The Weekend Binge: Crush by Tracy Wolff

Happy Saturday y’all! Today, and for the next several weeks, I’ll be sharing a series that I’m buddy reading with Jan @ J.R.’s Book Reviews. I’ve had the Crave series sitting on my shelves for a while. I just never had the push to read them until Jan asked if anyone wanted to buddy read them with her. If you are a fan of urban fantasy and paranormal romance, you are in for a treat!

Crush by Tracy Wolff
Narrator: Heather Costa, Tim Paige
Series: Crave #2
Published by Entangled: Teen, Tantor Audio on 2020-09-29
Length: 663 pages
Length: 18 hours and 8 minutes
Reviewing Audiobook, Hardcover from My Book Shelf, TN R.E.A.D.S.
Rating:
Reading Challenges: 2024 Audiobook Challenge, 2024 Backlist Reader Challenge, 2024 COYER Unwind, 2024 Library Love Challenge

Everything feels off—especially me. I’ve returned to Katmere Academy, but I’m haunted by fragments of days I have no recollection of living and struggling to understand who, or what, I really am.

Just when I start to feel safe again, Hudson is back with a vengeance. He insists there are secrets I don’t know about, threatening to drive a wedge between Jaxon and me forever. But far worse enemies are at our doorstep.

The Circle is caught in a power play, and the Vampire Court is trying to drag me out of my world and into theirs. The only thing Hudson and Jaxon agree on is that leaving Katmere would mean my certain death.

And not only am I fighting for my life, but now everyone else’s is at stake—unless we can defeat an unspeakable evil. All I know is that saving the people I love is going to require sacrifice.

Maybe more than I’m able to give.

Mindblown! Crush by Tracy Wolff is the second book in her six-book paranormal series about a young girl navigating her new life as a paranormal. This book seemingly picks up right where it left off. Grace is looking for Jaxon, the last thing she remembers is walking to class with him. But that was four months ago. Grace just spent those four months as stone, manifesting as a gargoyle. In a last ditch effort to protect Jaxon from his brother, Grace stepped in front of the sword and turned to stone taking Hudson with her. Now he’s living in her head, annoying her, and keeping her from her mate. And if that wasn’t enough, the Circle, the ruling factions of the paranormal world, is closing in on Grace. What do they want, and how can she get rid of Hudson?

I was shockingly surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. I liked the first, but adored this one. Hudson’s running commentary in Grace’s head is laugh-out-loud fun. Their banter is easily my favorite part of this story. Hudson is Jaxon’s older brother, who he killed after he killed a large part of the student body before Grace arrived at Katmere. His girlfriend tried resurrecting him by killing Grace, but that backfired. Now Hudson is in her head, has no clue how he got there, and they need to get him out.

While most of the first story took place within the walls of Katmere, this book ventures outside the academy. We get to meet some interesting players in this paranormal world: the Bloodletter and the Unkillable Beast for starters. The Bloodletter is Jaxon’s surrogate mother, she raised him, and is thousands of years old. She’s also frightening and doesn’t like Hudson very much. She sends them on a quest to get him out of Grace’s mind. Once they gather the artifacts and say the spell she gives them, Hudson will be free of Grace and human. The quest itself is interesting. It shows a lot of the paranormal world and what each faction holds sacred.

The conflict brewing among Jaxon, Grace, and Hudson is also interesting. I liked Jaxon in book one, but here I find myself disliking him. He holds Grace back, wants to keep her in his safe protective bubble, and doesn’t allow her to, literally and figuratively, spread her wings and learn her magic. As her mate, shouldn’t he want her to match his power? Hudson, on the other hand, while he is annoying and loves to push Grace’s buttons, he also pushes her to be her best. He gives her the knowledge and encouragement she needs to step up to every challenge thrown her way. Their relationship starts off rocky. Grace only knows what she’s been told about Hudson, and those things don’t line up with guy she’s gotten to know. So what is hiding?

Overall, I really enjoyed Crush. The plot moved at a fast pace. There was something new on nearly every page, and the adventures kept coming. AND SO MANY TWISTS! If you are a fan of paranormal romance and urban fantasy, I highly recommend it.

Audiobook Note: While I own a hardcover copy of this book, I did listen to audiobook copy from the library. I really enjoyed Heather Costa’s narration. She brought so much life to the story. I found myself on the edge of my seat. I listened at 2.5x speed. If you enjoy audiobooks, I highly recommend this one.

I buddy read this with Jan @ J.R.’s Book Reviews. She rated it 5 stars. You can see her original review here.

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