monologues in the third person felt like a real person by the end of this book. And he's a bug!
I do think that at times, this exploration of Leviathan, the Auditor, and Quantum/Decoherence came at the cost of the novel's pacing. I read Hench in one sitting, but it took me almost a week to finish Villain. At first, while reading, I thought that was a bad thing, and felt a bit disappointed about the way this book meanders, the way it is sometimes character driven rather than plot driven. I was still enjoying it, but it wasn't what I had envisioned. By the halfway mark, I realized that this book actually totally slaps, and though it reads very differently from its predecessor, that isn't a bad thing.
My absolute favorite part of the book is the last chapter, which is maybe my favorite fight scene ever. I should have known I'd love it: the fight at the end of Hench was amazing, and outclassed a lot of "magic" fights I've read (or seen) before. Like, look at Marvel movies: the fight scenes have the benefit of being visual media, and yet they feel so lacking in creativity. Why do they keep reverting to just punching each other! You guys are basically magic! Walschots, on the other hand, is so creative with her fight scenes, really thinking about how these different abilities might interact with each other. She also portrays them through a kind of disturbing, realistic lens that I rarely encounter, and LOVE. The final showdown of Hench had me feeling bad for Supercollider, even though by that point I hated his guts. Walschots fight scenes are both sad and epic, the violence poignant and meaningless. Despite ending very differently to Hench, the last few pages of Villain really brought me back to the book one final fight, capturing that same incredible depth, the same conflicting emotions. I am so in awe of how she depicts of the actual cost of human suffering that is rarely captured so viscerally in other stories, whether those be Marvel blockbusters or other fantasy books.
There are perhaps a few scenes that should have been cut, namely the lengthy introductions of Draft execs that made me feel like I really was in an office meeting (although maybe that was the intention?), and while we're talking about the Draft, I gotta say that most of the Mom stuff felt directionless and more like set up for book 3, which detracted from the pacing.
TLDR: this is a very different story from hench, despite continuing its themes and having mostly the same characters. It's also really great, and if you want to see more of Anna's story, then read it!
Thank you to NetGalley for sending me this arc in exchange for an honest review!
I do think that at times, this exploration of Leviathan, the Auditor, and Quantum/Decoherence came at the cost of the novel's pacing. I read Hench in one sitting, but it took me almost a week to finish Villain. At first, while reading, I thought that was a bad thing, and felt a bit disappointed about the way this book meanders, the way it is sometimes character driven rather than plot driven. I was still enjoying it, but it wasn't what I had envisioned. By the halfway mark, I realized that this book actually totally slaps, and though it reads very differently from its predecessor, that isn't a bad thing.
My absolute favorite part of the book is the last chapter, which is maybe my favorite fight scene ever. I should have known I'd love it: the fight at the end of Hench was amazing, and outclassed a lot of "magic" fights I've read (or seen) before. Like, look at Marvel movies: the fight scenes have the benefit of being visual media, and yet they feel so lacking in creativity. Why do they keep reverting to just punching each other! You guys are basically magic! Walschots, on the other hand, is so creative with her fight scenes, really thinking about how these different abilities might interact with each other. She also portrays them through a kind of disturbing, realistic lens that I rarely encounter, and LOVE. The final showdown of Hench had me feeling bad for Supercollider, even though by that point I hated his guts. Walschots fight scenes are both sad and epic, the violence poignant and meaningless. Despite ending very differently to Hench, the last few pages of Villain really brought me back to the book one final fight, capturing that same incredible depth, the same conflicting emotions. I am so in awe of how she depicts of the actual cost of human suffering that is rarely captured so viscerally in other stories, whether those be Marvel blockbusters or other fantasy books.
There are perhaps a few scenes that should have been cut, namely the lengthy introductions of Draft execs that made me feel like I really was in an office meeting (although maybe that was the intention?), and while we're talking about the Draft, I gotta say that most of the Mom stuff felt directionless and more like set up for book 3, which detracted from the pacing.
TLDR: this is a very different story from hench, despite continuing its themes and having mostly the same characters. It's also really great, and if you want to see more of Anna's story, then read it!
