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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
“A Lesson in Vengeance” is incredibly dramatic, but I ate it up. I did not want to put this book down once I started reading it. It’s “Dead Poets Society,” but with witchcraft, lesbians, and murder. Personally, I didn’t mind the heavy handed darkness and drama, but I can see how that might be a turn off for some readers.
Our main character, Felicity, struggles with psychotic depression alongside the grief of losing her girlfriend. We see her battle herself and everyone around her. We see her struggle with medication and self-medicating. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate the attention to normalizing prescription medications that we see on page here.
Ellis, our heart throb writer, is suspicious as fuck, but damn is her aesthetic spot on. Aside from the alcohol and cigarettes, I adored her character. Black coffee in the middle of the night? Check. Writing on a type writer? Check. Always dressed phenomenally? Check. She is definitely a creep though.
As far as the witchcraft is concerned, there are a lot of little things that I liked and some that were obviously for show. The initiation bits were strange and definitely cult-ish, but that’s the point. Felicity is drawn to witchcraft, but not just the showy aspects of it. She’s genuinely interested in the craft and properly practicing it. Everyone thinks she is crazy, but witchcraft *is* a religion outside of the Dalloway Five. Felicity has her tarot cards, crystals, candles, etc. and knows the lore behind the herbs and things that she uses. I did find the Death tarot card bits to be over the top and frustrating, but it’s to be expected with this type of novel.
Overall, the writing is easy to read and entertaining. I found myself in disbelief over many of the later plot points, but I was too intrigued for it to bother me too much. If you’re capable of looking past the logic behind modern forensic technology, then you’ll enjoy this. Otherwise, maybe pick up another book.
Our main character, Felicity, struggles with psychotic depression alongside the grief of losing her girlfriend. We see her battle herself and everyone around her. We see her struggle with medication and self-medicating. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate the attention to normalizing prescription medications that we see on page here.
Ellis, our heart throb writer, is suspicious as fuck, but damn is her aesthetic spot on. Aside from the alcohol and cigarettes, I adored her character. Black coffee in the middle of the night? Check. Writing on a type writer? Check. Always dressed phenomenally? Check. She is definitely a creep though.
As far as the witchcraft is concerned, there are a lot of little things that I liked and some that were obviously for show. The initiation bits were strange and definitely cult-ish, but that’s the point. Felicity is drawn to witchcraft, but not just the showy aspects of it. She’s genuinely interested in the craft and properly practicing it. Everyone thinks she is crazy, but witchcraft *is* a religion outside of the Dalloway Five. Felicity has her tarot cards, crystals, candles, etc. and knows the lore behind the herbs and things that she uses. I did find the Death tarot card bits to be over the top and frustrating, but it’s to be expected with this type of novel.
Overall, the writing is easy to read and entertaining. I found myself in disbelief over many of the later plot points, but I was too intrigued for it to bother me too much. If you’re capable of looking past the logic behind modern forensic technology, then you’ll enjoy this. Otherwise, maybe pick up another book.
2.5/5 stars
okay, where to start? First of all, i'm disappointed in this book because i've read books of Victoria Lee's before and loved them, a lot. Next to that was I also very intrigued by the premise of this book; a lesbian dark academia with a murder mystery plot? sign me tf up.
But instead of being pulled into the story as I had expected and hoped, I found myself bored throughout almost the entire book. The characters felt underdeveloped and it felt like nothing happened throughout like 80% of the book, and if something happened, it was so goddamn repetitive. Everything that happened was practically a carbon copy of all the other events, but changed in a minor detail. I didn't like any character, nor was I excited about the lesbian romance, which I did not expect whatsoever.
The ending also definitely felt rushed, as almost nothing else happened in the previous 300 pages. I am definitely not a fan of the "x years later" endings of books, and definitely also not of this one.
I will probably still read other books by Victoria Lee if they come out with more, considering I loved the other ones of them. Kinda sad I disliked this one.
okay, where to start? First of all, i'm disappointed in this book because i've read books of Victoria Lee's before and loved them, a lot. Next to that was I also very intrigued by the premise of this book; a lesbian dark academia with a murder mystery plot? sign me tf up.
But instead of being pulled into the story as I had expected and hoped, I found myself bored throughout almost the entire book. The characters felt underdeveloped and it felt like nothing happened throughout like 80% of the book, and if something happened, it was so goddamn repetitive. Everything that happened was practically a carbon copy of all the other events, but changed in a minor detail. I didn't like any character, nor was I excited about the lesbian romance, which I did not expect whatsoever.
