Counting on the fact that it's still early (only three days after the weekend), I think it's safe to say how Vengeful by V.E. Schwab left me in a minor book hangover is pretty unlooked for. I finished this book half an hour after midnight yesterday (so technically it counts as Wednesday) though weirdly the feeling of longing has just hit me this morning—I feel like I'm not done with these characters yet. I initially thought 600 pages were too long, but here I am now, hoping for more.
Disclaimer: The passages below will contain spoilers of the first book Vicious. Please make sure you've finished the first installment before scrolling down this post or if you're curious you can find my review of the first book here.
Vengeful starts a few years after Eli was dragged into prison and Victor was secretly resurrected by Sydney. Similar to how it was told in the first book, Vengeful goes back and forth in time also.
While under Stell's supervision, Eli is forced to help him capture all the EOs especially the dangerous ones. However, when he realizes that Victor might be the EO they're currently looking for, he decides to keep him for himself as Victor is still his responsibility. Meanwhile, the target himself has been very sick ever since Sydney pulled him out of his death. With Mitch and Syndey by his side, Victor looks everywhere for an EO who possibly has the power to heal him.
Victor and Eli might be far away from each other, but Merit city is still not safe. When a new EO appears, the safety of the city is once again threatened. Marcella Riggins is destructive and full of vengeance. Finally possesses the ability she has always dreamed of, nothing in the world could stop her, especially her cruel ex-husband and his crew.
Vengeful might be slow and full of throwbacks, but this book was certainly as gripping as the first one—crueler even. I had said a few days ago in my previous review that there's something about Eli I still couldn't quite comprehend yet, remember? I got all my much-needed answers in this book, thank you very much.
Honestly, Eli scared the hell out of me. Schwab delivered his backstories brilliantly in this book and I couldn't be more surprised. Grasping the concept of the angelic Eli who turned into something vicious in the first installment, never I imagined his history would be as messed up as his transformation. A part of me frankly broke for a little part of his past while the larger parts of it terrified me. Eli was still as complex as he seemed to be in Vicious, so if I really had to choose, I would much rather pick Victor over him.
Schwab cleverly connected the path of the two with our new female characters, Marcella and June, who later formed a trio with another EO called Jonathan. Their appearance was usually followed by violence and surprises so this second installment was darker and bloodier partly because of them. As interesting as it was for me to uncover their depth, I was still into the original trio more: Victor, Mitch, and Sydney. If there was something I really liked about the first few chapters of this book, it was certainly seeing how much Victor and Mitch cared about Sydney.
In addition to the morally grey characters, Vengeful was impressive because of its plot also. Even though the twists seemed a little slow, they were still very thrilling and surprising and therefore significant. Despite the fact that my copy was the translated edition, I was pretty certain that the writing of Vengeful was even more exceptional than the first one. Though sadly, after the thick and thin we had been compelled to go through, the conclusion felt a little too quick for me. I was quite satisfied with how the story ended, but even then, I didn't think I had fully grasped everything that was unrevealed during the last few chapters.
Let's hope we'll get another book to satisfy our needs like (please skip this part if you haven't read Vengeful yet) the true identity of June, for example. I have read some theories that said there’s a possibility of Angie being June, but if it's true, may I ask: why Sydney?
Apart from the fact that the existence of book 3 is still debatable, Vengeful is still a masterpiece as a whole. How Schwab compiled every idea and little detail was amazing and I couldn't stop being in awe of everything. Last but not least, if a story concerning characters with depth and superpower is your cup of tea, you should definitely consider giving this series a try.
Actual rating: 4.5★
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