Sadly, this wasn't for me. I didn't finish reading and didn't include a star rating for it on goodreads.

These Vicious Masks is very, very cute and I love the humor! Evelyn's sarcasm and snark were a joy to read. I loved the banter between characters. The ending felt a bit abrupt, but I guess that'll keep patrons coming back for more! I will be recommending this to teens interested in historical fiction with some magic, opulence, suspense, and a really fun cast of characters!

WHY DID I LISTEN TO THESE VICIOUS MASKS BY TARUN SHANKER AND KELLY ZEKAS?
These Vicious Masks by Tarun Shanker and Kelly Zekas really had this high appeal factor for me — it’s about a girl who just wants to find her sister. It is set during the proper England era. Actually, I think the technical term is the Victorian era. Anyways, so there’s sleuthing. There is also MAGIC. So you know, it does not take a lot to get me on board to read this book. Of course, I had to listen to it because I am going through this project where I am listening to as many of my Netgalley queue books as possible.

WHAT’S THE STORY HERE?
Tarun Shanker and Kelly Zekas’s These Vicious Masks kicks off this series about Evelyn – who is sick of balls but instead wants to learn more about medicine. As it turns out, she has this ability to heal people and is known throughout her village for being helpful with the healing skills. Anyways, her sister Rose goes missing. So, Evelyn being a kickass lady, decides to go looking for her, propriety be damned. She’s got the help of two men – Mr. Kent and Mr. Braddock. Oh and Mr. Braddock is claiming that Evelyn has a magical power as does her sister. So, at first Evelyn is all, that’s bullshit. Eventually though, her mind starts to change. Friends, that’s really the book’s plot in a nutshell.

HOW DID I LIKE THESE VICIOUS MASKS?
Hmm, well, I thought These Vicious Masks was an okay book. I am not about to start a fan club or anything out of love for this book. Evelyn’s dedication to her sister, Rose, was quite amazing. I did also enjoy the X-Men vibe (even though I still have not seen that movie). Overall, though, I did not entirely connect with this book. Maybe if I had read instead of listened? Either way, it just wasn’t a new favorite for me. I don’t think I will continue with the series either. Or at least, I will not prioritize continuing with the series.

HOW’S THE NARRATION?
The audiobook is narrated by Heather Wilds. I have not listened to anything narrated by Wilds before. Overall, I think that I would have been served better listening at a slower pace. My attention wandered A LOT while listening to this book. These Vicious Masks is 8 hours and 44 minutes and friends, I felt every single one of those minutes — even at 2x speed. So, this wasn’t entirely for me via audio, but that’s not to say you wouldn’t enjoy it.

This was an interesting mix of Victorian romance and X-men which was fairly enjoyable, but not…terribly compelling? There are a ton of elements I liked in the book, and but I didn’t feel like there was much tension through a majority of it, making it very easy for me to get distracted from this book for days at a time. (Take this statement with a grain of salt; I read the book during a very stressful time.)

I did very much enjoy the main character, Evelyn. Though she’s got the typical Belle motivation (I want adventure!!!!! of some unspecified sort in some ‘great wide somewhere’ which I will just talk about but not endeavor to reach) it’s really only a factor early in the book, when it’s acceptable for a teenager to think like that. Once the plot kicks off, she’s pretty firmly focused on getting her sister back. She’s intelligent and resourceful and a bit overconfident of her abilities, but no more than any sheltered teen hellbent on rescuing her sibling would be.

However, even though I liked Evelyn, by the end of the book I was struck by how…useless she seemed to be to the final goal. She was constantly doing things, but those things amount to dead ends or false leads which pad out the middle of the book and lend to the lack of tension. It’s hard to feel like the novel is making any progress when there’s so much running in circles. It’s rather disheartening to read a book for an hour and feel like you’re no closer to the conclusion, with no more information than when you started. And then by the end…well, perhaps the less I say about that ending the better. (I’m still a little in shock over it! Though good sequel potential.)

I was also not a huge fan of the…romance. I almost hesitate to call it that, because it was relatively minor and had very little ‘swoon factor’ for me. Much like in Dark Days Club, I didn’t even get the impression that the male lead was interested in all. There was a lot of scenarios and setup for some typical romance shenanigans, but all the chemistry came off as either platonic or a minor crush. At most, I felt like the heroine had a crush-potential-fascination with the male lead, who was just sort of awkwardly doing his thing, and then at a predictable point in the book suddenly there was kissing.

Don’t misunderstand me here, the two clearly cared for each other, I just didn’t get a romantic vibe off all that caring. And I was fine with that. Until I wasn’t.

What a fun book! I've had a hard time coming across a YA book that grabs me and I was so happy to finally pick up These Vicious Masks. I found the main character Evelyn endearing from the get go and I enjoyed her inner monologue. I loved her strong will, especially since the book takes place in the Victorian era. The book had more action than romance, which I normally don't like, but I found myself completely drawn into the plot. There is a touch of romance, but things are moving too fast to have it move to the forefront of the novel. The book does end with a cliffhanger so be prepared to want to read the next book ASAP. Highly recommend.

***Thanks to the publisher for a copy for review.***

Reviewed by Jess on Bookmarked (bookmarked.bleatingheartpress.com)

Were there mutants in Victorian England? Of course there were! Nobody said Professor X and his crew were the earliest gifted! The Misses Wyndham, snarkster supreme, Evelyn, and sweet, slightly underdeveloped, Rose, share the lucky gift of making people well. When Rose suspiciously runs off to London, Evelyn goes after her. With the help of some other fascinating characters, she sets off on a chase that brings an underworld to light in a London that is, in all ways but one, very real and familiar.

The greatest thing about These Vicious Masks is Evelyn. Everything else is great, too, but without her this story would be near to nothing. Evelyn is smart, snarky, and oft decisive enough (too decisive?) for everyone involved, while still being young and headstrong enough to make mistakes. The supporting characters are gifted in their own ways, and the chase is compelling in a way that feels neither cut-and-dry nor bogged-down. The story is left open without ending on the ever-popular cliffhanger, which gives it even more points in my book. And I look forward to more of this universe.

But it’s the writing that really keeps you going. I love a good story that is rich with detail but also written in a way that makes it quick and fun! The characters are well developed (with the exception of Rose, in my opinion, but that might just be because we get to see so little of her compared to the others), and conversations and situations all feel like something that could happen in their time period, down to the pseudo-science. Barbs are volleyed amongst several different parties, and the snark is not limited to Evelyn’s core gifted group. Instead, intrigue is countered with very run-of-the-mill London Society, including clueless witticisms from jealous society misses and clueless gentlemen and lords, to boot.

In other words, this novel warmed my historical romance-reading, comics-loving heart to its core.

Please let there be more.

These Vicious Masks is such a fun historical novel with plenty of excitement!

I LOVED this book so much. I still talk about it and think about it all the time - seriously, Jane Austen meets X-Men is a really accurate hook. I can't wait to dig into the sequel!