I came for the secret society. I couldn't stay any longer for the cattiness. It's 2020, why are we still hyping girl drama? I know drama is a realistic teen thing but it was so over the top and ridiculous here. And for such a mysterious 'elite' club, why is their claim to fame breaking up couples or cheating to get on the Homecoming Court? 🙄 Need by Joelle Charbonneau is basically this but done better.

Thank you, Inkyard, for giving me the opportunity to read and review These Vengeful Hearts.

*Thank you Inkyard Press for the eARC from Netgalley.

2.5 / 5 stars

The Red Court has always lingered in the shadows of Heller High. Everyone knows of this secret society who works to collect favors and dish out what has been requested of them. Ember Williams knows exactly what the court is capable of. Ember’s sister was in an accident that left her with extensive damage because of a Red Court scheme. Ember’s goal for this year is to get into the secretive court so that she can find out the identity of the members and disband the court. Ember is determined to get justice for her sister.

The system of the court was interesting. I thought that the use of cards as different means of communication was a creative idea. Students know where to submit requests, and by making this location in a locker the reader gets a further sense of how much control the Red Court has. However, I find it a bit confusing that no one seemed to be able to see people acting suspicious or secretive around the locker; which might lead to identities being revealed for the Red Court or the favored. I think it would have been more interesting for the location to be changed and maybe have a creative system in order for announcing these things. I can tell that some creative thinking was used for elements of this plot, but overall most were just a bit too lacking.

The characters were okay most of the time, but Ember was insufferable most of the time. I saw Ember as a toxic character throughout the novel. Her desire to seek justice for her sister is admirable in a sense, but she helped cause grief for others in the process. I will add that she recognizes this, but all in all she still did it. Ember was also problematic towards those she loved the most. When others call her out on her behavior she chooses to deflect and attack them. I do not think she should have been so easily forgiven. She barely apologized and instead made others apologize to her, even though they basically did no wrong.

Also, there were some elements that just felt too thrown in. The rivalry between Ember and Chase felt so fake. They are apparently rivals because of academics? I pose this as a question, because it felt so staged and random. It was also so annoying that it kept being brought up in their conversations. It was exhausting.

Overall, this was disappointing. The ending was predictable and overall not worth it for me. I pushed through this to get to the ending, but it ended up just being a let down for me. If you are looking for a quick read with more gossip girl kind of revenge feel, then you may enjoy this.

Between the cover and the blurb, I was excited to read this book. A secret society? Yes, please! The story takes place in a high school setting. We meet Ember who has plans on taking down the Red Court. Can she pull it off?

I had really high hopes for this read. It was all there but it didn’t quite deliver. There were a lot of places where I was kind of bored. The story is good but I wish there was a bit more darkness to it. Again, this is just my opinion. The characters were good. I had some favorites. I really liked that they had more to them than at first glance. Some of them even surprised me towards the end! I wasn’t sure how I felt about the ending but there was one aspect of it that I really liked and it had me fist pumping and saying “Yes!”. Yes, I totally did it.

As a whole, this is a good book. I would recommend to friends. I just needed more. If there is a second, I would love to read it because I am invested in some of these characters. I give this 3 stars.

Let's talk about one of my most anticipated reads for this year - These Vengeful Hearts. A secret society of high school students that bring their own brand of justice while hiding behind a mask.

Such a fun high school drama that centers around a good girl turns bad girl. Ember joins the Red Court to get revenge for something that happened to her sister and finds joy in taking down other people. Ember shows extraordinary character development throughout the course of the book. Even the supporting characters grow well, including her best friend Gideon.

SO much happened in this book, but all of it tied up nicely in the end. This was a solid fun book with a wonderful small nods to Alice in Wonderland throughout the book (most notably through the red court).

I did enjoy this book though some parts fell flat for me, I would probably rate this at 3.5 stars. The secret society aspect was cool and all but some parts left me wanting more. I could probably pick up other books with secret societies and get the same feel.

