Into the Mystic: The Lives We Lost by Megan Crewe

Book: The Lives We Lost

Author: Megan Crewe

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Date: February 12, 2013

Source: Publisher via Netgalley

My grade: A

First, the virus took Kaelyn’s friends. Then, her family. Now it’s taken away her home.

But she can't look back—the life she once had is gone forever.

A deadly virus has destroyed Kaelyn’s small island community and spread beyond the quarantine. No one is safe. But when Kaelyn finds samples of a vaccine in her father's abandoned lab, she knows there must be someone, somewhere, who can replicate it. As Kaelyn and her friends head to the mainland, they encounter a world beyond recognition. It’s not only the “friendly flu” that’s a killer—there are people who will stop at nothing to get their hands on the vaccine. How much will Kaelyn risk for an unproven cure, when the search could either destroy those she loves or save the human race?

Megan Crewe's second volume in the Fallen World trilogy is an action-packed journey that explores the resilience of friendship, the ache of lost love, and Kaelyn’s enduring hope in the face of the sacrifices she must make to stay alive.

Initial reaction

WTF??? What is it with authors and cliffhangers??? I’m getting tired of this!!

Cover story

Meh. Just like the first one. The cover is boring. I don’t hate it. I just don’t have any feelings for it. I like the title and the way it continues the same pattern. This cover is a little more attractive than the first one and I like blue better.

What’s the Story?

The Lives We Lost picks up where The Way We Fall finished. I think almost exactly, as in you could have turned the page from the last book into this one. In this book, Kae discovers a vaccine that her father had created and when no one on the island will consider doing anything with it, she decides that she must take it to the mainland. Of course, everyone (Tessa, Gav, Meredith and even Leo) decides to go with her. They meet a young man named Tobias in a very tense situation at the beginning of the book and he becomes part of their group.

I think that one of the reasons this series is so compelling is the sparse storytelling of the novel. It is told in first person perspective and even though this novel drops the diary style, it still holds that same feeling. There are not too many long descriptions of things. Instead, Kae’s voice comes through in a way that is very much like her: practical, down-to-earth and utilitarian. Kaelyn doesn’t have time for details. She gets the story out with the essential points and enough of her feelings without ever digressing from the main point. I think this style makes this series feel so REAL. And because it feels so real, it is extremely scary.

I have to admit that it took me a bit to get back in to this story, but once I hit the end of the first chapter, I remembered why I loved this one and I read with voracity. I found myself oscillating between Kae’s optimism and everyone else’s doubt. I was on the edge of my seat, just waiting for the next crisis to appear. I could not turn the pages fast enough.

There’s only one thing I didn’t like about this book and that is the HORRIBLE CLIFFHANGER AT THE END!!! OH MY GOD!! WHY DID YOU DO THAT TO ME, MEGAN CREWE?????? WHAT HAVE I EVER DONE TO YOU???

Yes, there is a bit of an abrupt end that leaves the reader hanging and wondering about the status of one of the most beloved characters……It made me want to curl up in a ball in the corner and rock and sob. I can’t believe that I have to wait, but I suppose it’s better to wait and have some hope than get a resolution that I might not like. At least, that’s what I keep telling myself.

Soundtrack

Fix You by Coldplay