Thank you to NetGalley for sending me this arc in exchange for an honest review!
January 16, 2026
Thank you to William Morrow and NetGalley for the ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.
I was bored and disinterested in the plot. So bored that it was truly a struggle to complete the book. This just doesn’t read the same as Hench. I understand the stories are vastly different, but the writing seems stilted and overall not as smooth. There’s a sharpness that’s missing. It feels like the reason this sequel was so long in coming is that the author didn’t have much to say. Oh, the fiendish workings of the Auditor’s team are there, but I didn’t really care about them this go ‘round. The romantic relationship felt like the publisher made the author add it to turn the series into a “slow-burn romantasy” for gimmicky reasons. There must have been some redeeming qualities but I can’t fix one in my mind to tell you about it.
I wanted to note that there are an absurd number of ellipses which often result in putting stress on words or ideas that don’t need it. That’s it. I’m done.
I was bored and disinterested in the plot. So bored that it was truly a struggle to complete the book. This just doesn’t read the same as Hench. I understand the stories are vastly different, but the writing seems stilted and overall not as smooth. There’s a sharpness that’s missing. It feels like the reason this sequel was so long in coming is that the author didn’t have much to say. Oh, the fiendish workings of the Auditor’s team are there, but I didn’t really care about them this go ‘round. The romantic relationship felt like the publisher made the author add it to turn the series into a “slow-burn romantasy” for gimmicky reasons. There must have been some redeeming qualities but I can’t fix one in my mind to tell you about it.
I wanted to note that there are an absurd number of ellipses which often result in putting stress on words or ideas that don’t need it. That’s it. I’m done.
November 30, 2025
ARC
In the acknowledgments the author writes that she wrote this book, wholly, four times before she was satisfied with the story. four times!!!!! fuckin 🫡🫡🫡🫡🫡🫡🫡🫡🫡 thank you for your perseverance it was a evil little joy to read
In the acknowledgments the author writes that she wrote this book, wholly, four times before she was satisfied with the story. four times!!!!! fuckin 🫡🫡🫡🫡🫡🫡🫡🫡🫡 thank you for your perseverance it was a evil little joy to read
Want to read
April 2, 2024I hate that Assistant to the Villain has been attached to this book because that one was pretty bad (very juvenile, definitely should've been Young Adult) and Hench was ridiculously amazing, I loved it so much. I don't know who made that decision but they're not even remotely on the same level; it's like mentioning Twilight when recommending Anne Rice or Dracula, just because they all have vampires. Hopefully it gets removed from the official promotions later, but probably not unfortunately. Very much looking forward to Right Hand!
Want to read
September 18, 2024update 9/17/24: still missing hench. had a notification that this was supposed to be published today but it’s ok bc it’s coming august 2025 🤞🤞🤞 + name change and synopsis hype?!
update 12/27/23: i’m reading the assistant to the villain rn bc i thought it could fill the hench shaped hole in my heart. it is in fact making me miss hench more and more. i need this sequel so bad to cope pls pls pls i’m this close to rereading hench now bc i miss it sm💀
GIVE IT TO ME NOWWWWWW. please
update 12/27/23: i’m reading the assistant to the villain rn bc i thought it could fill the hench shaped hole in my heart. it is in fact making me miss hench more and more. i need this sequel so bad to cope pls pls pls i’m this close to rereading hench now bc i miss it sm💀
GIVE IT TO ME NOWWWWWW. please
November 10, 2025
Henches, superheroes, sidekicks, and villains are back for round 2 in this long awaited sequel to HENCH #1 by Natalie Zina Walschots!
Plot Summary: Anna and the crew at Leviathan are recovering from the events of Book 1 including the defeat of Supercollider there are some FEELINGS being dealt with. Working through this, they are taking on the Draft. Not a superhero but a super-corporation. And Anna meets her nemesis.
Review:
Being a newcomer to Hench #1 this year, I didn't realize how long awaited this sequel was...and that the author mentioned having to start completely over about 4 times. Dates were pushed back and it sounds like the author had a hell of a time getting this one done. So, firstly, thank you to Natalie for completing this project.
