Hello! We're really excited to be participating in Erica Crouch's blog tour for her newest novel, Incite.We've got Ashley's review for you, as well as an excerpt and a giveaway! Ashley loved this book, so you definitely don't want to miss the excerpt!
You can also find Ashley's reviews of Ignite (#1) here and Entice (#1.5) here.
And don't forget to entire the giveaway via the Rafflecopter form at the bottom of this post! You could win a paperback of Incite, one of three ebooks of Incite, or even one of two Ignite series ebook bundles!
But first, how about some information about Incite and Erica?
About the Book
Title: Incite (Ignite #3)Author: Erica Crouch
Publisher: Patchwork Press
Release Date: February 17, 2015
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Kobo
Synopsis: Earth is in ruins, and the war of Heaven and Hell has spilled over into the mortal world. In the frozen wasteland of the apocalypse, Azael and his band of cohorts search for Pen and Michael with orders to kill. Little does he know that his sister has incited a rebel army of her own.
Angels and demons alike stand side by side, ready and willing to fight for a future they didn’t realize they could have. Change doesn't come easy, though. Pen is wary of joining New Genesis's revolution, but when Azael shows his hand and Pen learns all that he holds over them, she chooses to fight back, no matter the risk. She only has to survive, one hour at a time.
About the Author
Erica Crouch is a young adult and new adult author from Baltimore, Maryland. She has a strange blended aesthetic of cute and spooky, and her books reflect her ever changing mood. (You may find romance, you may find gore—sometimes both in the same book, but probably not at the same time. Probably.)
Erica is the cofounder of Patchwork Press, an author-powered publisher of middle grade, young adult, and new adult titles. She is the head of editorial services and design, with nearly fifty projects to her name. Find a complete list of Erica’s books at ericacrouch.com.
Erica is the cofounder of Patchwork Press, an author-powered publisher of middle grade, young adult, and new adult titles. She is the head of editorial services and design, with nearly fifty projects to her name. Find a complete list of Erica’s books at ericacrouch.com.
Read an Excerpt
From Chapter 4 | Azael
I enjoy destruction. I like the sound of glass shattering, of paper tearing apart and fabric ripping at its seams. I savor the groan of bending metal and the snap of splintered wood. The smell of ashes and smoke and blood and sweat soothes me, so when I get back to my extravagant room, I destroy everything.
The thick, four-poster bed sitting in the middle of the room clothed in heavy, gold-and-red drapery is the first to go. I claw at the sheets and scatter them across the floor in ribbons, pull apart the intricate headboard with my fingernails until the wood is soaked black with my blood. The gold spindles that extend to the ceiling are pliable under my angry hands, and I twist them into a knot so sharp that I cut my forearm. Then I toss the mattress across the room and kick up the chairs that bookend a small side table.
My blood spills across the room as I continue my path of destruction. I barely feel the piercing burn of the shrapnel from the wooden wardrobe in my abdomen through my rage, hardly notice the small shards of glass that stick into my leg from the cart of drinks I requested be delivered earlier this morning.
I crave mayhem and terror and devastation, but I can’t gather enough composure to inflict it on anyone but myself.
A tall mirror sits wide and proud on the floor next to the washroom. I throw my fist into the glossy reflection with a snarl and watch as the fissures spiral out from my bleeding hand. I’m shattered in the reflection, both one being and dozens of smaller, angry images. There’s a large gash across my forehead that dribbles black blood over half of my face, wetting my hair down to stick to my scraped cheeks. My eyes are furious and feral, deep purple and black swallowing up the whites of my eyes.
I pull my hand back from the mirror and flex my fingers, lavishing in the agony of my broken knuckles before they begin to heal. The loud thud of my bedroom door closing grabs my attention, and when I look up, Lilith is reflected in miniature all around me.
She stays standing by the door, wearing a grin and a short, white dress in silk so smooth that it looks like liquid.
“What a mess you’ve made,” she says, curling her lips around every word.
“Leave me alone, Lilith.”
