The Lives We Lost (Fallen World #2)

The Lives We Lost (Fallen World #2)
Author(s)
Age Range
12+
Release Date
February 12, 2013
ISBN
1423146174
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First, the virus took Kaelyn's friends, then her family, and now it's spread beyond her island. The only thing people know for sure is that no one is safe. But when Kaelyn finds samples of a vaccine hidden in her father's abandoned laboratory, she knows there's only one option: seek out someone who can replicate it.

As Kaelyn and her friends head to the mainland, carrying with them hopes for a cure, they face greater challenges than they ever could have imagined. Not everyone they meet wants Kaelyn to succeed—and many simply want her dead and the vaccine for themselves. With the chance of finding help slipping away, will Kaelyn be forced to sacrifice those she loves in order to rescue the human race?

Megan Crewe's second installment in this powerful and gripping YA series tackles self-preservation, first love, and hope, while refusing to flinch from the sacrifices they require. This heart-wrenching story of one girl’s bravery and unbeatable spirit will leave readers fervently awaiting the final book in this suspenseful and action-packed trilogy.

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2 reviews
Overall rating
 
4.0
Plot
 
4.0(2)
Characters
 
4.0(2)
Writing Style
 
4.0(2)
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
 
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The Lives We Lost review
Overall rating
 
3.0
Plot
 
3.0
Characters
 
3.0
Writing Style
 
3.0
Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)
 
N/A
I just really haven't been having luck with sequels lately.

I didn't really have any expectations going into The Way We Fall and ended up pleasantly surprised. Needless to say, I did, in fact, have some expectations going into The Lives We Lost and in the end they simply weren't met.

So here's the thing about the sequel: nothing happens. Sure, some stuff happens here and there (we wouldn't have a book otherwise, would we?), but ultimately, nothing really happens.

Here's how it goes:
Kaelyn finds some vaccine samples.
Kaelyn decides to take said samples to someone who can do something about them.
Something bad happens on the island and everyone has to leave.
They travel to someplace useful (supposedly) with the samples.
They travel more.
And they travel some more.
And more.
The end.

And it really didn't help that most of the characters were getting on my nerves.
Kaelyn is all tough and determined until something she doesn't like shows up and she turns all squeamish. I'm probably being callous, but it's a dead body, we get it. It's not the first dead body you've seen. In fact, it's about the 19578806043rd body you've seen. It's the end of the world and people are going to die. Can you please get over it already.
Gav was shoved into the background unless he was forcefully brought forward and this just made him a flat character for me. I found it hard to care when The Thing went down in the end. I was just kind of like: "I'm supposed to feel something, right? Cuz I got nothin'."
Leo just wasn't doing it for me either. He's all somber and depressing, unless Kaelyn's in the picture and he looks at her with those mournful, meaningful glances. I get that he had a hard journey back home and that he's an orphan now, but the rest of them have faced some bad stuff and they all happen to be orphans as well.
Tobias was my favorite character. He was honest and haunted, but didn't let what he's seen and done consume him. I liked that he was helpful without forcing himself into a leader position simply because he was older.

The Nutshell: The Lives We Lost wasn't a terrible read, but since nothing actually happened in the end, I felt cheated. I'll still read the next book since something (or, everything) has to happen to combat the nothingness that happened in this one. Honestly, this is the first sequel I've felt was simply a oh-yeah-this-is-a-trilogy-I-guess-we-need-a-book-two filler.

Near Miss
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Great second installment in a fascinating series - no sophomore slump here!!
(Updated: April 05, 2013)
Overall rating
 
5.0
Plot
 
5.0
Characters
 
5.0
Writing Style
 
5.0
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The Lives We Lost was just as captivating as The Way We Fall. If you haven't read The Way We Fall yet, stop reading this right now and go order a copy of that book first. This isn't a series that I would suggest jumping into in the middle of it. From the moment I read the synopsis of TWWF I knew I wanted to read it. I am fascinated by the spread of deadly viruses and I enjoy reading nonfiction books like The Hot Zone: A Terrifying True Story and ,Virus X: Tracking the New Killer Plagues, so I was incredibly interested in reading a YA fiction book with the same topic. This series is much more realistic than many other YA books in this genre because no one turns into a zombie or monster from this disease and it could really happen. Viruses like this have taken hold of the world in the not-so-distant past, which makes these books scarier to me than any fiction horror story.

The Lives We Lost starts off right where TWWF ended. Kaelyn and her handful of friends (and her cousin) from the island that have survived the virus has also torn across the country, and probably the entire world. She finds her dad's key to the research center and discovers a vaccine he was in the process of testing when he was killed. Since there is only one doctor on the island and she is unable to test and duplicate the virus, Kaelyn and her friends decide to leave the island in search of a doctor who can help her replicate the virus. They encounter many horrific situations along the way and the worse it got, the more I found myself cheering them on and hoping that they would find the person that could help them.

Kaelyn is one of my favorite heroines. She is not naturally an outgoing person, but she is caring, selfless, and brave even when she is afraid. I have read so many books with wimpy, whiny female main characters lately so Kaelyn was an absolute breath of fresh air. She has been through so much and never gave up, not when she felt she could possibly help others out.

I waited until The Lives We Lost were out to read The Way We Fall so that I could read straight through to the second book, but now I have to wait almost a year until the third book is out! I am so bummed, I can't wait to read the third installment of this series! I would recommend this series to everyone. :)
Good Points
-Kaelyn is a great main character
-Like the writing style
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