How to Win the Gruesome Games

by Ryan Hammond, Ryan Hammond (Illustrator)

Overview

In the third book of this illustrated middle grade series that’s The Bad Guys meets Amelia Fang, Bram and his merry gang of almost-villains participate in a school-wide sports tournament, the Gruesome Games.

Once a year, the five original founders of Villains Academy rise from their graves in honor of the Gruesome Games—a school field day unlike any other, where the aim is to prank and cheat your way to the finish line.

Werewolf Bram and his friends the Weirdoughs are determined to win so their names can be written in the Book of Bad, a record of the most wicked villains to grace the school. But when the pranks start getting out of hand and the Book of Bad is stolen, it’s up to Bram and the gang to get to the bottom of the mystery.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781665950091
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers
Publication date:	03/18/2025
Series:	Villains Academy , #3
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.10(w) x 7.60(h) x 0.90(d)
Age Range:	7 - 12 Years

About the Author

Ryan Hammond is an author, illustrator, and designer. He likes cute animals, quirky characters, and villainous traits. He currently lives in an unknown location in an extremely haunted house, surrounded by lots and lots of books. He’s the author and illustrator of the Villains Academy middle grade series.

Ryan Hammond is an author, illustrator, and designer. He likes cute animals, quirky characters, and villainous traits. He currently lives in an unknown location in an extremely haunted house, surrounded by lots and lots of books. He’s the author and illustrator of the Villains Academy middle grade series.

Editorial Reviews

2024-12-14
Villainous cliques continue to clash as an annual school competition brings a fresh slew of pranks and personal growth.

In this third episode, Bram the werewolf and his coterie of close and loyal misfits, the Weirdoughs, square off against the more conventionally evil Overlords as the no-rules Gruesome Games come round again, with the Trouble Trophy and a note inThe Book of Bad as prizes. Bram’s dads and other parents will be watching, along with the academy’s long-dead founders, which adds extra pressure. Still, the Weirdoughs’ brand of villainy looks a lot like virtuous behavior: Although the Overlords, who excel at cheating, do better in the (severed) Head-and-Spoon Race and other events, they’re not the ones who loyally support one another through thick and thin, pull off the most glorious prank of all on the entire school, and ultimately wangle invitations to join the secret League of Losers (or, LOL) in their posh lair. If all the nice behavior and pep talks (“You have serious main-character syndrome,” a friend tells Bram after he confesses to feeling like a loser) sometimes weigh heavily, Hammond shows a knack for amusing tweaks that lighten the load—from his cheeky illustrations to the composition of the multispecies cast, which, along with some racially diverse humanoids, includes a lion given to massive, toxic farts and immortal prankster Master Masonnaise, a sentient flying sandwich.

Entertaining enough to give villainy a good name. (drawing instructions)(Paranormal. 7-10)

Kirkus Reviews