**I received an ARC from the publisher on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

I could not get enough of this book. I binge read it. It was absolutely amazing. It's an amazing ride from start to finish. The plot is solid and you just get absord in everything that is happening. A must read.

It’s hard to believe this is the author’s debut! The characters are riveting and fleshed out. The world Chelsea Lauren has created is wonderful and it read like she had been at this for years. It’s a story arc about overcoming and it is excellently done.

I don’t think this book was for me. I just didn’t really like the plot or characters and I glazed through this book just to get it over with.

DNF 25%

TW: trauma, gore, death of a family member

It's been more than two weeks since I last opened this book and I can't find the energy to do so again.

What I liked: the isolated village with dangerous monsters that eat people, the main character going through ptsd after the gruesome death of her father, the MC's happy relationship with her family...That's it for the few chapters I read.

Other than that, the book failed to grip me. I don't know if it's explained later or not but I don't understand why no other cities would help this one, and why the people are not allowed to leave. Either the information is lacking or it's given way too late for me to care about it.

The characters weren't my thing either, they weren't compelling. I simply didn't care...

From what I read in other reviews my lack of enjoyment is only going to get worse if I continue.

Note : I gave it two stars here because I had toe but I didn't rate it on other platforms because I didn't finish the book.

Thank you to Netgalley and GenZ for providing an ebook copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

**Very light potential spoilers**



I'm not sure I've ever been more disappointed by the way a book ends than I am with Creatures Most Vile by Chelsea Lauren.

There were a lot of things to love about this book. The plot is fantastic; teenager Anora lives in a tiny town at the base of the Portemor Mountains, a mountain range absolutely teeming with horrible, vicious monsters of all shapes and sizes. Anora witnessed a horrific attack as a child that left her both mentally and physically scarred, and she lives in fear every day of the mosters that threaten to destroy her town and everyone in it if they so much as speak a little too loudly and draw attention from the mountains.

The day before Anora graduates high school she is found to have magic powers and is drafted to become a Guardian, a powerful warrior tasked with fighting the monsters and protecting the various towns from attacks. Except Anora isn't a warrior and she doesn't feel very powerful so when she is effectively kidnapped by Guardians and forced to join their ranks she makes it her mission to escape at all costs.

While main character Anora Baelin will likely be a divisive protagonist, I found her very relatable. I loved her stubbornness and her determination to fight against what she believed was wrong. Her trauma and PTSD are portrayed realistically and I was relieved that she did not suddenly get over it for plot convenience. She remains true to herself throughout the book, and I found it refreshing that she never gave in or started seeing things from the other side. She started the book wanting absolutely nothing to do with being a Guardian and she felt the same through the very last page.

The different powers held by the Guardians are diverse and entertaining, as are the monsters, of which no two seemed to be alike. There were Guardians who had mind control powers, Guardians who could control the elements, Guardians who could heat their skin until a touch of the finger caused third degree burns, a set of twins who could create an energy beam between their hands. There were snake-like monsters and humanoid monsters, and giant hulking beasts, and swarms of bugs with razor-sharp talons. While I loved the plot of this book, I would absolutely read an entire novel just about the Guardians fighting all the horrible monsters in the mountains because it was all so engaging.

The worldbuilding was interesting, but left something to be desired. We know there are these mountains which the monsters cross to attack the towns; we know there are various small towns scattered around the base and a much more advanced capital city tucked away on an island somewhere, safely away from potential attacks; and we know that for some reason there is an endless storm in the middle of the ocean that prevents any sea exploration but that's about it. Most of additional worldbuilding seems there simply for the sake of convenient explanations. For example, Anora, from her technologically stunted small town cut off from most advancement, has never heard the word "camera" but she's perfectly familiar with Jeeps, even though there don't seem to be any vehicles in her town. We don't get any explanation for the endless sea storm other than "that's why we can't find somewhere else to live." It was a tad frustrating at times because the part of the world we do get is fascinating and thrilling. I just wanted more.

I had two major problems with this book. The first problem is the love triangle. Again, Anora is a high school senior, most likely 17 or 18 years old, and one of her love interests, while his age is never directly stated, has been a squad leader in the Guardian for some time and at one point fondly remembers being 17. To me, he read as early-to-mid twenties, and his relationship with Anora made some parts very hard to read. This isn't even mentioning the fact that he personally harms Anora or directly puts her in harm's way numerous times. I can understand Anora forgiving him and looking past this, as she's just a teen and he's apparently super hot, but the book handwaves all his awfulness away with a half-assed reason why none of it was his fault and it was just awful. I more enjoyed her relationship with the other love interest, which was less insta-love and more age appropriate, but he was done dirty by the author and I'm not thrilled about it.

