REVIEW | Vengeful (Villains #2) by V.E. Schwab

Name: Vengeful (Villains #2)
Author: V.E. Schwab
Genres: Adult, Paranormal Fantasy
Publisher: Titan Books
Format: UK Hardback
Source: Waterstones Pre-Order
Rating: ★★★★★
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Eli Ever and Victor Vale were only medical students when their mutual discovery that near-death experiences can, under the right conditions, manifest extraordinary abilities.

They were best friends, and rivals, and then enemies. They were dead, then alive, and then—Eli killed Victor, once and for all.

Or so he thought—but Sydney Clarke felt otherwise, and used her own superpower to tip the scales. Now, a trio hides in the shadows, while another takes advantages of post-death life to take over the city of Merit.

If there can be life after death—will there be calm after vengeance, or will chaos rule?

So I read Vicious last year, having already read a lot of Schwab and naming her one of my all-time favourite authors. I kicked myself when I adored it and couldn’t believe it took me so long, and yet the wait for the second would be painful. Now I know it will only be worse because I need a third. Now.

This review is SPOILER FREE for Vengeful, but there will be spoilers for Vicious so please read ahead with caution if you haven’t read the first in the series.

Along with our usual suspects of Victor, Sydney, Mitch, Dol, Dominic, Eli and Detective Stell, we also meet new characters, most importantly Marcella Riggins and June.

Marcella – the wife of a mobster who dies, becoming an ExtraOrdinary with the power to reduce things to dust. The power to ruin. She’s tall, badass and has some of the best lines in the entire book. I love her.
June – a very ambiguous character who we know very little about, but is equally as badass as Marcella. She is also an EO, this time with the power to take the bodies of others.

THINGS I LIKED

Moral Greyness – basically the biggest bunch of Slytherins ever in an ensemble cast of characters but they all have such big hearts and honestly I would die for all of them.
Complex and compelling story arcs – each character has their own intense and intriguing past and present to deal with, there honestly isn’t a dull moment.
Multiple female protagonists who ain’t taking none of your shit.
FLASHBACKS – y’all, I love a backstory and this has backstory in d r o v e s.
Victoria Schwab is without a doubt one of the best writers of our generation. Her prose is addictive, beautiful and so so quotable.

“Perhaps she was glass. But glass is only brittle until it breaks. Then it’s sharp.”

THINGS I DIDN’T LIKE

I don’t actually think I have anything to say here so I’m not going to waste your time. This book was perfection.

Representation: TALL WOMEN.
Trigger Warnings: Torture, dissection / vivisection, seizures, death, physical abuse. Please research for more if you think this book may be triggering.

TL;DR – The wait for this book was too long, but honestly it didn’t disappoint even a little bit. Phenomenal. Best 2018 release so far.