These Ruthless Deeds by Tarun ShankerMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
I wasted no time in continuing to read the These Vicious Masks trilogy. I had won the paperback copy of the first one but had to borrow the ebook from the library for the second and third parts.
Like with the first one, I'm rather late to writing this review. To recap: I underwent the Lindamood-Bell Visualizing and Verbalizing Program to regain my reading comprehension in 2018. 2019, and continuing in to 2020, has been about finding books to practice my regained skills on.
I'm writing this review on 31 December 2020 . . . why did I wait so long? Pandemic! It took me longer to read this one than the first one because I was dramaturge on Brain Storm, a play put on at the end of February and that was consuming my time in an enjoyable way. I also continued to suffer from higher-than-normal levels of fatigue and had no opportunity to rest properly.
Because of the length of time, I had to reread the back cover copy, to read a bit of another person's review, to sit and have a think.
The story picks up somewhat later in time from where the first one ended. To say why would be to give the ending away of book one. Eventually, Evelyn has to make a hard choice. Peer pressure, the certainty others have of their perceptions that are in opposition to what Evelyn believes, the interplay of the characters, and then an impossible situation. Evelyn hopes she made the right one, but then it becomes evident that there's more to this Secret Society than meets the facade.
Evelyn tries to extricate herself from the web but then plunges into a shocking revelation that sends her all sixes and sevens. It also drives her onto a new path. Again, Evelyn's certainty is her weakness. Her arrogance that she will prevail, that she's in the right, propels her along, blinds her to possible lines of failure, powered by guilt and fear of loss until she comes smack up against a decision that affects hundreds of people. She's responsible yet not responsible for their fate, and she makes the decision she does because of fear and guilt. But also love. Would we have made the same decision? It's the kind of decision that philosophers like to pose, waiting with gleeful eyes to see what you will do. But the theoretical is not the same as reality.
I found this book not as good as the first one. Perhaps it's that mushy middle phenomenon, where book two is the mushy middle of a trilogy. Or the second book/record/movie curse. There were tedious parts and parts where Evelyn really was being annoying. Like book one, it ends dramatically. And it launches you into the next one. I wasn't sure I'd continue reading the trilogy, but by the end, I wanted to see if Evelyn had learned anything, what would happen to the characters, and what the fallout of her decision was.
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