Miss Page-Turner's City of Books: Becca Fitzpatrick

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Book Review: Black Ice by Becca Fitzpatrick

Title: Black Ice
Author: Becca Fitzpatrick
Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK
Publishing Date: October 7th 2014
Length: 384 pages
Keywords: YA, thriller, romance, Teton Range, hiking
Source: Publisher

Britt Pfeiffer has never been that adventurous, but that's about to change. Wanting to impress her ex-boyfriend, Britt convinces best friend, Korbie, to take a trekking trip with her. But when a freak storm leaves the girls stranded they seek shelter in a cabin, where they find two knights in shining armour. Or so they think.

Britt quickly realises that the girls need to get off the mountain, fast. In exchange for her life, she is forced to guide the boys down, and as they set out on a harrowing journey through the cold and snow, Britt realises the only way to escape with her life is to pretend she is on their side. But is gorgeous, sexy Mason an enemy or an ally? Tension mounts, and it's only a matter of time before things turn deadly . . .

Summary by Goodreads

I'm very glad Becca Fitzpatrick tried something different after her HUSH HUSH series and wrote BLACK ICE. I'll be reading her next YA thriller SAPPHIRE SKIES for sure.

In BLACK ICE a trip to the Teton Range doesn't turn out the way it should have. Brit and her friend Korbie were supposed to meet Brit's ex-boyfriend Calvin, who is also Korbie's brother, in a cabin. A snow storm forces them to find shelter in a remote cabin, where also two criminals have taken refuge. Hunted by the police, they now need Brit to get them off the mountain and to a safe escape.

The fact that Britt is held hostage by two potential killers was so unbelievable, I expected the whole scenario to feel constructed and fake at some point. One or two times towards the end things indeed felt like they were a bit over the top. Nevertheless, most of Becca Fitzpatrick's BLACK ICE was very authentic. Sometimes this book even made me feel isolated and robbed of breath. Her writing transported me into the snowy hell Britt finds herself caught in and I often shuddered imagining to live the nightmare Britt and Korbie do.

My favourite part of Becca Fitzpatrick's writing in her newest novel is the icy setting of the Wyoming mountainside she conjured. It is a very extreme setting with the power to set an avalanche of reading adrenaline loose. It's not only a human who is endangering Britt's life, but the extreme conditions of nature in the mountains themselves. It is bitter cold and snow storms are no uncommon occurrence in this novel.

Witnessing a love story emerge and bloom in a surrounding this inhospitable and cold, was a new reading experience for me. Of course Brit revises her relationship with her ex-boyfriend Calvin, but she also questions her very recent feelings for one of her kidnappers. Stockholm syndrome or is there something real about her feelings for Mason? I grew very fond of Mason despite his withdrawn character and all the secrets he carries with him. And secrets are definitely a big part of BLACK ICE!

4/5 **** BLACK ICE - One of the most spine-chilling YA thrillers I've read!

The dangerous icy terrain on which BLACK ICE is set had me in a vise-like grip. The romance warmed my heart like a crackling fire. And the murder and abduction part chilled me to my bones. If you are into YA thrillers you can't get past Becca Fitzpatrick's newest book without missing out!

"She screamed, over and over inside herself. She screamed while the pressure built, sweeping her toward the edge of death. He didn't want photographs. He wanted to kill her.

She would not let this horrible place to be her last memory.

Closing her eyes, she went away, into the darkness." ― p.8

BLACK ICE you might want to pick up LITTLE WHITE LIES by Katie Dale, FRACTURE by Megan Miranda and HUNTING LILA by Sarah Alderson. Three YA thrillers I really enjoyed.

* Becca's next novel, SAPPHIRE SKIES, will be coming out this fall.

* Here are some BLACK ICE sneak peeks.

* Click here to listen to the BLACK ICE playlist.

* For more information about Becca and her books visit www.beccafitzpatrick.com.

* Thanks to Simon & Schuster UK for sending me a proof copy of BLACK ICE for review!

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Book Review: Hush, Hush, Crescendo, Silence & Finale (Hush, Hush #1, #2, #3 #4) by Becca Fitzpatrick

Title: Hush, Hush (Hush, Hush #1), Crescendo (Hush, Hush #2), Silence (Hush, Hush #3), Finale (Hush, Hush #4)

Author: Becca Fitzpatrick

Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK

Publishing Date: May 2010, April 2011, June 2012, October 2012

Length: 391 pages, 432 pages, 464 pages, 454 pages

Keywords: YA, fiction, romance, fallen angels, arch angels, Nephilim

Source: Bought, For Review

A SACRED OATH
A FALLEN ANGEL
A FORBIDDEN LOVE

Romance was not part of Nora Grey's the plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how hard her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her. Not until Patch comes along. With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Patch draws Nora to him against her better judgment.

