Fallen in Love (Fallen, #7)

by Lauren Kate

[jeannamichel]

Four short stories, about different characters from the Fallen series, make up this novel. Each story revolves around Valentine’s Day during the medieval ages. Fans of Lauren Kate’s series will not want to miss learning new things about the characters which are not shown in the series.

Love Where You Least Expect It: The Valentine of Shelby and Miles
Short Story: 3

In the Fallen series, I always had a hunch that Shelby and Miles were going to get together. This coupling was far from least expected. It was undeniably cute but very cheesy. However, reading a book about how the characters of the Fallen series spends their Valentine’s Day, the reader must expect some cheese.

Lauren Kate started off in the medieval ages, which unknown to the reader continues the same setting throughout the book. The setting seemed overused, where love stories take place and I was disappointed because Kate could have used an array of different settings for the different stories and, instead, chose England. In this short story, I was surprised how realistic the period seemed through the depictions. She did not spend a long time describing castles, kings, and true love. Kate, in this short story, depicted England as it really was: muddy, dirty, and sort of awful to Shelby, who just wanted some lip balm.

Some of it did not add up. Here Miles and Shelby were trading elastic bands, shoe laces, and a tradesman (at one point) got a hold of Miles’ baseball cap. In the story, the tradespeople make a fuss over the items, wondering what kind of magic they are. But how did this, all this trading, not change the course of time? It did not add up. However, it made the cutest story of the entire book.

Love Lessons: The Valentine of Roland
Short Story: 4

Roland has always been my favorite character of the Fallen series. There was something about him, his secrets which always wanted me to find out more. Secretly, I still want Roland to be my next door neighbor and we could play chess on weekends or something like that. Anyway, how could I not love this short story all about Roland.

This short story goes deep into Roland’s raw emotions, digging until readers discover a huge secret of his past. These fresh emotions are heart wrenching to read about; it made me sympathize with Roland. However, the short story holds an adorable piece: the idea of Roland in love is just so astounding.

However, the plot is left open, at the end. The husband must be keeping secrets, as well because Lauren Kate does not full explain why he is so adamant to stay away. Roland deserves better than this heart break.

One thing I loved with the entire book was how Lauren Kate transitioned for one story to the next. Shelby and Miles saw Roland, Roland’s story was next. It was a genius way to move to one story to the next, especially if she was going to stick with using the same clichéd setting.

Burning Love: The Valentine of Arriane
Short Story: 3

Another heart wrenching story. Now this was unexpected. I was hoping for something cute and light but I’m reading this story about Arriane’s breakup.

Lauren Kate made to create every love in the book: true love, puppy love, heartache, and forbidden love. This short story is forbidden love. The idea of this sort of love is fantastic, however clichéd it is. I would love to read more about Arriane and her love but it ends here.

All the blood and gore scenes were unnecessary and too much. Lauren Kate is a fantastic author; her descriptions are spot on and visually stunning which also means that Kate can create violent scenes that seem real as well. I could have done without the visual. As I was expecting a light and cute book, it came to a shock to me that there was attempted suicide. This is not how anyone should be spending their Valentine’s Day.

Endless Love: The Valentine of Daniel and Lucinda
Short Story: 3

This was a shocking story too and I didn’t even have to go farther than the cover page to ask: why does the reader need a short story devoted to these two character when they have an entire series depicting their love. Lauren Kate could have chosen so many other characters. I would love to read about Gabbe, Cam, or even “Bill.”

Of course this story was cute and adorable. It was nice that it brought in elements from the other three stories. I loved hearing about what became of the other people. I was half expecting Lucinda to die at the end but I was pleasantly surprised when she didn’t.

Overall, this book was a nice addition to the Fallen series. If you did not read the series or didn’t like the series, I would not recommend reading Fallen in Love. If you have a curiosity for the other characters and want to learn more about them, you should definitely pick this one up. However, if you are looking for something cute and new, this book is probably not the one for you.