Blog Tour Review & Giveaway ~ Incite ~ Erica Crouch

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Erica Crouch's Incite. This is the second book in her Ignite series. If you'd like to check our my reviews of Ingite and Entice (a prequel novella), just click on the titles. Below you'll find all the information about the book, my review, and a giveaway!

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Incite
Ignite Series #2
Publisher: Patchwork Press
Release Date: February 17, 2015
Genre: Fantasy, Paranormal Romance
Source: I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review
Rating: 4 Bookworms
Goodreads ~ Amazon ~ B&N

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.

Hell now rules in Heaven. Earth is turning into a frigid wasteland where humans are dying at the hands of demons, if not the cold. Pen and Michael are on the run with angels and demons both on their heels. And a little band of rebels, inspired by Pen and Michael's choosing something different, are asking them to join forces against Heaven and Hell. Azael, the King of Hell, is determined to find Pen and Michael before anyone else -- in hopes of being the one to end Michael and save Pen.

I marveled at the dichotomy between Azael and Pen. One reveling in his evil but missing the one who saw goodness in him, the other so bent on being good and yet believing she might be beyond redemption. Az wanted to see the bad in Pen - I think it made him feel better about his choices. Pen wanted to see the good in Az.

Crouch creates such beautiful prose. Her descriptions are so vivid and paint gorgeous images -- even in a post-apocalyptic world. The version of Hell she's created -- blue, cold, and icy -- is so unique, as is the rest of her mythology. Crouch also quotes classic literature such as Milton's Paradise Lost, and poetry such as James Joyce and Robert Frost. Not only did this complement the story but it warmed this English Lit major's heart.

Incite is full of thought-provoking suppositions. Watching as angels and demons realize they have free will - seeing them question their ideas and beliefs, question even the existence of God, was fascinating. That angels and demons would band together, fight for a common goal seems ironic. Along with the grim landscape of an Earth encased in ice and the gore and violence perpetrated against everyone made for a visceral and exciting read. The only reason I'm not rating this higher is that the story dragged a bit in the middle. It was necessary setup but I felt it could have been shortened so as to move the story along to the action sooner. I'm very eager to see what comes next, who will rise and who will fall, in the epic battle I feel certain is coming.

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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.