Hello Readers,
I’ve been trying to emotionally recover from A Stage Set
for Villains by Shannon J. Spann, and I think its time to try get my all my
feelings down into a review.
This YA dark fantasy does not gently ease you into the
world. It drags you onto the stage of the Playhouse a shifting, magical theatre
run by immortal Players whose performances literally rewrite reality and leaves
you to figure out the rules. The story follows Riven, who is cursed, slowly
dying, and desperate enough to enter a competition against these
reality-warping immortal performers to steal back her life.
The atmosphere is dark, chaotic, and completely
unsettling. Everything in this world is built around performance, theatre, and
storytelling. I especially loved how the book itself is formatted like a script
in sections. It makes stepping into the Playhouse feel completely immersive,
like you're reading a live production where you can never quite trust what's
real and what's staged.
And then there's Jude… He’s chaos in a tailored coat witty,
dangerous, and completely untrustworthy. I walked straight into every single
one of his traps. His dynamic with Riven carries enemies to lovers’ vibe, and
while the romance works as a subplot, their banter and tension stole every
scene.
As for the twists? I thought I had the plot mapped out,
but the last 30% completely rewired my brain. The second half ramps up so fast
I ended up binge-reading the rest in a single sitting.
If you like dark gothic settings, unhinged magic systems,
or high-stakes standalone fantasy books, pick this up immediately. Shannon wrote a genuinely unhinged and brilliant debut.
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