Crescendo

First off I'll admit that I had huge expectations for this book, which we should all remember is always dangerous when you're reading to review. If you'll recall, Nora was one of my favorite protagonists back when I read Hush, Hush because she was so amazingly self-sufficient and stubborn. Her relationship with Patch was one that intrigued me. The two of them were so stunningly different, and yet they seemed to mesh perfectly together. Becca Fitzpatrick had me smitten with her book and eager for more.

That being said, I'll start out by saying that I was a little disappointed with Nora in this book. She went from being a girl with an extremely intelligent head on her shoulders, to something completely different. She was constantly in need of someone to save her, unable to make good decisions, and frustratingly driven by her emotions. Nora was so completely involved in all things Patch that it was almost as though she lost an important part of herself. Now I will admit that in the grand scheme of the story, this made a bit of sense. Nora was being handed quite a bit to deal with. However since her character is what made me love the last book so very much, I was thrown off.

As for Patch, well it should be known that I love Patch. Despite his bad boy exterior, he always had Nora's best interests at heart. In this book however it was a lot harder for me to love him. His coldness towards Nora, although necessary, really hurt me and I could understand how it would hurt her as well. It was a little easier for me to deal with his behavior, because of how it fit into the overall story line. I suppose it's never easy for a reader to loose what they love about a particular character, so I shouldn't be too terribly upset. Patch still remains one of my favorite love interests in a story.

One fabulous thing is that the change in Nora and Patch's behavior allows for new characters to be introduced, and this adds a whole other layer to the story. I can definitely attest that I loved the story line in this book even more than the last one. It was dark and it was driven. Once the story really got going I was able to forget my initial worries and just get lost in the roller coaster ride that is Becca Fitzpatrick's writing! She is a master at giving you just enough to keep you reading, and then building slowly up to a climax.

I will honestly say that, just like it's predecessor, Crescendo is a well paced and amazingly written story. There is never a dull moment in the book, and honestly the 400+ pages in this book just fly by. There are many new challenges presented to Nora and Patch in this sequel. In fact, there were times when I was a bit overwhelmed at everything they had to deal with. Without a doubt, this is one of the most engrossing reads I've had in a while. I sat down to read for an hour or so, and when I looked up it was 4 hours later and I had 20 pages to go. If that isn't the merit of a good book, I'm really not sure what is!

Despite my minor annoyances with new character behavior, I really did enjoy devouring this book. As I said before, it's the type of book that will have you reading well into the night. Do not start this book before bed time, especially if you need to be up for work. You've been warned! For those who loved Hush, Hush as much as I did, go into Crescendo with an open mind and heart and I know you'll find you enjoy it immensely as well!

I feel like the series is starting to go down hill. The first book is a lot better. I had a lot of trouble getting through this book.

Ok, este libro me gustó más que el primero. Es un 3.5 estrellas.
Todavía debo de asimilar ese final y apaciguar mis ganas de correr rápidamente a pedir prestado el tercer libro, pero me contendré porque ahora voy a leer “La biblioteca de la medianoche”
Me dolió solo un poquito la traición de Rixon, sobre todo porque me gustaba un poquito su relación con Vee (Que me cayó un poco mejor ahora en este libro)
Me sigue sin agradar Nora y Patch, y tampoco me gusta mucho su relación, pero seguiré leyendo porque es adictivo y aprecio mucho a la persona que me lo recomendó.

★★★★☆

first of all: WHY DID YOU END IT LIKE THAT? THAT CLIFFHANGER? i need to read crooked kingdom before i start the third book but now i'm too invested in this series to wait.

there were so many plot twists and i was confused but the author does a really good job at making things clear. when being introduced to a new idea, she explains it very well.

this book is pretty fast-paced, but that might just be because it's an ebook and i tend to read ebooks quickly.

as much as i wanted patch and nora to be together in this book, i was very satisfied by their last moment because you can see that patch truly does care about nora, even if it wasn't supposed to happen.

also, fuck you rixon you dirty goat cheese flubnubber trash can stinker smelly bean burrito big boy hooligan fat bat penis fat headass. ugly. dumb. stupid.

Más culebron que el primero

I loved Hush, Hush. I was excited to be able to read more Nora and Patch. And then I read the book description for Crescendo and felt disappointed before even reading a word. I was worried there'd be a mostly pointless love triangle (or possibly more introduced and I'd spend the majority of the novel annoyed and wishing I could fast forward to the end.

Instead what I got was a slow build up (I see what you did there with the Crescendo, Ms. Fitzpatrick) of emotions and history until it all comes crashing down.

Nora learns a little bit more about who she is and what she is made of in this book. She's not sure who she's able to trust, even Patch. Because of this, she has to rely more on herself for the answers she needs. She trusts her instincts more and lets the blood that runs through her help guide her. Of course, this means sometimes she makes decisions that made me shake my head at her, all the while loving that she's starting to stand on her own more.

