Vengeful by V.E. Schwab

 I've always found it challenging to write about sequels. It's not that I don't like them, it's just that I end up feeling like they are necessarily cryptic. On the one hand, it's a book in its own right, but on the other, it's difficult to write anything at all about the plot without giving away events that occur in the resolution of the previous book. I hate spoilers, and I'd hate to dish out spoilers to an unsuspecting populace.

Of course that's not really something I should worry about overmuch. 

So, if you are interested in the series... stop now. You've been warned. It's on you. Really.

Vengeful is a sequel to Vicious which I reviewed January 10th. At the end of Vicious, Eli is captured and buried in a special facility that contains people with abilities. Victor has been killed and resurrected by Sydney. It's not long before Victor realizes that something is wrong with his power and it's getting worse. 

In the meantime, Marcella is a mob wife and when her husband tries to kill her, her brush with death leaves her with a new and powerful ability to finally force the city to take notice of her and her abilities. 

All the characters (mostly) are back from Vicious with higher stakes and more intrigue. The world continues to develop. Clearly if the government (or at least a powerful subset of it) become aware of super powered  people, the first thing they are going to do is set up a super shadowy agency to contain them. So we have a secret agency and we have a lot of machinations working in both directions while the agency dances around Victor and Victor dances around them in a weird equilibrium. 

Marcella is a complicating factor that drives the action.

I enjoyed the book but it was a slower read. While there was plenty of tension, it felt more dilute somehow and Marcella was almost a cartoon of an evil mastermind which works for the series but didn't quite tie together as closely as the first book. I really hope that Schwab continues the series. It's a nifty idea and plenty of room for it to expand.