A powerful sequel. The book is loaded with the topics of abuse, so be warned. The author gives this disclaimer as well. That being said, be sure to read book 1 first. The story is a powerful look at abuse, survival and how those things look different for each person. Noam and Dara are great characters. Outside those themes lies a unique world where a virus kills most and gifts magical powers to survivors.

I have scrapped and rewritten this review so many times it’s ridiculous, how can I review a book that is so good and so personal? None of my words can possibly do this book justice. Every time I try to say what makes this book what it is my mind either blanks or what it comes up with just isn’t enough to convey why I love The Electric Heir so much. So this is a short review not for lack of this to talk about but because this book renders me speechless. I’m writing this with tears in my eyes.

“The boy in this mirror was steel and frost and a bloodied knife. And he wasn’t afraid of anything.”

Part of the reason why it’s hard to a proper review is that as a survivor reading this was such a personal thing and a gift. It may not have always been an easy ready given what it deals with but fuck if it wasn’t cathartic. It’s hard to put into put into words how much it meant to see Noam and Dara fight and survive and ultimately get their happy ending. To know that they are – we are – worthy of it.

I know ultimately this review isn’t really much of one so I guess that I can only ask that you take my word for it. This duology is fantastic and if you thought The Fever Kings was good, The Electric Heir is out of this world. It reads like fanfiction in that it is everything you could possibly want out of the sequel and more.

“I’m staying with you,” Dara said. “Until the end.”

there are too many thoughts circulating about this book. i was dying to read it after the fever king, and it didn't disappoint, character-wise. victoria lee really placed her heart and soul into the electric heir and it shone through beautifully. for one, noam and dara were both abused by lehrer, and, although they fought to acknowledge their abuse, they were able to overcome it and come out on the other side. this tale of hope is so inspiring. their relationships with ames, bethany, and taye were so wholesome: i love them so much. the plot might have been lost to the characters, as it wasn't airtight and felt repetitive and anticlimatic, but that wasn't the point of the book. the point of the book was survival and it was magnificently breathtaking. i'm glad dara and noam survived, and at first i wasn't too happy about them ending up together because they fought all the time and didn't seem healthy for each other, but i'm so glad that lee decided to make them resolve their issues - dara apologized to noam for being selfish and rude (although explainable, not justifiable). another interesting point was dara loosing his magic; it was fascinating to step into his head - yay, dara's point of view was refreshing! - and learn the struggles he faced not knowing what other's were thinking or who was behind him. i don't know why the character of calix leher is so complex because nothing is more wonderfully frustrating to a reader than a complex character. was his torture so psychologically damaging to him that it made him cruel and a pervert or is it something deeper? what was his true relationship with his brother? none of this justifies his actions, but maybe a step deeper into his head will make us understand the true shadows of what makes up calix leher, especially since he is one of the villains you love to hate and yet still don't entirely understand his motivations. maybe he really is sick and disgusting, or maybe not: he's a character that enfolds too many layers, each darker and more twisted as you peel them back, but it might be worth it. anyway, this was a shining star in the sea of books nowadays, and it was inspiring to hear victoria lee's voice shimmer through the book as she told not only noam and dara's story, but also weaving in her personal story of survival.

An electrifying and thrilling continuation in the series! Lee succeeds in upping the stakes by exploring the life outside of North Carolina and what dangers exist as Noam and Dara struggle to survive. While the dual-POVs might take readers a while to adjust, the payoff in this satisfying sophomore novel is so worth the wait and anxious nail-biting.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing a digital ARC. All opinions are my own.

Victoria Lee's writing is absolutely beautiful and I can't wait to read more from her.

This duology is one of my favorite series. I think Lee tackled the hard hitting subjects of sexual abuse and other mental health issues very well and although some parts were hard to get through, I appreciated the way she handled it all.

In the first book, I completely fell in love with Noam and Dara both as individuals and as a couple. They remind me of me and my husband a little bit because we were brought together by trauma and helped each other through it and still deal with struggles. They want to help each other but aren't co dependent. I love them both so much and am so happy they had their happy ending. I would really love an extra story about them a few years after the events of The Electric Heir.

I think the ending felt a bit rushed and that is really my only critique. I'm happy that this was a duology but Lehrer's end just seemed to happy too quickly and too easily. I wasn't really satisfied with it.

The Electric Heir is the dark and thoughtful sequel to The Fever King. The Fever King gave us the first look into the daily horrors that those in Carolinia must face.