The first book came out in 2020 and a lot can happen in the years since then that the author would have been writing. She mentions herself that she isn't the same person and Villain is definitely a very different book than Hench. We still have the same relative punchy fun writing style that layers in character development, clever plotting, and social commentary. But as things develop, different themes are explored more heavily and relationships between the characters get a bit messier as they usually do when feelings and humans are involved.
I enjoyed the sequel overall and much of what I loved about book #1 was the same for Villain. That being said, I would check trigger warnings because the heat was definitely turned up a notch in this one. Both for content but also relationship development. I'm not a fan of poor communication and misunderstandings or assumptions (or really any kind of toxic nature) between characters when it comes to intimate relationships but this is a personal preference. There is a lot explored here around power dynamics and agency between people with strong feelings about each other. While it definitely is interesting to reflect on psychologically speaking, it wasn't comfortable to read (not that books have to make us feel comfortable).
Once again though, I appreciated the diversity of Walschots characters like the first book and there is a lot of representation here. One of my favorite parts of this book is the plotting, the fallout, the scheming, the rebellion/rage against the machine disguised as cartoonic villainy. There is a lot of commentary and themes around social justice, corporations, evil masquerading as heroism.
I love the ending - Walschots is a pro at creating tension and sparking curiosity and the last page was no exception...so, will there be a book 3? I'm not sure this story is over yet but we'll see.
Thank you William Morrow for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Plot Summary: Anna and the crew at Leviathan are recovering from the events of Book 1 including the defeat of Supercollider there are some FEELINGS being dealt with. Working through this, they are taking on the Draft. Not a superhero but a super-corporation. And Anna meets her nemesis.
Review:
Being a newcomer to Hench #1 this year, I didn't realize how long awaited this sequel was...and that the author mentioned having to start completely over about 4 times. Dates were pushed back and it sounds like the author had a hell of a time getting this one done. So, firstly, thank you to Natalie for completing this project.
The first book came out in 2020 and a lot can happen in the years since then that the author would have been writing. She mentions herself that she isn't the same person and Villain is definitely a very different book than Hench. We still have the same relative punchy fun writing style that layers in character development, clever plotting, and social commentary. But as things develop, different themes are explored more heavily and relationships between the characters get a bit messier as they usually do when feelings and humans are involved.
I enjoyed the sequel overall and much of what I loved about book #1 was the same for Villain. That being said, I would check trigger warnings because the heat was definitely turned up a notch in this one. Both for content but also relationship development. I'm not a fan of poor communication and misunderstandings or assumptions (or really any kind of toxic nature) between characters when it comes to intimate relationships but this is a personal preference. There is a lot explored here around power dynamics and agency between people with strong feelings about each other. While it definitely is interesting to reflect on psychologically speaking, it wasn't comfortable to read (not that books have to make us feel comfortable).
Once again though, I appreciated the diversity of Walschots characters like the first book and there is a lot of representation here. One of my favorite parts of this book is the plotting, the fallout, the scheming, the rebellion/rage against the machine disguised as cartoonic villainy. There is a lot of commentary and themes around social justice, corporations, evil masquerading as heroism.
I love the ending - Walschots is a pro at creating tension and sparking curiosity and the last page was no exception...so, will there be a book 3? I'm not sure this story is over yet but we'll see.
Thank you William Morrow for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
4.25/5 stars -- What a wonderful follow-up to Hench.
Where this work's predecessor was packed with action, Villain was full of unexpected heart. Especially from a book with title 'Villain'. There's action too, don't get me wrong, but the emotional impact of the events previous take the centerstage.
The Auditor's evolution, growing infamy, and need for autonomy makes you root for her even if she's making questionable decisions, and the way she navigated everything that was thrown at her was believable. Those decisions truly feel like they held weight within the story. We've seen her intelligence at work before, but the deeply emotional choices she had to make, along with the cause-and-effect game with the Draft felt like it had real stakes. The unique way the politics of superheroism are addressed in this work is well-planned and clearly very thought out. Auditor's relationship with Leviathan was sweet in a way I wasn't expecting as well. Somehow, Walschots managed to make the scary, morally questionable bug-man endearing. Even with all of the weird power dynamics and clear HR violations.
