Oh man, this series was quite good. I really enjoyed this pretty much the entire way through.
The character relationships (both romantic and not) were well thought out and felt complex, and the characters themselves shared that trait.

it didn't feel like these children got some awkward redemption arc, but rather that they were still aware that they'd done terrible things, and knew they'd live with the consequences, even though in the end they were all still victims of circumstance and past abuse and trauma.

I'm a big fan of morally grey characters, and this series is full of them. Pretty much anyone in these is sorta terrible at some point or another, and I love that.

Also this book hurt me, multiple times. Even the times where I knew, I knew,

that it was going to end tragically

still had me wounded by the way it was written, the way the characters reacted. 

I would die for the Lowe brothers. Their relationship is going to live rent free in my head for years probably.

(also the enemies to lovers arc is mmm *chef kiss* TWICE. THREE TIMES EVEN.

the character relationships were great, not just romantically, but just in general. the way they all interact is quite nice. You can see them all grow from the first book to the second, but it still shows that they're teenagers in the end too (traumatized teenagers, but still teenagers.)

It's throwing me off how many people on other review sites felt like the romantic relationships fell flat. (I believe they're using the term 'fanservice') I think they might just be upset that their faves didn't end up together. In my opinion the authors did a good job of portraying

a relationship that was always destined to be toxic because it wasn't based on anything real, vs. a relationship that wasn't, due to the two characters having a bone-deep understanding of each other because they were more similar than different. Alistair and Isobel fed off of each other's worst traits and made each other worse. I'm surprised people didn't... get that? Whereas while Gavin/Alistair and Reid/Isobel are similar in their worst traits, instead of feeding into them, it made them want to be better.

anyways, big fan. 10/10 would recommend.

Excellent follow-up with high stakes, lots of plot, and even more character development. Foody and Herman's writing is so evocative and gripping that I read this book in one sitting, staying up until 2am to finish!
Also. Bisexual Alistair means so much to me and I love him with my whole entire heart.

Gavin

and I will share the presidency of his fan club.

I still love Alistair a ton (and his brother and their relationship). Alistair is not a monster and I stand by that 1000%. He's best boy I don't care haha I started to like Briony a lot more and liked seeing her relationship with her sister change/progress. I don't really care for Isobel anymore in this one unlike in the first book I seemed to like her. I now love Gavin and his progression (I'm a sucker for tragic characters growing). Reed was a little interesting but still not a fave. Finley is just meh/forgettable (looking back at my review for the first book I didnt even mention Finley. To me he's kind of a throw away character). I really enjoyed all the characters growth and how this curse breaking was playing out. I am both incredibly happy and incredibly sad about the ending though and what happened with the survivors.

if any of them had to die why Briony instead of Finley?? Finley doesn't even get his own POV chapters! Who gives a shit about him besides Briony 😭 like I get she would do anything to break the curse but still

I only really cared for 1 of the romances and was only invested in that one. Like it made me cry a little I was so in love with that love. The other romances I could take or leave tbh.
I loved how this progressed, and it's a great duology. If you like Battle Royale and The Hunger Games, this could def be for you especially if you like a tiny bit of dark fantasy/magic. One of the best duologies I've read so far because the sequel is just as good as, if not a wee bit better than, the first. I would say I'd love to see this as a movie, but I don't want that to happen considering how the film industry fumbled the character casting for so many book turned film adaptations. I would def read more from the author/s because I just loved this duology so much. I might have to actually buy the books I liked them that much

Great conclusion to the duology, just as frustrating and tragic and sympathetic as the first. Takes the darkness of the setting and circumstances seriously. Felt like I needed a rom-com after finishing it. 

I take back everything i said about Villains — this second book was so required! So much story to tell, so many relationships (between and within) to work through, and so much intensity that couldn’t fit within one.

I loved Demise and all its horrors from start to finish. 

The ending maybe concluded a bit quickly but that’s a selfish comment from someone who didn’t want the story to end!