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mars_ira's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Mental illness, Grief, Outing, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Toxic friendship, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Eating disorder, Forced institutionalization, and Bullying
dernhelms_bag's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Death, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic friendship, Murder, Violence, Toxic relationship, Grief, Alcoholism, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Abandonment, Gun violence, and Blood
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Vomit, Bullying, Classism, Lesbophobia, Body horror, and Eating disorder
librarianlayla's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
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? Yes
5.0
Dark and twisting, this dark academia thriller grips you from start to finish.
I struggled to put this book down, it truly is a masterpiece for the mind. Disturbing and luscious all at once. A story within a story that unfolds not like a flower but like broken origami, sharp and crisp.
If you love psychological thrillers dashed with a hint of supernatural in a dark academic setting - then this could be for you!
I struggled to put this book down, it truly is a masterpiece for the mind. Disturbing and luscious all at once. A story within a story that unfolds not like a flower but like broken origami, sharp and crisp.
If you love psychological thrillers dashed with a hint of supernatural in a dark academic setting - then this could be for you!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Violence, Vomit, Alcohol, Death, Drug use, Animal death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Blood, Murder, and Toxic friendship
chameleon0128's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, and Animal death
katsbooks's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
“Ex Scientia Ultio. From knowledge comes vengeance.”
“The question isn't whether magic is real. It's whether I can touch it without being consumed by it.”
This book was alright. The dark academia vibes were spooky and fun. The fact that there was absolutely zero characters that were men was delightful. I didn't fully realize until the very end but every character either identifies as a woman or nonbinary. Loved that representation! I also really liked when the writing got a little meta. However, I found it slightly annoying when the author said something to the extent of "she touched me and I felt a tingle go down my spine" for the 50th time. Like find a new description, please. But ultimately, the atmosphere was this book's saving grace, for sure. The writing and plot weren't terrible. I found different parts intriguing but the first two-thirds or so were kind of slow. It really picked up in the last third but by then I had predicted a major plot twist so when it happened, it didn't impact me the way I expect it was meant to. If YA thrillers and dark academia are your jam, you'd probably enjoy this more than I did.
“The question isn't whether magic is real. It's whether I can touch it without being consumed by it.”
This book was alright. The dark academia vibes were spooky and fun. The fact that there was absolutely zero characters that were men was delightful. I didn't fully realize until the very end but every character either identifies as a woman or nonbinary. Loved that representation! I also really liked when the writing got a little meta. However, I found it slightly annoying when the author said something to the extent of "she touched me and I felt a tingle go down my spine" for the 50th time. Like find a new description, please. But ultimately, the atmosphere was this book's saving grace, for sure. The writing and plot weren't terrible. I found different parts intriguing but the first two-thirds or so were kind of slow. It really picked up in the last third but by then I had predicted a major plot twist so when it happened, it didn't impact me the way I expect it was meant to. If YA thrillers and dark academia are your jam, you'd probably enjoy this more than I did.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Murder, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Animal cruelty, Blood, Animal death, Injury/Injury detail, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic friendship, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Gaslighting, Violence, Bullying, and Mental illness
Moderate: Abandonment, Gore, Sexual content, and Classism
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Drug use, Alcohol, Gun violence, and Cursing
bookishgoob's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I was really excited for this book, and it felt disappointing. i went into it with an idea of dark academia and left with gothic horror, which i guess you could say are similar. I wasn’t expecting a gothic horror, i was expecting a dark academia mystery. this book was slightly confusing at times, with an unreliable narrator. that can be great, because you never know what’s true but if done poorly, it can be confusing, hard to read, and not enjoyable. this teetered the line of poorly written and well written. having lgbt characters at the forefront was nice and the atmosphere was awesome. i was not expecting the animal death scene and that was kind of triggering for me. all around it felt like it lacked something. i’m glad i read it and it feels like a nice introduction to gothic horror but it also feels like you’re not missing much if you skip it. i gave it a 3.5 because the atmosphere was just really great and i did enjoy it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Classism, Cursing, Death, Gaslighting, Grief, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Forced institutionalization, Gun violence, Outing, Abandonment, Sexual content, Animal death, Blood, Child abuse, and Gore
onceuponabookcase's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I was received this eProof for free from Titan Books via NetGalley for the purposes of providing an honest review.
A Lesson in Vengeance by Victoria Lee was one of my most highly anticipated novels of the year, but while I thoroughly enjoyed it in the end, I had mixed feelings as I was reading. But having finished the book, it really was fantastic!
What I want to start off saying is that this isn't fantasy or horror, or an amalgamation of the two. I came for the witches and the ghosts and the mysterious historic deaths, when they're actually not the real focus of the story at all. They play a part, but they're not what this story is about. It's about obsession, ambition, mental illness, and toxic relationships. This is contemporary, and it's a thriller. The description above compares A Lesson in Vengeance with The Craft, which just isn't right at all. What I'm about to say next kind of crosses into spoiler territory, so I'm putting it under a spoiler tags. But you should know that what I discuss is that there's something I think readers should know before they even start the story. In my opinion, you should read the below, but I leave the choice up to you.
