There were several reasons for this crazy action. Here are just a few:
1) I am fond of the series. In a way, it's a guilty pleasure of mine and I love reading it...
2) I read book one all day Thursday (and completed it in one day--my new record for a book) and I spent a couple hours Friday and my weekend evenings reading book two. I last read these books a year ago (when the second book was released) and I wanted to refresh my memory. With the investment of time I just exercised, I thought I had to have this third book the day it came out.
3) I was dying to hear what was going to happen in the story. Book two left off on an incredible cliff-hanger... and I mean the WORST kind of cliff-hanger... the ultimate villian shows up and basically poses a question and then it simply ENDS! Obviously I was dying to continue.
4) I simply wanted to go back to town... there's just something about driving in the rain with a set destination. =)
So, here is my rant/review of the said book...
**SPOILER WARNING** for Hush, Hush and Crescendo. **POSSIBLE SPOILERS** for Silence.
First of all, I would like to give some background...
I stumbled across Hush, Hush (Book 1) last summer (2010). It was displayed with the cover facing out. When I first saw it, the fallen angel picture made me do a second glance... Fallen angels. It was pretty obvious from the cover. Since I have thoroughly been fascinated with angels for years now (partly due to my own creative writing/dreams) this book grabbed my attention. I read the basics of what it was about: A young girl named Nora Grey falling in love with a mysterious boy who's appearance in her life causing a slue of events to occur, and she's obviously stuck in the middle. Sound familiar? Yes, Twilight did come to mind. Well, I bypassed the book, however the cover kept haunting me and I finally purchased it. I should know to trust my gut instinct more. I--pardon the pun--soared through the book. I found the similarities to Twilight a bit unnerving at first. However, it was quickly made clear Patch is not a vampire (and sooo much better than Edward =P). He is an angel who had fallen from grace and is seeking vengeance... Nora just happens to be the one thing he needs to become human, but will he actually bring himself to do it or will love prevail?
This is the general gist of the first book. There's a lot of information about Nephilim and the Jewish month of Cheshvan that is also crucial to this story, but I will not take time to explain it all here.
**SPOILER WARNING** In the end, Nora ends up sacrificing her life in hopes of killing her enemy. She dies, however Patch turns down the offer to become human. He gains his wings back and is made Nora's guardian angel.
October 2010 rolled around and with it, Crescendo (Book 2) is released. I purchased it and immediately read more about Nora and Patch's story. The second book has a lot more detail than the first and begins to open Nora and Patch's world. A new, crucial character is introduced: Scott Parnell. Patch keeps warning Nora Scott is dangerous. But Nora is having trust-issues with Patch, seeing as he is spending ever-increasing time with Nora's arch nemesis Marcie Millar, and he appears to be regretting his decision of becoming Nora's guardian angel. Not trusting Patch, Nora becomes more acquainted with Scott. Turns out Scott and Nora share more in common than just childhood memories...
Then there is the bitter conflict of Nora seeing her dead father, which keeps haunting her. She gets a lead that a man going by the name of the "Black Hand" killed him. Nora begins to question if the Black Hand is Patch, which only adds to the trust issue dilemma. All the clues are lining up so perfectly. Can she trust her boyfriend whom she's only known a a few months? Or did Patch truly kill her father?
Now, granted this is not much background, but I don't want to spoil everything...
Title: Silence
Author: Becca Fitzpatrick
Series: Hush, Hush Saga
Number In Series: #3
Copyright: 2011
Genre: Young Adult Fiction: Romance / Adventure / Supernatural
Page Length: 438
My Rating: 3.5 / 5
Official Book Trailer
For me, the beginning of this book moved much slower than the last two. The prologue was great (as they usually are), but starting with Chapter One, I felt the speed of the book significantly slow down. We are pretty much relearning everything we already knew in the previous books, because Nora has to learn them again. The main difference: Turns out Hank Millar is dating Nora's mother. (This was hinted at in Book 2.) Nora instantly distrusts Hank, although she is unsure why, but we--as readers looking in--completely understand.
For me, the book didn't really start to pick up until around page 200. I know, half-way through the book seems pretty bad. However, in Becca's defense, I was still glued to the pages regardless, because I never knew what awaited Nora and if/when a new insight might jog her memory. But at about page 200 is when life for Nora Grey picks up yet again.