I enjoy destruction. I like the sound of glass shattering, of paper tearing apart and fabric ripping at its seams. I savor the groan of bending metal and the snap of splintered wood. The smell of ashes and smoke and blood and sweat soothes me, so when I get back to my extravagant room, I destroy everything.
The thick, four-poster bed sitting in the middle of the room clothed in heavy, gold-and-red drapery is the first to go. I claw at the sheets and scatter them across the floor in ribbons, pull apart the intricate headboard with my fingernails until the wood is soaked black with my blood. The gold spindles that extend to the ceiling are pliable under my angry hands, and I twist them into a knot so sharp that I cut my forearm. Then I toss the mattress across the room and kick up the chairs that bookend a small side table.
My blood spills across the room as I continue my path of destruction. I barely feel the piercing burn of the shrapnel from the wooden wardrobe in my abdomen through my rage, hardly notice the small shards of glass that stick into my leg from the cart of drinks I requested be delivered earlier this morning.
I crave mayhem and terror and devastation, but I can’t gather enough composure to inflict it on anyone but myself.
A tall mirror sits wide and proud on the floor next to the washroom. I throw my fist into the glossy reflection with a snarl and watch as the fissures spiral out from my bleeding hand. I’m shattered in the reflection, both one being and dozens of smaller, angry images. There’s a large gash across my forehead that dribbles black blood over half of my face, wetting my hair down to stick to my scraped cheeks. My eyes are furious and feral, deep purple and black swallowing up the whites of my eyes.
I pull my hand back from the mirror and flex my fingers, lavishing in the agony of my broken knuckles before they begin to heal. The loud thud of my bedroom door closing grabs my attention, and when I look up, Lilith is reflected in miniature all around me.
She stays standing by the door, wearing a grin and a short, white dress in silk so smooth that it looks like liquid.
“What a mess you’ve made,” she says, curling her lips around every word.
“Leave me alone, Lilith.”
Ashley's Review
I really, really enjoyed Ignite and Entice, and I had such high expectations for Incite (I mean, how could you not after that ending from Ignite?!). I didn't think that this series would get any better, but Erica totally blew me away with Incite. There was so much I loved about it, and I am so relieved that there's another short story and another novel to follow it. This is one series that I know will give me the worst hangover when it's over!
Incite is not a quick read by any means - this is one hefty book! But I'm so glad that it wasn't over quickly. I wanted to savor each moment, and hold on to the characters and this world as long as I could. I love Pen and Michael, and I even love Azael even though I'm not really sure that I'm supposed to. They're all such complex characters, and I was really excited when I found out that we'd be inside Azael's head in this book. He's intrigued me since I first read Ignite, and I loved being able to see what he's thinking as he hunts Pen and Michael. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy seeing things from Pen's perspective too, but I just thought it was a nice change of pace and really interesting to see things from the other side as well. Especially since the reader knows things that the characters don't, and it made me want to scream at them that they were making wrong assumptions or walking into a trap and that they should stop immediately.
Unfortunately, yelling things like that at a book makes me look like a crazy person, so I'm glad that I read this book in the comfort of my home with only the dog and the cat to judge me.
I am so invested in these characters, and I'm already dreading the ending of this series. Even the new characters, like Kala, have stolen my heart. Kala is by no means your stereotypical angel, and I thought it was great that Erica included such a diverse character in this series. I think Kala might actually be my new favorite character. I might have given that distinction to Zepar, but he terrifies me so I'm pretty sure I'll just stick with Kala. Even as secondary characters though, they're all well developed and multi-faceted, and I can't wait to find out more about them.
As always, Erica's writing is gorgeous and her world-building is flawless. The words jump off of the page and I always feel like I'm being transported to a different time and place whenever I read her books. If you haven't started the Ignite series yet, I highly recommend them! Especially if you enjoy books about the supernatural and romance. The romance is important, but it's not overwhelming - this series is so much more than just the relationship between Pen and Michael, and there's a nice balance of action and swoon-worthy scenes. A 5/5, for sure!
--Ashley
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