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Adrenaline Crush (2014)

by Laurie Boyle Crompton(Favorite Author)

3.45 of 5 Votes: 3

ISBN

0374300615 (ISBN13: 9780374300616)

languge

English

genre

Romance

publisher

Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)

review 1: Adrenaline Crush could have been a decent read had the book been longer, allowing for the characters to develop and the romance to flow nicely. What we have instead, at 192 pages, is a rushed book that doesn't manage to turn into a memorable story in any way.The main character, Dyna, as the title of the book states, is an adrenaline junkie. She craves that adrenaline rush and is always putting herself into situations that non-junkies would find scary and completely dangerous. Her latest activity leads to Dyna winding up with a leg cast who has to refrain from any kind of life-threatening activity. Dyna could have been a great character, had she been properly fleshed out. Because of the short length of the book, there is no time for the reader to become accustomed to her vo... moreice and to get to know her on a personal level. Her character is only brushed upon, without the author delving into the vast possibilities of her personality. Ultimately, this disappointed me because Adrenaline Crush aims to be a character-oriented story. I was also let down by how her family members weren't fully developed because they seemed like really cool people who I would love to have gotten to know better. Similarly, I did not feel any connection to Dyna's love interest and former military man, Pierce, either. In fact, I didn't care for their romance because there was no time to flesh their relationship out.Add to that a pseudo love triangle and some cheating. Obviously the romance didn't work for me, but what's worse is that while I was reading those things didn't bother me because I was so indifferent to this book. Then there was the healing center with all the people with issues. There was a lot of potential to turn that into something epic, but it fell flat for me and we never got to know the secondary cast that well. It's sad that this was such a disappointment because Adrenaline Crush could have been a splendid story had the characters been developed, the writing tightened and the plot more solid. Crompton has the talents for sure, so it's a shame this book wasn't longer.The short length of Adrenaline Crush was to its detriment. Unfortunately, this isn't a book I would recommend buying. If you want to check it out, I suggest getting it from the library first or read a preview. That should give you an idea if you want to read the book.
review 2: Received from NetGalley as an ARC for review.I am really torn as I write this review. I’m not sure I will put this on my classroom bookshelf, but I can think of a couple of particular students I would suggest read it because it fits their personalities. And by the time I was done reading, I really liked Dyna, the main character, which is completely opposite to how I felt about her at the start of the story.At first I struggled to connect to Dyna. She comes from a family whose motto is all about taking risks. And I mean risks that endanger her life, which was beyond ridiculous to me (note: this is coming from a person who won’t swim in lake water because it looks icky). In fact, this story begins as Dyna showcases her adrenaline junkie side, racing through a forest on a bike and climbing cliffs over water. She also speaks very frankly about sex in the first chapter, which was a little off-putting, but then that kind of talk cools a bit after Dyna’s traumatic event. Actually, it is after the event that I began to connect with Dyna as a character. Here’s my little cover blip: After a traumatic event, Dyna is on a journey to find herself, release her fear, and find her wild side again (note: said in a deep Morgan Freeman-ish voice). She becomes torn between danger and security, wildness and safety, and she has to find a way to reconcile her adrenaline seeking desires with the reality of the physical dangers she faces. This represents the oppositional nature that exists in her that I felt as I read this book. Sometimes her words were harsh and abrasive and other times they were lyrical--in fact I did enjoy the verse-like writing style that the author worked in at moments of emotional impact.So, again, I’m torn with whether I really liked this book or just the middle to end portion, but I believe it’s worth a read because Dyna’s points about fear and believing in herself are universal and worth thinking about. And I really did appreciate Dyna’s voice by the end of the book, so I’m going to suggest you work through the first couple of chapters because it will be worth your time in the end. less

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