The Bad Guys Episode 11: Dawn of the Underlord by Aaron Blabey

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Scholastic, 2020. ISBN: 9781760668662.
(Age: 6+) Highly recommended. Aaron Blabey brings his superb illustrations back in the 11th episode featuring the Bad Guys. It is time to party but Mr Snake decides to lock himself away and ignore his friends. When a voice instructs him to open a doorway and gain untold power he can't resist and what results is mayhem and evil.
Fans of the series will adore this episode and those new to it are given enough context to read it as a stand-alone. The illustrations are fantastic and so witty and humorous. I loved the party scene where there are enormous splashes and skateboarding. The expressions on all the characters are fabulous and the use if bold black print in different sizes is wonderful for creating the scenes of evil as Mr Snake unleashes evil on the world. As always there are puns galore and I especially liked the description of the steps that were taken as a celebrity - make your own record label and fashion label, own a basketball team, cooking show and fragrance and become a music producer. And then there is that ending that is such a cliff-hanger, leaving readers desperately waiting for episode 12!
This series is sure to attract readers of all ages and won't stay on the shelves in any library for very long.
Pat Pledger

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