Grace’s entire life changed the moment she stepped inside the academy. Surrounded by strange students that are either obsessed with her, want her dead, or both, navigating the halls of high school has never been more complicated.
Top it all off with Jaxon Vega, and you’ve got a recipe for disaster. He’s a vampire with deadly secrets, and Grace feels a strong desire to be anywhere and everywhere he is, despite everyone’s warnings to stay away.
Can she avoid his haunting past, or will it catch up with her in the dungeons of Katmere Academy?
![Crave by [Tracy Wolff]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/417FqUFOMcL.jpg)
I have vivid memories of being in high school and being absolutely OBSESSED with the twilight books. I mean, our English teacher had a life sized Edward cutout in her closet, my first boyfriend (now husband, lol) got me Twilight merch our first Christmas together, and I devoured each and every book. I say this all like I’m not still a Twilight fan…
But, let’s be honest, I am. There’s just something nostalgic about the vampire-human dynamic, mixed with a tidbit of high school, teenage angst. I’ve grown older, obviously, and much more mature, and I’ve learned that Twilight isn’t the best novel in existence (despite what High School Amy would say). There’s a LOT wrong with the books, lol. The last time I read them, I was just appalled with Bella. You know you’ve grown when you start relating more with a main character’s dad than you do with the main character herself.
But I mean, Team Charlie for life, right?
I preface this review with all my Twilight reminiscing for a reason, I promise. This isn’t just a flashback to my cringy high school years. No, “Crave” by Tracy Wolff is a Twilight reimagining (or at least it feels that way for about half the book) BUT SO MUCH BETTER. I cannot begin to describe this book or how much I loved it, but let’s see if I can.
First, if you’re a fan of YA books, then you will adore Tracy’s style in this one. It reads like I’m straight up reading Grace’s diary, angst and all. The traditional first-person POV is my comfort zone; the internal monologues make it all worth it. It is very simplistic, in true YA fashion, but we shouldn’t cut it short, because Wolff obviously does a great job of world building and character building without being overly flowy or wordy.
The plot moves along quickly, following Grace’s progress of figuring out what Jaxon is exactly and why everyone at Katmere is so strange. It’s not a spoiler at all for me to say these things, trust me. But the plot line that I followed, more than the lovey little Jaxon-Grace thing that’s going on, was the “who’s trying to kill me?” plot line. Because THAT one was to die for. *She says as she tries to pretend she wasn’t sucked in by the teen angst driven romance*
That being said, the characters themselves are great, and I did get to watch them shift and change in the smallest of ways. This is a four (five?) book series, and I am in the middle of the second one. So, I hope to see much more growth. To draw some parallels between Grace and Bella–Grace has an amazing sense of humor and is amazing self-sufficient. Bella was whiney, lol. Jaxon, like Edward, has this odd “you need to stay away from me, I bite” attitude, but tbh, I was WAY more scared he was actually going to like eat Grace than I was of Edward. Plus, Jaxon’s got a cool face scar! +100 points to his Bad Boy status
Obviously, I’m no where near done analyzing this series. It was fun. I laughed so hard at times and wanted to scream other times. It was STRESSFUL, but in like the best way possible.
Exhibit A for Stressfulness, your honor: The defendants text records.
Quotes
“There’s not much to be afraid of when you’ve already lost everything that matters”
“He’s got the manners of a rabid polar bear.” Grace’s sense of humor SHINES.
And lastly, the scene that was 100% better than Edwards “Say it, Bella” :
“That’s it. I have to ask.”
Everything about him turns wary. “Ask what?”
“Are you an alien?”
Final Rankings
Overall Rating: 5/5
Pacing: Excellent, even if it was a 500 page book.
Intended Audience: YA fans, young and old.
Content Warnings: Parental death and very mild violence.
Buy link: https://www.amazon.com/Crave-Tracy-Wolff-ebook/dp/B07VJ9DJFL
Amy Johnson Writes 