Mundie Moms

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Book Review: Crash by Lisa McMann


By: Lisa McMann
Published by: Simon Teen
To Be Released on: January 8th, 2013
Source: arc from publisher to review
Series: Visions #1
Pre-Order From: Amazon | Barnes & Noble


If what you see is what you get, Jules is in serious trouble. The suspenseful first of four books from the New York Times bestselling author of the Wake trilogy.

Jules lives with her family above their restaurant, which means she smells like pizza most of the time and drives their double-meatball-shaped food truck to school. It’s not a recipe for popularity, but she can handle that.

What she can’t handle is the recurring vision that haunts her. Over and over, Jules sees a careening truck hit a building and explode...and nine body bags in the snow.

The vision is everywhere—on billboards, television screens, windows—and she’s the only one who sees it. And the more she sees it, the more she sees. The vision is giving her clues, and soon Jules knows what she has to do. Because now she can see the face in one of the body bags, and it’s someone she knows. Someone she has been in love with for as long as she can remember.

In this riveting start to a gripping series from New York Times bestselling author Lisa McMann, Jules has to act—and act fast—to keep her vision from becoming reality - quoted from Goodreads

Lisa McMann you've done it again. You've created another great contemporary with a fun twist! I know every time I pick up one of Lisa's YA books she's going to hook me. Here's my internal thought process when I grab a Lisa McMann book, ie. Crash: "Oh sweet! I'm so excited I can finally sit down and read this. I've only got about 20 mins, which is just enough time to start it..... " *30 mins later* Shoot I really need to stop reading this book I've got x,y and z to get done, but I can't stop reading this. *20 mins later* Okay, my to-do list can wait, this book is good! I can't stop reading it. *more time passes* I can not stop now. I can not believe the crap this girl is dealing with! I need to know what's going to HAPPEN!! *closer to the end of the book* Yes! FINALLY!! *the end* Are you serious? That's the end.... *flips to the blank pages at the end* No way! I need to know what's about to happen! That can not be the end. They had to have left out a few sentences or pages or something...."

Crash is one of those books that doesn't just tell a story, it allows me to feel like I'm getting a glimpse into a person's life vs a characters. I love how Lisa makes her characters feel so real. With Crash, the story centers on Jules and her crazy, close knit family. I enjoyed the family dynamics in Crash, because they were realistic. I loved the unity that Jules, her older brother Trey have, and the relationship they have with their younger sister Rowan. Trey by far was my favorite. He's a great older brother, and I loved the connection he has with Jules. I liked that the siblings all worked together. There were times I felt bad they were forced to work as much as they did, and that they didn't have an option to not work at their family pizzeria, but at the same time, it was the foundation for what drove the family, kept them close, drove wedges between them, and Jules's old best friend's family, and it was the cause for a lot of problems at the heart of this story.

Jules for me was a character I went back and forth on. There were times I felt bad she had to deal with not just these crazy visions, but she had to deal with being a social outcast because of her family's business. Part me of loved that she just didn't care, but the other part of me felt bad that because of this business and her father's dislike for the other family pizzeria in town, she lost her best friend. Now, Jules at times does seem like a creeper with her stalking tendencies toward Sawyer, but at the same time I totally understood why she was acting the way she was. The more I understood her visions, the more I understood her action. I can't say I blame her. It's kinda of a twist in the story, which is why I'm not going into details about it. That's just say betrayal, a brutal family rivalry, a secret crush, and a family dealing with past issues are what Jules is up against. 

Don't worry, this story isn't without it's lighter moments. There's a tiny bit of humor with Trey and Jules, and the list Jules creates, and a slight touch of romance that keep this story going. And oh Sawyer. Once I got to know him my heart broke for him, and I didn't blame him at all for how he acted. He's one of those characters that's just, I don't even know. He's hard not to like, and he's someone who once he knows the truth of certain matters tries to make things right. I love how he and Jules are bound to fix that which was made wrong with their family rivalry. In true Lisa McMann fashion, she touches on the more realistic things in life. She creates moments of heartbreak, sweet moments, moments of hope, and throws in a dash of hope and romance along the way. This is a book I'd recommend to fans of Lisa's Wake series. There is some mild language in the book, a few uses of the f-word. 

Want to win an ARC of CRASH? Leave me you a comment with your email address to be entered to win! I'll announce the winner next week. Happy Reading!

14 comments:

  1. OH i am so looking forward to reading this one. Great review :) Now I am even more excited

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  2. What a great review. Thank you for your character assessment. It's being added to my tbr.

    vsloboda(at)gmail(dot)com

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  3. "Crash is one of those books that doesn't just tell a story, it allows me to feel like I'm getting a glimpse into a person's life vs a characters." <-- Yes. Characters first for me. And I love it when we get to learn more about family dynamics.

    I really enjoyed DEAD TO YOU, and am looking forward to reading more from Lisa McMann.

    christinabejjani(at)gmail(dot)com

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  4. I feel the same way about McMann's books. They always suck me in and make me forget to do things that need to get done. Glad this one has some great characters too!

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  5. I've really enjoyed all of Lisa McMann's books so far. Thanks so much for the opportunity to win an ARC.
    karissae(at)gmail(dot)com

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  6. Great review! lameciacreviews@gmail.com

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  7. This sounds like a great read! I would love to win an arc!
    terryjohnsonbooks (at) gmail dot com

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  8. I'm so excited about this book! librariantiff (at) gmail (dot) com

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  9. I can't wait for this to come out. Just a few more days.
    djohnson1234@cox.net

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  10. Sounds exciting! Thanks for the review.
    desiree1612@hotmail.com

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  11. So far I'v really liked all of the books that I've read by Lisa McMann, and I can't wait to read Crash. Thank you!

    laughs4life14(AT)yahoo(DOT)com

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  12. Oh, that sounds SUPER good! I can't wait to read it!!! :D My email is SarElizabeth@ymail.com

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  13. I loved Lisa McMann's Wake series so I've been looking forward to this one. Wonderful review.

    addledbybooks(at)gmail(dot)com

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  14. Thank you for all the comments! This GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED.

    The winner is Danielle B! Congratulations! Thank you to everyone who entered!

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