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A review by k_cao_xai
The Wicked and the Willing by Lianyu Tan
dark
emotional
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? No
5.0
This is the book that made me crawl out from underneath my rock because I have to talk about it.
Character Impressions:
Teo Gean Choo
Hardworking 19-year-old who can be pretty naïve at times. The things she goes through in the story, my god. There were a few instances where she chose to do something and I wanted to jump in the book and shake her by the shoulders to yell, “Don’t do that, please!” But it’s more from a place of wanting to protect her than thinking she’s an idiot.
Mrs. Verity Josephine Edevane
A smoking hot vampire but the shit that she does in the book (especially towards Gean Choo) hurt my soul. I enjoyed seeing her for certain parts in the story because sometimes, she was kind of like this knight who would come to the rescue, but damn, did she develop into something.
San Po Lam
She’s the Asian butch, lesbian in the story and she doesn’t wear a hat. I don’t know why I picture her with a hat even though she's not described as wearing one. She’s not 100% perfect but she is her own character. She’s more down-to-earth, realistic, a bit cynical at times, and whenever I read her dialogue, I always imagine her saying things in a sarcastic, monotone kind of voice, I don't know why.
Hardworking 19-year-old who can be pretty naïve at times. The things she goes through in the story, my god. There were a few instances where she chose to do something and I wanted to jump in the book and shake her by the shoulders to yell, “Don’t do that, please!” But it’s more from a place of wanting to protect her than thinking she’s an idiot.
Mrs. Verity Josephine Edevane
A smoking hot vampire but the shit that she does in the book (especially towards Gean Choo) hurt my soul. I enjoyed seeing her for certain parts in the story because sometimes, she was kind of like this knight who would come to the rescue, but damn, did she develop into something.
San Po Lam
She’s the Asian butch, lesbian in the story and she doesn’t wear a hat. I don’t know why I picture her with a hat even though she's not described as wearing one. She’s not 100% perfect but she is her own character. She’s more down-to-earth, realistic, a bit cynical at times, and whenever I read her dialogue, I always imagine her saying things in a sarcastic, monotone kind of voice, I don't know why.
Minor Characters:
Mr. Kalon Cottesley: I wanted someone to snap his neck when he opened his mouth for the twentieth time. There’s a thing he does that threw me over the edge and had me on the verge of committing homicide on a fictional character. This is all in a good way. I love characters who I’m supposed to hate and I cherish the moment they get their karma. (It was glorious by the way.)
Story Impressions:
Each of our three main characters have skeletons in their closet (some have more than others). This story put me through an emotional roller coaster. It is dark. It has a handful of content warnings so brace yourself if you want to give it a chance.
At certain points in the story, things from the past come back to haunt each of our three prominent characters, as well as things in the present that come to stir things up between them. You're going to see the tone go from neutral, to dark, to even darker. More secrets get revealed, more details about their past comes to light, and towards the end, you’re gonna start wondering, how is this going to end?
And…you can choose that ending. Which I thought was pretty cool, because you as the reader, get to decide one of two pathways Gean Choo can take. Now, this isn’t a choose-your-own-adventure novel. 95% of it is a straight read-through. The author makes that very clear. The chapters I got for my decision was literally the perfect amount. Not so little that it left me wanting more, but not too much that it allowed me to imagine the future afterwards.
#TeamPoLam all the way.
At certain points in the story, things from the past come back to haunt each of our three prominent characters, as well as things in the present that come to stir things up between them. You're going to see the tone go from neutral, to dark, to even darker. More secrets get revealed, more details about their past comes to light, and towards the end, you’re gonna start wondering, how is this going to end?
And…you can choose that ending. Which I thought was pretty cool, because you as the reader, get to decide one of two pathways Gean Choo can take. Now, this isn’t a choose-your-own-adventure novel. 95% of it is a straight read-through. The author makes that very clear. The chapters I got for my decision was literally the perfect amount. Not so little that it left me wanting more, but not too much that it allowed me to imagine the future afterwards.
#TeamPoLam all the way.
Highlights:
- Highlight 1: There are mother-freaking penanggalans in this story! I’ve never read a horror novel with those before. I was pretty amazed. If you don’t know what those are, it’s a monster lady who can detach her head from her body at night when she goes hunting for pregnant ladies to eat. (Her spine and intestines don’t come off by the way.)
- Highlight 2: The consensual sex scenes in this story were smokin!
- Highlight 3: None of the toxic behavior in this story was romanticized.
- Highlight 4: The author doesn’t shy away from gore and violence. The vampires in this story don’t make pretty little incisions on someone’s neck. There were moments when people’s throats were getting ripped out. It was brutal. Heads and limps were flying off. I loved every bit of it.
- Highlight 5: You can really tell the author put a lot of care and thought into the darker topics that happened in the book. She doesn’t romanticize any of the abuse, nor try to justify certain character’s behaviors. If someone’s being a piece of shit, they’re a piece of shit.
My Personal Tags About the Book:
- Vampires
- Sapphic vampire
- Choose your own ending (NOT choose your own adventure)
- Toxic relationship
- Explicit sex scenes
- TW
Female-on-female SA, torture, child molestation, suicide, basically all the trigger warning - Asshole character gets what's coming
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Blood
Minor: Gore