My biggest issue, and the reason this book is not 4/5 stars: the ending. Oh my, the ending. Nothing happened. At least, nothing that wasn't very obviously going to happen from about midway through the book. The thing that will obviously happen does, and then the book ends. There are no answers to any of the burning questions I had, no resolution for any characters in any way. We have no idea what happened to any of the side characters and not much more of an idea of what's happened to Anora. None of the mysteries are solved in any way. The book ends with the bad guy explaining all the bad things he's done and what he's going to do, movie villain style, and then he does exactly that. The end. It's clearly a set up for a sequel, but even as part of a series, a novel needs to have some kind of resolution or it's incredibly frustrating for the reader. I hated the ending to Creatures Most Vile more than I've hated any book's ending in recent memory, which is made all the more upsetting because I was so engrossed. The plot seemed to be leading somewhere BIG, and then everything fizzled.

There were a few other small problems, namely killing off one half of the only queer couple in the book (can we stop doing this, please?), and a bad guy whose personality seemed to change depending on what suited the scene, but those were minor comparatively.

If I could give this book two ratings, I'd give the first 75% 5 stars and the last 25% 1 or 2 stars, but since I can't I'll have to split the difference with 3. As frustrated as I am with the ending, I'm not sure I want to read the next book in this series (which I assume there will be, given the million loose ends) but I might have to just because I'm so invested in this world and Anora's journey.

3.5/5 stars

First, I want to thank NetGalley, the publisher and the author for providing ARC. What can I say for this book? It is perfect read! I got hooked by the first chapter because it is easy to read, and it is well written. Every chapter is so exciting, I cannot even put it down. I stayed up all night just to finish this book. The world building of this book is well structure and fantastic, even the monsters are well written, and I do not want to live on their world, but I want to see more pictures or fanarts of this book. Wishing there are more readers who are reading this book so I can share my thoughts on this.
Anora became my favorite character instantly though she annoys me sometimes. I hate it when Anora is difficult and stubborn to other characters who are trying to help her, to the point that I wanna skip the whole chapter just to skip her rambling. But I also understand her that she's confused and scared. I do not really get the love interest on this book, it felt like it was forced and unnecessary. I thought that Brod is like a brother to her.
I need more of this book, hoping to read the next book.

I did like the premise and the quiet place x divergent x how to train your dragon vibes it had. I just personally didn't live for the rest. I hated the main character, she was so annoying, stubborn, would not listen and was overall dumb. What especially annoyed me was her refusal to listen to warnings from the older guardians. Any normal, scared teenager, even if they don't like where they are, would listen. In general, the book was so predictable, I even knew that the ending was going to happen (however, I didn't think it would be the end, which is one of the reasons I hated the ending). Also, it felt too fast and some things weren't congruent and were confusing. The ending was so bad, it was so predictable, and even if I hadn't guessed what was going to happen, it would've still pissed me off. I hope this book will have a sequel, because if it doesn't, it will make me hate the ending even more. Finally, number one on the list of things I disliked: the love triangle. WHY and neither of the relationships was developed enough in my opinion. That's all I'm going to say.

Title: Creatures Most Vile
Author: Chelsea Lauren
Genre: YA/ Dystopian/ Fantasy
Rating: 4/5
Trigger warnings: violence, death, blood, anxiety.

Favorite Quote/Excerpt: “I was still scarred, still broken. I always would be. But they had seared out the part of me worried about preservation. The girl who was left only craved revenge.”

Summary:
All Anora wants to do is live her life the way she wanted. Support her family with nurse pay in a world that has been ravaged by monsters. When she inadvertently manifests her powers during her Guardian assessment, she is sent off to train at the Guardian compound, much to her dismay. After being thrust into an arena with the very creatures that paralyze her with fear, she decides to not accept this life. Now she must find a way to convince the Commander to release her or escape…

Thoughts:
This book completely surprised me. I honestly cannot believe this is a debut novel! While it may not be perfect, the originality of the world and supernatural abilities was so refreshing and totally unexpected.
Anora’s character was professionally written. Her anxiety and fear could be felt through the page in a way that had me on edge feeling those same anxious feelings. There was a healthy mix of different characters, each unique from the other, and made it quite easy to follow.
Plot-wise, while a general idea could be formed and be correct, the few twists and turns were ones I did not count on and made it that more enjoyable to read.
There is some romance in this, but not a main part of the story. One part of the romance was one I wish was a bit different (I will not say any more to avoid spoilers).
Lastly, I could not see anywhere that there is a second book, but MAN did the author leave it open….and that is one writing style I just cannot get on board with! LOL, I want to know how this ends, like right now! I will say, if there is another book, she left you RIGHT where you want to read more!

