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A review by ashlightgrayson
Vicious by V.E. Schwab

dark mysterious tense
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This book focuses on two characters that go from being morally grey to evil very fast. The premise of the story and the world is very interesting. It reminded me a lot of X-men where you have seemingly normal people who have super powers that are not necessarily common knowledge to the public. The way the ExtraOrdinary (the name given to these super powered people) gain their powers via interesting methods.

The story goes back and forth between the present and future. The time periods are labeled which makes it easy to keep track of when events are happening and helps avoid confusion. It is fascinating to see the characters trying to reason their morally questionable decisions at first to then gradually transition to just being evil. It was like watching a train wreck happening in slow motion, but one that you want to know more about and can't stop watching. 

The prose is not as eloquent as I have seen in this author's more recent works, but I think it suits the story well. The tone used makes the story feel creepy, almost like a horror film from the perspective of the serial killer. I appreciate how unique the story is in terms of both perspective in premise. I would not call the characters enjoyable necessarily since they are terrible people, but at the very least their journey through the events of the story are interesting and kept me wanting to continue reading. The story does well as a stand alone, but I am interested in seeing what occurs in the sequel. Would definitely recommend picking up for anyone that likes villain origin stories and the like.

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