At the beginning of time, the goddess Dea created mankind but Crollo insisted humans were too flawed to survive. So the two of them made a wager. Crollo could send his demons to kill the humans but Dea would would bless the humans with gifts: 'Fontes', who are born with magic to defeat the demons, and one 'Finestra' to enhance that magic when the time came to do battle.

Three years ago Alessa was chosen to be her island's Finestra but so far she has accidentally killed each of the three Fontes she chose to be her partner. Now, with only weeks left until a hungry swarm of demons devours everything on her island home, Alessa is running out of time to find another partner and stop the invasion. When a powerful priest convinces the faithful that killing Alessa is the island's only hope, even her own soldiers are tempted to assassinate her!

I love reading YA fantasy and the idea of an Italian-inspired story with demons and gods and magic intrigued me! The story reminded me a little of both The Hunger Games and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, with teenagers forming themselves into an army and training to become killers. When Alessa was first chosen to be a Finestra, she was treated like a god herself. Now everyone is beginning to think they'd be better off without her. Enter Dante, who bears the mark (tattoo) of a killer, but is he all that he seems? It wasn't too hard to guess Dante's secret, as it was heavily sign-posted. Alessa hires him in desperation but he proves to be surprisingly effective at both guarding her and teaching her to be a more effective leader, explaining that there's more than one way to be 'the chosen one' and that maybe she should start living by her own rules, seeing as the ones she's currently following don't seem to be working!

Alessa and Dante are fabulous characters and I loved the way their relationship developed - This Vicious Grace does lean more towards YA romance than YA fantasy. The world-building is excellent - the Italian-inspired setting was refreshing, and I can't wait until the next one in the series! One of my favourite reads this year!

Thank you to Emily Thiede and Hodder & Stoughton for my copy of this book, which I requested via NetGalley and reviewed voluntarily.

I am so torn on how to rate This Vicious Grace. On the one hand, I read the whole book over two nights and couldn't wait to read it again, but on the other hand, the more I thought about it afterwards, the less good the book appeared. I was originally going to give it 3.5 rounded up to 4 because I enjoyed it, but since I waited a few days to review, it's now become a 3.5 rounded down for me.

This Vicious Grace has a strong premise, and I was settling in for some great fantasy worldbuilding. But this book is firmly on the side of romance first, plot second. I love a good romance, but it's not what I'd gone into this novel expecting after the opening, so I kept waiting for the narrative to become something more.

Emily Thiede is an excellent writer, and there are hints at greatness at every point in this novel. The concept and worldbuilding are obviously there, but it just never makes it to the page. I have no doubt that there is a lot of world and law in Thiede's notes that answer everything that I felt This Vicious Grace lacked, but it doesn't make it into the story, so there was just always a disconnect for me.

The Italianate setting was interesting, but it's never clear whether This Vicious Grace is set in a fantasy world that just speaks Italian, an alternate universe Italy, or a post-apocalyptic future Italy. There are hints that the post-apocalypse might be the case, but that doesn't necessarily gel with the way the narrative is set out. It was also hard to get a sense of time and setting, as there was very little description of the book's surroundings. I was often confused with descriptions that seemed to veer from the modern to the ancient leaving me floundering for a sense of place.

Because of the primacy of the romance, the side plots were incredibly under-developed, as were character relationships and side characters. I didn't particularly care about any of the antagonists as there was nothing original or engaging about their villainy, and Alessa's cohort of Fontes were all basically interchangeable characters who didn't really do much except exist. And the less said about Alessa's relationship with her brother the better - that was the only part of the story that I thought was genuinely badly written.

With proper world-building and a more developed sub-plot, this would have been a five-star read. I've no doubt that when the inevitable sequel is released Thiede will have developed past the shortfalls of a debut author and will probably address a lot of this, so I'm genuinely looking forward to reading the rest of the series as it continues. I'd love to see the world that is missing from this book fleshed out and developed.

This Vicious Grace is the final of the three “monstrous girls” 2022 debuts, with the other two having been Only a Monster by Vanessa Len and Blood Scion by Deborah Falaye. These three books centre around female main characters with powers that are considered monstrous, essentially they’re just all three very powerful female protagonists so if that’s your kind of story, you’ll love these.

So, This Vicious Grace features Alessa, blessed by her god to… accidentally kill anyone she touches. As the Finestra, her touch is supposed to amplify her partner’s ability, but three Fonte deaths later and people are beginning to lose their faith in Alessa’s ability to save them from the upcoming onslaught of demons.

