Thursday, August 14, 2014

Hush, Hush Saga Book #2: Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick


Recently, Becca Fitzpatrick revealed on Twitter that Crescendo was not her favorite book to write out of the Hush, Hush Saga, and I can tell. When this book first came out, I read it in one day and was supremely confused and angered by the events that transpired. How is it that a sequel to a book that I loved could turn in to such…well, crap? Now, that I’ve read it again, I still don’t have an answer, but I kind of understand things better than that first reading.

Nora is used to her life being turned upside down. Her father was murdered almost two years ago, she’s learned that she is descended from a race called Nephilim, and that her lab partner from biology was a fallen angel until he saved her life two months ago. Now, Patch is a guardian angel her guardian angel and she couldn’t be happier. But as the book begins, Nora isn’t on the path to normal just yet. Feeling overwhelmed by her feelings for Patch, she declares her love for him and he doesn’t say it back.

The next morning in summer school she learns from Marcie Miller – her arch nemesis for years – that Patch went to her house right afterwards and stood watching. Nora asks Patch about it, but he doesn’t give her an answer. Feeling hurt and betrayed she breaks up with him causing a rift. Add in a new character named Scott with a dark past of his own, and the fact that Nora is seeing her father around town and you’ve got one interesting sequel.

So, like I said before when I first read this book I thought it was a bunch of crap. Here was another second book of a series that breaks up the main characters for really stupid reasons. True, I get that Nora didn’t want Patch to rebel on the archangels, and that she was still kind of miffed about Patch not telling her why he was hanging with Marcie – although I kind of had a feeling why he was – but still… Nora is very quick to assume the worst of people and that’s kind of one of things that I really hate about her. She knows that Patch is a guardian angel now, and once he explains that the archangels are just looking for a reason to cast him back to hell, shouldn’t she guess that the reason he’s hanging with Marcie is because he’s protecting her now?

Scott was an interesting character to throw into the mix. He seemed like such a jerk at the beginning – kind of like Patch – but at the end when it’s revealed what is really going on with him, I was kind of intrigued to see him come back in the next book. And can we talk about Marcie’s dad actually being Nora’s dad too?! What was Blythe thinking? And holy crap, holy crap! The ending! Just when you think there’s going to be some much-anticipated Patch/Nora make up making out, Mr. Miller shows up and confronts Nora about the death of Jules aka Chauncey. The end. WHAT?!

Final Rating: 4 out of 5 stars. So the ending still kind of confused me. Nora’s dad – Harrison – was told to marry Blythe and claim Nora as his own child even though it was really Mr. Miller’s kid? And Mr. Miller is the Black Hand, but he didn’t kill Harrison, that was actually Patch’s friend Rixon? And Rixon was after Nora because not only does she have the blood of Chauncey in her veins but the blood of Barnabas, who was Rixon’s blood oath host? Ouch. My brain hurts.

Bookshelf worthy? Gray scale cover art is gorgeous. I still want to know what font they use for the title.

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