Book Blog #168: Fallen by Lauren Kate

Title: Fallen
Author: Lauren Kate
# of Pages: 452 (paperback)
Genre: YA, Paranormal, Romance
Rating: ★★☆☆☆
Synopsis: There's something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori.

Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price's attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at the Sword & Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He's the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move.

Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce--and goes out of his way to make that very clear--she can't let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret . . . even if it kills her.
Review: I had really low expectations for this one. With only a 3.75 star average and a page load of one and two star reviews, there wasn't much hope left for this book as far as first expectations.

I'll give it a little bit of credit; it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. With everyone comparing it to Twilight, I was expecting Twilight-quality or less. But I must have gotten soft or something (because I've always been a harsh critique, scrutinizing even the smallest, insignificant details and whatnot). For some reason, I didn't think this book was quite as bad as the infamous vampire romance we all love to hate. And that's why it's getting two stars instead of one.

But why didn't it get three? Just because it's better than Twilight doesn't mean that it's even remotely close to any of  the other books I've rated two stars, let alone three. It's better than Twilight, but just barely. And don't worry; I'll tell you why.

1. The Plot

I found it a  little funny that I happened to read Fallen right after I read Vampire Academy. Both struggle from the same problem; the plot lacks structure. Just as Vampire Academy was revolved around rumors, Fallen revolved around stalking. Kate tried to keep Daniel so mysterious so she could make this grand reveal at the end....only for it to fall flat. It's pretty obvious what Daniel  is; if you can't figure it out by the title or the EXTREMELY obvious hints throughout the story, it basically tells you in the Goodreads genre list.

Seriously.

2. The Protagonist

Typical damsel in distress. Luce cries way too much, can't seem to make good decisions, and doesn't even really try that hard to defend herself. She's not a good role model; the way she handles the love triangle business was...terrible, for the lack of a better word. But, somehow, Kate expects me to believe her character is amazing academically with "a full academic scholarship at the best college-prep school in the country" (326)?  And if that wasn't good for you, she supposedly knows Latin, French, won the science fair three years in a row, AND does the Sunday crossword puzzle (sometimes) under an hour.  While her little list of achievements is only mildly impressive (because there are some students out there who are ACTUALLY amazing and have a lot longer list than Luce), it's the fact that the author/Luce lists it out in such an immodest way that bugs me. I surprised she could accomplish half of the stuff on her list.

3. Twilight Similarities

Once I saw a few reviews that mentioned how this book was similar to Twilight, I began comparing the two. There's the life-threatening situation that remind me of Twilight. In Twilight, it was Edward stopping the truck from hitting Bella. In Fallen, it's Daniel saving Luce from the falling statue. Also, Luce is pale like Bella ["In a landscape of southern sunbathers, Luce's paleness had always made her feel self-conscious" (148)]. And both Bella and Luce do Internet research on their love interests like a stalker. Both Bella and Luce aren't very good at being the strong, empowered women who I like to read about.

4. The Setting

The whole setting at the Sword and Cross school is kinda unbelievable. The school uniform is all BLACK? The campus is rundown and has mismatched buildings? This school is totally catering towards the whole delinquent image, which is unrealistic. If I were creating a dress code for children criminals, black would be one of the last colors I would choose; I'd pick some brighter color so it's easier to keep an eye on them.

5. Repetition

For example, Kate can't seem to stop mentioning that the gym used to be a church.

"'Over here, you'll find out state-of-the-art gymnasium...[a shrink] donated a shit-ton of money so they'd covert it into a gym'" (33).

"It was a large Gothic structure with flying buttresses and fieldstone turrets that made it look more like a church than a place where one would go to break a sweat" (124). (big surprise there, since it USED TO BE a church)

"The pool had been set down right in the middle of what used to be a massive church" (129).

I get it. It used to be a church, but now it's a gym. Telling me once was sufficient.

I haven't decided whether I'm going to continue reading this series or not. You could better send your time reading something else. Not recommended.