I knew there is a fourth book coming out, and with that knowledge, I knew there was going to be a cliff-hanger. Becca is a genius for her cliff-hangers at the end of books--despite sometimes enraging me to want to pull my hair out, since the next book won't be out for another year. But in a way, the ending of this book does bring some closure and the cliff-hanger didn't seem as horrifyingly gripping as Crescendo.
As I mentioned above, this book opens more of the world of Nora and Patch up. A new concept is introduced which causes a greater power struggle.
Also, Scott seems to be a reoccurring theme. My distinct impression is that in this book, he has completed the whole "love triangle" in a way. It seems Scott is biding for Nora's love and affection, despite the fact that she will clearly end up with Patch in one way or another. However, I feel if Becca truly was going for the whole "love triangle" it might have been better had Scott been introduced back in Book 1. By the end of Book 1, we had a good feeling who Nora will end up with, and by introducing something as confusing as a triangle this late in the game, I'm not quite sure what to make of it...
Speaking of love, as I was reading the beginning of this book, and Detective Basso was ever present, I'm convinced he is going to end up marrying Nora's mother. It just makes sense. Either that, or he's going to break free and turn out to be this epic villain who has known all along about Nephilim and fallen angels. Only time will tell, but I'm leaning towards the first conclusion and my gut instinct: He's going to marry Nora's mother in the end. I am interested to learn more about him... he keeps popping up and I have a feeling he knows more than what he's letting on...
I'm also certain, if Scott survives (which he probably will, he's too cocky of a character to kill off), he will end up with Vee. Vee's attraction to him was apparent in this book, especially since Vee is on a "boy detox" from what little she remembers of Rixon--she remembers she was hurt terribly, but doesn't remember who or how, just that it was a man. So Vee Sky, the biggest flirt, is on a boy detox. Yep, that did spice things up a bit...
The other major obvious is Nora's suicidal tendency (not in the fact that she wants to take her life, but rather she does things that are clearly not of the wisest choice). This book especially is full of them. Despite having just arrived home, that very night she SNEAKS OUT ALONE and goes back to the cemetery. Does she have a death wish? Has she forgotten she had just been missing for 11 weeks and with no memory of her attacker? This is a common theme I found in this book... Nora making "stupid" mistakes... But in ways it makes me worry about her and wonder if she'll survive yet another drastic decision made in a moment of lost reason. I think I'm finally beginning to understand part of Patch's frustration with her... Take this snippet for example:
Jev grabbed Gabe under his arms, dragging him into the weeds on the far side of the alley. "On the back roads, at the right speed, you can put a couple miles between you and this place in no time."
"I don't have a car."
His eyes sliced into mine.
"I walked here," I explained. "I'm on foot."
"Angel," he said in a way that sounded like he sincerely hoped I was joking...
[Silence, Becca Fitzpatrick; p. 123]
So, in total, Silence is a good third book in the series, but the beginning dragged out and really slowed the story down. I would give it the full five stars had there been more action in the beginning. But, again, with the story being told in first person we are restricted to what Nora knows. We are inside her head. I'm pretty sure this is where the title comes from: The silence of not being able to remember Patch or anything that took place in the last 5 months of Nora Grey's life. The only other part I felt that the title would have been appropriate was close to the end, leading right into the climax:
When Scott collapsed, I was still grasping for words. Even a scream couldn't cut through my horror.
In the end, the only thing between us was silence.
[Silence, Becca Fitzpatrick; p. 387]
Despite this book being a slight let-down compared to the others, I am looking forward to Book 4. A war is definitely coming... and I'm excited to see how Patch and Nora make it out alive.
Would I recommend this to a friend? Sure, if you don't mind a bit of a darker tone. I have found as this series has progressed, so has the "darkness." I'm sure it's hinting at the fact that whatever war is coming, it's going to be bad. So, if you don't mind a bit of an edgier read, I would said read it! (Especially the first one! There are so many twist and turns you just won't know where to look for the truth! It will be a classic for me when it comes to planning plot-twists into my own stories--I will be using it for a reference.)
Will I ever read this book again? Yes. Mainly because I know there is more to the story and in a year's time, I'll probably forget what happened. I also did enjoy the last half of the book more than I'm letting on. It was a good book... just not a great one.
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