Even Angels Fall Review/Discussion

Even Angels Fall by F. L. Darbyshire

Publisher: Grosvenor House Limited

Page Number: 502

Publication Date: August 21st, 2014

Format Read: E-book (I received a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review)

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Goodreads Synopsis:

After suffering an unthinkable loss, Abbey Miller and her family move to Leeds to rebuild their lives and start again, but the pain and grief that Abbey carries with her is impossible to escape. As she finds herself becoming increasingly isolated from her family, she develops a firm friendship with Lucy, Nathan and Liam, who introduce her to a brand new and exciting world, far removed from all of her problems. But will her new friends bring her the light hearted relief she has longed for? Or will she find herself getting drawn deep into their dangerous and intoxicating world?

My Thoughts:

Ok, despite what I am going to say next, I did really love this book, but due to certain things that I will get into in a moment, I was unable to full be able to give it the rating it deserved.

Also, ha ha, the main character’s name is Abbey Miller, and the moment I read that I kind of laughed a little because of the television show dance moms, because the teacher is named Abbey Lee Miller; it just was surprising that’s all.

There’s this supposed “new girl” thing in many movies and books where the new girl is always picked on. I don’t know how it is with other high schools but in mine, if a new student is hot enough, the popular kids will pounce on them and steal them away. New kids are always fascinating and though there can be some mean people, for the most part, everyone wants to be their friend and are curious.

The Good:

Amazing plot and title. Perfectly fitting and the characters were amazingly written. I thought that with so many characters to keep track of, it would have been hard to know each one personally, but I really felt like I was connected to the characters and because of that, I felt each loss personally.

Well played with that love triangle hint though, I had absolutely no idea where the author was going with that, and when I figured it out I was devastated.

The Bad:

The writing. There are a lot of words in this book that felt clumsy and not something that I would hear in a real life conversation. There aren’t too many contractions and that just doesn’t seem natural, or how someone would speak usually.

I’m also pretty sure I caught a typo on page 54, with the wrong form of you’re vs. your as well.

Also, this was a pretty big book, and I had a tiny bit of trouble getting into it, and then it dragged towards the middle, but the last 100 or so pages were just a roller coaster.

The Ending:

(Slightly Spoilery)

Let’s talk about that ending, yes? The ending was the best part of the book. I hated it, and I loved it at the same time.

I hated it because well, life happened.

I loved it because the way it was set up with the mom talking to her ‘ghost’, brilliant.

And the fact that this book talks about drugs and how this side of the story is not usually seen in the books I read was refreshing.

I cried twice while reading, one solitary tear each time, and when I finished the book I hastened to text my friends right away because I was distraught ha ha.

Verdict:

An amazing story line with unforgettable characters but would have been so much better with stronger writing skills.

But I would definitely recommend this book to everyone, just maybe during a time when you’re not feeling super down, because then it might bring you down even more. You have to be in the right mood to fully enjoy this one.

Rating:

I can’t fully give this book 4 stars because of the pacing, writing, and other little things, but it definitely does not deserve a 3.5, so I’m breaking my own rules and giving Even Angels Fall a rating of 3.7 stars out of 5

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Have you read this book!? What did you think!? Let’s chat below!