Today’s review is about EVERYBODY WANTS TO RULE THE WORLD EXCEPT ME by Django Wexler. It’s the conclusion to the Dark Lord Davi duology. This review contains spoilers from HOW TO BECOME THE DARK LORD AND DIE TRYING.
Author: Django Wexler
Series: Dark Lord Davi, #2
Age Category: Adult
Publisher: Orbit
Publish Date: May 27, 2025
Print Length: 384
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Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me Synopsis
Synopsis
Dark Lord Davi rules the kingdom, but she must now break the time loop that binds her in this hilariously bloody conclusion to the Dark Lord Davi duology.
After countless failures (let’s not dwell on it), Davi has finally saved the kingdom from evil-by becoming the Dark Lord herself. But now, the hordes of wilders are at her command, and they still want blood. Human blood. And Davi’s not sure she can commit to the total extermination of humanity.
With restless armies at her doorstep, a treasonous duke scheming for power, and the legend of an ancient magician looming over her shoulder, Davi must find a way towards peace and uncover the truth behind her time loop if she is to bring harmony to the kingdom. Also, her girlfriend is mad at her. So, there’s that too.
Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me Review
I received a free, advanced reading copy of this book from the publisher. My review is my own and reflects my honest opinion about this book.
In EVERYBODY WANTS TO RULE THE WORLD EXCEPT ME, Davi is now the Dark Lord. However, she neither wants the Wilders to kill the humans nor the humans to kill the Wilders. So she embarks on a plan to bring her past-lives Himbo Boyfriend Johann into the fold to head off a genocidal war. But of course things don’t go quite to plan and Davi must adjust on the fly and play each side to avoid all out destruction. And, along the way, hopefully figure out why she remains stuck in a time loop.
I enjoyed this final installment of the duology more than the first. Davi’s trademark dark humor remains and so do her horndog tendencies. But there is a reduction in her footnote quips, much to my pleasure. Her flippancy also has a slightly subdued quality, which may have to do with the seriousness of the potential outbreak of war.
However, I think what truly makes me like this book more is Davi’s emotional growth. It’s not easy being stuck in a time loop. That caused Davi to become detached and fairly callous such that she saw people as tools, a means to an end, whether sexually or otherwise. But her relationship with Tsav causes her to grow when some of her actions make Tsav upset, or when Tsav pushes her to think about how her actions affect others. This allows for more emotional connection to Davi as a character. And it lends more depth to the story.
I also found the plot more engaging. Instead of questing for minions, Davi is trying to prevent a war and, if she’s lucky, learn more about the time loop situation. There’s more scheming, plotting, and action, which naturally provides for a livelier read. The revelation at the end of the book also hints, if one wants to dig deeper, at the debate of invasive species. That is, does one let them thive or root them out if they continue to cause harm? This is obviously a bit cryptic, but makes sense when one reaches that point of the plot.
Despite having some reservations about the first book, I’m glad I read EVERYBODY WANTS TO RULE THE WORLD EXCEPT ME. This is a raunchy, fun, somewhat random duology that doesn’t take itself too seriously. It has some moments of reflection before jumping right back into sarcasm and action. Check it out if you’re looking for something a little different in the fantasy genre.
Rating: 4
Content warnings: sexual content, gore, blood, death
Reading format: Paperback (ARC)
I see this book all over social media and I sort of regret not starting the series. And it’s nice when a sequel is better than the first book.
While I’ve not seen Deadpool, I’ve seen others liken this duology to it. So if you like Deadpool, there’s a good chance you’ll like this duology!
I’m glad this one worked better for you than the first one. I’ll probably give it a go eventually. Great review!
Thanks!!
I’m glad that you enjoyed this more than the first book. It’s always better if a series ends on a high rather than leaving you disappointed.
Me too! I wasn’t sure I wanted to continue with it, but I’m glad I did!
I do think this series is a fun summer read, especially if you just want to turn your brain off for some shenanigans! I think I liked the first book better because it got to have more fun with the timeloop premise (for obvious reasons), but it’s a very solid finale.
Turning your brain off for some shenanigans is definitely a way to describe it! I just felt like the first book wasn’t moving very much, so I think that’s another reason why I liked this one more.