I'm surprised how much I liked this book. If you've never seen the movie, watch it first, then read the book. Now that my headline is done, let's look at why.
I grew up loving this movie. There are a few subgenres of "trash" I'm pretty much always game for, and "woman goes on a bloody rampage" is one. This movie might be why. It's visually stunning. The plot is a bit meh, and the characters feel kinda empty, but the fight scenes are awesome. That's why I suggest the movie first. The visuals, the fight scenes especially, are hard to get across in writing. But there's one other reason. This book totally changed how I view the movie.
As you get more insight into the world and what the characters think, you gain an appreciation for how fully realized everyone is. Violet is still kind of a cliche, but you gain a new appreciation for her plight and internal struggle between being a terrorist and a human being. Her character arc is much more obvious, while still allowing her to be the cold, closed off fighter she is in the movie.
I loved how small details are explained. None of the characters in the movie are actually speaking English. What was with the gang Violet randomly fights? Why did her clothes and hair change color?
The book can't fix the big ending reveal but I think that's to be expected.
Overall, I was really pleasantly surprised with this one.