The ending also definitely felt rushed, as almost nothing else happened in the previous 300 pages. I am definitely not a fan of the "x years later" endings of books, and definitely also not of this one.
I will probably still read other books by Victoria Lee if they come out with more, considering I loved the other ones of them. Kinda sad I disliked this one.
I received an eARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Felicity Morrow returns to Dalloway, an elite, all-girls boarding school, for her second attempt at senior year. Haunted by the death of her ex-girlfriend, Alex, and her preoccupation with the school's witchy origins, Felicity is further unbalanced by the arrival of new student and Pulitzer Prize winning teen author, Ellis Haley. Ellis soon has the other girls of Godwin House under her spell, and convinces Felicity to help her research for her next novel, one that is set at the school and features the infamous Dalloway Five, a coven of witches who were gruesomely killed on school grounds. Can Felicity withstand a second brush with the occult, or will she lose herself again?
A Lesson in Vengeance is smart, intense, riveting, and delightfully spooky. If you've been longing for a Sapphic dark academia novel, this is it! As with many dark academia and/or boarding school books, the characters are driven, academically focused, somewhat hedonistic, prone to quoting poetry, and eager to adopt old fashioned aesthetics. At times I forgot when the book was set as the girls of Godwin House spend their time using typewriters, researching in libraries, reading books, and generally eschewing all forms of modern technology. Altogether it creates a deeply immersive reading experience and I kept expecting to look out the window and see autumn leaves and the mountains or snow covered trees.
While I didn't exactly like any of the characters, they are fascinating and brilliant. Felicity is an unreliable narrator and I love the way the story weaves in meta commentary on female characters and mental health. Ellis is wickedly smart, mysterious, and controlled. The tension between the two of them is on par with some of my favorite characters who ride that line between rivalry, friendship, or more. Their story is filled with twists, chills, and thrills. Brew a pot of coffee, light some candles, switch off the lights, and get lost in this tale of witches and death, beauty and desire, ghosts and vengeance.
Felicity Morrow returns to Dalloway, an elite, all-girls boarding school, for her second attempt at senior year. Haunted by the death of her ex-girlfriend, Alex, and her preoccupation with the school's witchy origins, Felicity is further unbalanced by the arrival of new student and Pulitzer Prize winning teen author, Ellis Haley. Ellis soon has the other girls of Godwin House under her spell, and convinces Felicity to help her research for her next novel, one that is set at the school and features the infamous Dalloway Five, a coven of witches who were gruesomely killed on school grounds. Can Felicity withstand a second brush with the occult, or will she lose herself again?
A Lesson in Vengeance is smart, intense, riveting, and delightfully spooky. If you've been longing for a Sapphic dark academia novel, this is it! As with many dark academia and/or boarding school books, the characters are driven, academically focused, somewhat hedonistic, prone to quoting poetry, and eager to adopt old fashioned aesthetics. At times I forgot when the book was set as the girls of Godwin House spend their time using typewriters, researching in libraries, reading books, and generally eschewing all forms of modern technology. Altogether it creates a deeply immersive reading experience and I kept expecting to look out the window and see autumn leaves and the mountains or snow covered trees.
While I didn't exactly like any of the characters, they are fascinating and brilliant. Felicity is an unreliable narrator and I love the way the story weaves in meta commentary on female characters and mental health. Ellis is wickedly smart, mysterious, and controlled. The tension between the two of them is on par with some of my favorite characters who ride that line between rivalry, friendship, or more. Their story is filled with twists, chills, and thrills. Brew a pot of coffee, light some candles, switch off the lights, and get lost in this tale of witches and death, beauty and desire, ghosts and vengeance.
dark
mysterious
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
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
picked this up bc I needed an audiobook for my migraines and i was really in the mood for a boarding school setting. I liked the setting and the witch vibes but never felt a real connection to the characters. it did end in a way I was NOT expecting, and I liked the unreliability of the narrator and her memories. overall it was just alright, it wasn't exactly the vibe I intended when I picked it up but it was enjoyable enough nonetheless
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-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
This book was honestly so underwhelming. The witchy murders were just ignored by the end of the book and everything seemed so so random. I really hoped this book would take what it's been building up to and resolve it in an interesting way, but no, it was just killing for the sake of killing and not in a satisfying way. It wasn't even scary after page 100, it was just dumb.