Review: Crescendo

Crescendo by Lana Sky
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Crescendo is one of those reads where I was unsure, for quite some time, what rating I was going to give the book. There were times where I was thinking four stars, times where I was thinking three stars, and quite a lot of time where I was somewhere in-between. In the end, it won me over enough for me to give a four star rating despite the moments where I was considering otherwise.

Crescendo will not be for everyone, I’ll say that in advance. It’s a mob read, something that not everyone will enjoy. I have ups and downs with this genre, but I’m always willing to try another read in the genre. It’s also a very dark read – there are a lot of dark topics touched throughout this story – which will also contribute to how people feel about this book. It will either be loved or hated; it’s just one of those books.

Whilst the book dealt with the dark issues really well, I found the speed at which the book progressed ebbed and flowed. There were times when I felt as though it wasn’t moving much at all, as though it was getting stuck rehashing the same kinds of details, but when it was moving forward it was moving well.

I think, for me, it was a case of the book being overly long for this kind of story. It was a great read, I cannot deny that, yet it felt overly long. It felt as though it could have been split into multiple individual shorter stories, each telling a different segment of the tale. I think it’s because I’ve grown so accustomed to shorter stories in this genre, making this one feel even longer than it actually was. I think, were it a case of this one being split into shorter stories, it wouldn’t have felt as though it was dragging on at certain points. That’s just me, though, and I know many will not feel that way.

As I said, however, it was a great read. It was thoroughly addictive, each element of the story dragging you in deeper. If you love dark tales, this one is wonderful. There are so many different elements dealt with in this book. Each time you think a new dark element cannot be added, something more is added. New twists are constantly introduced, keeping you on edge throughout.

Moreover, you’re left super interested to see what will come next in the series. More darkness is promised, more of the twisted characters. You’re so pulled into this one that the promise of what is to come will leave you crazy excited to pick up the next book. I feel as though it is going to take a very different path, and I’m super excited to see how everything plays out.

Overall, this had highs and lows but it won me over in the end.

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