Crescendo Review

Saturday, November 6, 2010


Nora should have known her life was far from perfect. Despite starting a relationship with her guardian angel, Patch (who, title aside, can be described as anything but angelic), and surviving an attempt on her life, things are not looking up. Patch is starting to pull away, and Nora can't figure out if it's for her best interest or if his interest has shifted to her arch-enemy Marcie Millar. Not to mention that Nora is haunted by images of her father and she becomes obsessed with finding out what really happened to him that night he left for Portland and never came home.

The farther Nora delves into the mystery of her father's death, the more she comes to question if her Nephilim blood line has something to do with it as well as why she seems to be in danger more than the average girl. Since Patch isn't answering her questions and seems to be standing in her way, she has to start finding the answers on her own. Relying too heavily on the fact that she has a guardian angel puts Nora at risk again and again. But can she really count on Patch, or is he hiding secrets darker than she can even imagine?

Taken from GoodReads.

Crescendo is the second story in the Hush, Hush series. Following Nora in the wake of discovering she has a guardian angel, has Nephilim blood flowing through her veins, and even the ones she trusts most can betray her, Crescendo chronicles Nora's need to find her true self. She thought things would be peachy-keen when she discovered that she and Patch had feelings for one another, but now she's not so sure of anything anymore. Can she discover the truth in time?

Gahhhh. I'm so split on my review of Crescendo. Part of me loves the story, but part of me is so disgruntled by the turn of events in the story that I'm not quite sure where to start. Let me start with what went right in Crescendo. First of all, it's important to mention that Becca Fitzpatrick is a master storyteller, and she has an incredible way of weaving mysteries. The unfurling of the mysterious elements regarding the angels throughout the story was definitely the highlight of Crescendo for me. It kept me guessing the entire time.

Unfortunately, I found myself downright confused by the characters of Crescendo this time. I felt like any inkling I might have learned about Nora from the previous book was thrown out the window. She became an MC that I simply couldn't relate to, and frankly disliked most of the time. Then there's Marcie...remind me why she's even in the book again? Her character felt so so flat for me. Patch also let me down. I could never tell what he was thinking, or what motivated him to do the things he did. Frankly, he was depicted so aloof that his character was almost superfluous for me.

Despite some pretty decent character flaws in my humble opinion, Crescendo is not a bad read. It's definitely entertaining if you have the patience to weather the characters and fall for the storyline instead. I give it a pretty good 3.5 out of 5, and I'd recommend it to fans of YA and paranormal stories, especially those who love angels.

22 comments:

  1. I feel the same about Crescendo. I felt that the characters were completely different to the characters I loved in Hush, Hush, but I still loved it! It had the same dark and mysterious feel about it as Hush, Hush and I cannot wait to read Tempest! Great review! =]

    Bella - http://cheezyfeetbooks.blogspot.com/

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  2. Thank you Melissa! I felt much the same way, I really enjoyed the story but Nora drove me absolutely crazy. I just couldn't get past some of the overwhelming angst of this one. I love angst, I do, but I felt like I was drowning in it with this story and I couldn't breathe enough to enjoy the parts that we're really good. That being said, I'm still looking forward to Tempest.

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  3. awesome review, Melissa! I read this and I can agree with a lot of what you said. I haven't read HushHush yet (but I do have it as of today!!) so I can't compare the two. BUT I had heard so much about how horrible Patch was that I relieved he wasn't that bad in this one. I gave it 4 stars, I liked it, but like you said, the characters weren't all that likeable.

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  4. I haven't read this one yet, but I remember loving Hush Hush, but then thinking it over and not liking some of the characters actions so much anymore. It sounds like Patch continues to run hot and cold in Crescendo and I'm not sure how I'll feel about it. Thanks for your honest review. Hopefully I can still enjoy it despite the flaws.

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  5. I thought this one was better than Hush Hush, but still not thrilled with it. I'm hoping the 3rd will be even better. :)

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  6. I was pretty frustrated with the characters in the first book, so I'm pretty much expecting the same with Crescendo. Like you said Becca is a master storyteller, so I can't wait to finally read it.

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  7. She is a wonderful storyteller! I was frustrated a bit with how they acted towards each other too.

    Happy reading and have a great weekend!
    Blkosiner's Book Blog

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  8. Hey, great review! I was really interested to see what you thought of CRESCENDO, and I enjoyed reading about all the points that you made. I'm pretty sure I wont read this one, even though I read the first. I just found HUSH HUSH practically blasphemous. Thanks for your honest review!

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  9. i felt exactly the same way you did when i read hush, hush. yes, the author is a great story teller (i had no problems with her writing) and hush, hush wasn't a bad read. but there were some parts that were disturbing, mostly the characters and their actions.

    anyway, thanks for the review! i'm not sure if i'm picking up crescendo but it's great to read others' thoughts about it anyway :)

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  10. Seriously GREAT review! Thank you for the honest advice, warnings, review! :D

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  11. Thanks for the great review - so far everyone has been absolutely raving about it, but it's really great to hear such a balanced review. I'll definitely keep what you've said in mind when I pick up my copy of Crescendo!

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  12. Sorry to hear that you didn't like this book. I have just ordered it, really liked "Hush Hush" so we will see if I am with you in your verdict on "Crescendo". Thanks for the honest review.

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  13. Nice honest review!
    I feel...if I ever stumble upon it in the library I might just read it

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  14. Now that I think about it, you're right! The characters personalities were completely different this time around. I loved the plot line of the book, but the characters did grate a bit. (More so Nora for me as well.) Ah well. I think the storyline itself was the driving force behind it, and that will make me pick up this book for a re-read, because I did enjoy it. Great, honest review Melissa! :)

    (If you've watched How I Met Your Mother, you'll know I just had a glass smashing AHA moment. The episode I'm thinking of is when the characters all have pet peeves brought to their attention that they've been oblivious to before, but now can't help but notice. Like Lily with her LOUD chewing, Marshall with making everything a song, etc) O.O

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  15. thanks for the review. now i'm not so sure it'll be on my to-be-read-now! list, but i really liked hush,hush....

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  16. I think I liked this more than you did. For some reason I was able to relate to Nora better in this than in Hush, Hush. I did hate the ending of this one though.

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  17. Thanks for the honesty! I'll probably see if my library has this one then, instead of buying it right away. Great review :D

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  18. Yes! Exactly how I felt!! My two questions after reading this one was Why and Who?

    Everything was so disjointed for me, especially the angel mythology that the author is trying to illustrate. And I had a hard time believing/accepting that ending.

    *sighs*

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  19. I have this one but have not started it. I guess I will keep my anticipation to a minimum

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  20. I was totally, totally underwhelmed by Hush, Hush so I think I'll be avoiding this one. If you had problems with the characters (which were my main complaint about Hush, Hush both times I read it) I know I won't be able to tolerate Crescendo...

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  21. This is a series that I need to get going on. I've been wanting to start it, but can't seem to get caught up enough to get to it. :) Thanks for the great review. :) Sounds like a read I would really enjoy.

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