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A review by ghostboyreads
Victorian Psycho by Virginia Feito
4.0
"What a funny feeling it is, to know that I could kill them whenever I so wished. I could pick up a heavy rock and smash their skills in or push them down the stairs. I could scrap them from the Earth as smoothly as wiping butter from a blade with a cotton apron. It fascinates me, the fact that humans have the capacity to mortally wound one another at will, but for the most part, choose not to."
Victorian Psycho is one hell of a rage fueled novel, it's such a blisteringly angry read. Unique, intense, and in your face, this page-turner of a thriller is a mix of dark gallows humor and gorgeous gothic imagery, and it's all told through the eyes of a frankly psychopathic anti-heroine. This novel is absolutely insane, it's actually bonkers how quickly it derails from a rather typical story into an absolute bloodbath. Super unique and utterly absorbing, Victorian Psycho is a whole barrel of fun and such a terrible delight. It's a novel of casual cruelties and maniacal, unhinged behavior, it's fun in the most messed up of ways. Soaked in violence, and drenched in gore, it absolutely does deliver on its promise of bloodshed, the bodies stack to the skies here, but, it's so much more than just murder for the sake of murder, there's substance behind all the savagery.
The most important thing to note about this novel is that, the main character is an absolutely terrible person. She is wholly unlikeable, she's foul and detestable, and you're going to be spending a lot of time trapped within her shattered mind. If an unlikeable main character is a dealbreaker, Victorian Psycho will be a struggle, if, like me, you enjoy being a hater, then step right up. Because not only does Victorian Psycho offer us a whole cast of abhorrent characters, it actively glorifies them, if forces you to root for the sick and twisted. Entirely unrestrained, this is a novel that has little interest in offering up any sort of comfort, instead, it thrusts us into a maddening whirlwind of violence and depravity. Everything is so frenzied, and so quickly spins out of control.
Victorian Psycho is one hell of a rage fueled novel, it's such a blisteringly angry read. Unique, intense, and in your face, this page-turner of a thriller is a mix of dark gallows humor and gorgeous gothic imagery, and it's all told through the eyes of a frankly psychopathic anti-heroine. This novel is absolutely insane, it's actually bonkers how quickly it derails from a rather typical story into an absolute bloodbath. Super unique and utterly absorbing, Victorian Psycho is a whole barrel of fun and such a terrible delight. It's a novel of casual cruelties and maniacal, unhinged behavior, it's fun in the most messed up of ways. Soaked in violence, and drenched in gore, it absolutely does deliver on its promise of bloodshed, the bodies stack to the skies here, but, it's so much more than just murder for the sake of murder, there's substance behind all the savagery.
The most important thing to note about this novel is that, the main character is an absolutely terrible person. She is wholly unlikeable, she's foul and detestable, and you're going to be spending a lot of time trapped within her shattered mind. If an unlikeable main character is a dealbreaker, Victorian Psycho will be a struggle, if, like me, you enjoy being a hater, then step right up. Because not only does Victorian Psycho offer us a whole cast of abhorrent characters, it actively glorifies them, if forces you to root for the sick and twisted. Entirely unrestrained, this is a novel that has little interest in offering up any sort of comfort, instead, it thrusts us into a maddening whirlwind of violence and depravity. Everything is so frenzied, and so quickly spins out of control.
"The blade rested in the fat of my shoulder as Mother debated whether or not to pull it out. 'It isn't your fault, Winifred, that yours is an evil soul, wrapped in darkness' she said with a sigh. 'And it isn't my fault that I wish to rid the world of the evil I have borne.' Her face was crumpled, folding into itself. 'But I cannot do it,' she said. 'So help me, I cannot.' And with that, she pulled the knife out. Over the years, I assumed that my impassive disposition was a result of the vast quantities of laudanum I ingested as a babe. I believe, now, that I assumed wrong."
Every single character that makes up this sickening little novel feels like a sort of exaggerated stereotype, but, that's clearly done with intent. Grotesque imagery, brutal and absurd amounts of violence, balanced out by wonderful, lovely writing and quite honestly, entertaining and satisfying death scenes, Victorian Psycho is one of those rare, daring novels that doesn't shy away from insanity. It goes to the places that so many other novels lack the confidence to explore. It cannot be stated enough how much fun there is to be had with this wildly imaginative story, it's a wild ride, appalling, and horrible, yet, there's nothing not to love about this book. You can breeze through this in a day, in a single sitting really, there's never a dull moment.
"I spent the ensuing weeks awaiting with interest for the rabies to take hold. I hoped I would have enough time to bite another, hoped that I would possess the faculties to still find the whole thing amusing, otherwise how grim it would all be. To this day I can't help wondering what it is like, fear. Coursing through your blood like poison, eating away at your hopes, your ambitions, your self."