SUMMARY

This Savage Song by Victoria Schwab is about a city, Verity, divided in two. The north side is ruled by Kate Harker’s father and the south side is ruled by August Flynn’s father. And in the entire city, roam three types of monsters, the Corsai, Malchai or the Sunai. But what happens when the city begins to crumble and loyalties are tested?

For a visual explanation, check out Epic Read’s awesome video explaining what This Savage Song is about.

The book is told in alternating persepctives with Kate and August, which added to the suspense.

COVER

If you’ve been reading my reviews for a while, you’ll know that I don’t comment on the cover unless I really hate it or really love it and this one is the latter. The cover of this book is absolutely gorgeous. I love how haunting it is, how well it relates to the book and is what drew me to the book in the first place. The hand lettering done by Jenna Stempel is absolutely gorgeous and the jacket design with the violin and the orange colours and the street is SO BEAUT!

WRITING

I watched a video that Victoria Schwab made with Epic Reads where she joked about having graduated from university ‘with a degree in monsters’ and it is something that I absolutely agree with! The way she described Verity, the monsters and the characters really brought the entire book to life. The writing wasn’t poetic or jaw-dropping but the steady flow and the quiet coolness (funny way to describe the writing of the book, I know, but when you read it, you’ll see) of it really pulled the book together.

IDEA

The idea was my favourite aspect of the book, right after the cover. I have never read a book quite like this one and I like how it was dystopian but also quite realistic. Verity is shown to be just a normal city which made the book quite relatable however it added in some supernatural themes with monsters roaming the streets and some dystopian themes with the city being divided into two and slowly crumbling. The way Schwab wrote it really mixed in the different elements of a contemporary, fantasy, supernatural and dystopian novel to make it a very unique combination.

I also haven’t read any YA novels about monsters (there probably are some but I just don’t know about them) and I don’t think it’s a very recurring theme in the YA genre so I quite liked how Schwab broke the boundaries and brought something new it.

I quite liked how this book wasn’t very romantic because in the current situation and Schwab didn’t just stuff in romance for the sake of fitting in with the other YA books. I like how artfully placed everything in her book is, especially the romance and the character bonds.

One thing I loved loved loved about the book was the poem about the monsters which appears in the book and on the back of the dust jacket of the book.

Corsai, corsai,

Tooth and claw,

Shadow and bone

Will eat you raw.

Malchai, malchai,

Sharp and sly,

Smile and bite

And drink you dry.

Sunai, sunai,

Eyes like coal,

Sing you a song

And steal your soul.

Monsters monsters,

Big and small,

They’re going to come

And eat you all.

Tell me that that is not the most haunting but seriously epic thing you’ve heard! The poem sort of pulled the different monsters together and explained them in such a creepy but brilliant way and I adored it!

PLOT

I feel the plot is the area that let me down a little, making me knock off a star from my rating. It wasn’t as action packed and quick paced as I’d hoped it to be and at times got a little dull. I feel a lot didn’t happen in the book either other than the characters running from one place to another which got old fast. There was no big ‘AHHHAA’ moment or even an ‘aha’ moment for me.

At times, it was also a little confusing, especially towards the beginning and some of the ending scenes.

CHARACTERS

Kate Harker, one of the main characters is such a badass, it’s absolutely awesome. I love the games she plays and how cunning and smart she is. I like how she isn’t a simpering female protagonist that needs the male protagonist to come rescue her. Kate is such an edgy and dangerous character and I loved how much life she brought to the book.

August Flynn is the other main character. He is much quieter than Kate and a lot more deceptive. The characters are complete opposites. While Kate flaunts how dangerous she can be, August keeps it tucked away in a corner. While Kate purposely draws attention to herself, August tries to avoid the attention directed towards him. And of course, the most obvious one of them, Kate is from the north side and August is from the south side.

FINALLY…

Don’t be fooled into thinking that this is Romeo and Juliet, both of whom come from opposite sides, one a Montague and other a Capulet. Just because Kate’s father rules the north of Verity and August’s father rules the south doesn’t mean they’re going to fall deeply and madly in love.

This Savage Song is about survival and monsters and the darkness that lurks within each of us.

It’s also an absolute must read.