This story wouldn't be the story it is if Felicity didn't have a mental illness. It simply wouldn't exist. And I feel very strongly that stories about mental illness should clearly say so in the blurb/description. The way this story is told, it took the majority of the book to figure out whether this book <i>was</i> about witches and ghosts or about mental health. I'm all for unreliable narrators, but I'm generally not a fan of asking myself, "Is this real or is this delusion?" without knowing prior if the character has delusions or not. I'm not against stories that explore mental illness like this, where the character with a mental illness is thinking or seeing things that aren't real, but I believe we should know going into the story. I would prefer the fact that Felicity has psychotic depression was in the blurb.
Saying all that, I did really enjoy it! The history of the Dalloway Five and Dalloway School's occult past, though secondary, was really fascinating, and I can completely understand Felicity's interest. A school where there may have been witches? I definitely would have wanted to attend! And with the school having a secret society coven, whose real purpose is to create connections between wealthy society people who can help each other out in the future, with it's rituals, you can understand Felicity's growing attraction to all things occult. She dabbles in real witchcraft (as opposed to the fantasy kind) herself, with crystals and candles, herbs and tarot cards, and while it's only a small part of the story, as someone who practices witchcraft, I appreciated it's inclusion, and the obvious research that went into it. But Felicity's attraction didn't last, as she believes it's related to her girlfriend Alex's death in an accident last year. Felicity and Alex performed a seance with a spirit board in order to contact the spirit of Margery Lemont, the daughter of the school's founder and the leader of the coven back then, who was buried alive. But Alex shut it down when Felicity started freaking out, and the seance wasn't closed properly. Felicity believes Margery Lemont's spirit wasn't released, and as such, killed Alex. That's the history. Felicity is now back at Dalloway School to retake her senior year, after her grief over Alex's death and her fear over Margery meant she needed to be hospitalised in a mental health facility. She is adamant she will turn her back on everything to do with magic and occult, because of what it does to her, but it won't seem to let her out of it's grasp. And Ellis Haley, Pulitzer prize winning teenage author, who has started at the school, is writing a new novel based on the Dalloway Five, and wants Felicity's help to because of her knowledge.
And so starts the relationship that is key to the story. Despite still grieving for Alex, and the guilt she feels over her death, Felicity is drawn to Ellis for reasons she can't quite explain. It goes beyond ordinary attraction. There is a pull she can't ignore, even though she doesn't even really like her at first. I didn't warm to Ellis at all. Initially, I thought she was standoffish, aloof and superior. As the story progressed, we see she can be really rude and selfish; she was the prodigy author and must be the center of attention, while also trying to appear above it all. Other students follow in her wake, starstruck by her celebrity, and Ellis uses this to her advantage, subtly controlling and influencing people. It's ordinary dick behaviour, but she's not like that all the time, not with Felicity. Even so, I felt there was something off about her. She made me feel uncomfortable, and the more I read, the more and more concerned I became. But as before, prior to Alex's death, Felicity gets in too deep, can't see the wood for the trees, and clings to Ellis like she's the only thing keeping her head above water.
While still not entirely sure what was going on, I became angry. There were some things I was certain about, and one was that Felicity and Ellis' relationship was toxic. Ellis' behaviour becomes increasingly questionable and shocking, and I was desperate for someone to see, someone to help. The tension grows, and it was just so uncomfortable to read. But it was like a car crash, I couldn't look away. I had to know what would happen next, where exactly this story would lead, though I couldn't imagine it would be anything good.
The last twenty percent of the book was truly epic, and hit me like a sucker punch. There was twist after twist, and the story got so much darker than I was ever expecting! It left my jaw on the floor, and I couldn't believe what I was reading. It was horrifying, but also incredible storytelling. When you look back over the story, you can see the subtle hints, the markers of the direction the story was heading in. It blew my mind, and I was left feeling completely unmoored, and wondering what the hell I just read. Honestly, it's the kind of story I know I will be thinking about for a very long time, that has left me with a deliciously unsettling feeling. While the stories themselves are nothing alike, I am reminded very much of how Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth left me feeling, awestruck and stunned, and the undeniable knowledge that I has just read something incredible. I am absolutely positive this is going to be a contender for one of my favourite reads of the year.
A Lesson in Vengeance by Victoria Lee was one of my most highly anticipated novels of the year, but while I thoroughly enjoyed it in the end, I had mixed feelings as I was reading. But having finished the book, it really was fantastic!
