December 30, 2013

NEW ADULT MONDAYS: Crash (Crash #1)

The New Adult genre - their bad boys and big problems and epic loves make them engrossing tales that are so easy to lose yourself in. What's not to love about that? And, now, thanks to the cool chicks at Bewitched Bookworms, we can show these books the love they deserve in a weekly feature - New Adult Mondays.

Crash (Crash #1), by Nicole Williams
Published December 18, 2012
Publisher:
HarperCollins
Format:
paperback, borrowed from a friend
Genre: 
new adult contemporary romance
To Buy: Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Rating:  4 STARS

(From Goodreads)
Jude Ryder and Lucy Larson are this generation's Romeo and Juliet: Explosive. Sizzling. Tragic.

A steamy summer encounter with bad boy Jude means trouble for Lucy. Her sights are set on becoming a ballerina, and she won't let anything get in her way . . . except Jude.

He's got a rap sheet, dangerous mood swings, and a name that's been sighed, shouted, and cursed by who knows how many girls.

Jude's a cancer, the kind of guy who's fated to ruin the lives of girls like Lucy—and he tells her so.

But as rumors run rampant and reputations are destroyed, Lucy's not listening to Jude's warning. Is tragedy waiting in the wings? This racy romance is hot, hot, hot!


A huge thank you to my bestie, Jen from At Random, for allowing me to borrow Crash. For the past six months. Yes, yes, I know. I'm such a bad friend. I don't really know why I waited so long to read it. Especially now that I have and realized what I'd been missing out on this whole time. But, it's now tucked back away on her bookshelf, and I'm able to check another Nicole Williams book off my TBR.

When Lucy first saw Jude, she really liked what she saw. And then he opened his mouth, and her illusion of him was shattered. He was a grade A jerkface, and Lucy wasn't afraid to tell him so. Jude was impressed and taken with the feisty new girl, despite the fact that he knew she should stay away from him and his checkered past. Thing is, that first meeting was enough to solidify an attraction between the two of them that just won't let go. Even if it could be disastrous for both of them in the long run.  

I really like those romances that start off with the girl putting the guy in his place. Crash was like that. Jude was a cocky bastard who said some things that would've turned me right off when he initially met Lucy on the beach. But, because she didn't swoon like the rest of the female population in their town, he was intrigued and wanted to know more. He dialed down the attitude and actually exerted some effort to get her to like him. Go Lucy!

Jude is a pretty bad guy. He's been in and out of jail multiple times and is currently living in a home for boys. Lucy is a pretty good girl, yet her home life sucks ever since her younger sister died on her watch. It really was like these two needed each other. Lucy needed Jude's strength and protective instincts. Jude needed Lucy's ability to see the good in him and to believe in him since no one else did. 

I was hoping to see more of Lucy's love of ballet. It was there, but wasn't a very big part of the story, as I thought it might be. There were, however some surprising twists and turns in the story that I didn't expect. 

I think I would actually classify Clash as a mature YA rather than a new adult. Both Lucy and Jude are in high school, the language isn't too terrible and although the sexual tension was super hot, the actual sex quotient is quite low. The pacing was good; Crash was an easy read that I finished very quickly. 

I'm eager to continue on with the Crash series and find out what's in store next for Jude and Lucy.

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