Reviews tagging 'Grief'

A Lesson in Vengeance by Victoria Lee

101 reviews

apurplehyacinth's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

4.5⭐️

This book is the most stereotypical dark academia book i’ve ever read, but honestly, i didn’t mind.

i enjoyed the sometimes cringy way things were described like this was a harry potter fanfic. it felt magical and whimsy. that is until the plot twist that had me sitting on my bed with my mouth open in shock.

lesbian representation was a major plus for me, and i have a love hate relationship with the ending of this book. i love it for the grossness it left me with, while also hating it for that. i probably won’t ever read this again but it’s a fun one time read. I can understand why some people wouldn’t enjoy it, but I think it all just depends on how you interpret the content in this book. it’s heavy on darker topics and discussion of mental illnesses. if you’re not open to exploring how sometimes people use mental health as a weapon and how manipulation can cause a person to act in irrational ways. then maybe don’t read this. but for someone who loves thinking about this stuff, i had a fun time.

a great dark academia sapphic story mixed with murder, magic, and mystery

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Grief, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Death

ursa_arlo's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Gaslighting, Grief, Mental illness, Animal cruelty, Blood, Death, and Murder

Moderate: Drug use, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Sexual content

Minor: Alcohol and Racism

persephonefoxx's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

3.0

“The question isn't whether magic is real. It's whether I can touch it without being consumed by it.”

There is a certain irony that a book that criticises characters for pursuing witchcraft in a shallow and aesthetic way finds itself more focused on aesthetics than a plot. This is a story that values witchy and dark academia vibes first and plot second. 

When I say that I didn’t know where this book was going, it is not in the usual way you’d expect from a tale marketed as a thriller. It was because for 75% of this story, it didn’t really go anywhere. The bulk of this book involves Felicity experiencing her slowing building flirtation, struggling with mental illness, and ignoring a sea of red flags amidst a list of dark academia brand backdrops. 

The real substance in this book hides in the final quarter. It is here that the events I expected 100 pages ago started firing off in quick succession. The last 15% is a whirlwind and a victim of pacing issues due to the sheer amount of plot existing within. 

Overall, this is a book with a strong start and an okay ending (although I am conflicted about the epilogue and if it even has a place in the story). But it got severely lost along the way. As a literary tale of grief and female anger and its relationship to witchcraft both past and present, it is a fully fledged entity with pacing issues. As a thriller, it misses the mark. It is not a bad book, it’s just not a memorable one. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gaslighting, Mental illness, Grief, and Death

Moderate: Alcohol, Murder, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Racism, Classism, and Emotional abuse

seren's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-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? No

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Death, Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Abandonment, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Mental illness, Gun violence, Sexual content, Animal death, Blood, and Grief

sleepysapph_'s review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Death, Blood, Mental illness, and Grief

Moderate: Gaslighting, Animal death, Violence, Alcohol, and Alcoholism

Minor: Racism

blackheart's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.5

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Content Warnings

Minor: Drug use, Gore, Blood, Gaslighting, Alcoholism, Dysphoria, Murder, Violence, Alcohol, Bullying, Grief, Gun violence, Mental illness, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Classism, Cursing, Vomit, Death, Animal death, and Toxic relationship

ambaright's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Animal cruelty, Murder, and Death

Moderate: Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Sexual content, and Alcohol

Minor: Animal death

sylexlibris's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious tense medium-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Animal cruelty, Toxic friendship, Death, Grief, Murder, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis

gmat's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Toxic relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Mental illness, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , and Toxic friendship

Moderate: Grief and Suicidal thoughts

solarel's review against another edition

challenging dark 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? Yes

4.0

At some points in this book I thought I was able to predict what would come next but I was always proven wrong. It kept me in a state of shock at every step with plot twists and reveals. 

With the subject of high school girls, it makes sense that it read like a YA. At some points it felt like it was almost pretentiously trying to be adult, but that’s also on theme. The prose felt like it was trying too hard at times to be dark and edgy, but overall the vibes were very spooky academic. 

Definitely a page turner. I enjoyed it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Stalking, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Gun violence, Violence, Abandonment, Addiction, Alcoholism, Body horror, Grief, Murder, Outing, Blood, Chronic illness, Classism, Panic attacks/disorders, Drug use, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, and Toxic relationship