Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - Vicious

Overall this was a fun read with some great characters and a tense plot. I have a few complaints, but I had a really good time reading this.

Our main cast of characters were entertaining and fun, and I really found myself rooting for them even as they did some deplorable things. This should be a case study for how to write likeable villain protagonists. The world was also well fleshed out and the lore made sense. I liked the very simple and limited power sets most characters had, as it made everything feel more like a tense struggle. The writing and tone were also consistently great.

However, my main problem was with the villain. While Eli and Victor's relationship was well defined in the flashbacks, they barely interacted in the present. Perhaps they'll get more time in the sequel, but as it is, this was not the "Superman and Lex Luthor" or "Professor X and Magneto" style rivalry promised. While Victor constantly thought about Eli and craved vengeance, Eli did not have the same level of hatred for Victor. I even felt like Victor's reason to want revenge in the first place was a little anti-climactic.

He was so ready to kill his friend for calling the police even though he had just killed their mutual friend/Eli's girlfriend. Also, I would have appreciated seeing more of Eli's religious zeal back in the collage days. It seemed like he prayed twice and the rest was just Victor saying "he believed in God" like twenty times.

Overall this didn't affect my enjoyment as much as it could have, but did keep this book from a 5 star rating.

I actually thought the secondary antagonist, Serena, was more interesting than Eli. Her struggle with her powers and her relationship with her sister were all extremely interesting and paid off in satisfying ways for the most part.

I almost wish she got what she wanted in the end, and that they found a way to disobey her, and that caused her death, but oh well. I still really liked her as an antagonist.

Also, as an Asexual myself, I appreciate that Victor is a canon biromantic asexual, and I just want to say how happy I was to realize that he was ace. Overall I personally approved of the representation.

I definitely recommend this for fans of darker superhero content, like Joker. While it falls a little short of its true potential, the story is still a satisfying ride with characters you hate to love.

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bean_7088's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Ooh! I loved the dark of this one.
Sometimes books that jump around time wise can be annoying and frustrating, but this was done really well. Never staying too long in any flash back, and satisfyingly dished out information.
The ending was very satisfying.
Narrator was fantastic.

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mdeshazer's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-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

4.5

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ashlynregan's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

3.0

An interesting read. A quick jump to action with the flashbacks in alternating chapters, but other than that it was compelling. In order to read this, you have to fully commit to believing in superheroes, if only for a few hours. I would recommend this to fans of the television show The Boys.

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