Six for Sunday: Baddies who deserve their own story
Yet another tough prompt this week! I feel like so many villains have been getting their own stories told recently and I have been loving it! I have always adored fairytales and am a big fan of retellings, particularly from the ‘baddie’ s point of view. I think that telling the story of the villain can be really difficult and I love it when the author can make the character’s decisions believable and understandable, yet without endorsing how awful those decisions are.
I am going to cheat a little bit with this prompt and spotlight some villains who have already got their own books, plus a few who I would like to see more of!
Xifeng (The Evil Queen in Snow White) in Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C. Dao
I just love her character and who realistic she is. It makes for almost compulsive reading as you can see her painting herself into a corner and making poor choices, but it all snowballs so quickly…
Isabelle (One of the ‘ugly’ stepsisters in Cinderella) in Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly
See my full review here. This book was brilliant and I loved how it showed that everyone has their reasons for their behaviour, regardless of how their actions are judged by others.
Lira from To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo (origin story of the Sea Witch in The Little Mermaid)
See my full review here. This book is really dark adn made me think a lot about the orifginal fairy tale and some of the horrific things in it. Very interesting take on the origin of the Sea Witch who helps the Little Mermaid.
Catherine (The Queen of Hearts in Alice in Wonderland) from Heartless by Marissa Meyer
This books seems to have garnered a lot of criticism, especially from people who loved Marissa Meyer’s Lunar Chronicles. I adored the Lunar Chronicles, but still liked this! It shows how Catherine grows into the queen of hearts, undergoing a chilling transformation from a fairly ordinary girl to someone to be feared. I feel like this is where the author began exploring villain’s origin stories, which she has then explored even further in the Renegades series.
Silyen from The Dark Gifts Trilogy by Vic James
Silyen is arguably one of the ‘villains’ of this book, at least in Gilded Cage, although his role becomes much more nuanced in the latter two books in the trilogy, despite the fact that he is a member of the ruling elite ‘the Gifted’ and is one of the most powerful users of the Gift. He is, hands-down, my favourite character and I would definitely read a book all about him!
Several characters from the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
There are some truly despicable villains in the Harry Potter series, as well some of the ‘good guys’ who are quite morally grey. I have always wanted to know more about the founders of Hogwarts, as well as the rise of the Death Eaters and the old pureblood families – some of whom become Voldemort’s followers and others who distance themselves from his ideology. For example, I wanted to know more about how pureblood witches and wizards, such as the Malfoys, were raised, etc.
Which villains do you want to know more about?
Do any deserve their own book?
#SixforSunday is created by Steph from A Little But a Lot.
Check out some of my previous weeks of #SixforSunday here:
Books I would like to see as movies
Book characters I would like to stuck in a lift with
Animal companions in children’s books
Book characters I would like to be friends with
Favourite books of 2018 so far
Favourite snacks to eat while reading
Favourite books that nobody has heard of
Books that have made me want to shout
Books people are always telling me to read
Books that have been on the TBR pile forever
Authors who should collaborate
Characters I want to see together
2018 books everyone needs to read
Characters who deserve their own book
If you like, link your #SixforSunday posts below and I will check them out!
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Thanks for reading!
Chrikaru Reads 
I’ve read Heartless of these and thought it was okay, though I don’t think reading it whilst very ill with a chest infection was perhaps the best idea as I found a lot of it confusing and it affected my enjoyment! I’d love to see some origin stories for Harry Potter villains. I think Umbridge would be really interesting!
Amy x
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I was expecting to really dislike Heartless because I had heard so many negative reviews so I was actually pleasantly surprised. If I had read it without hearing such negative things my view may have been harsher. It can really affect your enjoyment of a book when something else is going on in your life – I still remember reading a book that everyone loved, but I read it while stuck in the airport with a delayed flight so my annoyance tinged it slightly! Umbridge would be fascinating, although probably scary! x
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I agree with Potterverse- I put Draco on mine.
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There is just so much about the world that I still want to know!
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I have never heard of the Gilded Cage and now I’m intrigued! May pick it up just to meet Silyen lol. Also Xifeng is such a well-developed villain and I love her so much.
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I love how Xifeng is so complex and multi-faceted! Oh my goodness, please read Gilded Cage. You won’t regret it! The Dark Gifts series is one of my favourite series ever, especially if you ever wondered how Harry Potter could be even darker. In this world, the purebloods rule with their magic! Silyen is such a brilliant character – slightly psychotic, oddly vulnerable at times and absolutely intriguing!
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I’ll DEFINITELY need to check out “To Kill a Kingdom”!! LOVE THAT SEA WITCH!!
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