Within The Electric Heir we learn more of the ways in which Lehrer abuses his power and begins a relationship with Noam. Noam has to grapple with very difficult questions. How much is Lehrer's persuasion and how much is a need for connection? Is is going to be able to do the things asked of him as a part of the resistance or will the feelings he has for Lehrer stand in his way?

As mentioned by Victoria Lee there are some harmful opinions characters have in the beginning when it comes to their abuse but those ideas are confronted.

Lee has crafted a moving duology about the depths of survival.

I absolutely adored The Fever King, and I was so anxious to read the sequel. The ending of the first book left me heartbroken, but The Electric Heir left me filled with hope. It's a stunning sequel, one that tells a story of healing and overcoming your abusers.

I suppose this is technically a spoiler for book one, but there's no real way of reviewing it fully, so here goes: Dara's alive, bitch! And thank goodness for that. I cried at the ending of The Fever King and never stopped.

Having Dara's point of view really opens up the story. Living in Noam's head gives us a very skewed perspective on things, and Dara provides a clearer view. We also learn about the extent of his experiences of abuse under Lehrer's thumb, a cycle Dara tries to stop with Noam.

This is just as much a story of survival and healing as well as the rebellion plot to overthrow Lehrer. Noam is playing a double agent, but he's having trouble telling what's real and what's not with Lehrer. He enters a sexual relationship with him, telling himself that it's only natural because they have so much in common. Of course, this is abusive; Lehrer will always have a position of power over Noam. There will always be an imbalance of power, and they will never be equals. Again, Dara tries to make him realize this because he's been in Noam's position.

Both Noam and Dara really grew as characters, as well as Bethany and Ames. While it's a long process, they all grow and develop healthier habits. Honestly, I would read another book of just them, living peacefully and happily!

And we need to talk about the gay angst! I hate them (I love them). Communication has always been a fuzzy thing between Dara and Noam, even more so because they know that Lehrer can find out anything they say to each other. However, they eventually learn how to communicate more openly.

The worldbuilding was really cool, particularly the magic system. We learn more about the territories outside of Carolinia and visit Texas (yeehaw, babey!). I really love the principle of the magic and how it's based on what you're interested in.

It's really hard to say anything more without spoiling the entire book, but know that Victoria Lee has written a quiet, beautiful story of healing and growing. This is a survivor's tale. If you haven't read The Fever King yet, I can't recommend it enough.

This is a fantastic sequel to the first novel! It took me a bit longer to give this review as I had to go and read the first novel ! I don’t want to give anything away but anyone who reads this will be obsessed and left hoping there was more !

This is an incredible sequel to The Fever King that deals with some pretty heavy topics in a gripping but sensitive way. As most of the magic and political universe was built up in the first book, there is very little scene-setting here and it rolls straight into the plot. I absolutely adore Dara, who was the standout character for me in this book. I only gave the first book 3 stars, but I absolutely fell in love with this universe in this book and am a little gutted it's just a duology! Looking forward to more work from author in the future.

“The only thing worse than the wrong choice was complacency.”

(This review will contain minor spoilers for The Fever King, which I highly recommend you read!)

After the events in The Fever King, Noam Álvaro knows he’s been betrayed by the nation’s leader. Under Calix Leher’s persuasion magic, he doesn’t know if his actions were his own or under the direction of Leher, but now that he’s figured out how to protect his mind from persuasion, he’s realized he messed up. After he sent Dara Shirazi, the boy he fell in love with, to the quarantined zone, it’s likely he’s dead, leaving Noam to handle Leher by himself, a task no one can take on by themselves.

Yet when Dara shows up to a gala intending to kill Leher, all hope isn’t lost for Noam. Dara is alive, and he wants Leher dead. Acting as a double agent, Noam has to fight and grapple with his desire to overthrow the government, all while figuring out his complicated feelings for Leher and Dara.

I thoroughly enjoyed this sequel. It was carefully crafted and showed the characters’ flaws well. I would honestly die for Dara Shirazi, my sweet cinnamon roll. With this sequel, we shifted from just Noam’s POV to include Dara’s as well, and I thought Lee did a wonderful job crafting their voices. Having Dara’s insight helped remind readers that Leher isn’t to be trusted, even as we see his interactions with Noam. Which reminds me…

Calix Leher may be the worst villain ever created in a young adult novel. His evil isn’t obvious or overstated. He acts in what he considered the best interests, but his actions are despicable. He’s carefully crafted to make you want to like him, but then you’re reminded of the atrocities he’s committed and you hate yourself for thinking of him as anything better than pure evil. His character is important for teen audiences to see, to recognize the signs especially, if they have figures like this in their lives.

