Vicious (Villains, 1)
A trade paperback repackage of New York Times bestseller V.E. Schwab's Vicious, a masterful tale of ambition, jealousy, and superpowers which will include:
*A new cover by Wil Staehle, cover artist of the iconic Shades of Magic trilogy covers*Schwab's Tor.com short story set within the Vicious universe, "Warm Up"
*A teaser for the upcoming sequel, Vengeful 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? In Vicious, V. E. Schwab brings to life a gritty comic-book-style world in vivid prose: a world where gaining superpowers doesn't automatically lead to heroism, and a time when allegiances are called into question. "A dynamic and original twist on what it means to be a hero and a villain. A killer from page one...highly recommended!" --Jonathan Maberry, New York Times bestselling author of Marvel Universe vs The Avengers and Patient Zero
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Community Reviews
“The absence of pain led to an absence of fear, and the absence of fear led to a disregard for consequence.”
Two med student friends explore the effects of adrenaline in near-death states. What's the worst that could happen? Ten years later, each has a reason for wanting the other dead.
I'm now officially a VE Schwab fan.
This is the second book of hers for me. And it. Was. So. Good. I loved everything about it. The sinister experiment, the unrequited love, the seething, the brooding, the god complexes, the I'm-bad-but-you-still-like-me... just... all of it.
Can't wait to read Part Two.
2/19/18: This was such a great read, with an original take on heroes and villains (or at least the perceptions of heroes and villains). All of the characters were great and the author made me care about each of them, and I especially loved the main character/antihero of the story and the little found family that he came to care about. The villains were equally great, with a zealot who used God as a reason for killing people, and a girl that I can totally see murdering her husband and taking all his money with Kilgrave-esq powers. Usually, I can anticipate a generally happy ending in a book, but I really didn't know if this book would end up with the good guys winning because of how skillful the writing and twists and turns were, so it kept me guessing until the end.
The worldbuilding and lore for superheroes were great as well. In this world, superheroes aren't out and about like in Marvel. Most of them are hidden and regarded with suspicion (like X-Men I guess, though I haven't seen that) and/or not believed in, which I felt was a lot more realistic for a regular world. So between the world and the characters, there was a recipe for a really great read, and I'm definitely looking forward to where the characters go from here in the next book.
3/23/22: I reread this book so that I could finally read the sequel and it had been four years since I first read it. I really enjoyed the reread - my opinions and rating stayed the same this time compared to last time I read this. Found family books always make me happy, and if there's anything Schwab is good at, it's found families and character development. I loved the original take on superheroes and powers and I'm excited to see what happens in the second book.
The worldbuilding and lore for superheroes were great as well. In this world, superheroes aren't out and about like in Marvel. Most of them are hidden and regarded with suspicion (like X-Men I guess, though I haven't seen that) and/or not believed in, which I felt was a lot more realistic for a regular world. So between the world and the characters, there was a recipe for a really great read, and I'm definitely looking forward to where the characters go from here in the next book.
3/23/22: I reread this book so that I could finally read the sequel and it had been four years since I first read it. I really enjoyed the reread - my opinions and rating stayed the same this time compared to last time I read this. Found family books always make me happy, and if there's anything Schwab is good at, it's found families and character development. I loved the original take on superheroes and powers and I'm excited to see what happens in the second book.
THEY WROTE THIS BOOK FOR ME I SWEAR! I absolutely loved every second of this book. It had everything I love, amazing villains, found family, a cast of extremely morally gray character, FRIENDS TO ENEMIES. I ATE THIS UP! Victor Vale is my king, I would do anything for him. Definitely a new favorite!
This book was beyond fantastic and I wish I had read it sooner! It was so so good! I love how dark it is and the concepts, and story lines, were so well done! I can't wait to start Vengeful!
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