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centrifugepolitics's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Murder, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Animal death, Child abuse, Gore, Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Abandonment
Minor: Self harm
kittykatruin's review against another edition
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? It's complicated
4.75
the twists and turns were twisting and turning
i kept thinking i knew what was going on and then something else would happen
Felicity says “Mostly how depictions of mental illness are used to build suspense by introducing uncertainty and a sense of mistrust, especially with regard to the narrators perception of events, and the conflation of magic and madness in female characters.” and i think that was a very get description of how i was feeling while reading the book. i kept going back and forth on whether or not i thought there was actually magic involved or if ellis was just fucking with her for her book. and then it was so much darker than i thought and even then when i thought i knew what was going on and then it got darker
wild
i had a good time reading it
i kept thinking i knew what was going on and then something else would happen
wild
i had a good time reading it
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Mental illness, Blood, Grief, Murder, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual content, Transphobia, and Toxic friendship
hookerkitty's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
There is also a zero percent chance these bitches would’ve gotten away with what they did…..Well, unless the wealthy white families paid the cops off. So maybe it is realistic 🤷🏻♀️ still not a great book though
Also one stupid thing that really irked me - since when does snow patter on a roof? Or being able to hear it snowing at all? Not melting and falling off trees - just falling from the sky. I even googled it just now to see if it somehow is a thing (despite living in Michigan most of my life), and even after I told Google that yes I really mean patter, not pattern, it still was like 🤷🏻♀️ and showed pattern stuff. So I changed it to “hear snowing on roof” and it was all about copious amounts of snow sliding off roof, not it snowing onto the roof.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Grief, Murder, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Alcohol
Minor: Alcoholism, Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, and Suicide attempt
nutmegandpumpkin's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Loved the vibes and was intrigued all the way to the end. Haven’t read a book that made me react so strongly (e.g. putting the book down and going WHAT) in a long time. Didn’t really like any of the characters per se but I was okay with it? All the characters are flawed but it’s in a realistic and interesting way so it didn’t bother me as much as unlikable characters usually would.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Drug use, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Grief, Murder, and Alcohol
Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Sexual content, and Vomit
Minor: Cursing, Eating disorder, and Gun violence
annamercado19's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
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? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I don't quite know how to feel about this so I'm giving it a 4. The writing itself is beautiful and otherworldly. A bit of a slow start for me but then it speeds up and it doesn't slow down. The way the truth comes out in pieces, the horror rising until it's all consuming... Incredible and horrible and so impressive.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Death, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Mental illness and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Sexual content
pagesofplatypus's review against another edition
challenging
dark
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
5.0
I can't say I've ever read a book like A Lesson in Vengeance.
Lesson one: follow an unreliable narrator.
Lesson two: add some witchcraft.
Lesson three: add in a boarding school setting in the middle of winter.
Lesson four: make it lesbian.
Victoria Lee's A Lesson in Vengeance is a perfect mix of the semi-obscure academic references of Dead Poets Society, the Gothic atmoshpere of Wednesday, and the twisty, wintry murder mystery of The Pale Blue Eye.
Felicity Morrow is haunted. Cursed to reckon with the ghost of her ex-girlfriend, one whom she feels directly responsible for killing. When new girl Ellis arrives at the prestigious Dalloway, she is the only one who understands Felicity and embarks on a mission to prove Felicity isn't haunted. As their relationship deepens into something more than friends, Felicity will question how far she's willing to go to seek the truth.
The atmosphere of A Lesson in Vengeance is established perfectly. A suspenseful mix of gloom, secret societies, schoolroom gossip, and age-old secrets. Entering Felicity's fractured mind has readers constantly guessing the story and themselves. And the unsettling questions of what we're willing to believe and what we're willing to tell ourselves will follow readers even after the last page.
Lesson one: follow an unreliable narrator.
Lesson two: add some witchcraft.
Lesson three: add in a boarding school setting in the middle of winter.
