Reviews with content warning for Injury/Injury detail - Crush

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Crush by Tracy Wolff

6 reviews

toastyghosty13's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

i thought parts of this book were boring, mainly the slice of life stuff or talking about the sport ludares. i will say i was absolutely a sucker for the

Spoiler

dancing in the laundry room scene

, but the rest of it could have been toned down a bit.

i also found a lot of parts regarding

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jaxon and hudson’s interactions with grace

to be super cheesy in a cringey way. i wish some of that was different but it wasn’t the worst either.

i was annoyed that the major climax at the end was mainly the

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ludares trial. i thought it was kind of weird that a highschool sport was meant to be some intense event that allows someone to hold a seat at the governing body that controls like all of supernatural beings and their laws.

i loved the last line of the book a lot, def a great way to leave off until the next book. the last line points to something that i was hoping for anyways, so now im even more excited to go to the next book. i probably would have given 4 stars if there was less of the fluff since it made the book really long. otherwise, i will probably buy physical copies of the whole series since i’ve been loaning it from my library but like it enough to buy.

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discoverelysian's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

i don’t know what to say other than finished reading Crush feels like i just rode a rollercoaster, tossed and flipped in the air, lost most of my sanity and my breath, but i survived all the craziness. i concluded that it was a spectacular ride.

i won’t write this too long because i just want to lost myself in the next book. but i just want to mention that i loved every second i read every word on every chapter of Crush. the dangerous but fun Ludares tournament, Hudson’s snipy comments, the characters’ banters, their teamwork and dynamic, the end of The Trial (because The Trial itself pissed me off), THE PLOT TWIST, and so many more!

i’m amazed by Grace as she was embracing her gargoyle, showing people of her amazing ability, and i loved her persistence to go through any challenges that were coming after her. as for Hudson, he’s my new obsession. sassy and powerful but also hilarious and a great emotional support. i also loved Eden and Xavier, and even Nuri—Flint’s mom and a part of the Circle—though I didn’t know where she stand.

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and what i’m crazy is that my gut was right and Grace x Hudson = mates. sure, Jaxon was nice and i applauded him for the dance amongst the aurora borealis but i wasn’t 100% invested in Grace x Jaxon. then Hudson showed up, and throughout his interaction with Grace it just clicked to me that he was the one. and it’s true so i can’t wait devouring the next book!

my heart was broken when they met the Unkillable Beast and he tapped his chest for the heartstone. he must be freed or i’ll throw a fit and my kindle. but my soul sang when Grace passed The Trial and was showing everyone that she did it all by herself (and some of Hudson’s power, love him) then mocked the Vampire King in public.

overall, Crush surprised me with lots of tense life-or-death-by-a-supernatural moments, hilarious and witty banters, adventurous hours exploring supernatural places with a supernatural gang, and the characters that i want to protect from all the harm and hurt. okay, that’s all, i’m signing off because Covet is waiting for me.

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ix37lexi's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

A great step up from the last one, it delved deeper into world building and added new characters while developing the characters we already know and fleshing out their personalities even more. I would definitely reread to see what I missed the first time around because there’s little Easter egg details that are easy to miss throughout.

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michelleub's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This book was way longer than it needed to be. It wasn’t that bad but it wouldn’t been better if 200 pages shorter

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cady_sass's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Twilight, but make it Harry Potter and the chamber of secrets, but also make it the Harry Potter and the goblet of fire, but also make it gen z.
Not as good as good as the first but enjoyable. You can see the final page twist coming from 4000 miles away, but I don’t hate it. Just a little cliche.

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ashleyvharris's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

Crush is a disjointed follow up to Crave that unfortunately falls into the sophomore slump trap.

Although Crave was certainly not my favorite book, I enjoyed the campy—if not cringey—mashup of Twilight and Harry Potter. The second book of the series throws so many things at readers that it often feels like Wolff was trying to work in every YA fantasy/romance trope possible. This resulted in the story feeling almost like a parody of YA fantasy at times.

As a reader, I don’t mind plot twists or multiple character objectives, but I like to have a strong sense of where the story is headed. Crush never really settled on what it wanted to be; instead, it oscillated between half-hearted/suicidal Scavenger Hunt, knockoff Hunger Games, and Grace going insane. Choosing one plot element to ground the story would have made this a stronger book.

One major issue working against this sequel is the length. There’s simply not enough complexity to justify nearly 700 pages. I was expecting a lot more world-building and explanation of the magic systems/history/school/paranormal government. A good fantasy series is able to find the balance between the magical and reality. The magic in this series feels as though it’s decided on a whim based on what the author needs her characters to be capable of in any given moment. For example, Grace flys for the first time and days later is seemingly an expert at death-defying maneuvers. Hudson is conveniently able to leave his unbelievable powers with Grace? Many details like these are sprinkled throughout without any solid foundation or explanation.

One thing that Crush offers is an expanded cast of characters. Our little world of paranormals at Katmere expands past Jaxon’s friends to include new witches, dragons, and wolves—not all of whom are friendly. I enjoyed the less savory but definitely fascinating characters of Cyrus and Cole. While their backstories are severely lacking, I’m hopeful that we will understand them more in future installments.

Hudson was clearly the standout character here. Despite being exclusively in Grace’s head, Wolff managed to establish a dynamic new character with wit and complex emotions. A classic brooding misunderstood antihero… we love to see it. Getting those last few chapters and extra scene from Hudson’s perspective was *chef’s kiss* and I desperately want more from his POV.

The biggest struggle reading this book was the writing style. The characters’ dialogue and choices of phrasing felt like what a parent assumes their children talks like. I got a TON of secondhand embarrassment while reading. Wolff also recycles turns of phrase a lot. “If someone had told me 6 months ago that I’d be [strange paranormal experience], I’d tell them they’re crazy.”

Overall, Crush fell flat and lacked the focus needed for a solid second book, but successfully introduced new allies, villains, and love interests to carry the rest of the series forward.

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