Vicious by V.E. Schwab
Title: Vicious
Author Name: V.E. Schwab
Age Rating: Older Teen
Star Rating: ✦✦✦✦✦
Genre: Sci-fi, Superpowers, Thriller
Summary: Victor Vale is sad and lonely, growing up, his parents always neglected him in order to write their famous and well-liked self-help books. In college, Victor meets Eli Cardale his new roommate, and suddenly his life is changed, for better or worse. The girl he had a crush on suddenly starts dating Eli, and Victor feels like an outsider. Despite all this, Victor and Eli’s friendship remains strong as they start their college thesis together, on the mysterious people of their world; EOs. ExtraOrdinarys are people with superpowers, but when a study on adrenaline reveals that a near-death experience could be enough to give someone superpowers, Victor jumps the gun to turn his academic endeavor into an experimental one. Soon enough, both Victor and Eli come out with superpowers, but there is a cost. 10 years later, two friends turned foes are in a cat-and-mouse game with one another. Who will come out alive in this epic showdown?
Favorite Character: I loved Mitchell Turner. My man is the prime example of a poor guy who’s down on his luck and is frequently misjudged by others because of his looks. Despite not really committing any crimes, Turner was frequently blamed and jailed for the crimes of others. He really got the short end of the stick in his life. What really concerned me was how it all went down… I have a feeling that the city of Merit is in America, so this story takes place there, and if so, why didn’t Mitch get a lawyer?! The injustices he faces are infuriating, and when Mitch finally does commit a crime, he is the mastermind, not the thug. Mitchell is a smart guy and I hate how he gets typecasted just because of how he looks… I love how Schwab showcases how people are wrongfully jailed because it seems realistic with how corrupt some police departments can be.
Storyline Development: The dual timelines of this book were so good and I loved how each timeline was written to beautifully complement the other. The summary of the story really leads you to wonder why exactly Victor desires revenge against Eli, and when you finally get the answer, you understand and sympathize with Victor. Both characters are not good people, but you come to understand which exactly, is the lesser evil.
Meanwhile, Sydney’s intriguing powers and her relationship with her sister is also illustrated and it gives a great sense of depth to the story.
Worldbuilding: the worldbuilding is great. Everything seemed really realistic. I felt like I wanted to visit Lockland University and its medical center even though it isn’t actually real. Meanwhile, the city of Merit felt like some sort of calmer version of Gotham City from the DC universe
My Thoughts: I really liked this book, and the showdown at the end between Victor and Eli did not disappoint. I really did expect the revenge to be more dramatic, but at the end of the day, I think that Schwab’s choices and execution were wonderful and that the end of Vicious only makes me more eager to read the sequel: Vengeful!