Lesson four: make it lesbian.
Victoria Lee's A Lesson in Vengeance is a perfect mix of the semi-obscure academic references of Dead Poets Society, the Gothic atmoshpere of Wednesday, and the twisty, wintry murder mystery of The Pale Blue Eye.
Felicity Morrow is haunted. Cursed to reckon with the ghost of her ex-girlfriend, one whom she feels directly responsible for killing. When new girl Ellis arrives at the prestigious Dalloway, she is the only one who understands Felicity and embarks on a mission to prove Felicity isn't haunted. As their relationship deepens into something more than friends, Felicity will question how far she's willing to go to seek the truth.
The atmosphere of A Lesson in Vengeance is established perfectly. A suspenseful mix of gloom, secret societies, schoolroom gossip, and age-old secrets. Entering Felicity's fractured mind has readers constantly guessing the story and themselves. And the unsettling questions of what we're willing to believe and what we're willing to tell ourselves will follow readers even after the last page.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, and Murder
Minor: Alcoholism, Animal death, Drug use, Gun violence, and Mental illness
kylahken's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
3.5- I should’ve seen it coming. but i did not; lesbians and dark academia, fun! Though the mental health portrayal tried to say mental health issues =/= crazy, they didn’t quite get there in the end.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, and Mental illness
abbythebookfairy's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This book was well worth the read. It intimidated me a tad, and I found Felicity slightly annoying in the beginning, but honestly? She grows on you.
You’re unfolding a mystery from the eyes of someone who should know the answers, but doesn’t. You follow a deep love story, and you find yourself so invested in finding the answers that you forget you’re just reading.
The ending was not shocking, but it was definitely well done. In my opinion? You shouldn’t always have to be shocked by the ending, just enjoy the way that it was executed.
I grew to love the characters, and understand them. Their flaws and fears, as well as their strengths and joys.
I think this book will live inside my mind for a long time.
You’re unfolding a mystery from the eyes of someone who should know the answers, but doesn’t. You follow a deep love story, and you find yourself so invested in finding the answers that you forget you’re just reading.
The ending was not shocking, but it was definitely well done. In my opinion? You shouldn’t always have to be shocked by the ending, just enjoy the way that it was executed.
I grew to love the characters, and understand them. Their flaws and fears, as well as their strengths and joys.
I think this book will live inside my mind for a long time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Murder, and Gaslighting
sammy357's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I've never read dark academia before and I really only started the book because I thought the premise was interesting and wanted to read more sapphic books, so maybe I wasn't the intended audience.
I thought their would be magic, witches, and ghosts in the book and that's what I was most excited for. That and the mystery of the Dalloway Five.But unfortunately there wasn't actually any magic involved.
I wasn't really invested in the romance or the characters. Honestly from the beginning Ellis gave off bad vibes. When I read that she was a "method writer" I knew she would be a walking red flag. I mean have you ever heard of a method actor that didn't take it too far?
Overall the book was okay. I liked the beginning because of the hints of magic and a haunting, wasn't really invested in the rest of the book, and liked the last couple chapterswith the murder and Felicity trying not to get framed.
Wouldn't read again but I don't feel like I wasted my time reading it.
I thought their would be magic, witches, and ghosts in the book and that's what I was most excited for. That and the mystery of the Dalloway Five.
I wasn't really invested in the romance or the characters. Honestly from the beginning Ellis gave off bad vibes. When I read that she was a "method writer" I knew she would be a walking red flag. I mean have you ever heard of a method actor that didn't take it too far?
Overall the book was okay. I liked the beginning because of the hints of magic and a haunting, wasn't really invested in the rest of the book, and liked the last couple chapters
Wouldn't read again but I don't feel like I wasted my time reading it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Animal death
Minor: Child abuse
Manipulation, substance abuse (alcohol mostly), suicide references (no actual abuse) reference to racist history at a PWIapurplehyacinth'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
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, and Grief