The pacing at the beginning is especially strong, with a lull in the middle that slowed me down ever so slightly. I do wish the finale would have had more a little peril involved on the Auditor's part, but the final scene made up for it. A star(ish) was knocked off for those small gripes, and the one or two grammar mistakes toward the end.
Ex. ["We won't keep you apart long. As soon as I can, you'll be reunited. You have my word."
"You word" Both of them said with contempt.]
I have no doubt small things will be changed/corrected before the final copy gets published, but it did take me out of the story enough to comment on it.
Overall, though, Villain is a very well-written follow up to Hench that honestly makes the first book better? Somehow? I would LOVE for this to be a trilogy, but after reading the acknowledgements I don't know if I'd want Walschots to through that level of emotional turmoil again! (Starting from scratch! Four times!) I really admire that sort of dedication. It definitely paid off, and the amount of intention and care put into crafting this story shows.
A genuine thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an E-Arc in exchange for an honest review :) All opinions are my own.
Where this work's predecessor was packed with action, Villain was full of unexpected heart. Especially from a book with title 'Villain'. There's action too, don't get me wrong, but the emotional impact of the events previous take the centerstage.
The Auditor's evolution, growing infamy, and need for autonomy makes you root for her even if she's making questionable decisions, and the way she navigated everything that was thrown at her was believable. Those decisions truly feel like they held weight within the story. We've seen her intelligence at work before, but the deeply emotional choices she had to make, along with the cause-and-effect game with the Draft felt like it had real stakes. The unique way the politics of superheroism are addressed in this work is well-planned and clearly very thought out. Auditor's relationship with Leviathan was sweet in a way I wasn't expecting as well. Somehow, Walschots managed to make the scary, morally questionable bug-man endearing. Even with all of the weird power dynamics and clear HR violations.
The pacing at the beginning is especially strong, with a lull in the middle that slowed me down ever so slightly. I do wish the finale would have had more a little peril involved on the Auditor's part, but the final scene made up for it. A star(ish) was knocked off for those small gripes, and the one or two grammar mistakes toward the end.
Ex. ["We won't keep you apart long. As soon as I can, you'll be reunited. You have my word."
"You word" Both of them said with contempt.]
I have no doubt small things will be changed/corrected before the final copy gets published, but it did take me out of the story enough to comment on it.
Overall, though, Villain is a very well-written follow up to Hench that honestly makes the first book better? Somehow? I would LOVE for this to be a trilogy, but after reading the acknowledgements I don't know if I'd want Walschots to through that level of emotional turmoil again! (Starting from scratch! Four times!) I really admire that sort of dedication. It definitely paid off, and the amount of intention and care put into crafting this story shows.
A genuine thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an E-Arc in exchange for an honest review :) All opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
An exploration of grief, trust, loyalty, and agency.
To continue the story of the author's previous novel Hench, which I felt was a true original, we had to take a dive deeper into the repercussions of the ending of the last book. New adversaries arise that challenge our Hench at her own game. Several twists subverted my expectations, and I was riveted the whole time. Our protagonist continues to work hard to be an antagonist to those she feels are bringing more harm than good into the world. I really appreciated the time and care that was taken in explaining and moving through the grief and pain that our characters experience.
What does it mean to follow the path you have set for yourself? To what lengths are you willing to be changed by the pursuit of your goal? What does trust really mean? Can you truly give trust to someone without the freedom to choose? To what lengths will you go to stay completely loyal to some one, or some ideal? The depths of these questions are plumbed, and I found my own mind thinking these questions over, and exploring my insides too, finding them gnarled and twisting as any human who has lived in the world.
