Fallen is about seventeen-year-old Luce, who is starting reform school after she survives a suspicious fire that kills her boyfriend. Immediately she is drawn to Daniel, a fellow student who hates her for no reason. Luce can’t shake the feeling that she has known him all her life, but his mysterious nature makes it almost impossible for her to learn the truth about their connection. Daniel isn’t the only boy at the reform school with a connection to Luce, though. There is also the open and forward Cam, who will stop at nothing to win Luce’s heart. The more Cam pursues Luce, the more she finds herself inexplicably drawn to Daniel. The sense that they have known each other all their lives is the key to the truth about Daniel.
Lauren Kate creates an interesting mythology here, and the setting of a reform school allows her supernatural elements to be more believable. Another appealing factor to Fallen is the strong supporting characters. The other students at the reform school are relatable and interesting, and they also provide Luce’s character with more emotion and strength. However, there were a few times when I did question Luce’s ability to see the obvious (especially when it came to Daniel). On the downside, Kate wrote Fallen as the first book in a series and it is so obvious: most of the book is the back and forth between Luce and Daniel, while last few pages seem to set up the sequel by revealing just enough about Daniel and Luce’s connection to explain what came in the chapters before. But the good news is the second book, Torment, was published in September 2010. You can also click here to get to the Fallen website where you can view the newly released cover art for the third book in the series, Passion. Check out Fallen’s book trailer below: