I needed a bit of V.E. Schwab back in my life. It had been too long.

In the wait for her final book in the A Darker Shade of Magic, I picked up This Savage Song, and as always, it was a great decision.

Let’s dive into This Savage Song!

Title: This Savage Song

Author: V.E.Schwab

Publisher: Titan Books

Series Status: The 1st book in the Monsters of Verity duology

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy

Number of Pages:  407

(Found on Goodreads)

There’s no such thing as safe in a city at war, a city overrun with monsters. In this dark urban fantasy from author Victoria Schwab, a young woman and a young man must choose whether to become heroes or villains—and friends or enemies—with the future of their home at stake. The first of two books.

Kate Harker and August Flynn are the heirs to a divided city—a city where the violence has begun to breed actual monsters. All Kate wants is to be as ruthless as her father, who lets the monsters roam free and makes the humans pay for his protection. All August wants is to be human, as good-hearted as his own father, to play a bigger role in protecting the innocent—but he’s one of the monsters. One who can steal a soul with a simple strain of music. When the chance arises to keep an eye on Kate, who’s just been kicked out of her sixth boarding school and returned home, August jumps at it. But Kate discovers August’s secret, and after a failed assassination attempt the pair must flee for their lives.

V.E. Schwab has only gone and done it again.

Here I was, in what I deem “not-quite-a-reading-slump-but-might-as-well-be-I’m-reading-so-slowly”, and I just knew. I KNEW I needed some V.E. Schwab to pull me out of it.

In the midst of this phase, while I was reading slower than usual, and preferring to pick up every other hobby I have over reading…this book hooked me and kept me trapped. And that was it.

My first new favourite of this year. I have nothing bad to say about this book, so if you’re wanting a critical review, I advise you look elsewhere. This is pure fangirling.

Only V.E. Schwab can win my heart through monsters and terror. Only V.E. Schwab can make me call a monster a precious cinnamon roll. Only V.E. Schwab can write characters like August and Kate, who are so complicated, three dimensional, real. 

I have to admit I was slightly confused in the beginning. You know, that moment where you begin a new book, set in a new world, and you’re trying to catch a grip on whatever the hell is happening? When you’re not only trying to follow the main characters, but also trying to suss the main problem and get used to the world and its ways too. THAT. But I can assure you, it didn’t take me long to just roll with it, and everything soon clicked into place.

I found the story fascinating. A world full of monsters, created by violence, a city split in two in a form of territory war. The children of this war. Their backstories. Every single new tidbit of information revealed, I took up eagerly and added it to my amazement. And I can’t even explain why I loved it all so much. I just did.

Yes, this is one of THOSE reviews. 

Lots of flailing. Not as much explaining. 

The characters definitely do it for me. It’s always the characters. Because they have their faults, and yet they somehow become better characters for it. They’re all so different, yet work together so well in the story. And I don’t mean “work together” like they all start buddying up for the greater good. What I mean is… they have their roles, and even the personalities you think wouldn’t fit together – well, you’d be surprised.

I couldn’t rave about this book enough. I actually debated for so long about what to rate it. I read it too quickly to wholeheartedly obsess over it, like I do with her A Darker Shade of Magic series. But I kept thinking about it. Even days, weeks after, I’d find myself thinking about how much I love it. But I don’t know.

Rated 4.5/5 stars!

Amazon

Share your thoughts!

Have you read this book? What did you think?

Who is your favourite character?

If you haven’t read it, are you planning to?

Maybe you’ve read one of V.E. Schwab’s other books?

Let me know in the comments!

Until next time…

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