Even more than these former questions, this is a book about relationships: professional relationships, friendships, romantic relationships, among others and how some have navigated through the treacherous waters of all these, facing both positive and negative dynamics. Tough, strange, weird inside, awkward, lustful, supportive, manipulative, and bent and strained till breaking... it's a tornado of emotions. Many do survive this storm, but none emerge unscathed.
While delivering a lot of the same snarky fun as before, this story goes deeper and darker into these damaged psyches. We follow our main character stumbling into elation, exhaustion, and even horror at choices that must be made as she blazes her own trail up the mountain of embodying the cover title, a Villain with a capital V. Just as she truly embraced the transformation into a Henchwoman in the previous story.
This is not necessarily a happy ending, it's a comic tragedy, I think. No one alive at the end is happy necessarily, but goals will be reached. If you found the previous story even somewhat engaging, you will be possessed utterly by this book. I was.
To continue the story of the author's previous novel Hench, which I felt was a true original, we had to take a dive deeper into the repercussions of the ending of the last book. New adversaries arise that challenge our Hench at her own game. Several twists subverted my expectations, and I was riveted the whole time. Our protagonist continues to work hard to be an antagonist to those she feels are bringing more harm than good into the world. I really appreciated the time and care that was taken in explaining and moving through the grief and pain that our characters experience.
What does it mean to follow the path you have set for yourself? To what lengths are you willing to be changed by the pursuit of your goal? What does trust really mean? Can you truly give trust to someone without the freedom to choose? To what lengths will you go to stay completely loyal to some one, or some ideal? The depths of these questions are plumbed, and I found my own mind thinking these questions over, and exploring my insides too, finding them gnarled and twisting as any human who has lived in the world.
Even more than these former questions, this is a book about relationships: professional relationships, friendships, romantic relationships, among others and how some have navigated through the treacherous waters of all these, facing both positive and negative dynamics. Tough, strange, weird inside, awkward, lustful, supportive, manipulative, and bent and strained till breaking... it's a tornado of emotions. Many do survive this storm, but none emerge unscathed.
While delivering a lot of the same snarky fun as before, this story goes deeper and darker into these damaged psyches. We follow our main character stumbling into elation, exhaustion, and even horror at choices that must be made as she blazes her own trail up the mountain of embodying the cover title, a Villain with a capital V. Just as she truly embraced the transformation into a Henchwoman in the previous story.
This is not necessarily a happy ending, it's a comic tragedy, I think. No one alive at the end is happy necessarily, but goals will be reached. If you found the previous story even somewhat engaging, you will be possessed utterly by this book. I was.
January 26, 2026
It’s hard for me to separate my opinion of this book from my absolute adoration of Hench, so forgive me if my thoughts are all over the place. I enjoyed this book, but not quite as much as the first one. In part I think because the ferocious rage of Hench calcifies a bit in Villain, which is a reasonable progression of characterization and stakes, but does lose some of the energy I loved so much with the first one. The pacing was a bit odd, didn’t have the driving central focus of “fuck this guy in particular” from the first. Which, again, makes complete narrative sense because dismantling a system is harder and less focused than getting revenge on one man.
I love stories where people Chose to be bad, where its not something they fall into because of circumstances but because they look at all the options and decide “no, this is what I’m doing with my life” and boy does Villain deliver there. The Auditor has so many people trying to offer her an off ramp and she intentionally chooses not to take it.
Also love the depiction of what dating (ish?) a supervillain would be like. Not just in the romantized “oh he’d do anything for you” way but like. How do you navigate communication in a relationship where one person can singlehanded take down a small army? How do you establish boundaries when you’re so codependent and don’t really have a life outside of working with your sort of lover? It’s a wildly unhealthy situation but neither person involved is a good person and it’s really interesting to watch two self-proclaimed villains navigate a relationship.
All of the existing non-central relationships from book one continue and move in interesting, occasionally heartbreaking directions. Honestly I think the most interesting things were happening with those relationships as the Auditor doubled down on her life choices and how that impacted everyone else in her orbit.
Overall this book is an excellent continuation of Hench, and while there isn’t a third book confirmed I would really love to see more from these characters and world.
4/5 stars from me, thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!
