Series Review: Assistant to The Villain

The covers perfectly convey the tone of the books.

Who among us hasn't seen the skits from TikToker and author Hannah Nicole Maehrer about the sunshine assistant to a grumpy (but hot) villain? Now a series (Assistant to the Villain, Apprentice to the Villain, and in 2025 Accomplice to the Villain), the quirky pairing is on the page for all of us to enjoy.

Evie Sage, desperate for a job, takes a position as an assistant to the notorious local Villain. She prides herself on a job well done, so when it appears there's a traitor in the office, she decides to sort out the problem. With plenty of pining for the handsome but not HR approved boss, this book and its sequel are popcorn for fans of romantasy.

I enjoyed the grumpy/sunshine pairing at the heart of the book, the pining with an actual reason not to make moves on said pining, and the wit throughout. Both were funny novels that clearly weren't being too serious or dark, despite the main characters being the purported bad guys.

There were a few worldbuilding questions I had that were left unanswered, and sometimes the romance crossed into definitely a couple territory, before pulling backwards for no clear reason and being like "wow we made out but does he like me?" Was that enough for me to put the books down? No.

This series is for you if you're looking for lighthearted, humorous romantasy, a grumpy/sunshine pairing, or a classic fairytale vibe without it being a literal fairytale rewrite. This book is not for you if you're looking for epic fantasy levels of worldbuilding, if you don't want a workplace romance, or if you want fantasy with a literary flavor.


Have you read Assistant or Apprentice to the Villain? What did you think? Let's discuss in the comments!