Author:Victoria Schwab
Publisher:Greenwillow Books
Pages:480
Source: Chapters/Indigo
Buy:Amazon/Chapters/Book Depository
Rating:5/5
"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."Goodreads
If you are in a reading slump and do not know what to read I recommend this book. It starts off slow but once our two main characters (August and Kate) meet it is a non-stop page turner. Some of the plot twists I found to be quite predictable. However, that did not make it any less enjoyable. Schwab's writing has a beautiful flow to it which is concise and easy to follow. She brings the city of Verity and its trouble alive. While reading This Savage Song I saw the world come alive. I could picture the story as if it were a film unravelling before my very eyes. However, one thing that bothered me was that the myths, behind the monsters, wasn't clear enough at the beginning of the book. Eventually, readers will begin to grasp what the creatures of Verity are but I felt that it can come off as rather confusing at the start.
Kate was my favourite character (with Ilsa coming in second). She so badly wants to be loved and accepted by her father that she is almost self-destructive to herself (ex; smoking, harming other people/places, forgetting traumatic memories and almost giving up her feeling of security for acceptance).
August is the total opposite as he has acceptances from his family. However, he secretly hates what is and wants what he is not. August does not seek to please people but follows his own belief system (ex; wanting to help others- the FTC cause, Kate, the cat). He does not let others (ex; Leo) cloud his judgement. He fears himself and hates the possibility of hurting others (ex; going dark). August's journey throughout the book is learning to accept himself (all sides--the good and the bad).
Also, there is no romance in this book. I did not realise this until the very end when someone pointed that out. The characters are extremely close to one another but do not share any romantic moments. Honestly, I did not mind it as I did not notice it.
The antagonist(s) in this novel were quite obvious and I do not think they were meant to be oblivious to readers.
I am looking forward to reading the sequel and seeing how it fairs to the first book.
What are your thoughts on this book?
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