Forging Hephaestus
Gifted with metahuman powers in a world full of capes and villains, Tori Rivas kept away from the limelight, preferring to work as a thief in the shadows. But when she’s captured trying to rob a vault that belongs to a secret guild of villains, she’s offered a hard choice: prove she has what it takes to join them or be eliminated.
Apprenticed to one of the world’s most powerful (and supposedly dead) villains, she is thrust into a strange world where the lines that divide superheroes and criminals are more complex than they seem. The education of a villain is not an easy one, and Tori will have to learn quickly if she wants to survive. On top of the peril she faces from her own teacher, there are also the capes and fellow apprentices to worry about, to say nothing of having to keep up a civilian cover.
Most dangerous of all, though, are those who loathe the guild’s very existence. Old grudges mean some are willing to go to any length to see the guild turned to ash, along with each one of its members. Even the lowly apprentices.
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Drew Hayes
In the wild, often absurd corners of genre fiction, few voices strike the balance between sharp wit and sincere heart quite like Drew Hayes. Whether he’s sending up the tropes of superhero sagas in Super Powereds, crafting morally flexible adventuring parties in NPCs, or guiding reluctant vampire accountants through supernatural bureaucracy in Fred, the Vampire Accountant, Hayes brings a uniquely comedic lens to the fantastic and the far-fetched.
His stories rarely unfold in the expected way—and that’s the point. Hayes thrives in the gray areas: where power doesn’t always make you a hero, and side characters are anything but secondary. His humor isn’t just clever; it’s often quietly subversive, inviting readers to question the scaffolding of genre norms while still enjoying every beat of the ride. One minute you’re laughing at a deadpan joke about dungeon politics, the next you’re unexpectedly moved by a character’s growth or ethical dilemma. It’s satire, sure, but never without soul.
Villains' Code
In most superhero stories, the rules are simple, heroes save the day and villains exist to be stopped. Villains' Code takes that familiar structure and quietly rewrites it, shifting the focus to the systems behind the spectacle and the people who learn to survive within them. Through the lens of Drew Hayes, the genre becomes less about flashy battles and more about power, reputation, and the uneasy balance that keeps the world from tipping too far in either direction.
Villains' Code consists of three books and series is set to expand with the upcoming release of one more book. The current recommended reading order for the series is provided below.