Fear results in her own guards attempting to kill her, and so Alessa seeks out Dante, a man she saw protecting an innocent girl, to be her own personal bodyguard. Dante was my absolute favourite, he’s got such a confident demeanour and really helps Alessa to come out of her shell, yet at the same time he’s a huge book lover. There’s an air of mystery about him also and Alessa spends a lot of time trying to find out as much as possible about him.

But, Alessa still needs a Fonte and so she invites all of them to see who would be able to work with her. The Fonti each have their own powers, one can use fire for example, and one thing I loved too is that it isn’t just a female Finestra and male Fonte, the Fonte can be a female also and Alessa has even been married to a female Fonte in the past (though, as with the male marriages, this ended in death). Each Fonte is understandably very nervous about being chosen, and at first I found it hard to like any of them (except for Kamaria, I pretty much loved her throughout) but over the course of the book, each of them became an endearing character.

Alessa herself begins as a very prim and proper Finestra (albeit breaking a couple of rules along the way) but her character growth is linked closely to realising that she’s so much more than what those in power say. How everyone treats her is heartbreaking at times but it’s definitely rewarding by the end of this first instalment.

The worldbuilding is brilliant from start to finish, in this Italian-inspired fantasy world featuring many lemon trees! Creating a whole religion with supernatural monsters attacking is not an easy thing, but Thiede writes in a way you can imagine it all perfectly.

The ending had me absolutely in need of the second book, and I’ll be picking it up as soon as I can!

This Vicious Grace has a similar kind of start to another book I read earlier this year. But where that book left me dissapointed, this book I truly enjoyed reading.

Alessa is attending a third funeral of her third husband in a short time. She's killed them all three because of a lack of control over her gift. A gift that is meant to enhance the others gift. Not kill. It makes her the Finestra of their island. Each time a Finestra is born who will chose a partner. Together they will fight the demons that come each generation to destroy them. But this generation doesn't seem to be working quite so well yet. Alessa has to choose a fourth husband, but there are very little candidates left and few that wish to volunteer. Even worse, someone is trying to kill her. She needs a bodyguard.

I think what drew me the most to this book was the slow build up of the relationships between Alessa and the others. Not just her romantic interest but something grows with the others as well, a weird friendship as one says. Where they all were very guarded from them, as they saw more of her they realized she wasn't some murderer. And even the asshole was a great character by the end of it all. I love when that happens. It gives so much more depth to characters.

Not just that but that Alessa starts trusting herself more and diverting from the set rules, and surprisingly is even allowed to. She had to fight for it but it still happened. It gave her room to work and to trust herself more in her own choices. I also loved seeing bits and pieces about where there magic and mythology come from (and even more so the point that only a few things were set down by their Goddess and the rest was thought up by the humans to create control). Clearly we are going to learn a lot more of this world in the next book and I can't wait!

Just not for me I'm afraid. I didn't gel with this book. I didn't connect with the characters and I felt the story was lacking.

I really loved the Italian inspired setting and influence in this book.

Right from the start, this book draws you in with a brilliant opening. To save her home, Alessa has to choose a partner to combine her magic with, that proves to be tricky when her touch is enough to kill a suitor. Three funerals later and Alessa is running out of time and options. Such a great concept!

Given her situation, Alessa is a very isolated character at the start. This story really focuses on how she’s able to build connections.

The love interest is a grumpy but loveable bodyguard, Dante. I really liked that he was supportive of Alessa and their relationship was very sweet, although there could have been a bit more romance.

Other relationships that are explored include the ones between Alessa and the other suitors, her mentors and the family that gave her up. All the characters have strong motivations and there’s a lot of mistrust between them all, including Alessa and Dante, which makes for some interesting dynamics.

Aside from the character development, I also enjoyed the political intrigue and build up to the final scenes. The ending did feel a bit rushed, with all the action packed into just a few pages, and I would have liked a bit more world building. However, it’s a debut which shows a lot of promise and there’s plenty of potential to develop these areas in the sequel to come.

I’m very highly anticipating the sequel!

3.5/5 stars

I am quite picky when it comes to fantasy with too much cheesy and romance. This book is advertised to fans of Serpent & Dove which I quite liked for the reason that the banters between the main characters are good.

I do like the premise of this story in which the goddess whom Alessa reveres gave her the power to save or destroy everything around her but the dark god sends the demons to plague her beloved city.

Quite generic for a YA/Fantasy.

But I am irked with the cheesy moments with the characters. I do get the princes/bodyguard romance thingy but too cheesy. Not like the romantic banter, I would totally dive for.

