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A review by zeph1337
This Savage Song by V.E. Schwab
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
It's been a while since I read a Victoria Schwab novel but I'm looking back on what I read with mostly positive feelings. I certainly enjoy her writing style which just has this special way to always magically compel you to push forward.
I think this is my first book by her that is classified as YA. And yeah we are dealing with teenage protagonists in a school setting but I felt like the overall tone of the book was still rather dark which was appreciated.
Our two protagonists in this novel are called Kate and August. And while I did enjoy Kates introduction in her first few paragraphs, as a whole those characters felt rather generic and uninteresting.
We get little bits of worldbuilding for this post apocalytpic world filled with supernatural creatures but it is just mainly background stuff. It does try to create some sort of Mystery there and in that way it just wasn't compelling to me. Although there was some cool creativity in the lore there, mainly with the encapsulation of music within the supernatural elements.
I also remember thinking when I was about halfway through the book already: What even is the plot here? Like there was very little there. Thankfully that did pick up a little bit during the final two parts and I actually really enjoyed the final part (~20%) of the novel. There were some cool twists I didn't see coming. For example I was fully expecting this turning into a romance sub plot but was pleasantly surprised when we actually did not get the Enemies-to-Lovers trope.
Overall still kinda meh. But for such a fast read I think that is somewhat adequate. Could also be that big parts of this book are just setup for the second book in this Duology which I think I am still going to pick up. Mainly because these are just so easily digestible fast reads and I do think there is potential for something good here.
I think this is my first book by her that is classified as YA. And yeah we are dealing with teenage protagonists in a school setting but I felt like the overall tone of the book was still rather dark which was appreciated.
Our two protagonists in this novel are called Kate and August. And while I did enjoy Kates introduction in her first few paragraphs, as a whole those characters felt rather generic and uninteresting.
We get little bits of worldbuilding for this post apocalytpic world filled with supernatural creatures but it is just mainly background stuff. It does try to create some sort of Mystery there and in that way it just wasn't compelling to me. Although there was some cool creativity in the lore there, mainly with the encapsulation of music within the supernatural elements.
I also remember thinking when I was about halfway through the book already: What even is the plot here? Like there was very little there. Thankfully that did pick up a little bit during the final two parts and I actually really enjoyed the final part (~20%) of the novel. There were some cool twists I didn't see coming. For example I was fully expecting this turning into a romance sub plot but was pleasantly surprised when we actually did not get the Enemies-to-Lovers trope.
Overall still kinda meh. But for such a fast read I think that is somewhat adequate. Could also be that big parts of this book are just setup for the second book in this Duology which I think I am still going to pick up. Mainly because these are just so easily digestible fast reads and I do think there is potential for something good here.