366 pages
English language
Published Oct. 7, 2013 by Tor Books.
A masterful tale of ambition, jealousy, desire, and superpowers.
Victor and Eli started out as college roommates—brilliant, arrogant, lonely boys who recognized the same sharpness and ambition in each other. In their senior year, a shared research interest in adrenaline, near-death experiences, and seemingly supernatural events reveals an intriguing possibility: that under the right conditions, someone could develop extraordinary abilities. But when their thesis moves from the academic to the experimental, things go horribly wrong.
Ten years later, Victor breaks out of prison, determined to catch up to his old friend (now foe), aided by a young girl whose reserved nature obscures a stunning ability. Meanwhile, Eli is on a mission to eradicate every other super-powered person that he can find—aside from his sidekick, an enigmatic woman with an unbreakable will. Armed with terrible power on both sides, driven by the memory of betrayal and loss, the archnemeses have set …
A masterful tale of ambition, jealousy, desire, and superpowers.
Victor and Eli started out as college roommates—brilliant, arrogant, lonely boys who recognized the same sharpness and ambition in each other. In their senior year, a shared research interest in adrenaline, near-death experiences, and seemingly supernatural events reveals an intriguing possibility: that under the right conditions, someone could develop extraordinary abilities. But when their thesis moves from the academic to the experimental, things go horribly wrong.
Ten years later, Victor breaks out of prison, determined to catch up to his old friend (now foe), aided by a young girl whose reserved nature obscures a stunning ability. Meanwhile, Eli is on a mission to eradicate every other super-powered person that he can find—aside from his sidekick, an enigmatic woman with an unbreakable will. Armed with terrible power on both sides, driven by the memory of betrayal and loss, the archnemeses have set a course for revenge—but who will be left alive at the end?
In Vicious, V. E. Schwab brings to life a gritty comic-book-style world in vivid prose: a world where gaining superpowers doesn't automatically lead to heroism, and a time when allegiances are called into question.
Visualizo la película en mi mente al leer este libro. La narración facilita el imaginar cada escena y la tensión cada vez que ocurre un enfrentamiento. Personajes bien construidos y una trama súper intrigante de principio a fin.
Yesterday I finished 'Vicious' by V E Schwab. I loved it.
The characters! I just loved them whilst at the same time loathing them. It was dark & twisted & so very enjoyable. I could imagine the whole thing done as a Marvel style mini-series. This should be filmed.
I desperately want to read the next one but I had to place a hold on it
I love that there wasn't one good and one evil character in this, but two characters who act wrong but with understandable motives.
What a cool setting! I'm so used to these larger than life stories about the end of humanity/the galaxy/reality, it's really refreshing to be brought back to modern noir sci-fi. I loved the story. The pacing was perfect, it waxed and waned in a way that kept me invested without rushing me. The chapters were very short, alternating between a cast of character perspectives. Some of the characters were enjoyable, but most felt fairly 2D and underdeveloped. Some of their motivations weren't explained or justified, leaving me scratching my head. My main gripe with this story would have to be the number of deus ex machina that was just so oddly convenient, it pulled me out here and there.
Overall, great story. I'm excited to pick up the next one. Bummed that the author shifted over to the Shades of Magic series before finishing this one. I'm enjoying this series …
What a cool setting! I'm so used to these larger than life stories about the end of humanity/the galaxy/reality, it's really refreshing to be brought back to modern noir sci-fi. I loved the story. The pacing was perfect, it waxed and waned in a way that kept me invested without rushing me. The chapters were very short, alternating between a cast of character perspectives. Some of the characters were enjoyable, but most felt fairly 2D and underdeveloped. Some of their motivations weren't explained or justified, leaving me scratching my head. My main gripe with this story would have to be the number of deus ex machina that was just so oddly convenient, it pulled me out here and there.
Overall, great story. I'm excited to pick up the next one. Bummed that the author shifted over to the Shades of Magic series before finishing this one. I'm enjoying this series much more than I did that one and I'm excited to finish it.
I absolutely loved all of the characters in this book! They are (almost) all horrible people but you can connect to all of them in one way or another. I loved hating both the protagonists and seeing how their minds worked. I struggled to put this book down the whole time!
I will say that the world building did need a little polishing. And there were several oversights/plot holes that irked me slightly. But like most comic book superhero classics, I wasn't there for the flawlessly woven, hole proof narrative. I was there for the cunning deception and villainous ideals from the two main characters.
Un roman de super-héros, mais dans un style différent des comics, des films ou des séries de super-héros dont nous avons l'habitude. Plutôt plaisant à lire. Cela donne presque envie de lire une suite, si elle devait être écrite et publiée un jour.
