They’re in Books’… Not Your Sidekick by C.B. '‘The Best Superheroes Right Now Aren’t on Screens.

I hope that this is just middle-book syndrome, when all the plot movements have to happen, because I love seeing myself in each of the four main characters and I really enjoy Lee's writing style and worldbuilding. But the worldbuilding around it is just as interesting as before with more details and perspectives, thanks to Bells's narrative.I wish I could be more enthusiastic about the book, but as much as I enjoyed it (and I did like it a lot!), the seriousness of the plot and even the seriousness about Bells's romantic subplot with his friend just couldn't compare to the joy I had when reading the first installment. I know other readers didn't like how obvious some of Sidekick's plot points were, so they might enjoy this one better. I don't really care for a lot of suspense or tension when I don't know the result, especially if it's the foreground story, as it is here. Villain doesn't have the same romance - love and the nature of relationships including friendship and family are central to the story, but Bells's plot focuses a lot more on the superhero conspiracy.The action plot in Villain isn't quite as telegraphed as before, which I found frustrating. I really needed a sweet romance between two girls, and that's what Sidekick gave me, plus a lot of fun and telegraphed-in-advance superhero antics. That's fine, but it does tamp my enthusiasm a bit. However, this is not a read-alone book: Bells's narrative skips and jumps over the shared timeline so that it could be incredibly confusing if you have forgotten any of it or hadn't read the first book.I like Bells a lot and enjoyed reading his story, but it didn't fit a hole in my literary life the way Jess's did. Because the story switches to a new POV in Bells Broussard, it backs up a bit to explain his side of the story and how he experienced certain events, which (the partly unreliable narrator) Jess Tran wasn't privy to. Villain picks up where Not Your Sidekick left off, but not until about 75 pages in.

Not your villain cb lee