Nonetheless, I a good debut for Ms. Thiede.

A really good fantasy book, it feels like a sort of fresh air in the genre. I liked the inspiration the writer took and the magical system.
Would recommend!

I thought it would be a fantastic read, but unfortunately it disappointed me a lot!
At least the cover is really gorgeous and very aesthetic!

Before diving into the review I want to tell in a nutshell the plot to give an idea of the story told in this novel.

Alessa Paladino is a Finestra, a girl chosen by the gods who should amplify the magic of her partner called Fonte, but there is a problem, every Fonte that is touched by Alessa dies!
In the meantime, there are only a few weeks left before an army of demons arrives on the island of Saverio, and Alessa is desperate to find a Fonte to stop the invasion and save Saverio.
To make everything worse, a powerful priest convinces the faithful that killing Alessa is the only solution to save the island, so Alessa, in a desperate attempt to survive, hires a killer, Dante, to become her personal bodyguard and protect her; but Dante also has dark secrets that could compromise the safety of Alessa and her kingdom.

This book could have really had a lot of potential but in my opinion it has not been exploited to the fullest. The things that did not work for me are: the characterization of the characters, the very predictable plot, perhaps too focused on the central events so as to leave the whole context and minor plots sketched and not explained and also the rhythm of the story in my opinion was too much slow.

Moving on to romance, I liked Dante and Alessa as a couple, but their scenes were pretty mediocre, just like the whole book was.

The positive elements of the novel were certainly the fact that it is a very funny reading and some situations made me really laugh, I also really liked the secondary characters, almost more than the main characters.

Finally, being Italian I also appreciated the fact that it was a novel based on Italian culture and set in a fictitious Italian island, even if unfortunately many words and quotes at the beginning of the chapters were written incorrectly and even some names used are not real Italian names and are quite cringe (for example Divorando and Crollo do not exist as proper names in Italian).

it's a shame! It could have been a really good book but it left me quite disappointed and unfortunately it didn't make me feel anything.
However, I recommend giving it a chance if you loved Kingdom of the Wicked, Shatter Me or Serpent & Dove.

Thanks to Netgalley, Hodder&Stoughton and Emily Thiede for providing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review, all opinions and thoughts are mine.

this was an extremely exciting, yet fun, read. There is magic, slow burn romance, demons, the apocalypse, themes of struggle within ourselves - really its everything you could ever want from a book!

The world building and setting is deep and absolutely stunning, without bogging the story down to just descriptions. I loved the main character, and her narrations, and at times found her very relatable.

At times the plot made things slightly too convenient, and predictable, but I quite enjoyed this for some reason, as I normally don't. Nothing about this book was overwhelming, and the whole 'idea' settled in nicely into the world (and the plot)

Alessa was tough, determined, head-strong (at times), resilient - i mean the list can go on - and always had the interests of others at heart, making a very well rounded book. However I wonder if it could be more powerful is she was extremely corrupt - an anti-hero.

Friendships, strong and great, were developed - and I have to say I loved them so, some romantic, some platonic, both most growing in the same kind of way. Making me enjoy their banter, witty comments, friendship and love (either platonic or heart strong) for one another.

Highly recommend for all YA / fantasy lovers.

Thank you netgalley for the arc!

3–3.5

This Vicious Grace is a fun and entertaining read. I enjoyed the X-Men inspiration (particularly the Rogue and Wolverine elements) and especially the theme of connection. I love a grumpy–sunshine dynamic, and Alessa and Dante’s relationship was a highlight of this book: from the witty banter, their growth individually and together, and their exploration of connection.

Although I enjoyed this book, there were a few things that didn’t quite hit the mark for me. The secondary characters were fun, humorous and provided an intriguing dynamic (I particularly enjoyed Kaleb’s development); however, I found I wanted to know more about them and their backstory—more than just their present self in the current situation—and so they didn’t quite have the depth in a story about connection that I was expecting. But as this is the first book in the series, I’ll keep reading to see their development. I also found Alessa’s brother’s arc strange. I had difficulty with the choices of this arc and I just couldn’t understand it, and I don’t particularly think it was resolved well. The stakes in this book are high—world-ending level—which should provide tension, but it didn’t feel as if they were under threat (until the actual battle), unless we were told it. Also, there were also elements to the story that were resolved very neatly and conveniently, some of which was fine, but others not so much.

The end teases the next book; I’m intrigued to see how the rest of the story shapes out and what it will have in store for these characters.

