This Savage Song ~ Victoria Schwab (Monsters of Verity #1)

★★★★★

"It hurts," he whispered.

"What does?" asked Kate.

"Being. Not being. Giving in. Holding out. No matter what I do, it hurts."

Kate tipped her head back against the tub. "That's life, August," she said. "You wanted to feel alive, right? It doesn't matter if you're monster or human. Living hurts."

😦👌❤

The Writing and Worldbuilding

It's really no surprise I loved this, given that it's written by my Queen, Victoria Schwab. Reading the blurb, I wasn't totally sure how this book was going to play out, what kind of a world this was set it, but reading the book, I understood everything about it perfectly. It honestly reminded me of another favorite book of mine, Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion with its tough, hardcore heroine and not-really-human-but-trying male protagonist. But whereas Warm Bodies was a romance, this was a fantastic friendship, and that was awfully refreshing (though don't get me wrong—I ship Kate and August so hard, though I don't think he even has a sex drive, soo...)

I loved how the book was split into parts of a composition—it really added to the symbolism and was just super unique.

The world made me think of the Pied Piper with a paranormal apocalypse twist. It was so cool and unique and I absolutely loved everything about it.

My only problem was that some of the characters felt like copies from her previous books, namely her adult ones under V.E. Schwab. Maybe she wanted similar characters for her Young Adult readers? Maybe she just isn't as versatile as I thought? They're not bad characters, and they definitely aren't unoriginal, but I've read them from her before, and I wanted to see all of her possibilities.

The Characters

Kate Harker: I really liked Kate. She was so tough but also realistically vulnerable, and her wit and quick thinking were great.[However, she reminded me too much of Lila Bard from the Shades of Magic series. Particularly the fact that, like Lila, she has one of a set of two sensory features out of operation due to some injury—her ear for Kate and her eye for Lila. This isn't a problem at all, but it was something I noticed. (hide spoiler)]

August Flynn: He was my absolute favorite. He's my smol cinnamon roll and I love him and his cat. I really loved his perspective and the slight difference in structure his thoughts brought, having that kind of ADHD feel. I really loved his struggle to feel human and to understand his place in the world. He was definitely the most unique character in this.

Leo: He was interesting and I really liked his darker moments.[While I understand what it brought to the symbolism of the story, I found him to be way too similar to Eli from Vicious, particularly relating to his religious idealism. (hide spoiler)]

Callum Harker: He was very interesting, and gave me The Walking Dead villain vibes (though I haven't actually ever watched TWD lol).

Sloan: He was pretty creepy.

Conclusion

Overall, I found this to be a gripping and fast read that enthralled and enchanted me. I'm sad it's just a duology because this world is epic and I absolutely love it.

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