Friday, March 7, 2014

Fallen in Love by Lauren Kate

In the Fallen series this is considered a side book from the series. It is not a "full" book. It is short and contains four short stories that all have the same background. I would recommend reading this book after reading Passion but before Rapture. It takes place inside of Passion, but actually having these things happen would have thrown the book off. All four stories intertwine in some way or another.

Four love stories all intersect over the course of Valentines Day in medieval England. Miles and Shelby have an unexpected love. Roland learns a lesson in finding love and losing it. Arriane pays a price for her love, which is so passionate it burns. Daniel and Luce spend a night together for the first and last time, and it isn't like the others.

Miles and Shelby are two of Luce's friends that end up going back in time to find and help her out. They never get to Luce, always a few second behind her. Well Daniel tells them to head back to the present time and not to worry, where he is going they can't. So they listen and leave, and in the meantime they get lost on the way back. They end up in medieval England, the day before Valentines Day. They run into Roland and ask for his help. Overall this was a very sweet and romantic blossom of love between Miles and Shelby. They don't even seem like two people who would end up together under normal circumstances, but these are not normal times.

Next is Roland. After finding Miles and Shelby and agreeing to help he goes off to do just that. On his way we find out some things about Roland. He used to be madly in love with a human female from that exact time. Of course he thinks about her and thinks about going back to her. Just before he can, he finds out that she is wedded to another man and is a mother. Roland could have easily killed the husband and said it was a travesty of war. Instead he gets her husband out of going to war. Joining the ranks he runs into Arriane and finds that she too hasn't had that great of a time in England. Roland's story was very bittersweet. He is head over heals in love with this girl and knowing that it would never work with him being immortal he leaves her. Couldn't get any worse, from this bittersweet love right?

Wrong. Arriane's story is very sad but sweet in spots. Arriane chose Heaven over Hell and her love Tess chose Hell over Heaven. They could never be together properly. But nonetheless the try to be together. It isn't as simple as it seems. Even when they are together they are sad, knowing that in the end they have to leave each other. As the reader you can tell they love each other very much. Tess makes a mistake and thinks that she can get Arriane to join the ranks of the fallen angles. This causes a rift and Arriane takes off, thinking for good. Tess feeling terrible takes a starshot (the one thing that can harm and leave marks on angels, and kill) and mutilates her wings. Arriane is devastated, because of the starshot infecting Tess's blood Arriane gets burn marks from where Tess's blood touches her. I thought with this being around Valentines Day things would have been more happy. Nope. Things are just sad in this story.

This past lifetime of Luce's is not in Passion, though it does not differ very much from the others. Lucinda (past Luce) is very sad. She thinks that once Daniel (past Daniel) had found out that she is just a commoner he will not want to be with her. So she tries to go on with her life. Our future Luce shows up and cleaves (slips inside of her body without anyone noticing but future Luce herself) with the past Luce. She goes the Valentines Day party and has a good time. Cam shows up and tries to warn her of everything he can without spilling the truth. After he leaves Daniel finally shows up and they leave together to have some alone time. In the end everyone is at the party and enjoying themselves as much as they can. This last story wasn't as sad as the rest but it wasn't as happy as Miles and Shelby's. I would have taken this story over Arriane's if I was given the choice.

If you are expecting a happy Valentine's Day short stories, for the most part they are not. What happy moments you are given you are happy for because it lightens up the very sad mood. This is a boon in the Fallen series and I wouldn't mind owning, even with the sadness in it. There is a insert of Rapture in the end.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Page Count: 201 pages (hardcover)

Price: $15.99

Next Book: The Strain by Guillermo del Toro and Chick Hogan

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed!
~Jade

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