The relationship between Nora and Patch hits turbulence in this one and even though it gets rough, it's very easy to see that everything ripping them apart in Crescendo is also driving them closer together. They can't be torn apart, even when forces outside their control are trying their hardest. Even when it is them doing the ripping, they still find a way to be together.

The twists and turns in Crescendo had be guessing at every page. Just when I thought I'd have something figured out, the road would turn and I'd be just as clueless as I started. It kept me focused and on my toes.

Crescendo is a fabulous sequel to a great book, and certainly didn't let me down like I thought it might. The story fits its name and I can't wait to read what happens next.

4.5 stars to this book.

OH. MY. GOD. One of the best books I've ever read. Becca Fitzpatrick never disappoints me. I'm loving this saga so much! I spent literally THE WHOLE BOOK always curious to know what would happen next and very mad at Patch for being so close to Marcie.
But I knew there was reasonable explanations. Absolutely loved this book!! Can't wait to read “Silence”.

I had such strong reservations going into this book, because I just remember being really annoyed with it the last time I read it, but I was super surprised by how much I enjoyed it!
There was of course the annoying and frustrating, but “inevitable” relationship drama which really was the only thing that made me mad about this book. Considering the short period of time in which this book is set, SO MUCH STUFF HAPPENS and it's AWESOME! I loved all the things that was not the relationship. It could have been a close five had there been a good relationship in it, but then I guess all the things that happened couldn't have happened but, like, still.

And Fitzpatrick delivers another extraordinary story, to be read after you read the first novel in the Hush, Hush series. After loving the first book, my expectations for the second were pretty high and she didn't disappoint. I love that her books are filled with both action and romance, even adventure. There's a little for everyone and for this reason all different kind of people would enjoy this book.

While the first book focused on Nora and her budding, yet slightly messed up relationship with Patch, the second one introduced a few more important characters. Although none of them captured my attention quite like Patch, they definitely added more tensions and conflicts to the story, another layer if you will.

After the first book, Nora and Patch's happily-ever-after is short lived because Patch starts acting really cold and withdrawn towards Nora. My heart ached because of that and even though I realized quickly that he was doing it because he loved her, it still did bad things to my emotions. Nora, on the other hand, I was able to relate to her and I felt her hopelessness and uncertainty as she struggled to understand and make sense of someone she loves pushing her out of his life. I've been in a situation like that before but gladly, for Nora, Patch was doing it out of his undying and unwavering love for her so it made me a little calmer.

But Scott, well “Scotty-the-hottie” I had mixed feelings about. Although I did like that she managed to tie him permanently into the story, even with everything else going on, because even though he did kind of become like a third wheel, I can see how she would draw herself closer to Scott as Patch pulled himself away from her. She would have been confused and upset, hell I've been there, I know how it is. Sometimes, you can't help but hope that you'll be able to find comfort someplace else, even when your insides are aching and you want nothing but to crawl into a hole and die.

And then there's Marcie. Yes, that shit with her is twisted. I loved how Marcie provided another obstacle for Nora, it was nice that we weren't only overwhelmed with Nora's problems with Patch breaking her heart and what not.

And it definitely made me happy that even when Patch said he'd stay away from her, he couldn't really follow through and he ended up appearing everywhere in the book where she was, regardless. I loved that he didn't disappear from her life because, as a reader, it would have been very hard to take.

I think Fitzpatrick's greatest strength as a writer comes from her skill of characterization. All of the characters were individuals and they all had their own little quirks and “hooks” that made them unforgettable. I can still recount Patch as the mysterious, edgy one, while Scott was the least confident one, who drank his sorrows. There are more of course, but I will only mention those for now. The characters were all just extremely memorable.

All in all, I loved this installment in the series and it made me want to keep reading the next one, without taking a break with another book. I hope Fitzpatrick writes many more books in the future, I'd like to read more of her stories.

I have mixed feelings about this book. Generally, I liked the plot. But how it was dragged on FOREVER, not really knowing what was going on, Nora's OBSESSION with Patch, and her weird visions of her dad, all annoyed the living hell out of me! I just wanted to slap her and tell her to get over it! I was pleasantly surprised at the ending though. I definitely was not expecting the bad guy to be revealed as who it was. The last few chapters were the best parts. the rest was just annoying and not as good as Hush, Hush.

I love the author's voice in this series, it's what has me coming back for more.

I'm a huge Patch fan and that will keep me looking forward to the next instalment.

What I loved about Hush, Hush was that the romance wasn't the main focus of the book. Yes, the romance is a major aspect of the story but there is also the mystery of who is after Nora. The mystery, the suspense, the constant mind games Nora was being thrown was what made me enjoy the book. I found the characters to be entertaining and fun to read and Nora didn't annoy me as many female characters seem to do in paranormal YA. When I finished Hush, Hush I couldn't wait to read Crescendo.

Its unfortunate that I did not enjoy Crescendo nearly as much as I did its predecessor. read more