I did find some scenes to be confusing, the switch between battle and talk was disjointed and didn’t mesh well. The talks of strategy in the bar felt less of a plot point than a way to gather the characters together. The new side characters also didn’t feel fully fleshed out to me, which was disappointing, but also understandable. They weren’t as important to Dara or Noam and didn’t have the history with either of our main characters.

When I first started reading The Electric Heir, I thought it to be the second in a series, not the finale. So when it finished, I was left a little bereft. I wanted more, which is how I know I loved a book. And I’ll just mention that I loved the ending. Our characters got what they deserved.

Overall, I enjoyed this duology a lot. The characters, plot, and atmosphere were all unique and interesting, blending together in a rich, detailed storyline. I am eager to see what Victoria Lee comes up with next.

The Electric Heir is the sequel to The Fever King by Victoria Lee and is set to release on Match 17th, 2020.

*Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest and thoughtful review.

Content Warnings: sexual assault, child abuse, pedophilia, domestic violence, references to suicide, depictions of substance abuse and eating disorders.

This duology may be the best dystopian series I've read. I'm honestly so impressed with the sheer psychological depth and the way it handles several important themes. Yes, this novel is a dystopian focused on overthrowing a corrupt government, like there are many others, but I've never read anything like this. At its core, it's about learning to recognize and getting out of an abusive relationship, and about how the end can justify the means, but only to a certain extent. All this made it heavy to read at times, and I would definitely urge you to look up the trigger warnings that are included at the end of the book, but it's so worth it, and I absolutely loved the main character.

***make sure you all read the trigger warning on this book because it deals with some seriously heavy stuff*

Thank you to Netgalley for the chance to review this book ahead of its release date.

The sequel to THE FEVER KING follows both Dara and Noam as they fight for survival on both sides of the Carolinia. Dara has survived his fevermad condition and has aligned himself with a rebellion. Meanwhile, Noam has shacked up with Lehrer, the now chancellor whose intentioned for Atlantians are skewed. Noam's relationship with Lehrer, whether under persuasion or not, borders on brutal and heartbreaking while Dara does his best to illuminate Noam on who Lehrer truly is.

THE ELECTRIC HEIR focuses mainly on the abuse that Noam takes while living with the effects of his choices, and the fact that the story relied on that as a whole was something that made my stomach churn a lot of the time. The subject matter of domestic sexual abuse saturated the story, and while it is an important matter, I felt as though it overshadowed the book so much that I'd forgotten that who Noam was. The situation made him weak to a point where we didn't see much of his strength until the very end, and that wasn't an excellent payout for me. Noam saddened me. I rooted for him, but his choices, despite knowing what Lehrer was doing, caused me to not only lose my focus but to feel as though he might be a lost cause.

Dara, on the other hand, had my complete and utter faith. But even he got me a tad pissed. I wanted him to knock some sense into Noam. If he loved him so much, he should have fought harder. But this is me wanting him to kill Lehrer in a fit of passion and from page one, but these are all ME problems.

Overall, I do love these books, mostly because they are different from all the saturated sci-fi and fantasy books YA has to offer, and Victoria Lee is the bravest author out there as she takes these difficult subjects and gives them light. Although I did feel this book needed more magic and more twists to keep me truly hooked, I still quite enjoyed it. I appreciate who Lee is as an author and I can't wait to see what else she has to offer.

ARC provided by NetGalley.

The Electric Heir picks up several months after the conclusion of The Fever King. Lehrer has once again seized governmental control of Carolinia and is planning to use his military power to influence other territories' witching policies. Noam has recovered his memories of Lehrer's corruption and joins a resistance to take Lehrer down for good.

Book 2 carries over the interesting science based magic system, Noam's perspective, intricate political scheming, and constant plot twists and double crossing of book 1. It adds a second perspective from Dara, inter-governmental politics, and much more nuanced depictions of manipulation and abuse.

This story contains very brutal and realistic portrayals of trauma, abuse, and addiction, balanced with the struggle for survival and recovery and a healthy dose of hope. The way Victoria Lee is able to express the complexities of mental illness and trauma is nothing short of masterful. Lehrer is a true villain, and not in a fantasy monster kind of way. He is abusive, manipulative, and power hungry in a horrifying way that was very difficult to read at times, especially when seen through the eyes of Noam who still, heartbreakingly, justifies Lehrer's behavior.

The perspectives of Noam and Dara are a particularly interesting contrast in relation to the abuse they've both suffered at Lehrer's hands. Dara is slowly coming to terms with what has occured, rewriting the narrative in his own head and trying to recover from an addiction that he used as a coping mechanism for years. Noam is still in denial, convinced that he's in control, and that Lehrer would never hurt him despite Dara's protests.