I love stories where people Chose to be bad, where its not something they fall into because of circumstances but because they look at all the options and decide “no, this is what I’m doing with my life” and boy does Villain deliver there. The Auditor has so many people trying to offer her an off ramp and she intentionally chooses not to take it.
Also love the depiction of what dating (ish?) a supervillain would be like. Not just in the romantized “oh he’d do anything for you” way but like. How do you navigate communication in a relationship where one person can singlehanded take down a small army? How do you establish boundaries when you’re so codependent and don’t really have a life outside of working with your sort of lover? It’s a wildly unhealthy situation but neither person involved is a good person and it’s really interesting to watch two self-proclaimed villains navigate a relationship.
All of the existing non-central relationships from book one continue and move in interesting, occasionally heartbreaking directions. Honestly I think the most interesting things were happening with those relationships as the Auditor doubled down on her life choices and how that impacted everyone else in her orbit.
Overall this book is an excellent continuation of Hench, and while there isn’t a third book confirmed I would really love to see more from these characters and world.
4/5 stars from me, thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from Edelweiss+
This is a review of an ARC from Edelweiss.
Anna was just an ordinary accountant, picking up gigs from villains, when a run-in with superhero Supercollider left her crippled, broke, and bent on revenge. Years later, she has become the Auditor, a loyal second in command to ultra villain Leviathan. He's brooding over the outcome of his last battle and their relationship has begun to take a different, more intense turn. Meanwhile, she's dealing with the Draft, the entity that runs superheros, which is out to get her and everything she's worked for.
OK, before the review a plea to all fantasy, sci-fi, whatever genre authors whose books have complex mythology and a bunch of characters and there are multiple books in the series. I know you have been living with this story and know all the in and outs of the plot and what beef the characters have with each other etc. But the last book came out two years ago, and I have read many other books since then! So please, either give me a "previously on.." summary at the beginning, or a sentence or two when someone comes in? Help a girl out!
Ok, that out of the way, this was really good. Less action hero fighting, and more darker than the last book (see, I remember something!) and mid-way through seemed to verge heavily into romantasy. This was less about the world-building and superhero-ness of it all, and more about character, and how we deal with trauma. It leaves things on a bit of a cliff-hanger, and I am curious to see where the Auditor goes from here, and to see how the Draft fights back going forward.
Anna was just an ordinary accountant, picking up gigs from villains, when a run-in with superhero Supercollider left her crippled, broke, and bent on revenge. Years later, she has become the Auditor, a loyal second in command to ultra villain Leviathan. He's brooding over the outcome of his last battle and their relationship has begun to take a different, more intense turn. Meanwhile, she's dealing with the Draft, the entity that runs superheros, which is out to get her and everything she's worked for.
OK, before the review a plea to all fantasy, sci-fi, whatever genre authors whose books have complex mythology and a bunch of characters and there are multiple books in the series. I know you have been living with this story and know all the in and outs of the plot and what beef the characters have with each other etc. But the last book came out two years ago, and I have read many other books since then! So please, either give me a "previously on.." summary at the beginning, or a sentence or two when someone comes in? Help a girl out!
Ok, that out of the way, this was really good. Less action hero fighting, and more darker than the last book (see, I remember something!) and mid-way through seemed to verge heavily into romantasy. This was less about the world-building and superhero-ness of it all, and more about character, and how we deal with trauma. It leaves things on a bit of a cliff-hanger, and I am curious to see where the Auditor goes from here, and to see how the Draft fights back going forward.
December 4, 2025
I read Hench in one sitting until 3:00 a.m and when I finally looked up with eyes as dry as the Sahara all I could think was MORE. This takes a fantastic first novel and adds a layer of depth and darkness that I was not expecting to come from a superhero novel.
Natalie Zina Walschots does a fantastic job of ratcheting up the tension in this novel so slowly and so meticulously I swear by the end I could feel Leviathan's pincers on the back of my neck. Multiple times I caught myself not breathing. This is a doozy of a sequel and went in a direction I did not expect and throughout the whole novel I was captivated by this world and the depth and trails of the Auditor, now that the Draft is finally taking her seriously, even if Leviathan might not be.
