4.5 stars for Vicious (Vicious book 1) by V. E. Schwab.
This urban science fiction fantasy is V. E. Schwab's first adult novel, about two brilliant and highly disturbed pre-med students who set out to generate their own superpowers and end up mortal enemies.
In all its brilliancy and originality, the author creates a world where gaining superpowers does not automatically lead to heroism and there always exists a fine line of what it takes to be a hero or a villain.
Though Vicious is not my usual choice of a read, surprisingly I enjoy reading it and love the way this masterful piece of a tale develops, unfolds and concludes.
Publisher: Tor Books
Publication date: 24 Sep 2013
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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?
*Blurb from author's website*
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