All of Us Villains By Amanda Foody & C. L. Herman

Bibliographic Information:

Title: All of Us Villains

Authors: Amanda Foody and C. L. Herman

Publisher: Tor Teen

Copyright Date: November 2021

ISBN: 9781250789266

Format: Print Book

Genre: Fantasy/ Adventure/ Dystopian

Awards: Amazon's Best Young Adult Book -2021

Interest Level: Grades 9-12 (Junior Library Guide)

Plot Summary:

A curse ensures that every 20 years seven noteworthy families of Ilvernath select a champion to fight to the death in a tournament for the only source of High Magic in the world. This tournament has been kept a secret for centuries until now when an anonymous author spilled the inside dark history of the curse. All of Us Villains follows four of the seven champions leading up to the tournament and when the Blood Veil falls. Now that their secret is out, these champions will have to face an added challenge that no others have faced before, the paparazzi. These young adults not only have to find a strategy to murder their rivals, face the perils of the blood veil and family matters, all while being scrutinized by the hungry public. They have trained their entire lives to become the biggest villains but will the uncovered past written in the recent publication reveal who the villains actually are? It makes one wonder what makes a villain.

Author backgrounds:

All of Us Villains was co-written by Amanda Foody and C. L. Herman. They decided to write this duology together because they were already best friends and critique partners. They succeeded by communicating their visions to stay on the same page (M.,2021). I imagine that writing a novel with someone else can prove to be challenging, especially being able to find one cohesive voice which was done exceptionally well in this work. They seemed to agree as they are about to publish another duology in 2025.

Amanda Foody was born in Pennsylvania but now lives in Boston, Massachusetts. Foody received her bachelor's form the College of William and Mary in english literature and a master's in Accountancy from Villanova (Harper Collins Canada, n.d.). She specializes in writing middle grade and young adult novels and series. Check out her popular middle grade series Wildlore

C. L. Herman was born in New York, grew up around the world and also lives in Boston Massachusetts. They received a Dean's prize in Fiction and an Honors English degree at the University of Rochester. (Fantastic Fiction, n.d.). Check out their other works the Devouring Gray series and The Drowning Summer.

Critical Evaluation:

It took a while for this book to get read off my TBR shelf. As I started this book I was concerned that the switching points of view would be annoying, but as each character became more and more complex, I was excited to hear from each champion. However, it took a bit of time for me to understand the magic system in relation to the town and the world, especially in conjunction with the government structure. Honestly I'm not sure if I really understand it even now. All of Us Villains is marketed as LGBTQIA+ but I found that these themes were tertiary to the plot and barely mentioned. This is the first book in a duology and it ends in a massive cliff hanger. I have yet to read All of Our Demise, the sequel, and from my understanding this novel will clear up concerns with world building and have more central LGBTQIA+ themes.

Despite my beginning apprehension I truly enjoyed this book. Fun might not be the right word to describe it as it is quite dark, but it is definitely compelling. I fell in love with all the characters, even in a magical world they all feel so real. The characters are incredibly gray in such a perfect way and continue to have such strong development. This novel is often compared to The Hunger Games, and at first I was concerned it was trying to stay too close to that story line. However, while there are certainly some strong similarities I believe that this book is such a worthy dystopian/fantasy/tournament style novel. It has distinct and meaningful themes such as depression, alcoholism, abuse, betrayal, and self-worth that teens can draw upon in ways not represented in The Hunger Games. I cannot wait to read the sequel!

Creative Use for Library Program:

Spellring Crafting- Teens can make crystal rings and jewelry similar to the spellrings in All of Us Villains. Props can include spellboards which teens can charge their rings with unique spells.

Capture the Relic- Librarians create an interactive game in the library similar to the tournament in All of Us Villains. Librarians can bring in 7 props that match 7 landmarks in the library. The game can be filled with clues and played with sticker tag. Teens can make alliances and try to solve a puzzle by working together or decide to battle for a single prize.

Speed Round Book Talk:

Did you like The Hunger Games but wished there was magic? Do you ever feel yourself rooting for the villain? Seven teens are forced to battle to the death to earn the only source of High Magic for their family. They trained their entire lives to be as vicious as possible but are they really the villains amidst this curse?

Potential Challenge Issues and Defense Preparation:

This novel contains themes regarding mental health, drinking, murder, and abuse. This novel is dark and fantastical, but questions the idea that people are either good or bad, an important realization that teens (and others) may need to hear at this stage of life.

Reason for Inclusion:

I was introduced to this book by a Barnes and Noble book seller who had recommended me some outstanding YA books! She introduced it to me as a revamped Hunger Games horror with magic. While this book may not be included in the Horror Genre, it pushes the boundaries regarding life, death, and gore. I am including this novel into the Teeny Tiny Teen Library because I wanted to pay homage to The Hunger Games as it was such an influential novel for YA literature as well as my own reading journey. How incredible is it that current readers and authors are coming back to a similar storyline in a new and exciting way.

Check Out:

Here is a playlist that Amanda Foody put together for inspiration while writing All of Us Villains

References:

Herman, C. L. (n.d.). Books. Accessed June 2024 from https://www.clherman.com/books

Fantastic Fiction. (n.d.). Christine Lynn Heman. Accessed June 2024 from https://www.fantasticfiction.com/h/christine-lynn-herman/

Foody, A. (n.d.). About. Accessed June from https://www.amandafoody.com/about

Foody, A. (n.d.). All of Us Villains. Accessed June 2024 from https://www.amandafoody.com/all-of-us-villains

Harper Collins CanadaJunior Lib Guide. (n.d.). All of us Villains. Accessed June 2024 from https://www.juniorlibraryguild.com/all-of-us-villains-9781250789259j

M., D. (2021, December). Interview With an Author: Amanda Foody and Christine Lynn Herman. Los Angeles Public Library. https://www.lapl.org/collections-resources/blogs/lapl/interview-author-amanda-foody-and-christine-lynn-herman

@gabiioartist (2022, Sptember). All of Us Villains Fan Art. [Post]. Tumblr. Accessed June 2024 from https://www.tumblr.com/gabiioartist/694480483089809408/all-of-us-villains-is-a-really-fun-book-alistair