Vengeful

MAGNETO and PROFESSOR X

SUPERMAN and LEX LUTHOR

SDYNEY and SERENA CLARKE

VICTOR VALE and ELI EVER

Great partnerships, now sourced on the vine.

But Marcella Riggins needs no one. Flush from her brush from death, she's finally gained the control she's always sought - and will use her newfound power to bring the city of Merit to its knees. She'll do whatever it takes, collecting her own sidekicks, and leveraging the two most infamous EOs, Victor Vale and Eli Ever, against each other once more.

With Marcella's rise, new enmities create opportunity - and the stage of Merit will once again be set for a final, terrible reckoning. - excerpt from book.

Vengeful by V.E Schwab has been a long awaited sequel to Vicious. I first fell in love with her writing through the first book and has ever since followed her writing career which has yet to disappoint me. This year I started reading her novels again that has been sitting for long time on my shelves. She has always been an auto buy author for me and somehow I had not caught up with her books as I can't bear that bitter sweet feeling of finishing her novels. I am always on awe upon completion, wanting to go back to those emotion rollercoasters. 

There is so much to say about this book but since I write spoiler free reviews, I'll keep it as simple as I can. Starting off with the characters, there are multiple point of views for anyone who is significant in the plot line. You'll get your favourite from the first book, as well as some new main and supportive characters. I was blown away on how epic each characters' power came to be, never the same, never a dull moment. The uniqueness and assortments of powers feels infinite when it comes to the author's imagination, it definitely reminded me of the TV series "Heroes". This does not feel like a copy cat at all if you're thinking of X-men, superheroes of any sorts, a refreshing take on anti-hero. Dark and twisted thoughts that turned into actions is what you'll find in the characters, but if you sympathise with them, you might understand why.

Character growth is one of the drive in this book. I especially love Sdyney's because of her internal struggles and how she cares for others as well. You could feel her dismay on her power's toll on her and reading more helps you uncover how from a girl she became a women (in the maturity of her mind). Victor and Eli will forever be my favourite "villains" as the push and pull between them is the best nemesis relationship I have ever read. If you think you can't get enough of the main characters, the side characters are so well written, I feel they deserve a spin-off of their own.

The timeline of the story goes back and forth, so much suspense in between, an element which makes it a page turner. There is much action to keep you entertained and also much discovery on the past of the characters. Plots moves forward seamlessly and you are feeling the thrill as you edge closer to the present timeline. It is all orchestrated perfectly through plot twists and emotions.

In summary, this is without a doubt one of the best fantasies that I've read this year. An epic sequel following after the epic first book. She is one of kind this author and my only regret is not getting to it sooner. She will continue to be an auto buy for me and I will confidently recommend her to any readers who love a superpower element. I'm utterly loss of words on how great her writing is.