Falling? or Hovering with Uncertainty?

Sometimes you simply can judge a book by its cover! Fallen, by Lauren Kate, is packed with teen angst, sorrow and confusion, as if that wasn't clearly stated by the haunting cover! But is there more to the story than just a teen in trouble?

Luce has been sent to a reform school called Sword and Cross after a boy dies in her last school and she is blamed for the fire that killed him. When she gets there, she is instantly taken in by a girl named Arianne who shows her the ropes. But the one thing Luce can't seem to ignore is Daniel Grigori, despite the fact that he clearly isn't interested in her. When another boy, Cam, shows he is overly interested in Luce, she is torn between Daniel's cold shoulder but haunting appeal and Cam's overzealous attention that borders on stalking.

When Luce befriends Penn, the daughter of the former groundskeeper and only kid not forced to be at Sword and Cross, they begin to dig into Daniel's history. What they find is confusing and indicates there is more to Daniel Grigori than he lets on. When things at Sword and Cross start to go horribly awry, Luce finds out there is more to her life than just the strange shadows she keeps seeing; destiny might be at work here.

The synopsis of this book seems vague, because the majority of the novel is quite vague. Luce is at the boarding school for something we learn is not completely her fault, but there isn't much explanation offered. The story continues for a fell 9/10 of the book about Luce in the reform school, and only in the last bit are any questions answered. Even then, the story seems lacking because the explanation is rushed and not really fleshed out.

This book is very slow, not because the characters are uninteresting, or the setting is dull, but because you know there is more coming. You keep waiting for it and waiting for it, but it doesn't come until it is squeezed into the last 50 pages of the book. I am assuming the story will be more clear in the upcoming sequel, but this book would be hard for most reluctant readers- there just isn't enough to understand until the bitter end. I enjoyed the story, but I would be reluctant to give this to a student because it is so slow moving. Hopefully the sequel will be faster and clearer!