I admit to being disappointed in this book. I never really connected with any of the characters and felt like a little more detail throughout the book would have made things much more interesting, as would moving the plot along more quickly. I know there are more books planned in this series, but it felt like too much information was being withheld for a later book. I got a little tired of how long the "not knowing anything" dragged out...like another reviewer I felt myself rushing through the book; however, my reason was just to get to a place where something moved the plot forward and we could learn more about the weird deja vu and odd behavior of some of the main characters.
Unfortunately, I think we'll really need to read the next book to get questions answered, though from the reviews I"ve seen of that one it doesn't really happen there either. I don't see myself buying the 2nd book outright; I'm really kind of indifferent to what happens to any of the characters as I never really connected with them. Maybe in a million years when it comes available on the swap I'll check it out, but the wait list for Torment is pretty long and slow moving. We'll see if I continue with this series.
If the plot of FALLEN were to race a glacier, the glacier would win. From the moment Luce arrives at Sword & Cross, the plot feels like it's always tripping over its own feet in order to explain itself, and to no avail. I don't mind a gradually building plot if it contains atmosphere and sets up the exposition well, but the setting of Sword & Cross was never fully realized for me, and the events in Luce's past that landed her at reform school never attained credibility. Luce floats through boarding school life in a series of disconnected and awkwardly written encounters with her schoolmates, none of which helped me understand Luce or any of the other characters. All of the action and scenes required to get the gist of the story occurred within the last 60 pages, and what happened was not worth plodding through 400 pages of irrelevance to get to that point.
All of the characters in FALLEN were static and artificial, something that less discerning Twilight-fangirling tweens won't mind but that more well-read readers will definitely take issue with. Luce is about as passive as a bowl of rice pudding. You think Bella didn't do anything for three-and-a-half 400-plus-page-long books? Luce just might make Bella look like head of the school spirit squad. She flits from scene to scene, never being fully integrated into the immediacy of the story and never coalescing into a comprehensive character. The thing I most remember about her was that she had short hair from when it got burnt off in a fire. If the way I describe a character is by the length of her hair and not any, I dunno, actual personality traits, you better believe that is a serious problem.
Along those same lines, Cam and Daniel were similarly bland male love interests whose only identifiable characteristic was their inexplicableâand inevitable, in this sort of bookâattraction to Luce. I constantly got the two mixed up and couldn't pick them out from a handful of YA male love interests if I had to. I am hardly questioning the appeal of stalker-y, unequal-power-dynamics loveâthere is a reason why so many of us love bad boys so muchâbut to have Cam and Daniel be so one-dimensional and predictable, while the story practically insists that we're supposed to find them heart-stoppingly attractiveâ¦sorry, but I really don't need that.
We've all heard the quiet rumblings that fallen angels might be the Next Big Thing in YA lit, but only if they're done right. FALLEN read like a boarding school story with smatterings of the supernatural dashed throughout, the angels-and-demons element only manifesting itself in the final few chapters. It was a discomforting read because it was so detached from those elements of humanity that make even the most fantastical novel relatable: the Southern setting was never fully realized, and the characters were difficult to empathize with.
That being said, FALLEN gets two stars from me because I can totally see its appeal to middle school girls who have devoured the entire Twilight series and now desperately need something to read in between the next House of Night book and the Eclipse movie coming out in Summer 2010. It contains all the elements of a trendy YA bestseller: a paranormal element, a love triangle, two powerful love interests who compete for the same girl. Unfortunately, the great idea was poorly executed, and I won't be following the rest of this series. However, consider asking your thirteen-year-old sister or cousin for her opinion on FALLEN, and you might get a totally different point of view, one that justifies why Random House believes that FALLEN will be huge in YA.
Lauren Kate had a great idea, the war of fallen angels, and a romance that has lasted through the ages. I devoured the thought, but sadly, her writing style made this a hard and unfeeling read. Every time I wanted to like the characters, or have emotion for them, it was like feeling for a brick wall.
In my opinion, I would have liked to see the story written in 1st person in the mind of the main character Luce.
I will read the second book, because I have high hopes for this author and for this story. On a final thought, I would suggest reading the book. The story is an intriguing one.
The story is about Luce who is scented to a reform school (out of her element) after a mysterious fire kills her almost-boyfriend. She can't remember what happened. At her new school she meets Daniel (mysterious boy) who goes hot and cold towards here until the truth comes out... (SPOILER) he's a fallen angel, so are most the students at the school, and they're about to embark on an epic battle... which doesn't come until book two.
And when the book was over, nothing was resolved. Can I just say that I dislike authors who end books, not merely on a cliffhanger, but with nothing resolved to the point where you feel like you have to read the next book? I feel like it's a scam to sell more books. Why can't anyone put their whole story into one book? This book was four hundred pages, but if it had been published in a normal sized font and format, I bet more a conclusion would have fit.
This vapid tale goes on for a long, boring time before we realize it's just another fallen angel book. The explanation for how and why Daniel is "fallen" is never detailed nor is anything about the relationships between the good and evil forces in this overly long first novel in a planned series (#2 Torment due out in September of 2010).
Luce is sent to some sort of odd reform school after the unexplained death of her boyfriend in a fire. His death and the death of other "mortals" in the story are not given any weight and no reasons for them are given to the reader. None of the characters in the story have any depth to them and the book seems to be an endless, almost ridiculous, whine by Luce about which of the boys in the school she should like and trust -- she is pursued by the charming Cam and is shunned and stood up by the handsome, mysterious Daniel. Why those two fallen angels are interested in her is also never explained. I found the whole story basically boring and any hoped for interesting details or back story is missing! We are left without finding out why Luce has undergone the reincarnations, why Daniel and Cam want her, and exactly what these two fallen angels and their minions are doing on earth.
The romance seems shallow although the author goes to great lengths to describe the kiss and longing that Luce has for Daniel but again, the many questions the reader might have are never answered and any interest developed in the plot is quickly quashed with only vague hints of what is going on. The story ends with a strange epilogue and the reader is left hanging.
Skip it.
It wasn't until the very end that you finally learned what the heck was going on. I really couldn't figure out why Luce was sent to the reform school, but she certainly didn't seem like she belonged there. I enjoyed the interplay between Arriane, Gabbe, Penn and Luce. Jerk or not, I particularly liked Daniel. Can't wait for book two, Torment.
I felt that the ending was exciting, but very rushed. Hopefully the next book will tell us more about Daniel & Luce's story and how they got into the perdiciment they are currently in.
But other than that, I enjoyed this book. There were several points in the novel where I paused and compared it to Twilight. The poor main male character always brooding and running away from the girl he is supposed to be in love with and all the "oooooo stay away from me" lines. Bleh. Haw pathetic.
However, for a quick weekend read it wasn't terrible. Sure, the book is like 459 pages long, but I finished it in one full day. It has a large type-set so there aren't as many words in it as the bulk of the book would suggest. So it's not a hard one to read. Overall, I did like the story, and it had a lot of potential to be a good book. I just wish that there had been more character development with Daniel and Luce, and that they would have acted the way their character descriptions made them sound.
There was some build up to the climactic face off, but not really enough, and then when it came down to describing things the author was very vague and she might as well just have said "And then something happened and then something else came along and some one said this."
I know that as an author you're supposed to trust your readers and leave a little to their imagination, but I don't think you're supposed to leave EVERYTHING to the readers imagination.
Listen to me, all I'm doing is boo-whooing this book when really I had a hard time putting it down. Even though it was vague, and the characters were hollow, it was an easy story to get into and enjoyable to read. Just don't go into it expecting it to be a super great book and you wont be too disappointed.
I may or may not read the sequels, that has yet to be decided.
Luce has a strange power that gets her into trouble. That's why she is at this special school. Daniel and Cam have their own secrets that take a long time to uncover, both for Luce and the reader. As for Arriane and Penn we have but to read and read to discover who they are.
This book has been compared to Twilight but since I haven't read that one I did not see the similarities. Just tried to read it for its merits. Many like this book and have continued with the series. It's not my favorite but not the worst either. I gave it three stars because of the length and the ending which I did not like even though it set readers up for a sequel. My best advice is to read it yourself and make your own call. Me? I can take it or leave it.
Luce was with Trevor the night he died. There was a fire, and only Luce came out alive. When everyone begins to question her - her parents, psychologist, the police - her answers don't satisfy them because she doesn't know. She can't remember what happened.
That's how she finds herself at Sword & Cross, a reform school. Things get off to a rough start. Before her first class, she gets flipped off. By lunchtime, she runs into the bathroom crying, her hair and shirt covered in that day's meal. But soon she finds a few friends and begins to settle in.
However, she is far from being able to rest easily. The "shadows" that have haunted her for the majority of her life seem to be making appearances more and more often, and she doesn't know why. They've gotten bolder, and now instead of simply skirting around and following her, they occasionally surround her, even touching her. One day, when the shadows come, Daniel, a fellow student, walks into the room, and they quickly move away.
