This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab is the first novel in a YA fantasy duology about what would happen if actual monsters sprung from the worst acts of humanity.
No one is safe in a city where monsters roam the streets. Verity is a city torn in two by both the monsters within and those who rule. Kate is the daughter of Harker, the ruler of Northern Verity and all of the monsters in it. His people pay for protection and if they can’t pay then they are at the mercy of the monsters under his command. August is a part of the Flynn family, the heads of Southern Verity. In the south you fight to protect yourself from the monsters and no one fights harder then the Flynn’s.
August and Kate are from very different worlds but they are thrown together by circumstance and must learn to trust one another if they are going to advert a war and survive to fight another day. Can a monster trust a monster killer or will they let the world burn?
I don’t know why but this book reminded me so much of The Stars Never Rise by Rachel Vincent. I don’t know if it’s just that both books are urban fantasy duologies or what but this book felt very familiar to me. I still really liked it but it just felt like something I’ve read before.
I think I’d love this book just for the whole concept behind our monsters becoming reality. That our sins, darken our souls and out of that darkness comes physical monsters. How cool is that?! These monsters are different depending on the sins themselves… there is just so much potential here. I’m really looking forward to seeing what other monsters and beings pop up in the next book.
Both Kate and August have their merits as characters. Kate is hard and strong but very human in her own way and August is just so interesting and I found myself rooting for him. I also liked that there was no romance but more of a bond forged by circumstance and mutual understanding if not respect.
This book didn’t wow me in it’s world building; like I said it felt too familiar for that. But it was a book I couldn’t put down and that is never a bad thing. This one gets a high 3.5 stars from me.
That’s all for now!
-M-