By: Cynthia Ayala
The final novel in the Fallen Series by Lauren Kate, Rapture continues to tell the story of Lucinda and Daniel, two lovers caught in an affair that has tortured them through the centuries. This novel concludes this story, revealing the secrets behind the curse that has haunted them forever. Read here for the full review.
Author: Lauren Kate
Published: June 12, 2012
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Series: Fallen
Genre: Young Adult, (Urban) Fantasy, (Angelic) Mythology, Paranormal Romance
Time is running out for Luce and Daniel. To stop Lucifer from erasing the past they must find the place where the angels fell to earth. Dark forces, as well as those that are blinded by light, are after them, and Daniel doesn’t know if he can do this—live only to lose Luce again and again. Yet together they will face an epic battle that will end with lifeless bodies and angel dust. Sacrifices will be made as lives will continue to be lost until Luce remembers her past and the true origin of the curse: that before Daniel there was another and that the curse was borne from the love she cast aside. Her final choice will decide the fate of all of the Fallen. The question is: will Heaven remain or will Lucifer win this final battle?
Rapture, was an amazing conclusion to the Fallen series written by Lauren Kate. Published in June 12, 2012 by Delacorte Press, Rapture continues to tortured love story of Lucinda Price and Daniel Grigori. Time after time, because of their overruling love for one another that chose them to defy God and Lucifer, their love was cursed. Time and time again, whenever the met and loved one another, Lucinda would suffer and die. However, this time around, the rules changed and since then Lucinda has been on a path to self-discovery, a journey that has taken her to the beginning of time. Except, she wasn’t alone on this journey. Lucifer followed, concocting his own plan to wage war on heaven and take back what he lost, the love he created that his pride blinded. Now, on a race against time, Lucinda, Daniel and their fellow fallen angels, dark and light alike, seek the place of the “the fall”, before Lucifer can rewrite history and tear the two lovers apart, forever.
By the end of this novel, readers will find that they were on an emotional rollercoaster. Unlike the previous books where Lucinda just shined off the pages, Torment being the exception, she exploded off the pages. Her strength and will to move on through the choices that tear her apart, gives her character such life and makes her a strong female protagonist. Her journey of self-discovery and the impact it holds for everyone was such a powerful moment in the novel. It added so much to the plot line and gave the story such a rich and compelling hold over the reader. Kate pushes her characters and Luce especially, to their limits, exploring those emotional torrents that follow the choices she had made. Luce is like a rose and her emotions and strength have helped both her and the novel blossom, making each page a strong and textured layer filled with incredible depth.
The way that the story expanded to include so much while at the same time remaining fast paced allowed the reader to really get sucked into the novel. However, and this seems to be Kate’s biggest problem with writing, there are a lot of missing scene specifics. As the end gets closer, while dialogue and characterization remain intact, there is not much descriptive detail to ground the reader, instead readers are left imagining characters in white rooms because there isn’t any detail to paint the story and the scenery.
Other than that, this was a truly wonderful young adult fantasy novel with a perfect bittersweet ending. Unexpected, romantic and a great addition to the fallen angel mythos. ★★★ ½ (out of 5 ☆’s | B+)