This Savage Song

In a dystopian future, the USA has conglomerated into larger states and every act of violence between humans results in the birth of a monster. In the divided city of Verity, Kate Harker is desperate to prove to her father that she is just as ruthless as he is and a worthy heir to take over his territory where he rules the monsters and extorts money from all of the citizens in exchange for their safety. On the other side of town, August Flynn is a Sunai, the most rare type of monster. He's fully devoted to his adopted father's cause of fighting the monsters to protect the human population. As the truce between the two sides begins to wobble, August is tasked with infiltrating Kate's high school in case of need of leverage. When show more everything starts to fall apart, August and Kate will find the strangest ally may be each other.

I picked this one up because I so loved Schwab's Shades of Magic trilogy. While this universe that she's created isn't quite as compelling, it remains fascinating. She creates flawed characters whom you can't help but root for as they face off against the brutal world in which they live. There's a beautiful idea at work in how monsters are created and August's struggle to figure out who he is is a fascinating character arc. With plenty of action moving the plot along and a serious twist at the end, I will definitely be picking up the sequel to this one. show less

In This Savage Song, Victoria Schwab combines the best parts of dystopian and fantasy literature, topped off with unique world-building. It follows the perspective of our two main characters, Kate and August, teens trapped in a world plagued with violence, division, and faulty peace treaties. They're on opposite sides in the territory war, but they seem to be the only ones who see that the lines drawn are specious, at best. In their world, acts of violence birth horrible monsters, and they haunt the streets after dark, hungry for more bloodshed. August and Kate have to decide if they want to fight each other to prove their allegiances or fight together for a better world.

One of the best things about her writing is the way she's able to show more convey so much about someones thought process while saying so little, like "(She) tried to help, when her mind worked in columns instead of knots." or "'We are the darkest acts made light.' (he) liked to say."

She also manages to weave backstories into the plot in small glimpses, so the reader has to keep reading, eager to find answers. She uses humor this way too. When it starts to feel a little too dark and dreary, she gives readers an (albeit short) reprieve.

And then! And then! The twists and the betrayals and the revelations appear right as you get comfortable. When it's coming to an end, and you think you've got everything figured out, something new comes along. Thankfully, The Monsters of Verity duology was published in 2016 and 2017, so you can immediately pick up the sequel, Our Dark Duet.

This Savage Song gets a 5 out of 5 stars from me. I especially enjoy the way she paces her story, so the tension is building in a way that feels authentic. There's a beautiful balance between dark and light elements, with plenty of surprises along the way.

While there is violence and cursing, it's fairly mild, and there's no mature content. Because of this, it's a good read for anyone in the age range for a YA novel.

There's something in This Savage Song for every kind of reader. If you're looking for a unique cross-genre dystopian/sci-fi/fantasy novel, it delivers. If you are the type of reader who wants to dig deeply into the symbolism, it's a perfect book for that too. Victoria Schwab manages to use monsters of all kinds to shine a light on what it means to be human. show less

"Violence breeds. Someone pulls a trigger, sets off a bomb, drives a bus full of tourists off a bridge, and what's left in the wake isn't just shell casings, wreckage, bodies. There's something else. Something bad. An aftermath. A recoil. A reaction to all that anger and pain and death."

Schwab's writing is intoxicating. This Savage Song is dark and gritty and visceral. The world of Kate and August is an ugly one. Ravaged by crime, in a reality where violence breeds literal monsters, life and the illusion of safety in Verity is tenuous. Kate is the only child of Callum Harker, notorious crime boss and feared leader of North City. August is Sunai, the darkest breed of monster, and one of three under the care of Henry Flynn, leader of show more South City and self proclaimed enemy of the evil constantly threatening to swallow Verity whole. When Kate returns to the city after her sixth expulsion, August is tasked with keeping an eye on her at her newest school. But the uncertain territory truce in Verity is held only by a rapidly unraveling thread. With an assassination attempt and bold act of rebellion, the city begins to fall into chaos and Kate and August must choose to trust each other or face ruin or, ultimately, death.

"We are wolves among sheep. Monsters among men. And we will rise."

Schwab's characters are flawed and irresistible, her world fresh and viciously inviting, her storyline unforgiving in its violence and darkness. Schwab herself described this as something of an urban Romeo and Juliet minus the romance and I would be hard pressed to think of a better loose description of this slightly demented fantasy. I couldn't even begin to dream up a more perfect monster story. I'm thrilled Schwab has so many more books for me to sink my teeth into. show less

“The beautiful thing about books was that anyone could open them.”

This book was not even nearly perfect (structurally).
This book had quite a few typos (yes, I know it's petty, but I notice these things).

BUT, this book kept me invested from cover to cover. I stayed up reading till 2 am one time, and that says a lot, as I very much love my precious sleep time!
It made me feel sad for Kate.
Adore August.
And fall in love with Ilsa.
But most importantly it gave me THE FEELS! And it's been a while since a book has done that. FEELS so strong that they got my heart pounding. And I loved it!

“It was a cruel trick of the universe, thought August, that he only felt human after doing something monstrous.”

August Flynn is a precious dandelion. show more August Flynn deserves all the love in the world. August Flynn is a monster. August Flynn is fictional...

