Hush, Hush review -- Becca Fitzpatrick
Title: Hush, Hush
Author: Becca Fitzpatrick
Pages: 391
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Format: Hardcover
My first experience with Hush, Hush was over a year ago, and between then and now, I've read about 300 other books.
I can safely say Hush, Hush is not the YA prodigy I once thought it was. I've noticed a lot of things about the book I didn't notice the first time, and I wasn't in love with it as much (if you recall, I gave it five stars). The point of this review is that I have read the book again and that I have some different viewpoints than I did the first time.
I'm going to start with my first addition, and it's going to be a positive one: Vee Sky kicks ass. In fact, I'd rather the entire book be written from her perspective, because while sometimes she may be dumber than a bucket of fried chicken, she's a hell of a lot more interesting than Nora.
Example One: "Can we please talk about sex now?" -Vee, page 38
Example Two: "You've got food stuck in the crack between your two front teeth. Looks like chocolate Ex-Lax. . . ." -Vee, page 45
Example Three: "Mr. Green Sweater looks normal, but his wingman looks hardcore bad boy. Emits a certain don't-mess-with-me signal. Tell me he doesn't look like Dracula's spawn." -Vee, page 57
This brings me to addition #2: Nora Grey is boring. Not plot-drags-but-interesting-character boring. Character-sucks-and-thinks-nothing-exciting, black-hole-of-a-character boring. I think her last name being Grey is pretty ironic and was planned, if I do say so myself, because Nora Grey has nothing interesting or spunky or exciting to offer the world of young adult fiction.
This brings me to addition #3: Nora Grey is definitely a full-fledged masochist. Patch is obviously trouble with a capital T and from the very first time he walked onto the page, I knew it, but for some reason, Nora chooses to accept him as her newfangled toy when really he's trying (and failing) to kill her. Or maybe he's not; it's never really revealed what his ulterior motives are. But one thing's for sure: Patch is nothing but pain and trouble, yet Nora falls hard for him. I really think she likes the pain.
This brings me to addition #4: Patch.
Patch, oh, Patch, what the hell is your problem? I think Patch is the worst YA toy ever to have been created. You're not just a joker and probably a pedophile; you're mean, narcissistic, and couldn't care less about other people (except for Nora, for some reason I obviously can't determine).
This brings me to addition #5: Elliot. Elliot is someone I never really trusted when he first sauntered onto the page, and it becomes apparent why later, or at least you think so. The characters aren't exactly deep, and Elliot is no exception. The characters don't exactly have problems, except for Nora, but her problems are dumb and pointless. The characters' actions seem very contrived and stilted; they don't seem like people I'd actually talk to in real life. Good characterization is something that's very hard to do right, and I'm sorry to say that Fitzpatz totally failed the test.
This brings me to addition #6: Jules. Jules never really got a big role in the book until the end, and I kind of feel bad for him. I think he would've been a fucking awesome character to have developed more throughout the book.
This brings me to addition #7: the plot. Thank God that in the year-plus of me not reading this book, I forgot everything about the book except for Nora's name, so by the time I got to the climax, I was still trying to figure out who it was that was behind everything. I wasn't as interested in the plot as I remember, and a lot of things I'm realizing are different than when I first read them.
That brings me to #8: this review is now over.
Author: Becca Fitzpatrick
Pages: 391
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Format: Hardcover
For Nora Grey, romance was not part of the plan. She's never been particularly attracted to the boys at her school, no matter how much her best friend, Vee, pushes them at her...until Patch comes along.
With his easy smile and eyes that seem to see inside her, Nora is drawn 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 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 far more unsettling than anything Patch makes her feel.
For Nora 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 her life.
Review:
My first experience with Hush, Hush was over a year ago, and between then and now, I've read about 300 other books.
I can safely say Hush, Hush is not the YA prodigy I once thought it was. I've noticed a lot of things about the book I didn't notice the first time, and I wasn't in love with it as much (if you recall, I gave it five stars). The point of this review is that I have read the book again and that I have some different viewpoints than I did the first time.
I'm going to start with my first addition, and it's going to be a positive one: Vee Sky kicks ass. In fact, I'd rather the entire book be written from her perspective, because while sometimes she may be dumber than a bucket of fried chicken, she's a hell of a lot more interesting than Nora.
Example One: "Can we please talk about sex now?" -Vee, page 38
Example Two: "You've got food stuck in the crack between your two front teeth. Looks like chocolate Ex-Lax. . . ." -Vee, page 45
Example Three: "Mr. Green Sweater looks normal, but his wingman looks hardcore bad boy. Emits a certain don't-mess-with-me signal. Tell me he doesn't look like Dracula's spawn." -Vee, page 57
This brings me to addition #2: Nora Grey is boring. Not plot-drags-but-interesting-character boring. Character-sucks-and-thinks-nothing-exciting, black-hole-of-a-character boring. I think her last name being Grey is pretty ironic and was planned, if I do say so myself, because Nora Grey has nothing interesting or spunky or exciting to offer the world of young adult fiction.
This brings me to addition #3: Nora Grey is definitely a full-fledged masochist. Patch is obviously trouble with a capital T and from the very first time he walked onto the page, I knew it, but for some reason, Nora chooses to accept him as her newfangled toy when really he's trying (and failing) to kill her. Or maybe he's not; it's never really revealed what his ulterior motives are. But one thing's for sure: Patch is nothing but pain and trouble, yet Nora falls hard for him. I really think she likes the pain.
This brings me to addition #4: Patch.
Patch, oh, Patch, what the hell is your problem? I think Patch is the worst YA toy ever to have been created. You're not just a joker and probably a pedophile; you're mean, narcissistic, and couldn't care less about other people (except for Nora, for some reason I obviously can't determine).
This brings me to addition #5: Elliot. Elliot is someone I never really trusted when he first sauntered onto the page, and it becomes apparent why later, or at least you think so. The characters aren't exactly deep, and Elliot is no exception. The characters don't exactly have problems, except for Nora, but her problems are dumb and pointless. The characters' actions seem very contrived and stilted; they don't seem like people I'd actually talk to in real life. Good characterization is something that's very hard to do right, and I'm sorry to say that Fitzpatz totally failed the test.
This brings me to addition #6: Jules. Jules never really got a big role in the book until the end, and I kind of feel bad for him. I think he would've been a fucking awesome character to have developed more throughout the book.
This brings me to addition #7: the plot. Thank God that in the year-plus of me not reading this book, I forgot everything about the book except for Nora's name, so by the time I got to the climax, I was still trying to figure out who it was that was behind everything. I wasn't as interested in the plot as I remember, and a lot of things I'm realizing are different than when I first read them.
That brings me to #8: this review is now over.
Two and a Half Owls
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