There is something hauntingly familiar about Daniel Grigori, but Luce can't figure out what it is. He appears in her dreams, dreams so vivid they feel real, as if they were something she had actually experienced. She wants to talk to him, figure out exactly why he can make the shadows go away, why it feels like she knows him, but he keeps her at a far distance.
Things get progressively more dangerous as the days wear on. Luce feel an inexplicable draw to Daniel and won't stop trying to find out more about him and his past. If only she knew the truth about herself and him. The truth that she and Daniel can never, ever be together.
FALLEN is an incredibly intriguing book, fraught with delicious suspense. The mystery seems to never abate, instead growing with each and every chapter. I felt like I might explode from the tension. I found myself rushing to get to the ending, while simultaneously enjoying the journey towards it. TORMENT, the next book in the FALLEN series, cannot get here soon enough.
As the reader, we don't find out in the book why they need Luce and what her importance is to the fallen angels, but both sides of angels need and want her and that is where we are left... with Luce safe and Daniel watching over her until he and his angel friends can figure out how to save her and win the war... One character alludes that the sanity of the world shouldnt revolve around the love of two sick lovebirds (Luce & Daniel) so we are not sure how important that Luce and Daniel be together really is. We are left with a lot of questions and so eager to continue the story.
I hope to hear more about Luces past lives and her purpose in the world of the fallen angels. Lauren Kate has such a great writing style. The story is vivid. I felt like I was there in every scene. This story would make an amazing movie if the screenwriter could capture the story and world Lauren has created.
Torment, the sequel to Fallen, comes out in August-2010. It is already pre-ordered! I cannot wait to continue this story. I was completely on the edge of my seat with this story and I did not want to turn to that last page. It was hard to close the book and have the story end. My anticipation is boiling over for this next book...hurry up August!!
My blog: http://cbbookreviews.blogspot.com/
EXCELLENT!!!!
First, I love the cover. Mine was an ARC, so I dont actually have this cover, but I love the cover. Its a good rendition of Luce and the positions she finds herself in.
I hate to sound like other people who have reviewed the book, but it just felt a little like Twilight crossed with Hush, Hush to me. I liked it better than Twilight, because I think my like/hate relationship with that series isnt a secret. I did not like this book as well as I liked Hush, Hush.
To read the rest of my review:
http://www.dorolerium.com/?p=1084
My only qualms is that I would love to have the books in first person from Luce and Daniel. To hear his perspective would be awesome.
As far as my favorite book series ranks it goes like this:
1. Harry Potter
2. The Mortal Instruments
3. Gone
4. Fallen
5. Hunger Games
6. Twilight
Burned and broken Lucinda Price has carted off the a prison like school Swords & Cross. She meets some strange people, some that look like they should never be at this school where others are correctly placed. First she meets up with Cam (Luce gets lost in his green eyes).Then she starts to befriend Arriane and gets to know her a bit. Then before school starts when sees a handsome guy with looks out of place, she fills a instant connection to, turns out it's Daniel. Shes wants to know all about him but he don't want nothing to do with her, and tries to avoid her. Not going to say mush but In the end they are in love.
I'm definitely not the biggest fan of Fallen; there were multiple holes and the plot and characterization; and the writing left something to be desired...which is depressing, because the book had so much potential and the summary sounded so exciting! I felt that, personally, Fallen was quite predictable. The story is entitled Fallen, and by page 51 Daniel's name is revealed to be Grigori.
Dictionary Definition of Grigori: watchful angels
Anyone who knows what Griogori are can figure out the gist of the plot from just knowing this one fact! And yet, 400 pages later, Kate pulls it off like it's a huge reveal! (Does she think her readers are stupid or something?!?!) The characters are also not very well developed or realistic. The characters in Fallen are not likeable nor are they realistic. The protagonist - Luce - is excessively annoying, and not very likeable. The same applies to the rest of the supporting characters. I didn't feel emotionally connected to any of Kate's characters; there was just a lack of characterization everywhere! (I think this is the main reason I put the book down...) Oh...the plot! Where do I even start to critique?!?! *sighs* This story sounded so great from it's Goodreads description... but once you begin to read it, you find out that there literally is no plot! I'm sorry Mrs. Kate, but 450 pages of utter nothingness does not qualify as "a plot!" Not even close.
The actually writing was not very eloquent either. Lauren Kate is not one of those surprisingly eloquent writers; her sentences are choppy and sometimes not even fully grammatically correct! (I actually wondered if it was even edited!)
The story has no real message! Typically, most stories are written to teach people things - they're not usually just written for the heck of it. Personally, I didn't see what virtue Fallen was trying to convey. All in all, I'm most likely not going to finish the rest of the series. The series has so much potential, but I felt that it was just thrown away.