Vicious by V.E. Schwab | Book Review

TITLE: Vicious (Book 1 Of Villains series) AUTHOR: V.E. Schwab PUBLICATION YEAR: 2013 GENRE: Adult Science Fiction, Paranormal PAGE COUNT: 340 FORMAT: Paperback AVAILABLE  AT : amazon

V.E. Schwab is one author who can do no wrong when it comes to writing entertaining novels with "out of the ordinary" premises. Last year, I read her Shades of Magic series and was absolutely blown away by her story telling . I have been meaning to read Vicious for the longest time. But it was either unavailable or too expensive on amazon. So when recently I stumbled upon this book and saw that it was available at a somewhat reasonable price , I decided to buy it.

I didn't have a single doubt about the fact that this is going to be a very enjoyable reading experience . And I was right because words cannot describe how much I absolutely adored it . It has become one of my favorites.

The story follows the lives of two extremely ambitious roommates – Victor and Eli. Both these brilliant boys share an odd fascination with cases of near-death experiences and other supernatural events. When a science experiment goes wrong- One of them ends up in prison due to the other’s betrayal. The plot alternates between past( 10 years ago) and present times.

I  was super immersed in this world and deeply invested in the lives of these characters in no time. This is what I most like about the author’s writing style. She doesn’t waste any time in building up the story unlike other author’s who use up at least a 100 page to set the plot. Being an impatient soul, I like my story to start as soon as possible.

For the first couple of pages, I got this vibe that Victor was the Villain and Eli was the Hero. But then as the story progressed , I couldn’t decide who among the two was the bigger Evil. It was indeed a battle between the villains. One moment I was Team Victor and after a couple of scenes , I started rooting for Eli instead. I liked this uncertainty in behavior of the two characters which made me constantly switch teams.

The supporting cast of characters were also a charm. They helped the story move forward in a swift fashion. I would love it if these characters are given more space in the next book to the series.

Also, loved the concept of EO (ExtraOrdinary) creatures and their unique abilities in the story . I can't reveal more about this because SPOILERS. But it was fun to read about it.

I cant think of any negatives , so it is pretty obvious that it was a full 5/5 read for me. I am planning to read the next book VENGEFUL (which is out already ) as soon as possible. I wonder what it has to offer because I felt like Vicious pretty much wrapped up everything. Did it need a sequel? I don’t know – will find out after reading Vengeful.

RATING- 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌕  ( 5/5 )