Crave

This review is also featured on Behind the Pages: Crave

When Grace's parents die in a tragic accident, there is only one place left for her to go. From sunny California, Grace is sent to her uncle's boarding school in frigid Alaska. But it isn't just any boarding school, all manner of supernatural creatures attend and Grace joins in the middle of a power struggle. Vampire Jaxon Vega has taken an interest in Grace, and it hasn't gone unnoticed. Will Grace be another pawn in a deadly game, or are his feelings for her real?

While Grace could be an entertaining character to follow at times, she was extremely naive. While I understand the naivety was intended, I was also confused by it. Why would the book blurb talk about vampires if it wasn't mentioned until halfway past the book? At a certain point, Grace rationalizing away all the strange occurrences around her grew repetitive. It also slowed down the plot progression.

Tracy Wolff spent a long time word building. The setting wasn't all that different from the real world, so I am not sure why all the build-up. Yes, there was magic, monsters, and the politics surrounding them but aside from that, the school wasn't all that different. Gothic castle aside, I didn't think the beginning needed to be so drawn out. And I had a hard time believing Grace's uncle would drop her in the middle of monsters, and not warn her. Especially after all the incidents that surrounded her started cropping up.

I can see the attraction of this book. Jaxon Vega hits all the right buttons. He is dark, brooding, and mysterious. He is the bad boy someone can pine after and still have gentle qualities that make a heart swoon. The tensions between Grace and Jaxon were tantalizing, but it came too late in the story. Not a series I will be continuing.