No spoilers in this rapid review of This Savage Song. I give it 4.25 stars. I love Victoria Schwab’s writing!!! I basically knew this as soon as I started A Darker Shade of Magic, the first book of hers I read. But it is 100% confirmed after bingeing that series and reading this book.
In This Savage Song, the city of Verity is overrun by three types of monsters, Malchai, Corsai, and Sunai, physical spawns of the evil present among its people. Each type has a different method of and purpose for murder. The city is separated into northern and southern halves by a wall, and the leader on each side uses a vastly different method to attempt to keep their citizens safe.
On the north side, Callum Harker provides physical protection for the right amount of money. His clients pay handsomely and wear a medallion to symbolize his
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protection. On the south side, Henry Flynn uses the three Sunai, the only type of monster with a righteous purpose, to try to rid the city of sin and curb the creation of new monsters.
Harker and Flynn each have a child who ends up at Colton Academy, a high school on the north side of the wall. Kate Harker and August Flynn are each there for a different purpose. And August is there under an assumed name, so Kate doesn’t realize who he is.
I’ll stop there with plot description. It’s so much fun to discover on your own! The plot points I mentioned above are the things I wish I had known going into the book. I was confused for the first quarter of the book and unable to enjoy it as much as I wanted because I was trying to figure out what was going on. Once I got my footing, I was intrigued by the story and the characters.
Our protagonists live in a world where things have been black and white for quite a while because of safety concerns. I enjoyed their internal conflict and their willingness to challenge the beliefs ingrained in them. And even though I adore a good love story, Schwab doesn’t need an abundance of romance to string readers along. In each of her books I’ve read, there is an attraction or interest of some sort. But she has too much story to tell to dwell on romance too often. And I’m saying this in the best way possible! If she only mentions a look here or a touch there, somehow it’s always powerful and always enough.
I definitely recommend this book! Schwab creates unique plots and settings. And she chooses just the right words and phrases to convey her story. I’m telling you, Schwab can even make a monster relatable. Seriously. And I like where we seem to be headed based on how This Savage Song wrapped up. From the description I’ve read, I think our main characters are going to be in a different place when we meet back up with them in Our Dark Duet. I’m excited to see what’s next for Kate and August!
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