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read an ARC of this book! It was a fun high school drama, centering around a "good" girl who sort of turns into a "bad" girl. Ember joins the Red Court to get revenge for something that happened to her sister, and finds that she enjoys taking down other people. She also learns a lot about herself and who she is through the course of the book. I enjoyed getting to know her, as well as many of the supporting characters, especially her best friend, Gideon, who I thought was the best character in the book. However, I felt like the plot fell a bit flat, or was a bit too superficial. Many things happened in the book, but it all tied up too nicely and never really achieved the deep, dark feel that I was expecting. Everyone ended up being too nice, and the ending was just a bit too sweet to be believable. This was a solid, fun book, but not amazing.

I really wanted to enjoy this book. I love the concept of a secret society, but it fell flat for me. I do have to be in a mood for different types of genres, so if I am not in that mood to feel for the book I tend to not enjoy it.

This is a DNF for me. I need to be engaged pretty quickly with a thriller and it’s just not catching on for me. It’s not horrible or anything, just not for me. I do love that cover though.

This was one of those titles that I really feel like I had to try to like. The concept was interesting, a secret society of high school students that hold their own brand of vindictive justice while hiding behind a mask of anonymity.

Unfortunately, it quickly fell flat for me though. I found the main character to be uninteresting, and her motives to be questionable. I also just didn't enjoy the idea of entitled high school students being cruel to one another for the sake of it.

All in all, while I can see why some would enjoy this title, it just wasn't for me.

These Vengeful Hearts by Katherine Laurin was a not quite what I was expecting. secret societies meeting at night and plotting to exploit the secrets of all whilst finally getting their deserved treatment. It was Instead a bit mundane. I had wished for more abut found it lacking.

If you enjoy books about Secret societies Than you will love this book! I wasn’t sure what I would be opening my mind to but I didn’t expect this. Great book, great writing. This is a must read!

These Vengeful Hearts is set in Heller High, a school that is ruled by a secret society named the Red Court. Headed by the Queen of Hearts, they sell favors in which you can ask for a rigged election, a breakup, a love connection, or even a takedown - where that person is destroyed socially. The Red Court has access to a stunning amount of information, but you will owe them for giving you a favor. When a takedown went wrong, Ember's older sister April ended up paralyzed and in a wheelchair. Since then, Ember made it her mission to get invited to the Red Court, find the Queen of Hearts, and destroy everything once and for all. But what will she sacrifice in her journey?

If you are as obsessed with books about secret societies as I am, you will definitely want to read this books. I found it completely captivating and thought provoking. It makes you think about whether the ends justify the means, and where the line is between retribution and hurting others. I loved learning about the set up to the Red Court and how it works. I loved the road to finding out who the Queen of Hearts is and the fact that Ember had a corkboard in her room filled with string and pictures and she identified members of the court a la detective shows. I loved just about everything about this book.

The ending stopped me cold though. There could be a potential for the author to revisit this story to create another book, though I'm not sure she will. I can't say the ending was a total surprise, but it was chilling all the same.

Overall, if you read and enjoyed the Private series or Good Girls Lie by J. T. Ellison, These Vengeful Hearts will be a good book for you.

**Thank you to Inkyard Press, Netgalley, and Katherine Laurin for an early copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review**

I love a good secret society, so the minute I read the synopsis for this book I was down. The Red Court sounded so cloak and dagger to me, with the Queen of Hearts their fearless leader. The fact that this Red Court is unknown within a high school and they can grant and ask for favors? Heck yes.

Throw in Ember Williams, whose sister was hurt by the Red Court in the past, and is now out for revenge and I just knew this book would be amazing.

And it was pretty darn good. Like Ember I wanted to know who the members of the Court were and I desperately wanted to know who the Queen of Hearts was. I ached with Ember as she had to sacrifice her morals to stay undercover. Although this book didn't make me feel any hardcore feelings, it was certainly entertaining and is definitely a fantastic read for this summer.

I honestly didn't see it coming.

I'm pretty sure that's the coveted phrase for mystery writers. So well done. A+. Bravo. Congratulations. Katherine Laurin, you nailed it.

The story follows Ember and her quest for revenge.

An all female, high school, secret society called the Red Court works entirely in the shadows at Heller High. Any student can ask for, just about, any favor under the sun and the Red Court will get it done. But you have be prepared to pay up when the time comes.