If you’re looking for a fun, quick read set in an Italian-inspired world with X-Men vibes and an intriguing premise, This Vicious Grace may appeal.

This book had such an interesting concept. A great fantasy debut full of Italian influences, God's, Demons and saviours I found it demanded my attention and I was hooked. I enjoyed the magic/power element of the story along with the world building and learning about the Finestra, Fontes and the demons. The romance aspect was well paced and I really enjoyed the build up and the way these 2 came together. The kind of enemies to friends to more was great to see blossom. This book was full of banter which I really enjoy in a story. Overall the build up to the big battle was slow but not too slow that I was bored. I enjoyed how the story ended and am looking forward to reading the next one. I would have liked maybe a bit more of Dantes POV as we only get 3 chapters of him right at the end.

This vicious grace by Emily Thiede

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to netgalley, hodder & stoughton and Emily for the opportunity to read this book.

5/5 stars from me

This book was amazing. The plot, the characters, everything was near enough perfect. Drama, romance and a little bit of action. The twists were really well written, especially those surrounding the male characters.

I read this on a plane and had to sit there trying to cry as alessa and dante opened up about their losses and again with the friendships alessa formed. I really enjoyed the twist on the chosen one trope and the magic system was so interesting. I'm excited to see what the author does next and will definitely pick up anything else they write.

What a great little YA fantasy This Vicious Grace is!

There was lots I loved about this one: the deadly touch trope, the magic, the wonderful Italian inspired setting, the friendships and the romance. We’ve got hidden identity, a grumpy bodyguard… god I could go on forever!
I thought Alessa was a great female lead but Dante really stole the show for me. Don’t wanna spoil anything but he was just dreamy!

This wasn’t more than 4 stars for a couple of reasons. First, I felt I needed more explanation about the fantasy world. More building of WHY things are the way they are. I also couldn’t quite picture the threat clearly.

That being said, I’ll eagerly await the next book and look forward to seeing where this story takes us!

I want to thank you Net Galley for the Arc !!

Ok so ! This is the beginning of this new fantasy series, puts us directly in the action. Alessa just needs to touch someone to make them drop dead. Happy, isn't it?

Alessa has to follow a pretty simple mission (normally): save her village from the apocalypse. It's going to be a bumpy road. She teams up with Dante, who is a darker character than Alessa but they complement each other very well.

I loved the fact that the story is set in Italy, it has a certain Italian folklore that I really like.
Emily leaves us with a very big cliffhanger that made us hate her (I'm sorry but I need to know what will happens next !!!).
I had a great time reading, thank you so much for the ARC.

This Vicious Grace is a wonderful debut fantasy novel and having not read too much about it before hand it took me completely by surprise. Everything I enjoy in a fantasy novel was all laid out for me; a compelling storyline, unique setting, interesting magic system and exquisite slow burn romance. I completely fell under the spell of this captivating and page-turning story which is set in an Italian-inspired world.

Alessa is a interesting heroine, she is the Saverio’s Finesta waiting in solitude for a suitable Fonte whom she won’t kill by accident with her deadly touch. She is feared and even hated and has had to disown her family and friends and her loneliness is palpable. Longing for the physical contact she cannot have, my heart broke for her. Alessa is determined to find a way out of her current situation and escape the loneliness that comes with it.

Dante, Alessa’s grumpy bodyguard, may well be one of my new favourite love interests and I completely fell for him. However, it’s Alessa and Dante together that absolutely blew me away. I adored their chemistry, the innuendos, humour and banter. There are so many laugh out loud moments, particularly the scene when they both became intoxicated on whisky and ended up playing ‘truth or dare’. I felt every moment of that first ‘clothed’ hug, the fact that they couldn’t actually touch each other completely melted my heart. I highlighted nearly all of their interactions, the dialogue and connection they have is superb and I can’t enthuse about it enough. It’s their relationship that stood out most for me in the story, particularly in those initial interactions they had.

I didn’t expect to like so many characters, the Fontes and side characters; Kaleb, Nina, Kamaria, Josef, Saida and great character development. There are some wonderful twists and turn in the final chapters, as well as an exciting battle scene. It’s an easy fantasy to read, not too complex as to become confusing and extremely compelling. The writing style is brilliant and I completely engaged with it. I adored every second of this fabulous book.

Thank you to the publisher for the eARC to review.

'Three weddings. Three funerals. Alessa's gift from the gods is supposed to magnify a partner's magic, not kill every suitor she touches.

Now, with only weeks left until a hungry swarm of demons devours everything on her island home, Alessa is running out of time. When a powerful priest convinces the faithful that killing Alessa is the island's only hope, her own soldiers try to assassinate her.

Desperate to survive, Alessa hires Dante to become her personal bodyguard. But as rebellion explodes outside the gates, Dante's dark secrets may be the biggest betrayal.'

Set on an Italian-inspired fantasy island, the world-building of this book was one of my favourite things about it. Drawing from Italian culture really sets it apart in the genre and makes it a really refreshing read.

There was also an element of humour in here which I loved. Dante and Alessa's relationship gave off proper from-com vibes. There were some really great moments between the two of them like a drunk game of truth or dare!

Don't get me started on Dante cos the man loves books, and that's pretty sick. He's also funny, which is more points for him :)

The only thing I did struggle with a little was getting my head around a lot of the language surrounding the world and the faith. It also felt more like a standalone novel until the last few chapters. I was pleasantly surprised that there would be another, but I do feel it would have also worked as a singular novel.

6/10 ★

Emily Thiede, Hodder & Stoughton, anyone please can I have book two now? Thank you! Lol
Oh. My. Dea! Stunning! Absolutely stunning! How on all of Saverio did Emily Thiede create this hilariously beautiful story? I LOVE IT!

Every review you read will gush about the banter, and I’m no different. It is one of the highlights. There are numerous things to rave about, but the banter is, by far, one of the best.
The relationship between Alessa and Dante is damn-near perfection. The right amount of tension, mistrust, humour, lust and love. I couldn’t get enough of them. And then you have the Fonti (yes, I remembered the plural. Lol), all fabulous, well written with unique personalities & quirks. And even a surprise or two thrown in.

Luscious descriptions, prose, absolutely everything is captivating and had me enthralled from the beginning to the cliffhanger of an ending.


Thank you so much, once again, NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton, for granting my request.
I will be sad now until I have book two.

The Cover ist very interesting because there many details which make sense after you finish the book.

But the blurb was my reason to read the story. I wanted to know how Alessa‘s gifts work but I never read about such. You learn about Alessa, her powers and her life at the very beginning. It was a quick start I always love. There wasn’t any boring moment but I loved every part of Alessa‘s way during the book. She is a strong woman needing to stand on her own feet’s since a young age. In her place I would give up because she is very lonely and everyone sees her only as the Finestra, who need to separate herself from her former self, and not a person in her own right. Despite that she loves the people and wanted to protect them even those who don’t believe in her. I love Alessa’s balancing act between selflessness and self-preservation.

The whole worldbuilding around the Finestra and her powers becoming stronger in combination with a partner is very interesting. You learn many things about the island, its society structure and the believes of its people. I had the feeling the book is about a real location. It was excited that the people aren’t only threatened by monsters attacking the island regularly but by some of their own individuals, too.

But Alessa‘s different relationships were my favourite part of the story. She gets her very own guard to protect her from her enemies who are coming nearer and choose the street fighter Dante. I loved how they become first allies, then friends and only after romantic feelings get involved. They are a great couple because they support each other in every situation and both can save the other. But the romance with Dante isn’t the only relationship Alessa build during the book. She makes friends who are becoming as important as her new love. Unfortunately, friendships are often neglected in my opinion. I hope Alessa will deepen her romantic, friendly and familiar relationships in the next volumes.

I can recommend the book if you like a fast-paced story and complex characters and relationships. There will be at least one more volume I cannot expect although the main conflict of this volume is resolved.

CONCLUSION: 4/5⭐️
Interesting worldbuilding and characters

First of all, I would like to say thank you for the review copy, which was provided to me by the publisher. This fact does not in any way affect my personal opinion of this book. This post contains advertising and the rights for the book belong to the publisher.
Of course, is this only my personal opinion of the book and just because I give this rating to the book doesn’t mean everyone will have that opinion.

I found the main idea of the plot intriguing and was excited to read this debut novel.
The world-building was hard to grab at the beginning, in my opinion. I didn’t understand the stuff around the Gods and the punishment they decided for the humans. This stuff got clearer in the middle of the book after I found my way into the plot.
I liked the characters and also Dante and Alessa’s chemistry. I can’t wait to read more about them in the second book. I also hope that we will get a little more information about the side characters because I found that they lacked a bit of depth, but still, there is always a second book.
I really like this book and can’t wait for the second book to come out (even tho the first book isn’t even out because I got an ARC :D)

Conclusion
A fantastic debut novel!