Though this books strongest aspect is in the main characters' growth and dynamics, this book also offers an intricate look at the intersection of media and government. Lehrer uses so-called information leaks, structured press releases, and statements from political allies to control the knowledge of Carolinian citizens. This is a system that is reflected in current U.S. politics.

There are a few problems I had with this book: though the main characters are complex, the side characters fall a bit flat. I enjoyed the additional interactions of the other teens in their training group, but I do think more could have been done to give them depth and interest. There are several side plots that are picked up and dropped without much explanation. The big battle scene was an important point in Noam's character arc, but in the grand scheme of the plot seemed almost unnecessary.

Despite its flaws, The Electric Heir packed such an emotional punch that I walked away stunned and am still ruminating on the book and characters days later, which is really the most I can ask for.

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-copy for an honest review.

TRIGGER WARNINGS (as found on author’s blog): intergenerational trauma, genocide, violence, abuse, attempted rape, mental health and suicide, slut-shaming, victim-blaming, emetophobia, drug and alcohol abuse, parental death and ableist language. These are just some of the general warnings, but for more info refer to the link: http://victorialeewrites.com/2019/10/01/the-electric-heir-content-warnings

I want to start by saying that it feels great to be back with these characters, but know what? There was so much left hanging from the last book that it is almost a relief to read about everyone again, still, all hell is broken loose and now Lehrer is in control, Dara is recovering from all the messed up s*** that his “father” put him through, and Noam… I don't even know what's going on in his head. Can just Dara and Noam ride into the sunset? Away from all the abuse and manipulation?

Like the author says, this story it’s at its core a survivor's story. Dara is learning to live with having survived all of the sexual abuse and violence he’d experience throughout his childhood, while Noam is just realizing that he is too being a victim of all of Lehrer’s disgusting manipulation. Reading all of this was very hard and taxing, it feels all so raw, almost like opening a door into this author’s soul. While I do admit it is hard, it is an important and poignant book to read. Well behind the politics, the schemes and magic, this story is about battling against the very reality of being abuse, about picking up the pieces after the suffering, and about not blaming yourself about being the victim.

I enjoyed the rhythm of the story, the descriptions of the fights were excellent, and I loved how we could see a growth of character with the ensemble characters as well. I did feel a bit let down by the ending, in the sense that it felt a bit rushed.

Overall, I love this duology. It’s a well thought out story with greatly developed characters, it’s action-packed, gritty, and heart-wrenching.

Book's release date: March 17th, 2020 by Skyscape

The Electric Heir is so good and all consuming. It's powerful and well written and just everything. It's the best book I've read in a long time, and I cannot wait to see what Victoria Lee puts out next.

Thank you so very much to Skyscape and NetGalley for this advanced copy.

Unpopular opinion time...

First things first, I was wondering why there were trigger warnings at the start of this book. “Could it be that much darker than the first?”, I thought. Too soon, I realized that, yes— yes, it could! TW: rape, pederasty (I felt ill when there was the “You’re so much older than your age” line thrown in nonchalantly), drug & alcohol addiction, abuse (physical/emotional), graphic violence.

Here’s the thing- Noam is 16 years old. Lehrer is presented as 24(?), but in reality 124. This is gross. I’m also not comfortable with Dara being 18 (a legal adult), and having relations with Noam (a legal minor) even with consent. There’s a lot of questionable content and relationship scenarios playing out in this book, and even the most unhealthy are portrayed in lustful and semi-romantic lights at times (which... I mean, why?!?!?).

I will say that Victoria Lee does do a decent job of depicting how abuse affects those individuals— the coping, the struggling, the questioning, and all the swirling emotions survivors go through.

There were many flaws, plot-wise. In general: it was all over the place. Clunky, heavy-handed, and paced very poorly. We jumped around way too often from one thing to the next, leaving this side plot for that one, bringing up points in regards to the main plot, but dropping them so suddenly and adding three new ones... it was a lot. Admittedly, I fell victim to boredom; I hate to say that I was checking my progress every so often to see if I was any closer to finishing the book.

I’m typically a huge fan of the ‘second-in-series’ books (they usually contain the most angst), but I’m disappointed one, especially considering how much I enjoyed the first book.

The chapters alternate between Noam and Dara, which suits me just fine. I’ve recently had my fill of more than 2 POV’s per book. With just the two to focus on, you can really get a more in-depth, character-driven story. Except, again, all the other side characters are so woefully half-baked. This is really just the Noam/Dara/Calix show, which got kind of redundant.