What I want to start off saying is that this isn't fantasy or horror, or an amalgamation of the two. I came for the witches and the ghosts and the mysterious historic deaths, when they're actually not the real focus of the story at all. They play a part, but they're not what this story is about. It's about obsession, ambition, mental illness, and toxic relationships. This is contemporary, and it's a thriller. The description above compares A Lesson in Vengeance with The Craft, which just isn't right at all. What I'm about to say next kind of crosses into spoiler territory, so I'm putting it under a spoiler tags. But you should know that what I discuss is that there's something I think readers should know before they even start the story. In my opinion, you should read the below, but I leave the choice up to you.
Saying all that, I did really enjoy it! The history of the Dalloway Five and Dalloway School's occult past, though secondary, was really fascinating, and I can completely understand Felicity's interest. A school where there may have been witches? I definitely would have wanted to attend! And with the school having a secret society coven, whose real purpose is to create connections between wealthy society people who can help each other out in the future, with it's rituals, you can understand Felicity's growing attraction to all things occult. She dabbles in real witchcraft (as opposed to the fantasy kind) herself, with crystals and candles, herbs and tarot cards, and while it's only a small part of the story, as someone who practices witchcraft, I appreciated it's inclusion, and the obvious research that went into it. But Felicity's attraction didn't last, as she believes it's related to her girlfriend Alex's death in an accident last year. Felicity and Alex performed a seance with a spirit board in order to contact the spirit of Margery Lemont, the daughter of the school's founder and the leader of the coven back then, who was buried alive. But Alex shut it down when Felicity started freaking out, and the seance wasn't closed properly. Felicity believes Margery Lemont's spirit wasn't released, and as such, killed Alex. That's the history. Felicity is now back at Dalloway School to retake her senior year, after her grief over Alex's death and her fear over Margery meant she needed to be hospitalised in a mental health facility. She is adamant she will turn her back on everything to do with magic and occult, because of what it does to her, but it won't seem to let her out of it's grasp. And Ellis Haley, Pulitzer prize winning teenage author, who has started at the school, is writing a new novel based on the Dalloway Five, and wants Felicity's help to because of her knowledge.
And so starts the relationship that is key to the story. Despite still grieving for Alex, and the guilt she feels over her death, Felicity is drawn to Ellis for reasons she can't quite explain. It goes beyond ordinary attraction. There is a pull she can't ignore, even though she doesn't even really like her at first. I didn't warm to Ellis at all. Initially, I thought she was standoffish, aloof and superior. As the story progressed, we see she can be really rude and selfish; she was the prodigy author and must be the center of attention, while also trying to appear above it all. Other students follow in her wake, starstruck by her celebrity, and Ellis uses this to her advantage, subtly controlling and influencing people. It's ordinary dick behaviour, but she's not like that all the time, not with Felicity. Even so, I felt there was something off about her. She made me feel uncomfortable, and the more I read, the more and more concerned I became. But as before, prior to Alex's death, Felicity gets in too deep, can't see the wood for the trees, and clings to Ellis like she's the only thing keeping her head above water.
While still not entirely sure what was going on, I became angry. There were some things I was certain about, and one was that Felicity and Ellis' relationship was toxic. Ellis' behaviour becomes increasingly questionable and shocking, and I was desperate for someone to see, someone to help. The tension grows, and it was just so uncomfortable to read. But it was like a car crash, I couldn't look away. I had to know what would happen next, where exactly this story would lead, though I couldn't imagine it would be anything good.
The last twenty percent of the book was truly epic, and hit me like a sucker punch. There was twist after twist, and the story got so much darker than I was ever expecting! It left my jaw on the floor, and I couldn't believe what I was reading. It was horrifying, but also incredible storytelling. When you look back over the story, you can see the subtle hints, the markers of the direction the story was heading in. It blew my mind, and I was left feeling completely unmoored, and wondering what the hell I just read. Honestly, it's the kind of story I know I will be thinking about for a very long time, that has left me with a deliciously unsettling feeling. While the stories themselves are nothing alike, I am reminded very much of how Plain Bad Heroines by Emily M. Danforth left me feeling, awestruck and stunned, and the undeniable knowledge that I has just read something incredible. I am absolutely positive this is going to be a contender for one of my favourite reads of the year.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Blood, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, and Alcoholism
Minor: Vomit, Drug use, Bullying, and Eating disorder
An on-page sex scene (vague), reference to suicide (no actual suicide), references to racist history at a predominantly white institution, psychotic depression, reference to a stay in a mental health facility, child neglect (past/off page), death, andluisereads's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Alcoholism, Suicide, and Lesbophobia
Minor: Vomit
oliverreeds's review
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
good. it’s just that it got slow sometimes. it could be repetitive but the set up was great and the characters were very compelling. the ending wasn’t predictable but it was hinted at and i liked it
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Bullying, Child death, Death, Eating disorder, Gore, Grief, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Racism, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, and Violence
gm_vak's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Alcohol, Blood, Child abuse, Death, Grief, Gun violence, Mental illness, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship