Review: Vicious

Title: Vicious
Author: V.E. Schwab
Genre: Fantasy, Science Fiction
Publisher: Tor
Source: Purchased
Release Date: September 24, 2013
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Victor and Eli started out as college roommates—brilliant, arrogant, lonely boys who recognized the same sharpness and ambition in each other. In their senior year, a shared research interest in adrenaline, near-death experiences, and seemingly supernatural events reveals an intriguing possibility: that under the right conditions, someone could develop extraordinary abilities. But when their thesis moves from the academic to the experimental, things go horribly wrong.

Ten years later, Victor breaks out of prison, determined to catch up to his old friend (now foe), aided by a young girl whose reserved nature obscures a stunning ability. Meanwhile, Eli is on a mission to eradicate every other super-powered person that he can find—aside from his sidekick, an enigmatic woman with an unbreakable will. Armed with terrible power on both sides, driven by the memory of betrayal and loss, the archnemeses have set a course for revenge—but who will be left alive at the end?

Review:

V.E. Schwab is one of my favourite authors. She is an amazing writer. This book is a fabulous example.

Throughout the story, the setting switches between the present, two nights ago, ten years ago, and other time periods in between. In many stories, this is confusing, but it made sense in this book. In each chapter, the main character was introduced quickly, so I knew exactly where we were in the storyline.

The information in the story is unraveled slowly, but it made it so addicting to read. I had lots of questions right from the beginning, and the answers were slowly given. It was enough to keep me intrigued but I also didn’t have any idea where the story was going.

I loved the way that the disinction between good and evil are blurred in this story. It isn’t clear who is a villain or a hero, or even if there isn’t a hero or villain. Victor and Eli both have reasons for hunting out people, and they both think they’re right, but who are they to decide who lives or dies? I loved this philosophical layer to the story. 

I’m glad I read this story now, because the long awaited sequel is coming out later this year. I loved this book!