A Promise of Torment (A Violent Agenda, #3)

by Mallory Fox

[glowstars]

In the four months since I read A Legacy Of Sorrow, I managed to do a classic Vic and pretty much forget the storyline of the book. I spent much of the first chapter of A Promise Of Torment wondering what the hell was going on because recalling the ending of the previous book was beyond me. Seriously, I don’t know why authors can’t include a “previously on…” type trailer before they start their books.

Luckily, by the time I hit chapter 2 I was pretty much on board with what was going on. I didn’t really have much of a choice – the story is an immediate continuation from the previous book and the story delves deeper into the web woven between Viola’s family and her boys’ families. I must admit that I found it quite confusing to keep track of all the connections at times, although that could have something to do with the fog in my brain.

Although there are a few chapters from the points of view of Viola’s boys and Dante, the book is very much Viola’s story. This is somewhat unfortunate as I found her difficult to relate to. I think Kato calls it when he describes her as “a spoiled, stuck-up princess.” Despite the challenges that she’s faced, she comes across as entitled and inconsiderate whereas characters in other books have grown and developed after such experiences. Sometimes I really wanted to slap her and tell her to shut up and do as she’s told – except she’d probably like that.

It seems that both Lorcan and Dino have been struck with the same youthful sense of entitlement as Viola. For me, the character that redeemed the book was Dante. I’m really hoping we get to see more of him and better understand his story in book 4 because there’s something curiously enticing about him.

The pace of the storyline ebbed and flowed, but never really reached a peak at any point. I felt like each individual event hooked my interest, but only for long enough for it to reach completion, not beyond that moment to the whole of the story. I never felt that, as a reader, I was pushed to read more.

Much like its predecessor, my desire to read the next instalment of the story is based upon the final chapters of the book. All of a sudden the action kicks up a notch and the situation becomes increasingly serious for Viola and Dino. This does, however, mean that the story ends on a pretty epic cliffhanger. If you can handle the wait for A Destiny Of Carnage (due out on 31 May) then you’ll love the possibilities. If not, you might want to put this series aside until it’s complete.