But after a series of terrifying encounters, Nora's not sure whom to trust. Patch seems to be everywhere she is and seems to know more about her than her closest friends. She can't decide whether she should fall into his arms or run and hide. And when she tries to seek some answers, she finds herself near a truth that is way more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel.

For she is right in the middle of an ancient battle between the immortal and those that have fallen - and, when it comes to choosing sides, the wrong choice will cost Nora her life.

Summary by Goodreads

This review contains light spoilers for people who haven't read past CRESCENDO!

The events of HUSH, HUSH have been set into motion decades ago, when an unfortunate man is being forced to swear fealty to a fallen angel. A war between fallen angels and Nephilim, the children of angels and humans, breaks out and enormous sacrifices are demanded of everyone involved.

Meet Nora Grey, who is drawn into the conflict against her will and, to additionally complicate things, feels attracted to fallen angel Patch.

Nora is a naturally kind girl. Patch is the total opposite of Nora. He is a real bad boy, playing games all the time. His character confused me and never appeared as likeable as Nora sees him or wants him to be.

To be honest, Patch in his all-black uniform, never achieved to put a spell on me. Many fell for his bad-ass attitude and craved his tough, sometimes almost aggressive demeanor. He never became a well-rounded character to me that I could’ve said, I knew the true essence of.

Although it says opposites attract, I simply didn’t see the necessity for Nora and Patch to be together. But I suggest you’d better decide for yourselves if Patch matches your version of an admirable book boyfriend.

Besides the war and her relationship with Patch, Nora miraculously still has some time to spare to meet up with her best friend Vee. Or later into the story with Scott, who poses as alternative love interest in CRESCENDO. Good choice to let their attraction to each other recede, so that we didn't have to worry about a possible love triangle for long. Jealousy is still a dominant part of all books in the series with potential to easily displease readers. The secondary characters felt almost more important to me than the actual protagonists, they are diverting and especially Scott was one character I loved.

The HUSH, HUSH books can’t be sold as your typical angel series. There is no heavenly mission to rid the world of evil. The angels we meet are definitely no heroes. They all felt shady and it appeared they weren’t 100 % honest with their allies. These dark and vengeful versions of angels are quite zestful indeed. Even Nora developed an unhealthy pattern of deceit in the last book that tended to annoy me.

Overlooking the entire series’ course of action, I can’t seem to see a major progress from the first book to FINALE. HUSH, HUSH was a good start into the series, with so much happening in the first book and the appeal of a brand new story. CRESCENDO was the worst out of all of them, because Nora kept on constantly putting herself in dangerous situations and fought with Patch about the most enervating issues. A definite turn-off!

Next up, SILENCE posed as the part of Nora’s story which I enjoyed most. Due to her abduction, Nora has lost her entire memories concerning her boyfriend Patch and everything about fallen angels and Nephilim. I liked to see Nora rebel against her blockade and act out at everyone who would try to hold her down. The third book marked the part of the series in which things finally got interesting.

Fallen angels, arch angels and Nephilim have been hating each other for years. Their conflict has been simmering in the first three books, only waiting to fully break out towards the finale. But the ending we are waiting for, never actually results in an epic battle scene. Instead it comes short in detail and misses out on drawn-out one on one fights. The ending in general came too suddenly and didn’t serve all the information about the characters’ futures I was hoping for.

1) we like our Tacos hot

2) of exceptional mind-communication techniques

3) loyal friends stay with you till the bitter end

4) its angels are not of the ordinary peace-seeking kind

5) of tough heroines who learn to stand up for themselves

3/5 *** HUSH, HUSH series- No need to keep this novel quiet, tell all angel novel fans about it!

Recently I've been feeling highly attracted to YA books with their focus on heavenly missons and angelic beings. The HUSH, HUSH series couldn’t score a place on my top list and I wouldn’t exactly recommend it as a first choice read to anyone who hasn't read an angel-related book before. Nevertheless Becca Fitzpatrick has shown her qualitative writing skills with varied sentence structures and easy-flowing dialogues. I am very looking forward to find out more about her next book!