... and Ember (September) Williams is sick of it. The Red Court tortures students and faculty on a daily basis. And if that weren't enough, Ember's older sister had to pay way too high a price to the Red Court her senior year. Ember was in middle school at the time and she has been plotting their demise ever since.

I knew from the very start that I couldn't trust anybody in the story, but truly, I was shocked at who it turned out to be.

The epilogue left a tiny hint that there could be more to the story for Ember and her friends. If there is, I'd read it.

Thank you to Netgalley and Inkyard Press for the opportunity early read and review this book!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the eARC of this book I received in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This is a good time to be a lover of the revenge story, and even moreso to be a lover of a secret society. With Netflix’s The Order and the book The Ninth House, there are great examples of that genre available in pop culture. That makes it hard, I’m guessing, to write that kind of book because you have to be conscience of how your text stacks up.

Frankly, this one just doesn’t. It’s slow paced, has stilted and cliches sounding dialogue, and just doesn’t read as natural. The kids don’t even read as people, let alone as high schoolers. I couldn’t care about them, I couldn’t care about the plot, and I just didn’t want to spend my reading time forcing my way through this played out story. I’m not saying it was terrible; it was just very mediocre in a time where there is superior available.

This is just a good old-fashioned mean girls story, but with a courtly twist: an anonymous high school organization run solely by teenaged girls who maintain their power by granting favors in exchange for secrets. A rapid-paced read great for fans of adolescent espionage.
Many thanks to Katherine Laurin and NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for my truthful review.

This book started out strong then seemed to ebb and flow throughout the rest of it. I liked that I was given an immediate look into the Red Court and what made it so secretive and terrifying for the students of Heller High.

One thing that didn't sit right with me was Ember, the main character. It was hard for me to get a grip on her character. It felt like her personality was consistently shifting. She would go from this revenge-driven teenager intent on taking down the Court, to someone who was loving the power and privilege that came with it all.

I would have understood if Ember would have been having this complex later into the story, like is she losing herself to the Court or is she still dedicated to taking it down, but it seemed to exist the whole book. In fact, it did seem like Laurin was trying to give her this complex later into the story, but it didn't feel natural to me. It mostly just felt like I was being told this was the problem without really seeing it for myself.

That being said, there were some really great aspects that I enjoyed in this book. I loved Ember's romantic relationship. It wasn't the main plotline, which was nice, but it was present enough to enjoy. I also really liked the few plot twists that happened at the end of the book. They shook things up and made things a little more exciting.

Overall, the book was okay, but not my favorite. I expected more of a dark thriller take on the story, but that's okay. It all still wrapped up nicely.

Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

*This review will be posted to my blog the day of publication and to consumer websites a couple weeks before publication. *

This book is perfect for a spooky fall read. All about a secret society at Heller a high and their mysterious leader, The Queen of Hearts, you'll be on the edge of your seat. I found at times it was asking me to believe a lot from a group of high schoolers but Katherine Laurin made it see, believable most of the time. I loved the twists this book took and when I knew and when I didn't know what was next I wanted to stay in this world.
I love a good david vs. goliath story and this delivered if not always how I expected it to.

This is like a twist on mean girls, except no one knows who the mean girls are and they're extra vicious. They have their hands in every pot at the school and Ember Williams' goal is to take them down, from the inside.

As much as i wanted to like this book, I just couldn't get into it, Ember was somewhat complex but I just didn't really care what happened to her and as a teacher this kind of story just makes me a little irate that the teachers and administration do nothing, and are basically useless.

I loved the Mean Girls vibe I got from These Vengeful Hearts. The story follows Ember, a girl who is given the opportunity to join the Red Court, an organization of women at her school who trade favors for jobs. It could be rigging the vote for Homecoming King/Queen, or exposing someone who cheated on a test. Ember joins so that she can try to figure out who the Queen of the organization is in order to bring the Red Court down.

The story was definitely entertaining, and I loved the twist. I was a little let down by the ending though, as it just seemed to wrap everything up without the thrill of the rest of the book. Ember is written well. She's developed well with her motivations being clear and her thought process is interesting to read.