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Barry Lyga
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Archvillain: 1 Paperback – June 1, 2011

by Barry Lyga (Author)
4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 17 ratings
See all formats and editions
Critically acclaimed author Barry Lyga's middle-grade debut ARCHVILLAIN now in paperback!Kyle Camden knows exactly where he was the night Mighty Mike arrived: sneaking around the fallow field behind Bouring Middle School, preparing one of his most ingenious pranks yet.Which is why he couldn't tell anyone where he was. Or what he saw.Those lights everyone saw in the sky weren't tiny meteors burning up in the atmosphere. They were some kind of strange, supercooled plasma that bathed the entire field -- including Kyle -- in alien energies.Unfortunately, the energies also brought Mighty Mike to Earth. Kyle is the only one who knows that Mighty Mike is an alien. Everyone else thinks that Mike is just some kid who stumbled into the field, got beefed up on meteor juice, lost his memory, and decided to start rescuing kittens from trees. But Kyle knows the truth. And he'll do anything in his power to stop Mighty Mike, even if it means being an Archvillain!
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  1. Reading age
    9 - 12 years
  2. Print length
    192 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Grade level
    4 - 6
  5. Dimensions
    5.5 x 0.5 x 7.75 inches
  6. Publisher
    Scholastic Paperbacks
  7. Publication date
    June 1, 2011
  8. ISBN-10
    0545196507
  9. ISBN-13
    978-0545196505
  10. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

Praise for Archvillain: “[G]ood, snide fun.” – Kirkus “[Kyle] plays the antihero part with comic aplomb.” – Booklist “Lyga laces his story with ample humor. . . . Readers will find plenty to ponder, from guessing Mike's true motivations to debating whether Kyle is a hero–or a villain in the making.” – Publishers Weekly “Who is the good guy and who is really the archvillain? Tune in next time. . . .” – School Library Journal Praise for The Mad Mask:“A fizzy mix of multilayered comedy and awesomely destructive battles, presented from an unusual narrative angle.” – Kirkus“Lyga packs the story with enough bombastic mayhem and light moral ambiguity to keep the pages flipping faster than a speeding you-know-what.” – BooklistPraise for Yesterday Again:"Lyga's third fun and furious Archvillain tale . . ."

About the Author

Barry Lyga is the author of ARCHVILLAIN and THE MAD MASK, the first two novels of Kyle Camden’s adventures. He’s also the author of several critically acclaimed YA novels including THE ASTONISHING ADVENTURES OF FANBOY AND GOTH GIRL, as well as its follow-up, GOTH GIRL RISING; BOY TOY; and HERO-TYPE. Barry lives in Brooklyn, New York. When he’s not writing he uses his superpowers to fight crime.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Scholastic Paperbacks; Reprint edition (June 1, 2011)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 192 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0545196507
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0545196505
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 9 - 12 years
  • Grade level ‏ : ‎ 4 - 6
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 4.8 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.5 x 7.75 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.2 4.2 out of 5 stars 17 ratings

About the author

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Barry Lyga

Barry Lyga

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Called a "YA rebel-author" by Kirkus Reviews, Barry Lyga has published more than twenty novels in various genres in his dozen-plus-year career, including the New York Times bestselling I Hunt Killers and Thanos: Titan Consumed for Marvel Studios. His books have been or are slated to be published in nine different languages in North America, Australia, Europe, and Asia.

After graduating from Yale with a degree in English, Lyga worked in the comic book industry before quitting to pursue his lifelong love of writing. In 2006, his first young adult novel, The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl, was published to rave reviews, including starred reviews from Booklist and School Library Journal. Publisher's Weekly named Lyga a "Flying Start" in December 2006 on the strength of the debut.

His second young adult novel, Boy Toy, received starred reviews in SLJ, Publishers Weekly, and Kirkus. VOYA gave it its highest critical rating, and the Chicago Tribune called it "...an astounding portrayal of what it is like to be the young male victim." His third novel, Hero-Type, according to VOYA "proves that there are still fresh ideas and new, interesting story lines to be explored in young adult literature."

Since then, he has also written Goth Girl Rising (the sequel to his first novel), as well as the Archvillain series for middle-grade readers and the graphic novel Mangaman (with art by Colleen Doran).

His most famous series is I Hunt Killers, called by the LA Times "one of the more daring concepts in recent years by a young-adult author" and an "extreme and utterly alluring narrative about nature versus nurture." The first book landed on both the New York Times and USAToday bestsellers lists, and the series has been optioned for television by Warner Bros./Silver Pictures.

Lyga lives and writes near New York City. His comic book collection is a lot smaller than it used to be, but is still way too big.