In the author's note Walschots says it took her 4 times starting again from scratch to write this novel and shows in how detailed well crafted this book is. I'm going to have to reread this one a few times for it all to sink in.
I will be the first person in line for the 3rd book.
Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for this ARC!
Natalie Zina Walschots does a fantastic job of ratcheting up the tension in this novel so slowly and so meticulously I swear by the end I could feel Leviathan's pincers on the back of my neck. Multiple times I caught myself not breathing. This is a doozy of a sequel and went in a direction I did not expect and throughout the whole novel I was captivated by this world and the depth and trails of the Auditor, now that the Draft is finally taking her seriously, even if Leviathan might not be.
In the author's note Walschots says it took her 4 times starting again from scratch to write this novel and shows in how detailed well crafted this book is. I'm going to have to reread this one a few times for it all to sink in.
I will be the first person in line for the 3rd book.
Thank you NetGalley and William Morrow for this ARC!
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Hear me out friends. This is not a romance. Far far from it. But this is my most anticipated book for literal YEARS and I got the opportunity to read it early thanks to @harpercollins and @netgalley .
Villain is a sequel to the much acclaimed Hench, a darkly funny story of a woman damaged and betrayed by so-called heroes and aligns herself with a villain to take down their organization bit by annoying bit. Villain is where Anna, now known as The Auditor comes into her own using data analytics and great instincts to take down The Draft, the corporate overlords that have been churning and burning heroes for generations.
This story was everything I've been waiting for, humor so dark it's almost midnight, body horror so deeply unsettling but like....oddly right in the moment, and strong insightfulness into the concepts of heroes and villains and an ongoing love for those people just trying to make a paycheck in a fucked up world.
This book comes out in May and I can't recommend it enough, but be sure to read Hench first. While it....might...be possible to read it as a standalone, I feel the universe is richer for the world building in the first book
Villain is a sequel to the much acclaimed Hench, a darkly funny story of a woman damaged and betrayed by so-called heroes and aligns herself with a villain to take down their organization bit by annoying bit. Villain is where Anna, now known as The Auditor comes into her own using data analytics and great instincts to take down The Draft, the corporate overlords that have been churning and burning heroes for generations.
This story was everything I've been waiting for, humor so dark it's almost midnight, body horror so deeply unsettling but like....oddly right in the moment, and strong insightfulness into the concepts of heroes and villains and an ongoing love for those people just trying to make a paycheck in a fucked up world.
This book comes out in May and I can't recommend it enough, but be sure to read Hench first. While it....might...be possible to read it as a standalone, I feel the universe is richer for the world building in the first book
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
The sequel to Hench sees Anna, now known as the Auditor, set to further her plan to take down the Draft, the organization that is in charge of superheroes. She uses her own particular set of skills to help dismantle the "heroes" that are truly causing more harm than good and anyone that supports them. There is continued fallout and issues around the death of her boss Leviathan's rescue and the death of his nemesis Supercollider by someone else.
I really enjoyed this book. I hadn't remembered how much I enjoyed the day to day of villainy. The Auditor is a smart and emotionally driven character. She recognizes her emotions and isn't blindly led by them like most book characters which is a major pet peeve.
I think my biggest issue with this book is my own fault. I should have reread Hench. Since it is such a character-based book, nuance is very important. I remembered the large plot points, but the relationships are key, and I couldn't recall those clearly. When I reread the series as a whole, it will likely be getting a ratings boost. You still have time. Go reread Hench before May.
I really enjoyed this book. I hadn't remembered how much I enjoyed the day to day of villainy. The Auditor is a smart and emotionally driven character. She recognizes her emotions and isn't blindly led by them like most book characters which is a major pet peeve.
I think my biggest issue with this book is my own fault. I should have reread Hench. Since it is such a character-based book, nuance is very important. I remembered the large plot points, but the relationships are key, and I couldn't recall those clearly. When I reread the series as a whole, it will likely be getting a ratings boost. You still have time. Go reread Hench before May.
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