The Way We Fall by Megan Crewe

It starts with an itch you just can't shake. Then comes a fever and a tickle in your throat. A few days later, you'll be blabbing your secrets and chatting with strangers like they’re old friends. Three more, and the paranoid hallucinations kick in.

And then you're dead.

When sixteen-year-old Kaelyn lets her best friend leave for school without saying goodbye, she never dreams that she might not see him again. But then a strange virus begins to sweep through her small island community, infecting young and old alike. As the dead pile up, the government quarantines the island: no one can leave, and no one can come back.

Those still healthy must fight for the island’s dwindling supplies, or lose all chance of survival. As everything familiar comes crashing down, Kaelyn joins forces with a former rival and discovers a new love in the midst of heartbreak. When the virus starts to rob her of friends and family, she clings to the belief that there must be a way to save the people she holds dearest.

Because how will she go on if there isn't?

Poignant and dizzying, The Way We Fall is the heart-wrenching story of one girl's bravery and unbeatable spirit as she challenges not just her fears, but her sense of what makes life worth living.

Kaelyn is a quiet teen, she's withdrawn and her best friend is no longer talking to her, and that's how Kaelyn tells her story, through the eyes of her journal entries to her former friend Leo, her best friend that she seems to have fallen in love with. Leo has left the island to chase his dream and is now going to school in New York and Kaelyn is determined to change her life, to become the funny and outgoing girl. 

After her studying at a friends house, she notices things don't seem quite normal. Kaelyn is used to the gossip and whispers after her family returned to the island, but when she is accosted by a man, coughing, sneezing with no inhibitions or social filter when he talks, things are just too weird... And it seems he isn't the only case. 

People all over the island are coming down with the strange virus, but it isn't until the first victim dies, that they realise just how serious this is. The government have quarantined the island, vigilante groups are hoarding food and medical supplies and now the authorities have abandoned them. Why have a small number of islanders recovered, but the majority are dying, and dying loudly. 

With Kaelyn's father working around the clock to find a cure, Kealyn takes the opportunity to become that girl that is going to make a difference... Then she meets Gav. Gav has become a leader among their dwindling community, handing out food rations. Together they join forces, they may not be able to save everyone, but ensure some survive the island.

I was hesitant to start The Way We Fall, only because it seemed to be for a much younger audience, but it was fantastic. Although slow to start, it gives us a glimpse of Kaelyn's life before the virus, her relationships and shows us her metamorphose throughout the book. Once the first case of the virus is mentioned, the storyline action begins and you wont be able to put it down.

The Way We Fall

(Fallen World: Book One)
Written By Megan Crewe

Published 24 / 01 / 2012
320 Pages