Customer reviews

4.2 out of 5 stars
17 global ratings

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Top reviews from the United States

  • Ahlys
    5.0 out of 5 stars The writing is a delight and I enjoyed all the characters
    Reviewed in the United States on February 7, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    A very charming read. Kyle is a bit of a snob but the author carries it off well and the premise is interesting and well done, The writing is a delight and I enjoyed all the characters,
    One person found this helpful
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  • mswhope
    5.0 out of 5 stars Archvillain
    Reviewed in the United States on January 31, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    Great book, nerdy and funny at the same time. Barry Luca is great. I hope that the mad mask and yesterday again are this good.
    One person found this helpful
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  • A. Maurer
    3.0 out of 5 stars Coffeechug Book Review - [...]
    Reviewed in the United States on January 9, 2011
    I will start off by stating I was excited to read this. I made my pledge to not read any more books from the library(see post from yesterday), but this one came in and I had to read it. Why? Because I enjoy the writing of this author. However, this one did not really do it for me. This is no Fanboy or Boy Toy in my mind. Maybe if I had not been reading middle grade sci-fi nonstop for the last month I would have liked it better, but compared to some other novels it just did not rise to the occasion.

    I did not like the main character. Kyle just irritated me from the start. His boldness about how cool he was due to his pranks bothered me. There was nothing about him I liked. If there was someone like that in my school I would be very surprised to see him/her with many friends.

    Mighty Mike arrives and I did not care for him either. He is so perfect in a superhero-esqe way. He was too perfect and too nice and at the same time completely stupid not being able to speak correctly and being oblivious to all aspects of Earth.

    The story ends with it being wide open with no real closure just Kyle preparing for his next prank. This too bothered me as I understand that series make more money, but this one does not need to continue. If it does(maybe I am alone on my thoughts), then at least provide some type of closure as I felt like I was missing some final pages.

    I hate to be negative of any book because I know that not everyone thinks like me. Don't deter your thoughts about reading this book because of my views. This is a superb author who I enjoy reading, but this one just did not grab me. However, maybe it will grab you. I always state that I will be honest and I did just that even though I feel bad for doing so.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • Mel Odom
    5.0 out of 5 stars Makes Me Want A Cape!
    Reviewed in the United States on December 8, 2010
    These days superheroes are popping out everywhere in our media. We've got television shows like No Ordinary Family and the upcoming The Cape series, and 2011 will be a bumper crop of superheroes flying to the big screen.

    Personally, I can't wait.

    So my Spidey senses have been more alert than usual, seeking out the superheroic reads. However, I missed a perfect little gem that popped out onto the shelves in October. Thankfully I've since rectified that mistake and am now taking steps to make sure you don't make the same mistake.

    Barry Lyga's Archvillain is just wonderful storytelling. The thing that makes this book remarkable is how deftly Lyga takes his readers into the viewpoint of the bad guy in the story. Let me correct that. Kyle Camden doesn't actually set out to be the villain. It just kind of happens to him. The way bad things will to any kid his age who's trying to find his way in the world.

    Kyle's whole mission in life is to try to get people to stop taking themselves so seriously. Unfortunately, he doesn't know when to back off his mission and stay in safe territory. He's been in hot water off and on throughout his entire life.

    The night he got a bath in some strange kind of plasma that may be from another planet just made things worse. Now Kyle is super smart, invulnerable to almost everything, and can fly. No one can stop him from doing what he wants to.

    Except his own innate ability to screw things up. I laughed out loud at some of the things Kyle set his sights on (Pants Laser? To blast the pants off his nemesis, Mighty Mike? C'mon, that there's funny!)

    The night he got his bath, another boy showed up with superpowers as well. No one knows where Mighty Mike came from, and he's got amnesia (so he says) and can't remember anything of his past. Kyle suspects Mighty Mike is an alien from another planet who's bent on controlling the earth if he can. The problem is that as smart as Kyle is, that's about as dumb as Mighty Mike is. Mighty Mike has no real intellect to speak of, yet he always gets acknowledged for being a hero - even when some of the things he's being given credit for were done by the Azure Avenger (Kyle). His bad luck shows up again when no one remembers his cool name and instead start calling him the Blue Freak.

    But Kyle devotes his energies to debunking the hero worship the community turns on Mighty Mike, and there are huge laughs along the way. Even as smart as he is, Kyle can't think of everything. He alters his parents' brain, creates a smart-alecky sidekick, and even cobbles together a few other devices (like Mimi).

    The book really struck a chord with me regarding Superman's relationship with Lex Luthor. Kyle almost sounds a lot like Luthor, jealous, wary, paranoid, and egotistical, but somehow Lyga pulls all that together and makes Kyle loveable. I loved the familiar ring the story had too, though, and thought the author had set everything up wonderfully.

    I read the book in a couple sittings. My 13 year old, on my recommendation, read the book yesterday. Couldn't put it down. This is one of those books you give to reluctant readers (especially boys) and watch them crawl into a fun world that they'll want more of.

    Thankfully, this is the first book of a series. Lyga promises more volumes to come. And he's hooked me because I really want to know who the villain truly is and where Mighty Mike came from.
    3 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Harley Thorpe
    5.0 out of 5 stars Pleased
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 11, 2014
    Verified Purchase
    Brilliant, just like the rest of Barry Lyga's books.
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