Kate is a character that I would have normally hated. But somehow Kate was a character that I loved.
“She cracked a smile. "So what's your poison"
He sighed dramatically, and let the truth tumble off his tongue. "Life."
"Ah," she said ruefully. "That'll kill you.”
I absolutely adored their chemistry and their conversations.
AND I was so, so thankful that there was no romance.

Ilsa is a precious little star in the universe of darkness that she alone inflicted.
“Nobody gets to stay the same.”

I had some questions at the end of the book, and I really hope that they will be addressed in the next one.

“He wasn't made of flesh and bone, or starlight.
He was made of darkness.”

I checked out 'This Savage Song' from the library, but it is definitely something that I would love to add to my permanent collection.

“Monsters, monsters, big and small,
They're gonna come and eat you all.
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." show less

This week I haven't had the energy for reflections on mortality or infinity and therefore read a couple of restful YA supernatural novels rather than Borges or Meša Selimović. The first was [b:This Savage Song|40642172|This Savage Song (Monsters of Verity, #1)|Victoria Schwab|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1529942103l/40642172._SY75_.jpg|42855493] by V. E. Schwab, whose Shades of Magic trilogy I'd already enjoyed. [b:This Savage Song|40642172|This Savage Song (Monsters of Verity, #1)|Victoria Schwab|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1529942103l/40642172._SY75_.jpg|42855493] is set in America after a catastrophe that brought monsters into the world. Said show more monsters come in three varieties, all extremely hazardous to humans. The city of Verity is set up to protect people from the monsters - if they can afford to pay, that is. Two halves of the city are ruled by different dynasties that have a fragile truce. The reader learns all this via the excellent split point of view. Kate and August, the narrators, are 17 and each heir to one of the ruling dynasties. They meet each other at high school, whereupon the pace of the plot accelerates very rapidly. The initial 150 pages setting up the world and characters are definitely compelling, but the subsequent action-packed 250 pages are thrilling. Kate and August attempt to survive, decide whether to trust each other, and determine what is going on.

I really liked the monster concepts, which felt genuinely original and ingenious. The monsters are sort of demonic, sort of vampiric, and sort of ghostly, yet have their own distinctive strangeness. They are spawned by violence and atrocities, as literal manifestations of human cruelty. The rarest and weirdest of the monster types, called Sunai, are created by mass murder and can only feed on humans who have killed another. The narrators are too busy trying to stay alive to ponder the potential theological implications, which I found fascinating. Are the monsters avatars of some cosmic moral balance, sent to punish evildoers? The monsters themselves become uncontrollably violent if they do not kill murderers. There is no indication of kind acts creating beings that reward the good or try to prevent violence acts, so this is a grimly punitive structure. The narrative repeatedly raises the question of which monsters can be considered people, and to what extent they make their own decisions rather than being ruled by instinct. I particularly liked the way that Sunai use music as a lure. The world-building is cleverly woven into the narrative and really piqued my interest. I am likewise invested in the two narrators and their story, so will definitely read the sequel. show less

In a world where violence has created very real and very deadly monsters, Kate Harker is the daughter of V-City's ultimate crime lord, who runs the North and makes the citizens pay for his protection, while August lives in the South, where his father runs a task force to keep the monsters in check. Kate wants to emulate her father and be as ruthless, fearless and strong so he will finally accept her, while August wants nothing more than to be human and as kind as his father – the only problem is that August is one of the monsters. Now the already fragile truce between the two opposing sides is crumbling, and August and Kate are forced into an uneasy alliance to prevent the outbreak of an all-out war.

If the synopsis reminds you of show more Romeo and Juliet, then this is no coincidence as the author draws her inspiration heavily from Shakespeare's play (without the romance); by reversing gender-stereotypical characteristics of each main protagonist, and by placing the action within an alternate universe, urban fantasy setting, she ensures that the plot and the characters remain fresh, and there are plenty of surprises in store. Kate and August are wonderful creations, and you can't help but root for them; inside that big-city tough teenager with attitude and the confidence that comes with being the daughter of Callum Harker is a little lost girl who craves the praise and recognition of her father, while August turns the definition of monster on its head and is the most human and humane of all the characters in the book. I was also reminded of Helena Coggan's The Catalyst, in that both authors explore the deeper psychology of and differentiate between those who willingly embrace evil and those who commit evil deeds because they have no other choice. Was the author maybe moved to write this story by the flood of high-school and workplace shootings in the United States one reads about every so often?

The novel starts slowly, familiarising the reader with the protagonists and the strangeness of the set-up, and so when the tension increases and events begin to escalate, they are already hooked and the author has nothing else to do but reel them in. Almost the entire second half of the book is a real page turner, and I had to force myself to do some work before being inevitably drawn back. I loved the way V. E. Schwab uses music metaphors and allegories throughout the book, and in a way the entire work feels like a carefully composed symphony. The sequel can't come soon enough. show less

This is classic Schwab—determined, morally grey characters; interesting world-building that begs more questions; really creepy bits; quests that don’t go where you’re expecting; twists that come out of the blue and make so much sense after the fact; addictive. It’s also really good YA, in that the teens are believable and competent, the adults aren’t doing what’s needed, the world’s semi-post-apocalyptic, and, again, it’s addictive. Didn’t love it as much as her adult books, but still will be reading the second one when it’s out, because August! Kate! My heart!

7/10