"Monsters, monsters, big and small, 
 They're gonna come and eat you all." 
 The hype for THIS SAVAGE SONG was insane, and for good reason - it's Victoria Schwab, after all. When all the positive reviews came flowing in my excitement reached monstrous levels, (that won't be the last monster joke in this review, fair warning) and my expectations soared to match. While THIS SAVAGE SONG delivered a wickedly (someone stop me) good tale, I couldn't help but feel a little bit let down. 
 I was stoked when I first started reading this one. Monsters? Violence? Ruthlessness? War? I was like YES, let's do it! 
 Sadly, my enthusiasm waned. While beginning on a high note, things quickly died down as the plot began to settle down into the ordinary YA setting of high school and the predictable drama that comes with it. While it didn't break the plot, it definitely took me out of the story and made me realize just how truly badass this would be if it had been an adult book. 
 "We are the darkest acts made light." 
 THIS SAVAGE SONG, in my opinion, was almost a mix of (a watered down) A DARKER SHADE OF MAGIC and THE IMMORTAL RULES but with monsters. Unlike those two novels, I found myself struggling to form a connection to the main characters of Kate and August. I cared about what happened to them but not much else. And the side characters, while immensely interesting, weren't given much time either. Let's talk about the positive aspects though - like THE VIOLENCE. 
 As always, Schwab's writing is fantastic. Everything is well-described without being tedious, and even the VIOLENCE action scenes were well-written. And don't get me started on the quotes! The world building is also marvelous, although I wish some concepts had been explained in more detail as we were left in the dark about a lot of things in the beginning. I definitely still have questions. 
 THIS SAVAGE SONG is a dark book and I am in love with that aspect - I wanted more of it. One of the best things about this book is that the line between good and evil, black and white isn't so clear; the city of Verity is filled with gray and you can choose your own side. This novel was filled with twists and turns, and although some of them were a bit predictable, that ending came out of nowhere. I'll be anxious awaiting the sequel. 
 "Nobody gets to stay the same."