Fantasy• YA

Review – This Savage Song + Out Dark Duet by V.E. Schwaab

August 31, 2025

Synopsis

There’s no such thing as safe in a city at war, a city overrun with monsters. In this dark urban fantasy, a young woman and a young man must choose whether to become heroes or villains—and friends or enemies—with the future of their home at stake.
Kate Harker and August Flynn are the heirs to a divided city—a city where the violence has begun to breed actual monsters. All Kate wants is to be as ruthless as her father. All August wants is to be human, as good-hearted as his own father, to play a bigger role in protecting the innocent. When the chance arises to keep an eye on Kate, August jumps at it. But Kate discovers August’s secret, and after a failed assassination attempt the pair must flee for their lives.

Review

I have a backlog of titles by V.E. Schwaab I’m working my way through, and this series sounded like an interesting one to pick up.

We have a city which is divided into two parts that exists with a kind of truth. Both parts are rules by very different leaders. Kate was sent by her farther away to different schools while her only aim was getting close to her father, which she achieves by the beginning of the first book. August is sent to the same school as Kate to get close to her (as a *spy*). These two unlikely characters become friends and feel drawn to each other.
When Kate gets attacked at the school the blame it put on August (incorrectly) to stop the truth between both leading parties. The flee together and hide outside of the city.

In the second book we pick of month later with both main characters having separated and living their lives. Visions draw Kate back to V-City where she meets August again and things have changed. They are still drawn to each other, but it is not the same anymore compared to when they left each other. They must team up to fight the villain of the story.

For being targeted to more of a YA audience I enjoyed the books a lot. I was rooting for both and being able to do what their parents were unable to achieve. Their friendship felt natural to me.
It’s an easy and quick read.

🌙 Recension: This Savage Song + Our Dark Duet (Monsters of Verity Duology) by V. E. Schwab
📚 Genre: Fantasy
📅 Release Date: June 5, 2016 + June 13, 2017
📖 Verlag: ‎ Titan Publ. Group Ltd.
📗 ISBN: 978-1803362144 + ‎ 978-1803362151 – various formats available
📱 Read as: Hardcover
💸 Bought
🗣️ Language: English
📆 Pages: 416+480
⭐️ 3/5