Thursday, August 15, 2013

Review: Fallen Crest Family by Tijan

Title: Fallen Crest Family (Fallen Crest High #2)
Author: Tijan
Published: June 18th 2013
Add It: Goodreads
Purchase: Amazon 
Samantha and Mason are together. Everyone knows it. Not everyone is dealing with it. While Mason’s ready to give them the middle finger, there’s one not going away. Her mother. Threats are issued. Ultimatums are given. Even blackmail is used, but only Samantha can put a stop to Analise. However, when a trauma from her past is triggered, she may not have the courage or strength to do what’s needed. If she doesn’t, Mason’s future could be destroyed.

Even though I read the first book Fallen Crest High recently, I felt like it took forever for the sequel to be published. I was in the middle of reading or listening to 4 books in total and it didn’t really stop me from starting Fallen Crest Family as soon as it loaded on my Kindle. Did I enjoy it? Yes. Was I disappointed? Unfortunately, yes.


"I won't get run off from you. I love you, Sam. I said it before and I mean it. I won't let your mom control my life."

The story. The sequel follows Samantha and her step brothers. She has a romantic relationship with one of the brothers and a brother-sister relationship with the other. Sam and Mase have quite a few obstacles ahead of them and number one being Sam's crazy-a mom Analise. Their parents are all mixed up in this crazy relationship that affects their kids and the kids’ friends-enemies don’t make the whole mess better either.  If you’re willing to give this series a try, expect a lot of drama and crazy coming your way.

My emotions. Look, I am a huge fan of Sam and Mason’s relationship and I adore their chemistry. Did I expect lots of make-out scenes and their romance blossoming even more? Yes, I did. I just didn’t think it’d take about half of the book describing the feelings Mase created in Sam. *falls asleep* I liked that their relationship wasn’t all about the sexual chemistry in this book, but rather it evolved into something deeper and I truly believed them when they expressed their love. I also enjoyed Logan’s friendship with Sam which unfortunately wasn’t there that much. Oh, and I really, really like that new girl Heather. Sam needs a great friend and I can tell you that I like her a hell of a lot better than that Becky chick who's the second coming of Gossip Girl *rolls eyes* She's the kind of friend you don't want to have and I think Sam is too generous to constantly forgive her.

So what disappointed me the most, you ask? Hmh.. Let’s just say that Sam’s mother Analise seemed like a lunatic before, but now she’s an even bigger mystery to me. The whole 11-year-old-Sam-and-her-mom plot felt so off to me, I didn’t connect to that at all. I felt like there were plot wholes throughout that entire storyline and I why didn't we see that coming? There was not even a mention of this jazz in book one so it felt more random than anything to be brought up now out of nowhere. Moreover, nothing else happened in this book that we didn’t know before. Sam and Mason love each other, Logan and Mase excepted Sam into their family. Analise is a lost case as are the rest of the trio’s parents. Also, Sam just became so girly and emotional and.. weak. In #1 she stood up for herself and didn't take BS from anyone, but now.. I knew she would break down at some point though what with shutting out all her emotions.

To sum up my thoughts, I’d say that I liked it, but I expected more. I didn’t connect with Sam in her ‘tragic’ childhood drama she had to relive and I didn’t feel like the story progressed anywhere. However, I read the original 4 chapters on Tijan’s Wattpad and I think that re-drafting and re-writing this book benefited in this case. If you're up for a crazy ride of drama and rich kids, this series may be the one for you. I can tell you that the first installment is anything like the New Adult novels as we've come to know them. Even though I found this installment to be just meh and okay, I am very much looking forward to what comes next for this bunch of lunatics. LOL. That sounded funny, haha.


Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

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11 comments:

  1. Uh I haven't heard of this one, but I won't even think of reading it. Where to start. Well like you I'd expect some really cute and sexy scenes not her thinking about that. I have enough thoughts on my own. Also Gossip Girls isn't something I enjoyed, too much drama for my taste. Sorry that this one disappointed you. Great review :)

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  2. "I just didn’t think it’d take about half of the book describing the feelings Mase created in Sam. *falls asleep*" <-- So true. The best part of most romances in novels is the tension. The fulfillment can be good, but when it's repeated over and over again, you're just like, c'mon. Move on with the story!

    It's always nice when the chemistry deepens to love, but it sucks that Sam's friendship with Logan got downplayed for that. Also: lol at "second coming of Gossip Girl." Very backstabby then? While putting on a nice front or? Eugh to the plot holes in Sam's relationship to her mother, and sorry that you didn't enjoy the tragic past part of it :(. I hope that gets resolved in the next book in a way you'll like.

    "In #1 she stood up for herself and didn't take BS from anyone, but now.. I knew she would break down at some point though what with shutting out all her emotions." <-- Yikes. This reminds me of what a lot of reviewers had said about Insurgent, and it's sad when the protagonist changes so much that he/she becomes hard to recognize and empathize with.

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  3. I'm sorry that this second book didn't live up to your expectations Siiri, I think the back and forth between both characters would bug the hell out of me too. I am intrigued however in giving the first book a go, I may stop after that though ha. Lovely review Siiri! :)

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  4. I'm so iffy about 2nd books in NA series. I'm always of the opinion that NAs should remain as stand-alones.
    I'm not sure if this book is for me. The fact that you wanted to fall asleep makes me want to run far away from it.
    It's a shame about the plot line regarding the crazy mom though. What is up with these annoying parents in NA? For once I want to read a book where the parental figure is responsible and loves the kid.
    I'm sorry this didn't work for you, Siiri! :)
    Lovely honest review!

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  5. Disappointing Siiri! I hate when a girl who's super strong and independent and stands up for herself in book one becomes the exact opposite in book two, it's so frustrating. It's a shame too that nothing new really happens in this book and it's literally just a reiteration of things you already knew from book one, hopefully the next book is better!

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  6. I remember you really liking the first book, so I can only imagine how disappointed you were with this one. Your reasons are really well thought-out and valid, though. I hope the next book redeems the series for you, if you read it.
    Great review!

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  7. I love reading your reviews. You always make me laugh! :D It's a shame that this was a bit of a disappointment for you though. It doesn't sound like there was much of a point to it seeing as though the plot doesn't really go anywhere and that nothing new happens. And I'm sorry that Sam wasn't completely brilliant here, either. But I do hope you enjoy the next book more! Lovely review. :)

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  8. Their chemistry and the emotions sound great to me, need to look into this one more

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  9. I don't care for lots of drama and angst, so I doubt this story would work for me. Sorry this didn't live up to your expectations, Siiri. I guess it didn't disappoint you enough to make you quit the series. I hope the next one is better for you. Great honest review. :)

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  10. Hmm, it sounds like this is another story being dragged out unnecessarily. I like that you see some deepening of the relationship, but besides that it sounds like all the drama wasn't necessary. Is there going to be another book focused on this same couple?

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    1. Yeah, there is. They're all in a series, not companions and the next one will be out sometime in December. The guy part of this relationship will soon attend college and the girl will stay behind with his brother whom she has a very brotherly, protective relationship with and I'm actually looking forward to that part, because right now Sam and Mason are too clingy on each other rather than their own persons.

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