He crumpled the newspaper in his fist, a surge of emotions coursing through him: loss, fear—and, strongest of all—betrayal. Alistair had nearly given his life for Isobel to perfect this curse, to save her. Never had he suspected he would be its victim.
Alistair tossed the trash aside and forced himself to look away from his encroaching death sentence. “You’re back…” He swallowed. “But soon I’ll be gone.”
“I won’t let you die.” Hendry rested his hand on Alistair’s shoulder and squeezed.
But I let you die, Alistair thought guiltily.
No, he corrected himself. He wasn’t to blame for what had happened to Hendry. But the people who were waited, unsuspecting, inside.
“Are you sure that’s what you want to do?” Alistair asked. “Talk?”
Hendry took too long to answer. When Alistair turned, Hendry’s cheeks were wet. And as he moved to wipe the tears away, a red streak of high magick lagged behind his arm.
“No,” Hendry whispered.
“Then I say we don’t.”
Alistair stormed ahead of his brother, down the paths both of them knew so well. He sang under his breath while he walked.
Grins like goblins.
They approached the front door. It was twice their height, made of gnarled wood like the twisted roots of an oak tree, with faces carved into the knots. All of their mouths were open in a silent scream.
Pale as plague and silent as spirits.
They crept into the foyer. Portraits of Lowes past lined the walls, and Hendry conjured a knife and stabbed it into the closest one, right into their grandmother’s painted face. He sliced the enchanted blade down like the streak of a claw, tearing through the images of their mother and uncles and dear, departed Aunt Alphina.
They’ll tear your throat and drink your soul.
The brothers found a shadowy figure alone in the sitting room, in the exact same spot she’d been when she’d presented Alistair the family’s gift. She screamed so loud the murder of crows outside the door cawed and took flight.
Alistair Lowe smiled, and the white of the Reaper’s Embrace crept a little farther up his skin. By the end of the morning, his hand was stained white with sins and red with blood.
Every tale of the Lowe family was deserved.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
All of Us Villains began as a passion project between two best friends in the summer of 2017, but since then, so many others have assisted us in making this campy, twisty death tournament novel what it is today.
First, our agents, Kelly Sonnack and Whitney Ross—thank you so much for all of the enthusiasm, guidance, and hard work you’ve put into this book. We’ve become a four-person team over the last few years, and we couldn’t be happier to be collaborating with you both.
Next, thank you to the marvelous crew at Tor Teen, including Ali Fisher, our editor, whose excellent notes, calls, and insights cut straight to the bloody heart of this story and brought it to life; Devi Pillai, our advocate and cheerleader from the beginning; Melissa Frain, who first saw the potential in Ilvernath （and its nefarious cast of characters）; and Kristin Temple, whose savvy support keeps us on the ball. We’re also extremely grateful to Saraciea Fennell and Giselle Gonzalez, publicists extraordinaire, and Anthony Parisi, whose creativity and innovative ideas have consistently blown us away. Thanks as well to Fritz Foy, Tom Doherty, Isa Caban, Andrew King, Eileen Lawrence, Sarah Reidy, Lucille Rettino, Melanie Sanders, Jim Kapp, and Heather Saunders.
Thank you to Gillian Redfearn and to all of Gollancz for bringing this book to the other side of the pond.
Thank you to Amanda, Melody, Grace, and Margaux, our early readers who provided invaluable feedback in making our villainous characters and world come to life. To the Cult, including Kat, Janella, Mara, Axie, Meg, Akshaya, Maddy, Erin, Tara, Katy, Ashley, Claribel, and Alex—thank you for cheering us on from the start. And to Rory—thank you for being the kind of friend who always understands.
Thank you to Will Staehle and Lesley Worrell for designing a beautiful cover and jacket.
To Ben and Trevor, thank you for listening to us gush about this story for four straight years.
And last, most especially, thank you to each of our readers. It’s your excitement and support that made this book—and all our books—possible. We can’t wait for you to read the sequel … but you should know by now that villains tend to get what they deserve.
Tor Books by
Amanda Foody and
Christine Lynn Herman
All of Us Villains
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
AMANDA FOODY is the YA and middle grade author of the Shadow Game series, the Wilderlore series, and more. Formerly a tax accountant, Amanda lives in Boston, and you can find her on Instagram: amandafoody. You can sign up for email updates here.