Held captive in rural Vermont, she tries to make sense of her situation and what it means. While uncovering secrets about her brother and his untimely death, Emily falls in love with her very rich and very dangerous captor, twenty-six year- old Cameron. She understands it's a forbidden love and one that won't allow her to return to her previous life. But love may not be enough to save Emily when no one even knows she is missing
**
Firstly, I have to point out that this book really wasn't what I was expecting. From the synopsis above, I expected something a lot darker. I suppose the subject matter itself is dark stuff, drugs, gangs, criminals and the like, but the book didn't delve too deeply into that. As well as the whole idea of the main character, Emily, being kidnapped. Well to be honest, most of the time... it just didn't feel like she was actually held against her will. She was free to walk the grounds of this house, swim in the pool, eat meals with the people she's living with. Now I'm not saying that if I was kidnapped and allowed to do all of that stuff, that I still wouldn't feel kidnapped, I'm just saying that Emily has a lot of freedom. She comes and goes as she pleases really. And she also didn't complain a lot of the time about her situation, either.
“How long are you going to keep me here?” I drowsily continued.
Cameron pulled the glass out of my numbed hands and set it on the table next to me. “For as long as it takes.”
“And what are you going to do with me?” This came out as a whisper. My eyes were barely slit open.
Cameron paused on this question. He scanned my face, like the answer was written somewhere between the freckles.
“I don’t know”
Cameron pulled the glass out of my numbed hands and set it on the table next to me. “For as long as it takes.”
“And what are you going to do with me?” This came out as a whisper. My eyes were barely slit open.
Cameron paused on this question. He scanned my face, like the answer was written somewhere between the freckles.
“I don’t know”
Now I'm not saying that all this is necessarily a bad thing, it's somewhat understandable that Emily would feel comfortable, given the relationship between her captors and her late brother. However, it didn't really shock me that -gasp!- Emily started to fall in love with her captor. Until the questions and confusion started to pile up, it didn't really feel like Emily was in any immediate danger. I guess that may be mostly thanks to Cameron (swoon), but shhh. I plead Stockholm's.
What's great about the story and characters Julie Hockley created is that they make you think about morality and how the lines of right and wrong are easily blurred. I mean, Cameron our love interest, is (when you get down to it) a criminal. Probably of the worst kind. However, getting an inside view to his life both past and present, really makes you question how wrong what he's doing is. Sure, it would've been better for him and Emily if he was working in a bank or something. But despite appearances, Cameron really isn't a bad guy. He's mysterious, complicated and withholding, definitely. But on the same side of that coin he's honest (albeit when he wants to be) and very loyal.
The romance unfolding between Emily and Cameron is a freaking roller coaster. At some points it was very will they/won't they? And others I just wanted Emily to run right outta there and never look back. I really, really kinda liked how, until the later portion of the book, we were always kept guessing as to who Cameron really was. How he was really feeling.
“Whoever said that love hurts was wrong. Love is excruciating, especially when you can feel it slipping through your fingers and there is nothing you can do about it. Like someone was playing tug-of-war with my limbs, ripping to shreds whatever was left behind. What it would feel like when love was lost...I wouldn't survive that”
As I mentioned, the book is pretty tame. I know a lot of people were expecting something... steamier, shall we say, during the intimate scenes between Cameron and Emily (I have to admit I am with those people). Even for a YA book, Hockley really doesn't get into many details. That being said, there are some things that happen toward the later half of the book where I was like, 'WOAH'. Without giving away spoilers, it certainly gets darker, and this is actually something I reaaaaally hope continues into the second book. My only complaint about this book is that, given the subject matter, it is a bit too light.
AND. THAT. ENDING.
Ugh, man, I really really got ALL THE FEELINGS. It was such a good ending that leads into so many possibilities for the second book. My mind sometimes casually wanders off coming up with different things that could happen in the second book, Scare Crow. It's easily one of my most anticipated sequels of the year.
"Every other second, minute, hour that I spent with Cameron after that moment made the last piece of my puzzle grow stronger, so that it made the damaged, the broken pieces become insignificant - mere background noise. But Cameron had taken the last piece of the puzzle with him, and a black hole was all that was left in its stead."
Although, unfortunately, there isn't a release date for Scare Crow yet, Julie has released a teaser on her Facebook page, and the book should be out sometime this year!
Crow's Row - 4/5 stars.
Thanks for reading guys. Be sure to recommend me some good reads for next time! I'll speak to you all soon!
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