Let the Sky Fall by Shannon Messenger
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Author : Shannon Messenger
Genre : Fantasy
Published Date : March 5th 2013
Publisher : Simon Pulse
Pages : 416
Source : Bought
Rating : ✿✿✿✿✿Seventeen-year-old Vane Weston has no idea how he survived the category five tornado that killed his parents. And he has no idea if the beautiful, dark-haired girl who’s swept through his dreams every night since the storm is real.
But he hopes she is.Seventeen-year-old Audra is a sylph, an air elemental.She walks on the wind, can translate its alluring songs, and can even coax it into a weapon with a simple string of commands.
She’s also a guardian—Vane’s guardian—and has sworn an oath to protect Vane at all costs.
Even if it means sacrificing her own life.When a hasty mistake reveals their location to the enemy who murdered both of their families, Audra’s forced to help Vane remember who he is.He has a power to claim—the secret language of the West Wind, which only he can understand.
But unlocking his heritage will also unlock the memory Audra needs him to forget. And their greatest danger is not the warriors coming to destroy them—but the forbidden romance that’s grown between them.
Review
The things that caught my interest the first time I saw this book was mainly its title. It kind of reminded me of Adele's song for James Bond film, and since that song was quite catchy, this book stuck in my head as well.
Then, there was the cover. Couple, hugging, and orange. A real, bright orange.
I didn't see many books supporting orange cover and looking great this day, but this book definitely did.
Lastly, there was an uncommon mythical creature being told here.
Not faery, not vampire, not werewolf, and not all of their overly-told YA creature friend. And that was a definite huge plus point that made me picked this book up almost immediately.
"I don’t know where I’m going. But it’s time to find my peace."
—Audra
—Audra
Let the Sky Fall told us about Vane Weston, the so-called 'Miracle Child' who survived a tornado that killed his entire family with barely a scratch.
Remember nothing about his past, the only thing he ever seen from before his parent's death was a girl.
A dark haired, dark eyed girl who had haunted his dreams ever since.
But when his—literally—dream girl turned out to be a real person, Vane's life was about to take a drastic turn as he learned his true heritage . . . And a deep-buried secret that could shatter them both.
The opening of this book was gripping, and it was really easy for me to delve into the world of Let the Sky Fall. The world building was well-told and really imaginable.
The concept of wind-controlling sylph who can't eat and drink to get their full ability was interesting as well, and it really was a fresh read on today's YA Fantasy dominated by common myth creature.
The plot line was fast-paced, and the PoV switch between Vane and Audra was woven well enough that made the story flowed with ease, and still be detailed and informative.
The twist in the end of the book was really shocking and unpredictable as well, and it really opened up many possibilities for the next book.
The character of this book, however, was not as brilliant as the plot.
There were some strong and memorable character, such as Vane. But the secondary character, even the important ones, lacked development and tended to feel flat and not so believable.
Vane Weston, as our main character, was surprisingly hilarious and very likable. I didn't read many books told mainly from a boy PoV, but Vane's strong and unique personality, as well as his distinct voice and inner thought made this book really enjoyable to be read even by the people who were not really fond of boy's PoV.
I also love how he was not all flat and able to master this and that in a blink of an eye, but rather had to work his way to achieve it. His personality really stood out as well, and by not having an all-nice-and-heroic character, he was actually able to stood out more.
Audra, our other main character as well as Vane's counterpart, though, was a different case. It was not like she was boring or annoying or irritating, but rather . . . bland.
She was portrayed as a tough and hard girl, but at first, she came out a bit too flat and stereotypical.
Nearing the end of the book, she eventually developed some characteristic that made her quite interesting, but I personally thought that even when the book ended, she was still not strong and memorable enough as a main character.
Some things, other than Audra, that I'm not quite fond of this book, was its antagonist, Raiden.
He was first introduced when Audra told Vane what really happened the day his parents died, what he was looking for, and what he was capable of.
Even though he was mentioned a lot on this book, Raiden never actually made an appearance. And, well, okay, even though he wasn't there at all, the climax was quite great to keep the reader flipping the pages and wanting to know more.
But I thing what was lacking from this book are the tension, the stakes, and what would Vane lose if he failed. Sure, Audra told him this and that, but that didn't actually make the readers feel they should root for Vane—because the threat was simply not real enough, and didn't quite hit. And Raiden was just a mere name, which really didn't help.
Overall, even though this book didn't really have a strong supporting character, I think the concept was really great and unique.
If you are looking for a YA Fantasy to be read, and would like to try something new and not your ordinary mythical creatures, you should definitely give this one a try.
1 comments
I really liked this book too, especially Vane's voice, it was unique in YA fiction. I'm eagerly awaiting the next book in the series, maybe we'll finally get to see Raiden.
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