Fallen Advanced Book Review *Lauren Kate*

Have you ever tried to finish a book, come hell or high water, even though you felt as if your life was slowly fading away as you read the book? Unfortunately, this was the case with Lauren Kate’s Fallen. Here is yet another supernatural young adult book where the “hero”, and I use that term loosely, is a fallen angel. After reading Hush, Hush and now Fallen, I’ve come to the conclusion that using fallen angel characters in young adult books just doesn’t appeal to me. The problem is that an author will use this fallen angel character as the ultimate bad boy, but one that isn’t redeemable or has anything to be proud of. All that matters, and is so important in getting across to young readers, that as long as fallen angel bad boy looks like a god or an Abercrombie model, has a dark demeanor, is rude and at times crude to the lonely, pathetic heroine, it is perfectly acceptable for this to be a believable romance because their love is meant to be! Why is it meant to be? No real reason, just take it at face value and don’t ask any questions.

Authors need to keep in mind that their readers are smart enough or care how things are portrayed in the books they read. Authors really need to get a clue because readers do pick up on things and will pull it apart much like I do when I read. And if this trend continues, especially with these young adult books that lack common sense, I can promise you this new trend with these jerk heroes and sad heroines will die out and a better, well written series of books by authors who care what their readers think will be accepted.

At least Fallen is no where as damaging as Hush, Hush is. The problem is that the action and overall story in Fallen limps along, much like watching water drip from a kitchen sink. By page one-hundred I was ready to throw in the towel, but I decided to give it another fifty pages. And around page two-hundred, Fallen became yet another DNF book based on the sheer boredom I had as I read.

Luce Price is being stalked by shadows that follow her every move. These evil forces have caused Luce a life full of woe where she cannot be considered normal. Her parents have sent her to specialists and given her medication to keep her stable. They think she needs major help and enroll her in boarding schools where she can get the help she so desperately needs. But then over the summer, there is a fire and a young boy is killed and Luce can’t explain who or why it started. Now Luce has been enrolled in a new school for her senior year in Savanna, Georgia called the Sword & Cross School where her parents hope the strict rules and being watched by the teachers and the warden like staff will help Luce get better. What Luce walks into is more of a dungeon type place near an old Civil War cemetery and buildings that give off a creepy gothic vibe. The uniform everyone must wear is the color black and the crimes of these unstable students are kept a mystery. Luce is not sure who she can trust because anyone she allows into her life ends up being hurt or killed by the evil entities that stalk her.

The first few days Luce is at Sword & Cross are horrible. Because she’s the new kid, she is ridiculed and almost hazed by those students who know how to get around the rules. But soon Luce makes some tentative friendships such as Arriane, a playful but very strange girl who lays claim to Luce and Penn, an orphan who likes to dress in multiple layers of sweaters. Then there is Cam who is very friendly and all too willing to help Luce settle in. Luce is interested in Cam, because he seems to be the only normal on in this asylum type school. But then Luce forms a small crush on another student, Daniel Gregori who is like a golden god with his, “deep golden hair, high cheekbones and almost unblemished look”. Daniel keeps his distance and makes sure Luce doesn’t get too close by giving her the finger on her first day and making fun of her. Luce can’t understand why Daniel seems so disgusted with her. But, something about him calls to her and she must find out why! And still those dark shadows come out of nowhere, searching for a moment when Luce will be weak, where they will have their revenge and steal her soul. And the only one who may be her salvation the one who keeps turning away from her and that is Daniel.

Fallen should have been a dark, on the edge of your seat gothic type mystery romance. Instead, Fallen is a limp, insipid telling that lacked enthusiasm and spirit in every single passage. The feeling of doom and gloom, where I expected thunder and lightening on every page, did not deliver in any way. The characters had no personality to recommend, I guess because of the amount of drugs they were given, and the so-called creepy antics that should make you jump and drop your mouth in shock is comparable to fireworks that don’t go off the correct way and fizzle out of the sky.

The writing is awkward and the revelations that take so long to get to should deliver but don’t. Unfortunately I can’t tell you why Luce is so important and why Daniel is the key because I simply didn’t care. I couldn’t decide if Lauren wanted to make Daniel such an anti-hero to a point where he is so bad, but then wised up because who would sympathize with a character like him? He reminded me more of a hunchback sidekick to an evil scientist in a science fiction B-movie from the amount of times Luce would come in contact with him because he was always off to the side or next to someone who overshadowed him.

Luce’s characterization is of a poor girl who has already given up and if she could, would role up into a ball rock back and forth under one of those gravestones with the angel statues on top. I wouldn’t blame her if she did because she is stuck in a desperate world where there is no help or exit plan.

I simply cannot find one valid reason to read Fallen. I had this desolate feeling as I read, but for all the wrong reasons. (Delacorte)

Final Grade: DNF

*The cover is misleading in a way. Luce has very short, short hair due to the fire she was involved in. But the cover model crying into her hands is a perfect way to describe the overall feeling when reading this book*