Review: The Way We Fall

The Way We Fall (Fallen World #1) by Megan Crewe

Release Date ~ January 24, 2012
Disney~Hyperion
ISBN13: 9781423146162
Signed copy purchased at book launch
Goodreads Synopsis:
It starts with an itch you just can’t shake. Then comes a fever and a tickle in your throat. A few days later, you’ll be blabbing your secrets and chatting with strangers like they’re old friends. Three more, and the paranoid hallucinations kick in.

And then you’re dead.

When a deadly virus begins to sweep through sixteen-year-old Kaelyn’s community, the government quarantines her island—no one can leave, and no one can come back.

Those still healthy must fight for dwindling supplies, or lose all chance of survival. As everything familiar comes crashing down, Kaelyn joins forces with a former rival and discovers a new love in the midst of heartbreak. When the virus starts to rob her of friends and family, she clings to the belief that there must be a way to save the people she holds dearest.

Because how will she go on if there isn’t?
Guys, The Way We Fall gave me SHIVERS. Actual shivers up my spine while I was reading it! I loved that this was such a terrifying book, yet in a very subtle way. There's nothing "out of this world" crazy in TWWF, and that's what makes it so frightfully disturbing.

1. Journal narrative:
   I've mentioned before that I rarely like journal entries as a format for a novel; I'm VERY picky about its use. But the use of it was impeccable here; it suited the story and was an excellent way to tell the events taking place. I loved that Megan gave Kaelyn a reason to be writing in a journal, and it definitely added to the suspense of the story since we only know what's happening when Kaelyn writes in it. :)
2. A simple story:
   That may sound like a bad thing but it isn't. I found it positively refreshing that there wasn't anything overly gimmicky or over the top in this story. Instead, it relies on real life circumstances and terrors that affect us now; the ideas of biological weapons and contagious viruses are ones we're readily familiar with as a societ, and Megan uses that to draw her readers into this life-like story. It's just so similar to our own lives that it's easy to see it happening... I was kinda jumpy whenever someone so much as sneezed near me for about a week after reading!
3. Standalone in a series:
   I know we're seeing a lot of series coming out right now, and while TWWF is the first in a trilogy it actually wasn't always that way. But I really enjoy that this easily reads as if it was a standalone, although you'll be begging for more by the end of it! Without any crazy cliffhangers or a story that just drags on to make room for a sequel though, this makes a rather enjoyable read. But you'll still be wanting more!

I'm really excited for the sequel just to get more answered and see more of the outside world! Plus, I'm hoping we get some more insight to this virus. There really is a lot that can be done with the characters too, since so many things changed throughout the course of TWWF.