Book Review: Let the Sky Fall

Let the Sky Fall

By: Shannon Messenger

Published by: Simon Pulse

Release date: March 5, 2013

Genre: YA Paranormal/Fantasy

416 pages

Buy it at Amazon, IndieBound or Barnes & Noble

Source: Purchased by Reviewer

Read my Book Boyfriend post about Vane here.

I have been shamelessly pushing my friends to read this book. I loved this book so much that it isn't good enough to hug it and put it on the shelf; I keep it near me with post-it flags on key passages, and wait for another reader to fangirl with. I've finished reading, and yet my relationship with the book continues to consume my thoughts.


This book is structured with alternating viewpoints, switching back and forth between the two main characters. We get to hear the thoughts and feelings of both, making the romance factor rocket through the roof- even though there is little physical contact between the characters. The alternating chapters allow us to get to know both in great detail without the usually-necessary expository dialogue. It felt very organic and real, which added depth to the reader's relationship with the characters.

Both characters are broken, in very different ways. Vane, at the beginning, has no idea who he really is, let alone anything about his heritage- other than his parents were killed in a tornado that he survived, and he was adopted by a very nice couple. As it turns out, he has a lot to learn. It also turns out that he is a sigh-worthy book boyfriend. Audra fights every day to deal with the loss of her parents- her father, whom she misses terribly since his death, and her mother, who has rejected her since her father's passing. All she has left to cling to is her duty to protect Vane, so she throws everything she has into being the best guardian she can possibly be.

Over the past ten years, the only constant these two have had is each other, yet they haven't had so much as a simple conversation. Once the conversation starts, the relationship between them becomes increasingly demanding of attention. And they don't have time or attention to spare- warriors are hunting them, and they'll arrive at any moment. The sense of urgency, both in the romance and in the nation-at-war plotline, is addictive. 

The lore in this book is refreshingly original in YA Lit. Air elementals are fairly uncommon, and ones that have lore that is this completely fleshed out are downright rare. I really loved the idea of the four different types of winds, and their accompanying languages. I like imagining the messages on the breeze now, as I walk outside. I like the metaphysical concept of the windwalkers literally being made of the winds, and how they return to that form when their corporeal form ends. It's beautiful lore, wrought with meaning that feeds the spirit while the plot feeds the imagination. The two together are a recipe for the very best kind of YA lit- the kind you read once to find out what happens, then read again and again to feel what it all means. 

This is a title that I will continue to push on anyone who will listen for some time to come. PLEASE- if you've read it-- WHEN you've read it-- let me know. I need someone to fangirl with!!

Summary from Goodreads:

Seventeen-year-old Vane Weston has no idea how he survived the category five tornado that killed his parents. And he has no idea if the beautiful, dark-haired girl who’s swept through his dreams every night since the storm is real. But he hopes she is.

Seventeen-year-old Audra is a sylph, an air elemental. She walks on the wind, can translate its alluring songs, and can even coax it into a weapon with a simple string of commands. She’s also a guardian—Vane’s guardian—and has sworn an oath to protect Vane at all costs. Even if it means sacrificing her own life.

When a hasty mistake reveals their location to the enemy who murdered both of their families, Audra’s forced to help Vane remember who he is. He has a power to claim—the secret language of the West Wind, which only he can understand. But unlocking his heritage will also unlock the memory Audra needs him to forget. And their greatest danger is not the warriors coming to destroy them—but the forbidden romance that’s grown between them.