Inheriting a family business is never easy, especially when it involves a hidden volcano lair, minions, sentient cats and supervillains.

‘Laugh-out-loud funny, intricately plotted and big-hearted’ – SFX

Warning: supervillain in training. Risk of world domination.

Locus and Hugo Award-winning author John Scalzi brings us Starter Villain, a turbo-charged tale of a family business with a difference – as Charlie discovers upon inheriting it. This one comes with a hidden headquarters, minions, talking cats and villainous rivals worthy of James Bond.

Divorced, broke and emotionally dependent on his cat, Charlie hasn’t been loving life. Then he finds out his recently deceased Uncle Jake has left him a top-secret, international supervillain business. And, as if this wasn’t problematic enough, Jake’s vengeful rivals ambush the funeral. Charlie must decide if he should stay stuck in his rut, or step up to take on the business, the enemies, the minions, the hidden volcano lair . . .

Even harder to get used to are the talking, computer-savvy cats – and the fact that they’re management. If Charlie says yes to his inheritance, could this lifeline become a death wish? Or could it finally be his chance to shine?

‘You will laugh so loudly you will wish you weren't reading in public’ – New Scientist

‘Prepare to be delighted’ – Daily Mail

‘The book had me hooked from page one’ – London Weekly News

"Laugh-out-loud funny, intricately plotted and big-hearted enough to touch even the grumpiest cynic, Starter Villain establishes Scalzi as SF’s leading humourist" - SFX

"Prepare to be delighted and surprised" - Daily Mail

"Satire aplenty . . . Charlie has to handle the lethal machinations of rival villains and also a pod of talking dolphins with militant trade union tendencies in a novel that gleefully skewers the vanity and inanity of a certain kind of plutocrat" - Financial Times

"Fun, short and tightly plotted" - New Scientist

"In this clever, fast-paced thriller, Hugo Award winner subverts classic supervillain tropes with equal measures of tongue-in-cheek humour and common sense . . . The result is a breezy and highly entertaining genre send-up" - Publishers Weekly

"Irreverent and subversive . . . James Bond-level bad guys set in the everyday trudge of corporate life a la The Office" - Entertainment Weekly

"Funny satire . . . the cats are the real heroes (obviously)" - Good Housekeeping