Reviews with content warning for Death - Their Vicious Games

This book was amazing. My first read of 2024 and I was absolutely floored. I felt for Adina and was hooked from the first chapter. The story was gripping and made me want to pull my hair out at certain stages because I needed her to win.

The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is because I was depressed at the end and needed to process what I had just read. Part of me wants a sequel to see what the future would look like but the other part of me thinks that it ended as best as it could.

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stephmcnutt28's review

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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bookcheshirecat's review

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challenging dark tense medium-paced

3.5

“Rule one: Wealth is power. If you don’t have it, keep your head down. I thought I’d gotten that one down to a science over the past twelve years. Rule two: Knowledge is too—now that power I had in spades. But with knowledge comes the responsibility to know when to keep your mouth shut and when not to (see rule one). I chose not to and I chose wrong.”

➽ Their Vicious Games is a Thriller following Adina Walker who's trying to earn back her Yale acceptance. Adina's one of the few girls at the prestigious Edgewater Academy and one slipup costs her everything. With no future prospects and blacklisted from all universities, Adina only has one more chance: participate in the Finish, a high-stakes competition sponsored by the Remington family. The winner receives a full ride to their college of choice. The premise was really promising, as I liked the idea of a competition between 12 bright women who each want to secure their future. They compete in three mysterious events called the Ride, Raid and Royale. However, Adina soon begins to suspect that the Finish is much more deadly than she thought.

➽ I liked the themes and ominous atmosphere. Despite the slower pace, there were many chilling moments that showed how far the girls were pushed and how far some would go for their success. Most participants are white, so Adina's the only black girl. She strikes up a friendship with the only other person of color, Saint, the daughter of a Chinese investor. I liked their friendship and wish Saint would have gotten more of the spotlight. Adina also deals with her ex-best friend and the person who ruined her future: Esme. There was a ton of tension between the girls! I also appreciated the discussions about class and race, as Adina has to deal with the casual racism of her benefactors. She's struggling to regain her agency in an environment of self-satisfied, righteous rich people who see her as a tool to show their goodwill!

➽ In the end, I thought the book dragged at times and went in a direction I didn't enjoy. I expected Thie Vicious Games to be much more fast-paced and engaging, so the buildup was too slow for me. I also didn't think I understood everyone's motivations for being here apart from Adina, Esme and Saint. The other contestants were one-dimensional so I didn't get a sense for their motives and didn't care about what happened to them. Apart from that, Adina often got handed a lot of things by others and I didn't feel like she grew as a character until the very end. In general, I wish the book had stuck closer to its original premise, as I found it more interesting than the direction it took.

This Finish isn't like the others because it's held as a competition to see who can win Pierce's hand in marriage and become part of the Remington family. It's top-secret and not only about college acceptances, as the winner gets all sorts of privileges. It reminded me of The Selection, just with more murder. I wish the focus had stayed on the girls competing for their future instead of trying to appeal to a rich white boy. In the end, Adina's own determination to earn back her Yale acceptance got pushed into the background. I also didn't understand why the other girls who came from good families risked their lives just to marry into the Remington family. Some parts didn't make sense to me.

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spencerhoneyy's review

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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sabrielsbell's review against another edition

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dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

This was such an interesting read. I went into it not knowing what to expect and really was taken in by the story. The competition, battle royale aspect, and "villains" were all really well done. I think I struggled to connect a bit with the main character and I wish the influence of the wealth family had been shown instead of just talked about to have a bit more impact. If you liked Hunger Games or The Belles this is a good follow up.

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kendal_reads's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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immdanii's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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