The Supervillainy Saga, Volume One

By: C. T. Phipps

Narrated by: Jeffrey Kafer

Length: 19 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

The best-selling superhero series is now available as a collection.

Gary Karkofsky has always wanted to be a supervillain. Ever since his infamous brother was killed an antihero, he's secretly yearned to gain powers and take over the world. Gary gets his chance when the magical cloak of recently deceased superhero, the Nightwalker, is delivered right to his doorstep. But is he evil enough to be a supervillain? What will his wife think?

Follow Gary as he becomes Merciless: The Supervillain Without MercyTM. Gary will finds himself bouncing from one insane situation to another. Whether its recruiting his ex-girlfriend and a washed up mastermind as henchmen, fighting against villains like the Ice Scream Man, escaping from moon prisons, dealing with zombie apocalypses, or working against the insane president of the United States - Gary is always just barely keeping his head above water.

But maybe the world's worst supervillain can be its best hero. Or at least a passable one.

©2021 Charles Phipps (P)2021 David N. Wilson

Happy surprise

This is a remarkably good and fun story of a world parallel to ours with supers being real and fully realized in society. I like the main character well enough but the narrator is what really seals the deal. I started listening to have something on while doing chores and didn’t really pay attention to how long it was and found myself disappointed when it was nearing the end of the first story. Much to my delight it’s multiple books in one which is how I know I like it. I’m not usually one for series but this author did a great job of inserting back story without it being clunky and keeping doors open without it being hokey.

If you love- actually love comics, rpgs, and other “geek” culture this is for you. It’s not gatekeeperish or pandering. The characters are diverse again without being pandering. Good job.

Funny, interesting, and just a great listen

The story is just perfect. So much humor involved. Still a story that gets you invested in the caracters.
Great reading by Jeffrey Kafer

Highly recommend it.

Awesome audiobook

I have really enjoyed listening to the Supervillainy Saga. It is a fun film-noirish story with good character development. Anyone interested in superhero fiction will enjoy this.

Funny and Entertaining Anti-Hero

Book one of The Supervillainy Saga, written by C.T. Phipps, was one of the earlier audiobooks I'd ever purchased and subsequently forgot to continue with. Not because the book wasn't great, it simply slipped my mind. This pack contained the first three books in the series, and I hadn't realised how much that 1) I'd forgotten, and 2) I enjoyed it!

These are an amusing and entertaining series of books, and I've since added the others to my wish list so I pick them up in the future. If you like superhero and books that don't mind poking fun at their own genre, then these will be for you. Gary Karkofsky, our "hero" of the story leads a dull life where he wants nothing more than to be a supervillain. Of course, this wish is fulfilled when the magical cloak of the foremost (and newly deceased) hero of the city turns up on his doorstep.

Suddenly he gets everything he wants and becomes Merciless: The Supervillain Without Mercy (TM). The tautology alone should give you an idea of what this book is going to be like.

Gary enjoys being a supervillain but aspires to be a nice one by only killing those who really deserve it… like all the other supervillains who stand in his way. He bumbles about, acquiring sidekicks and mentors along the way to help him in his quest.

The author plays on clichés and superhero tropes well to give a funny and thoroughly entertaining plot that kept me listening for hours at a time until my Bluetooth batteries ran out. A lot of character growth to be had across the first three books, with Merciless acting not always like his namesake.

The narrator, Jeffrey Kafer, suited this book well. His voice lends itself perfectly (in my opinion) to Gary. That kind of... gruff, self-assured, manly superhero, er, supervillain type voice worked well. Certainly easy to listen to.


At the time of writing this, I believe there are seven books in the series so far. If they are all as entertainingly good as the first three, then I'm sure I'll be adding them all into my playlist in time.

I was given this audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. I have not let this gift affect nor influence my opinions of this audiobook and have left an honest review.

Cynical hero is funny

A cynical man starting up a boyhood dream of become a career Villain after a mix up postal package delivers a haunted, magic cloak. And told with funny timing as the reader slips into enjoying the hilarious, almost banal, world filled with aliens invasions, long named super heroes, time traveling clones, and all the drama of a comic book world.

The true talent is how enchanting I found our villainous hero. For once I liked how he can passionately add his views on topics like religion, politics, social expectations, ect, without feeling like the author is preaching at the reader. Gary is educated enough to have put thought into it and not afraid to voice his opinion.

The stories are cleverly fun too. It gives the vibes of 'Hichhikers Guide to the Galaxy' & the 'Guardians of Galaxy' overlapped in a Batman-noir city.

Narration has a good range of different voices. Absolutely well done. And he gives Gary a likable tone even when he talks about topics normal preachy. Not whinning or annoying at all. Honestly I like how easily I feel like befriending him. Even when he talks of pop culture I might not get; context comes across alright.

Super Villans

Gotta say this book is great. But listening to it reminds me of the Villans Pride books lol 😆 very very similar

Fun Listen

It's a really fun listen. Way too many pop culture references though. Initially I had quite a hard time determining which characters were speaking but eventually I got used to Jeffery's style of narration.

Fun

An anti villain mashup of unlikely frienenemy’s that have to make self sacrifice for the better, that’s right: selfish means. The story plays out in an alternate universe where everything’s possible because of magic, aliens and unbridled technology that’s only limited by your imagination. Personally I’m not a popculture reference buff but if you’re into that humor, the main character banter flashes his knowledge like a drama queen, although I’m not into that scene, its concept is still fun and didn’t stall the story like it can. Overall it was a fun read that puts a twist on a Deadpool anti hero feeling but on the anti villain side of the story. If marvel or superhero’s is your means of entertainment heck even if it’s not. This book will keep you entertained and engaged until the end. Good job to the author and narrator for another well done book.

It was an OK story!

This was an OK story. The storyline was a bit too silly for me but I think it would definitely be a good read for people who like that style of humor.

A great comic book novel

THE SUPERVILLAINY SAGA (Volume 1) by C. T. Phipps is a pretty fun romp of a book (well, group of books). This audio book is about 800 pages of actual books (the first three books in this particular series). Jeffrey Kafer is very easy to understand as the narrator of this audiobook. Even at faster speeds. I tend to set the speed to 1.5+ for a lot of audiobooks, and Kafer’s enunciation is perfect for this.

The plot of this series is very comic-book like. Silly, evil plots, wild characters, drama, tragedy (think Spider-Man), and lot of pop-culture references (without it feeling like they’re all just stuck there to make you nod and say, “got it.”). Is it overly political? I don’t think so.

Overall, the books are full of quips and funny moments that will keep you having a good time.

I received this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review.