Clash (Crash #2) by Nicole Williams

4 stars

Gitte:    I really liked this book it was very well written, it had everything I love; swoon worthy moments, emotional heart break, JUDE, angst and lots of romance…oh and it had JUDE!!!!

Jenny:   I agree.  I  really liked it. At first I was thinking Jude was a bit over the top with how he reacted to some situations but boy I do love this guy!  He really feels for his woman that’s for sure!

Gitte:    It was a really quick read and through most of it I was either pretty peeved off or my heart was breaking!

Jenny:   This was definitely a quick and intense read – and yes, my heart was breaking in parts too.  I really felt for Jude in this book and at times was a bit annoyed at Lucy.

Gitte:    This story, to me, was basically all about trust and the question if love can possibly survive when trust is being chipped at continuously or when jealousy rears its ugly head?!

Jenny:   To me this was a journey for Luce and Jude in finding that love isn’t always hearts and flowers.  Love has to be nurtured and worked at – one of the quotes in the book (and there were many I loved)  that spoke to me about this was “Love is what brings you together.  The blood, sweat and tears and hard work is what keeps you together“.  This spoke volumes to me about the book.
Jude and Luce had a long way to go to work at their relationship for me this story was about their growth.

Gitte:    Clash begins where Crash ended and sees Jude and Lucy attending college.  Jude, being the star on his football team, is assigned a “Spirit Sister”; enter super bitch Adriane, who is adamant she is meant for Jude and will do anything to steal him away from Lucy.

Jenny:   Don’t get me started on Adriane! I couldn’t stand her from the first line where she was introduced!

Gitte:    I disliked Adriane intensely, what a cow, I completely understood Lucy’s initial issues with her and why she was left insecure and vulnerable!

Jenny:   How did you find Lucy?  I know you messaged me at one point saying she drove you crazy.  Must admit, once I got up to that point I wanted to slap her a few times, even though I did understand her reactions to some situations, I felt she a was a bit mean to Jude at times.  I actually felt sorry for Jude in parts of this book.  He seemed to try so hard and I had to give him credit for that.

Gitte:    I got Lucy…to a point! She quickly started to grate on me with her behaviour and her treatment of Jude.  It got cruel, it really did, yes I know I am biased because I love Jude, but really that boy did not deserve the extent of her treatment of him!  My sympathy started to run out and I have to say Jude deserved a medal for still being there waiting. Did she redeem herself? Yes but barely!

 “I’ll be here when you’re ready. No matter how long it takes. I’ll always be here, Luce. I’m yours,” he breathed, squeezing my hands, “forever.” – Jude

Jenny:   Oh god, those words did me in and my heart broke for Jude at that point.

Gitte:    Jude (sigh) still has this fiery temper which he is battling to tamper down so that he can prove he is worthy of Lucy’s love.  Lucy is his world (lucky girl)! I have to say Jude is one of my fave’s still, despite the fact that he let Lucy walk all over him at times

Jenny:   I must admit to finding Jude’s outbursts a little off-putting at times but it didn’t make me love him any less and I understand him because of what he’s been through.  It’s the only way he knows how to deal with issues and he is very protective of Lucy. He is definitely trying to be the best he can for her and for himself.

Gitte:    Lucy worries that their relationship is all about extremes, it’s either really good or it is really bad.  The emotional heartache she believes they can inflict on each other persistently weighs on her mind so she comes to the conclusion that perhaps they would both be saner and happier apart. At least that way, when it all blows one day, which she is sure it will, it won’t hurt as much as it would early on in their relationship. Yes, I can see that, but to me that is avoidance tactics, no way would you let a man like Jude go because he has passion and intensity! Right?!

Jenny:   Yes, I think Lucy wanted their relationship to be cut and dried but with someone so passionate and intense as Jude it was never going to be that way.  They had to learn how to have a relationship with each other and how to grow together.  I loved the line “Love is just as much suffering as it is sweetness“.  So true and I love the quotes the author uses throughout this book.  I highlighted a lot of them.  I feel Lucy thought her feelings for Jude were so extreme that maybe they weren’t good for each other.

Gitte:    Did I like this book after all that? No…I loved it because it got my emotions running high, I felt the heart break and love and despite the issues I had I felt the story!! Oh and it had JUDE!!!!

Jenny:   I really did love this book too.  We agree on everything about this book GG.  It had feeling, emotion, pain, suffering, angst and love! What more could we want from a book.
One thing I would really love is for Nicole to get inside Jude’s head.  I would love nothing more than to know what is going on there – I certainly get how intense he is and how much he loves Luce from Lucy’s voice but wow….I would really love to hear all that from the man himself. Hey Jude! I do love you buddy!

Jointly reviewed by Jenny & Gitte 

Here’s a song that popped into our heads about Jude and Lucy – enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMff05YcJYc