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Quick answer: If you loved Assistant to the Villain, try Legends & Lattes, The House in the Cerulean Sea, Hench and Kill the Farmboy. They share quirky heroes, funny workplaces and cozy or comic fantasy worlds.
Hannah Nicole Maehrer's novel follows Evie, an ordinary woman working as an assistant for the kingdom's most feared villain, and it turns office life into fantasy comedy and romance. The books below borrow the same tone: humour, kindness and a fresh take on classic fantasy tropes.
Table of Contents
Quick Picks at a Glance
| Book | Author | Ages | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Legends & Lattes | Travis Baldree | Adult | cozy fantasy |
| The House in the Cerulean Sea | TJ Klune | Adult | found family |
| Howl's Moving Castle | Diana Wynne Jones | Teen | classic charm |
| Hench | Natalie Zina Walschots | Adult | workplace superhero satire |
| Kill the Farmboy | Kevin Hearne and Delilah S. Dawson | Adult | fantasy parody |
| A Marvellous Light | Freya Marske | Adult | period romance |
| The Princess Bride | William Goldman | Adult | fairy-tale comedy |
| The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches | Sangu Mandanna | Adult | witchy romance |
| The Ex Hex | Erin Sterling | Adult | fun witches |
| Nettle & Bone | T. Kingfisher | Adult | fairy tale twists |
| Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries | Heather Fawcett | Adult | scholarly adventure |
| A Deadly Education | Naomi Novik | Adult | snarky heroine |
| Good Omens | Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman | Adult | British humour |
| Dealing with Dragons | Patricia C. Wrede | Teen | brave heroines |
| Sorcery of Thorns | Margaret Rogerson | Teen | bookish magic |
1. Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree
A retired orc warrior opens a coffee shop in a city that has never tasted coffee. The coziest of cozy fantasies, with found family and sweet romance.
Best for: cozy fantasy.
2. The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
A caseworker visits an island orphanage for magical children. Warm and gentle with a queer romance and a found family.
Best for: found family.
3. Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
A girl cursed to be old goes to work in a wizard's castle. A beloved, funny and magical story with a slow-burn romance.
Best for: classic charm.
4. Hench by Natalie Zina Walschots
A temp worker for supervillains becomes obsessed with the damage superheroes cause. Sharp, dark and very funny.
Best for: workplace superhero satire.
5. Kill the Farmboy by Kevin Hearne and Delilah S. Dawson
A farmboy sets out on a quest and constantly runs into fantasy cliches. A silly parody of the genre.
Best for: fantasy parody.
6. A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske
A civil servant becomes entangled in a magical conspiracy with a mysterious aristocrat. Witty, romantic and Edwardian.
Best for: period romance.
7. The Princess Bride by William Goldman
A farm boy rescues his true love with the help of an odd band of allies. The original funny fairy tale.
Best for: fairy-tale comedy.
8. The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
A witch is hired to help a group of magical people and meets a grumpy librarian. A cozy found-family story.
Best for: witchy romance.
9. The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling
A witch must reverse a curse she cast on her ex. Funny, spooky and set in a magical Georgia town.
Best for: fun witches.
10. Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher
A princess teams up with a witch and a fairy godmother to kill a prince. Fairy-tale humour with real heart.
Best for: fairy tale twists.
11. Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett
A professor travels to a remote village to study faeries. Funny and wintry, with slow romance.
Best for: scholarly adventure.
12. A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik
A student survives a school filled with monsters in a world where magic is deadly. Sarcastic and dark.
Best for: snarky heroine.
13. Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
An angel and a demon try to stop the end of the world. Funny and clever.
Best for: British humour.
14. Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede
A princess runs away to live with a dragon. A witty and charming classic.
Best for: brave heroines.
15. Sorcery of Thorns by Margaret Rogerson
An apprentice in a library of dangerous books teams up with a sorcerer. Full of humour and heart.
Best for: bookish magic.
How to Choose
For the coziest comfort reads, start with Legends & Lattes, The House in the Cerulean Sea and The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches. For workplace and villain humour, try Hench, Kill the Farmboy or The Princess Bride. For romance with a magical edge, pick A Marvellous Light, The Ex Hex or Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries. If you want snark and darker magic, A Deadly Education is the best fit. For audiobook fans, Legends & Lattes and Emily Wilde are especially good. If you're new to fantasy, Dealing with Dragons and Howl's Moving Castle are easy starting points that read quickly.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is Assistant to the Villain about?
Evie works for a feared villain and slowly discovers she may be more important than she thought.
Is there a sequel?
Yes, Servant of the Underworld continues the story.
Is it cozy fantasy?
It is light and funny, with romance and some danger.
Is it spicy?
Mostly sweet, with a slow-burn romance.
Who should read it?
Fans of romance, comedy and workplace stories.
Is Assistant to the Villain a standalone?
No, it begins a series, and Servant of the Underworld continues it.
Who wrote Assistant to the Villain?
Hannah Nicole Maehrer, who first self-published the book before it found a wide audience and a traditional publisher.
Are there other books with workplace humour?
Hench and The Ex Hex are the closest.