Conclusion:

Overall, this was a remarkably interesting, intriguing fun read. If you are looking for a dystopian world full of monsters, angst, anxiety, and wanting to root for a stubborn and determined heroine? This book is for you, and I recommend you give it a read. Creatures Most Vile debuts on October 12, 2021.

(links to review coming)

Exciting romp for those who love Avengers and X-Men! A little different take in a world with monsters and humans with hidden powers. Have to say, I didn't root for the heroine, wanted to slap her silly she was so selfish and clueless and just didn't see everything she was doing was going against what she wanted. Looking for a sequel, and hopefully she will snap out of it!

Thanks to NetGalley and Zenith Publishing for providing this ARC!

Creatures Most Vile is a YA dystopian that follows Anora, a girl living in a world threatened by monsters that appear from the mountains near her home. In this world, Guardians, those 'blessed' with supernatural powers, are recruited to fight these monsters and maintain the safety of the population. So when Anora accidentally reveals powers during a school assessment, she is taken away to be trained as a Guardian - against her will and against everything she believes in.

This book was great! I was on the edge of my seat for the entire second half. I loved how Anora had absolutely no interest in being the hero (not even the reluctant hero). It was such a different take from a lot of YA and I found it super refreshing.

Anora is haunted by flashbacks of a monster attack from her past, and has learned to run hard and fast at the first sign of danger. I thought Anora's struggle with her past was portrayed well, and very relatable. I liked that she stuck to her guns about what she was and wasn't willing to do, and defended her right to having a choice over her fate. I was definitely rooting for her!

And um that ending?? I thought I knew exactly where this was going and then NOPE. I hope there is a second book coming because !!! Overall, Creatures Most Vile is a gripping read, and I would definitely recommend!

Thank you @netgalley and @bookish_clauren for this ARC!

Stalked by monsters in the woods and her past, Anora finds safety in the quiet comforts of her small town life.
It’s another ordinary day when she's sent to a Guardian assessment designed to unleash rare supernatural abilities, until she blasts a tunnel of water across the room. Her coach calls her gift a blessing, but Anora knows it’s a death sentence. Now she must train as a Guardian and battle the very monsters that have tormented her entire life.
After being thrown into the arena with a clawed and cackling creature, Anora refuses to accept this new life. She appeals to the Commander and begs her trainers to let her go home. The more they refuse, the more Anora realizes this isn’t a training camp—it’s a prison and they will never let her leave. Now she must escape the camp before the Commander catches on, for if he does, he may turn out to be worse than the monsters lurking in the woods.

Wow wow wow wow wow!!!! What a book! This might actually be my favourite read of 2021 so far!!!

Lauren has expertly created the magical world in CMV which the feisty protagonist Anora inhabits; a world full of danger, discovery and death.

Lauren’s portrayal of Anora and her struggle with ptsd due to the death of her father at the hands of the horrible creatures from the Portemor mountains and her subsequent inability to accept her role and future as a guardian is so enthralling and poignant that I am right there with her throughout her tests and trials, rooting her on through every mishap, betrayal and success.

Lauren also manages to create tangible and realistic relationships between her characters: the heart-clenching tension betweeen Anora and the commander (the evil overseer of the guardian academy), her quiet infatuation towards Bron (the hunky guardian who’s helping to train her) and her confusing relationship and love triangle dilemmas which include Blaze (a shy rookie guardian with a hidden agenda).

Congratulations Lauren you have managed to create a world that I not only enjoyed being part of, but one that I never wanted to leave! Roll on the next book in the trilogy…. I need to know what happens!!!!

#bookreviewsbymrsc #creaturesmostvile #chelsealauren

So what can I say about this book? IT IS AMAZING! I really really didn’t want it to end. There were a few things relationship wise that I saw coming. But holy crap that ending! I love that the main character Anora wasn’t all revved up to be what everyone wanted her to be. I’m so curious to see what happens next! I want to thank #NetGalley for letting me read an earc of #CreaturesMostVile

Anora is terrified of the creatures that creep over the mountain and attack her town. She is plagued by flashbacks of an event involving a creature when she was younger so her instinct is to run when one appears. During an evaluation in school her powers are uncovered and she is taken to train as a guardian, the elite force who protect civilians from the creatures. she is scared though and doesn’t want to face the creatures and she is angry that she hasn’t been given a choice.

This book was very well written, with tension built to the point I forgot I was reading. The plot moved at a steady pace and characters were realistic. The only thing that slightly dampened the book for me was anoras stubbornness. While I admired her spirit, her rebelliousness seemed misplaced and her plan flawed. Once she switched tactics I began to enjoy the book much more. It seemed like there may be a second book based on the way it ended which I would definitely read. I would recommend this book to fans of sci-fi/dystopian

Thanks to netgalley for providing an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.