Silence by Becca Fitzpatrick

Summary:
Nora Grey can't remember the past five months of her life. After the initial shock of waking up in a cemetery and being told she has been missing for weeks - with no one knowing where she was or who she was with - she tries to get her life back on track. Go to school, hang out with her best friend, Vee, and dodge her mom's creepy new boyfriend.

But there is this voice in the back of her head, an idea that she can almost reach out and touch. Visions of angel wings and unearthly creatures that have nothing to do with the life she knows.

And this unshakable feeling that a part of her is missing.

Then Nora crosses paths with a sexy stranger, whom she feels a mesmorizing connection to. He seems to hold all the answers... and her heart. Every minute she spends with him grows more and more intense until she realizes she could be falling in love. Again. (from book jacket)

Review:
I'm not the biggest fan of these books, but when I saw Silence at my library, I decided to take it with me. Crescendo, while not that great, did leave off on a cliffhanger and I was curious to what happens next. Silence has the weirdest plot, but is still intensely readable.

Sometimes I think amnesia plotlines are so pointless, unless that is the main theme of the entire story. Amnesia, in Silence, is used merely as a plot device and honestly served no other purpose than to add another book to the Hush, Hush series. In Crescendo, Nora starts to figure out some of the stuff that is going on, but when her memory is erased, the plot takes a few steps back. This definitely could have been a trilogy, and taken the last third (where all the action occurs) of Silence and added to the last book. Luckily for the reader, Nora figures out things pretty quickly because she has pretty good intuition. Nora spends a lot of time knowing she knows something, but can't actually remember it. Hopefully that makes sense.

Patch is back, but of course Nora can't remember him. He's an okay character. Not my favorite YA guy, but I don't hate him like I know others do. Even though Nora doesn't remember Patch, she still feels drawn to him, which makes it a little less creepy that she gets into a car with a total stranger.

The last third of Silence is pretty interesting, but doesn't leave off on a huge cliffhanger. I'm a little curious to see what happens, but I'm also not dying to know. If you enjoyed the Hush, Hush series, I would recommend Silence, but otherwise don't bother.

Rating: 6 out of 10.
FTC: borrowed from library.

2011/Simon & Schuster/438 pages.

Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick

Summary:
Nora Grey's life is still far from perfect. Surviving an attempt on her life wasn't pleasant, but at least she got a guardian angel out of it: a mysterious, magnetic, gorgeous guardian angel. But, despite his role in her life, Patch has been acting anything but angelic. He's more elusive than ever and even worse, he's started spending time with Nora's arch-enemy, Marcie Millar.

Nora would have hardly noticed Scott Parnell, an old family friend who has moved back to town, if Patch hadnt been acting so distant. Even with Scott's totally infuriating attitude Nora finds herself drawn to him - despite her lingering feeling that he's hiding something.

Haunted by images of her murdered father, and questioning whether her nephilim bloodline has anything to do with his death, Nora puts herself increasingly in dangerous situations as she desperately searches for answers. But maybe some things are better left buried, because the truth could destroy everything - and everyone - she trusts. (from GoodReads)

Review:
I've had this on my shelf for awhile now, but just haven't read it. I know Hush, Hush wasn't the greatest of literature but I enjoyed it for the most part. However, I was disappointed in Crescendo, which I believe is suffering from middle book syndrome, since there is a third book after this.

Crescendo really didn't have much of a plot. Nora breaks up with Patch pretty early on in the book because he won't tell her what he was doing at Marcie Millar's house one night (the stuck-up popular girl that Nora hates). Not really grounds for a break-up in my book, but go for it, Nora. However, Nora spends the rest of book pining over Patch and getting angry when he gets a new girlfriend. It's never mentioned that it's Nora's doing but I guess it makes for some relationship drama.

With the addition of new guy, Scott, there's supposed to be a love triangle but it's practically non-existent. Scott is not appealing at all and even Nora realizes this (wonder what happened to the book jacket writers?). She pretty much just hangs out with Scott to get back at Patch, even though she knows something is going on with him.

Nora spends a lot of time breaking into people's houses, walking around seedy parts of town, and naturally just finding herself in a whole heap of trouble. There is some more backstory on her murdered father which was kinda interesting but not really well-written and left some plot holes. The ending was a cliffhanger which does make me want to read the next book (darn you!).

Overall, Crescendo was not that great, or even as good as its predecessor Hush, Hush. I might read the next book, but I'm definitely not buying a copy of it.

Rating: 6 out of 10.
FTC: Christmas gift.

2010/Simon & Schuster/427 pages.

Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

Nora Grey's life has been pretty normal - except for her father's untimely murder a year ago. But things are about to get really weird, and it all starts when she is paired with Patch as a biology partner. Patch is cocky, sarcastic and completely mysterious, but there's undeniable chemistry between the two. As Nora learns more about Patch's dark past, she can't help falling for him, and he for her. But Nora feels as if she is being followed and odd incidents keep occurring. Could Patch be behind it or is there something darker at foot?

I've seen a ton of good reviews for Hush, Hush (and surprisingly some bad ones), so I knew it was going to be good. And I was so glad that my expectations were met. Actually, the book met my expectations and then still jumped ten thousand feet. Yes, Hush, Hush was that good. I enjoyed everything about it: the characters, the plot, the dialogue, the fantasy. I thought this book would take me a long time to read (its 391 pages) but I read half of it in no time. The pages literally fly by. Let's start with the characters. Nora was an awesome protagonist. She's smart, funny and realistic. Her reactions to Patch and all the things occuring around made sense. You were never asking yourself "Now why did she do that?" She wasn't predictable, just uncannily similar to a regular teenager, which made her seem like a real character. And then there's the love interest Patch. He is the ultimate anti-hero. Like I stated before, he's completely cocky and at times inappropriate, but it suits him well. There's something magnetic about his personality and it draws both Nora and the reader in.

The plot was extremely well-written. I was never bored, for there was always some new twist or turn to keep me thinking. I liked that it wasn't completely obvious what Patch really is (I know it's obvious from the cover/tagline, but without those, you really wouldn't know). The book was refreshing and quirky, funny and dark, romantic and action-filled. Hush, Hush is perfect for fans of fantasy or for people who just like good books.

9 out of 10.

Release Date: Today!