A Lesson in Vengeance is not worth your time. I found there to be too much repetitive character inner-monologues, an insane amount of untied plot points, and I couldn't vibe with the improbability of the decision making made within this novel. A Lesson in Vengeance does contains a great ending and one I found to be the saving grace of the novel.

As always, it is up to you to decide if this is worth your time. If you enjoy high school boarding stories with a touch of witch insanity, you will enjoy this novel. If you crave something with a more linear plot progression but still murderous school vibes, I would check out The Ivies or if you want a novel with paranormal intensity, then check out White Smoke which I recently finished and adored.

The plot is solid and I think it would translate into a movie very well. This is because the characters thoughts are expressed in a repetitive manner as stated above and a movie would be able to condense those thoughts and create a watch-worthy thriller. As a read though, the plot is slow but contains an awesome ending.

I found the characters to be shallow and improbable, you may too. Both protagonists, Ellis and Felicity, make impractical decision after impractical decision which do help progress the story but don't assist in providing the reader an insight into who they are. These characters were not for me and helped contribute to the overall frustration I felt whilst reading this.

A Lesson in Vengeance has a fantastic ending. It is ambiguous suiting the mystical atmosphere of the novel and for me, was the best part. Although this novel is classified as a miss, it is always your choice and do know, the ending is worth your time.

I loathed the protagonist. I found Felicity to be a dislikable and pithy narrator. Why the heck did she agree and go along with everything Ellis said? Did she have no backbone - oh wait, she did because she killed two people. Who even knows if Alex was actually an accident as Felicity warped the memory to cope and she may have pushed her like she did with Ellis leading me to ask, if she had the capacity to murder two people, how in the world was she steamrolled constantly? Felicity was such a pushover and it led her to be shallow because the only arc she had in the novel was none. She had no arc. I will give her the benefit of doubt and say maybe she was intentionally a pushover so people wouldn't believe she had the capacity to kill. Maybe she was the ultimate manipulator but as a reader, I never got that vibe and is a prime reason why this novel didn't land for me.

And Ellis, terrible. She had no depth to her either. You could break her down to two things - a southerner and a writer. A writer who required immersion to write. So what did she do? Murder someone. And for what reason? Felicity. A girl she stalked and truly knew nothing about. The only thing I found in common with them was they were both lesbians and killers, I couldn't wrap my head around why they would want to be together? It wasn't enough for me to understand the rationale behind why they liked each other, I wanted more depth to their relationship and why Felicity would do anything for her. Why was Felicity so easily manipulated? And how was Ellis able to stick her claws into the other Godwin girls so quickly?

Because I found both protagonists to be impractical, this led me to enjoy their character arc less and their ending was "eh," despite me liking the overall vibe of the ending. Some other things I had issues with is the coven, that was never ever explained on how it came to be and why they were even important, how the Dalloway Five actually were relevant to the story,  and how so many underage teenagers were left alone. They were expected to cook for themselves? At a prestigious and extremely expensive boarding school? Mmm... I don't think so. Why did they Godwin girls not expect Felicity to return after Thanksgiving. Why did they think Felicity would want Ellis's flask after discovering she murdered someone? There are so many more unresolved questions I have but those are the ones off the top of my head. Please help me understand these loose ends if you have read this because I am still lost.

It is because of these lingering questions and my dislike of the protagonists that I personally could not enjoy this novel. I am glad others found joy, but it was not for me.