Something else was sorely missing: the bisexual content. I must stress how disappointing this was. We’re given a bi character in the first book, and yet it’s so brief, under-developed, and quickly squashed. Here, in book two, it’s complete bi-erasure if you ask me. Why even have mentioned it in the first place if it’s never brought up again? Does it sound ignorant of me to ask these things? I’m being serious. I understand that Noam can still be canonically “bi” while in a same-sex relationship, but he’s in two (so to speak), and not once are we reaffirmed of his orientation (not to say that it’’s the sum of all his parts, but just that’s it’s important for readers who feel woefully under-represented to remain included)... an inclusion of which should be such a huge step for the B in LGBT literature. But, again, it’s flimsy, half-hearted background info. So many missed opportunities in terms of crucial story arcs and narrative depth; so much that could’ve been said and done with the characterization... but it’s squelched.

To sum up: I’m pretty damn disappointed.

I received this book from Netgalley is exchange of an honest review.

I have to admit readind The electric heir was hard, because I felt so connected with the characters I was able to feel their emotions and pain. I really care about Noam, Dara and their story.
The book contains a lot of trigger warnings, so if someone need them there are on Victoria Lee's site:https://victorialeewrites.com/2019/10/01/the-electric-heir-content-warnings

POSSIBLE SPOILERS

The story begins six month after The fever king. Noam works and cooperates with Lehrer and feels guilty because he thinks Dara is dead and that was his fault, since he let him go, to run away from Carolinia. Everything changes when Dara comes back in the country and Noam finds himself collaborating with him with the Black Magnolia, a rebellion organization that wants to expose Lehrer's crimes and his reponsibility in the genocide. This book is really amazing, well written. full of twists, truths and revelations and angst. Noam's and Dara's relationships is greatly challenged by Lehrer's (I won't say how, because it's a major spoiler) and it has to survive guilt, shame and fear. They both went through hell, still loving each other and fighting to heal together, thanks, too, their friends, like Ames, Bethany and Taye. I really loved Ames, it was amazing reading how she was the one who managed to make Dara see the truth about his relationship's with Lehrer's. It's a book about survivors and how to heal and fight together. It was hard to know the same author is a survivor, too. It made the story even more real. For me this book was raw, pure and so necessary. It was a punch in the stomach and I felt my heart racing in more than one occasion. That's the beauty of Victoria Lee's stories and writing and this one is a perfect conclusion, not sweetened, but real and so beautiful.

This is maybe the first time I started reading an ARC the second I got my hands on it, but I loved The Fever King so much, I just couldn't wait one second to see how this series ends.

I recommend to anyone wanting to read these books, to check out the trigger warnings the author posted, because there's definitely triggering material including abuse (in many different ways) and with this book also gaslighting and grooming. I don't find these topics triggering myself, but I see how other readers could have problems with the content.

Overall, this book is quite different from the first one and I like that. I know really wanna read both books together and see how they work as a whole story and how everything happening in The Electric Heir was build up in The Fever King, because I'm pretty sure I forgot much of the groundwork done in book one.

The Electric Heir is definitely a worthy end to the series, filled with ups and downs, some amazing characters and scary twists all over.

It’s at this point, been over a week since I finished The Electric Heir, and while I’ve expressed my love for this duology loudly over twitter for the week, I haven’t voiced any coherent thoughts.

At its core, the Electric Heir is a story of recovery.

The way that Victoria Lee shows the journey of both those recovery from abuse and trauma and those actively experiencing it, this book wraps a hand around your heart the whole way through, making it impossible to put down(though I definitely have to note that it comes with a significant number of content warnings). Darker than the Fever King, the Electric Heir drags readers through scenes that are hard to read (denial of abuse, victim blaming, and attempted rape to name a few), but it also leads to the hopeful truth, that even while the worst is happening, you ultimately remember that things will get better, or this wouldn’t be the final book. I finished the Fever King with Dara as my favorite character, lamenting on how I wished to protect him, and how much good he deserved in his life, and by the end of the Electric Heir Dara has shifted significantly, acknowledging himself as more than his trauma and growing beyond that, giving readers their own shot at believing in their own healing and recovery. I’ve carved out a special place in my heart for this book and I doubt I’ll ever let it go.

The first book in this series left me so frustrated (in a good way) And I was so happy to get my hands on the second book, it was just as enticing. But I appreciated it more as a survivor, that's what I feel like was deeply rooted in this second book was recognizing abuse and abuse of power for what it is and healing. I also loved the closer look into the friendships and bonds. Ugh I loved it so much I didn't want it to end. I want to live in Noam & Dara's world forever. I'm gonna miss these characters so much.