Way We Fall, The (Fallen World trilogy, The) [Hardcover]

Megan Crewe (Author)

Book Description

Release date: January 24, 2012

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 sixteen-year-old Kaelyn lets her best friend leave for school without saying goodbye, she never dreams that she might not see him again.  But then a strange virus begins to sweep through her small island community, infecting young and old alike.  As the dead pile up, the government quarantines the island: no one can leave, and no one can come back.

Those still healthy must fight for the island's 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?

Poignant and dizzying, The Way We Fall is the heart-wrenching story of one girl's bravery and unbeatable spirit as she challenges not just her fears, but her sense of what makes life worth living.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"As hope wars with loss, this gripping, psychological thriller never loses focus. Though Crewe's story can be gruesome and horrifying, she escapes the trap of making events too depressing and hopeless, maintaining a strong sense of realism throughout." -Publishers Weekly

"Crewe utilizes a less-is-more approach, subtly closing the walls in on the characters as they run out of resources... Readers will root for the believable characters struggling through heartbreaking situations." -Kirkus Reviews

"This is the kind of book that makes you look up in alarm when someone near you sniffles. It viscerally conveys the horror of sudden, brutal illness and the struggle between being humane and saving your own skin." -Booklist

"The book offers a compellingly tight focus, relating the town's descent into chaos with heartbreakingly vivid details.... The inclusion of more quotidian elements, such as Kaelyn's emerging romance with a local boy and her reconciliation with a former foe, make the survival story even more harrowing." -BCCB

"With elements of social commentary on the human reaction to panic and fear, a tender first love story, and a thrilling survival story, The Way We Fall will hook readers from page one. Crewe has masterfully created a tale so suspenseful that when the last page is read, readers can only hope that there is more to come." -CLCD

About the Author

Megan Crewe (www.megancrewe.com) finds writing about herself much more difficult than making things up. A few definite facts: she lives in Toronto, Canada, with her husband and three cats (and does on occasion say "eh"); she tutors teens with special needs; and-thankfully-the worst virus she's caught so far is the garden variety flu. She is also the author of Give Up the Ghost.

Product Details

• Age Range: 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Hyperion Book CH (January 24, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1423146166
• ISBN-13: 978-1423146162
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1.2 x 8.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (74 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #496,795 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Like Life As We Knew It, But Worlds Better February 7, 2012

By Christina (A Reader of Fictions) TOP 1000 REVIEWER

Format:Hardcover

In a lot of ways this book reminded me of Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer, which I hated. Thankfully, I did not hate this one. The similarities are in the narrator and the scope of the story. Kaelyn and Miranda, at least at the outset are pretty similar characters, although Miranda is much more social. Both are whiny and a bit selfish at the beginning though.

Both stories are also written in a diary format, although Miranda writes hers to herself and Kaelyn writes to her friend Leo, in preparation for making up with him when he comes home or, once things start going to hell, for him to find once she's dead. Their tales focus on the way their lives are affected and have no real view to the world at large.

However, the big difference here is that The Way We Fall is, in my opinion, much better written, although employing a similar simple style. Kaelyn is not an outstanding girl; she's not extraordinarily smart or beautiful, and she's socially awkward. At the beginning, I found Kaelyn pretty annoying, although I did think it was really cool that Kaelyn wants to study animals. She was awesome in her passion, if nothing else. As the book went along, though, she really develops into a much stronger character.

So far as the reader knows, this disease outbreak is primarily limited to the island, meaning that the scale is much reduced from that of most dystopias. However, not too far into the outbreak, the government stops helping like they should be. Left to their own devices, people seem to do one of three things: try to save everyone, hide from everyone and everything, or descend into anarchy and violence. Mankind is, as is often the case in dystopian literature, as, or perhaps more, terrifying than the disease.

The Way We Fall also had a couple of awesome quotes, which I would like to include, although the reader should keep in mind that they could have been changed before publication (although I hope not).

In reference to the disease which is starting to become a problem: "It's like we're trying to fill up every second of silence with meaningless talk so we don't have to say anything real or scary."
This is why I come to like Kaelyn: "If I need to be saved, I'll do it myself. I think I can handle that."

Crewe should also be given credit for resisting the urge to make the disease turn people into zombies, which has already been done quite a bit. I think what she did is so much cooler.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't Miss This One! November 19, 2012

By acid_raine_burns

Format:Hardcover

The book starts with Kaelyn writing in a journal to her best friend, Leo. After a fight, he left the island for a private boarding school in New York. Unsure whether she will be able to bring herself to talk to him when he returns for the holidays, she has decided to start writing in the journal as a pseudo catharsis. However, a strange virus hits the island, people start dying, and the Canadian government puts the island under a strict quarantine. Kaelyn sets out to chronicle everything that is happening. She hopes that--if Leo is able to return to the island--her journal will be able to tell him everything that has happened since the virus started.

When I could pull myself away from Resident Evil and knitting, I had a hard time putting this book down. It was extremely engaging, well written, and also heartbreaking. I loved how raw Kaelyn was in her journal entries. She was a very sympathetic character, and she was really easy to feel connected to. Even though the audience only sees the other characters through her eyes, the author did a wonderful job balancing how Kaelyn perceives them and who they truly are outside of her perceptions.

At some level, it would have been nice if there had been a little more gang activity. However, it is quite possible that there wasn't more because Kaelyn didn't spend a ton of time outside of the house or away from the hospital. That being said, the reasoning behind burning down houses and buildings was very interesting. Usually, it appears as though the gangs of people are just out for meaningless destruction. Crewe did a wonderful job of focusing their anxiety.

The love interest was wonderful. Considering that it was exceptionally horrible timing, Crewe was able to write in such a way that everything was still innocent and sweet. In a lot of ways, the fragile, budding romance was one of Kaelyn's greatest joys.

This is an excellent book following the outbreak of some unknown virus and human nature. It also shows the depth of character that some people are able to find during such trying times. The next book comes out February 12, 2013!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Gripping and Thoughtful Dystopia August 12, 2012

By Sally

Format:Hardcover

I'm kind of obsessed with YA dystopian fiction. I read it all and rarely feel compelled to write a review. The Way We Fall was different for me. It has all the classic elements of the genre--despair, romance, self-reliance. I felt connected to the main character, Kaelyn, immediately. She was a new take on the female narrator trying to come to terms with her sense of self in the midst of chaos. Definitely more courageous and intelligent than Life As We Knew It's Miranda, but not quite as awe-inspiring as Divergent's Tris. She's a regular teenage girl who finds herself stranded on an island with her parents and brother as a deadly virus begins to destroy her town, person by person. I actually believed that Kaelyn could fall in love under these harrowing circumstances. And I appreciated her struggle to maintain hope and live in the little moments of joy. There's also a social and political subplot that left me wondering what the rest of the world would truly do--or not do--if a small town were in such a situation. Crewe has an intriguing way of inviting readers to reflect on their own emotional reaction and social role in such a disaster. Would you be the terrified anarchist, detached scientist...? Overall, it was well-written and captivating, which lead me reading late into the night.