Crew by Tijan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
To survive where I live, you have two options.
You can be a Normal–a cheerleader, jock, member of the debate team, or on the yearbook committee. You pretend everything is normal.
Or you can be crew.
You insult us? We hurt you.
You hurt us? We really hurt you.
And if you screw with us, we will end you.
My name is Bren.
I’m the only female in the Wolf Crew–the best, fiercest, and most dangerous crew there is–and we have a rule: There’s no falling in love.
Well… too late.
Crew
I love Tijan books.
So much drama and heartache!
“When you become one of us, you have to agree to three oaths.”
“Three?”
“Three. The first, will you treat us as family?”
“Yes.” Without hesitation, without regret, without a doubt—yes.
“Will you fight for us as you’d have us fight for you?”
Another yes—no question, thought, or fear.
“And the last, will you forgive as if we’re one person?”
The following ratings are out of 5:
Narration: 🎧🎧🎧🎧🎧
Romance: ❤️💙💜💚💛
Heat/Steam: 🔥🔥🔥
Story/Plot: 📙📕📗📘📔
World building: 🌎🌏🌍🌎🌍
Character development: 😌🤓😬😯🤗
The heroine: Bren Monroe – she is one of only two girls in the Crew system. She has had a hard life. Her older brother left, her mother died of Cancer, her father became an alcoholic and ended up in prison. Her brother came back and is trying to be her parental figure but she resents him because he left and the role doesn’t fit him at all.
The Hero(es): Cross Shaw – he has always been Bren’s best friend. He is a player and is the bad boy all the girls want. He has no fear and wolf crew is his life though he is smart and could do anything he wants.
Supporting Characters:
Wolf Crew – Cross Shaw, Bren Monroe, Jordan Pitts, Zellman Greenly;
Ryerson Crew Leader – Alex Ryerson
Former Ryerson Crew Leader – Drake Ryerson (Bren’s Ex)
Cross’s sister & Bren’s Friend – Tasmin (Taz) Shaw
Bren’s Brother & Crew royalty – Channing Monroe (he started the Crew system); he now owns a bar in Roussou.
Heather – Channing’s long time girlfriend. She owns a bar in Fallen Crest (the wealthy town on the other side of the tracks.
The new guy Race Ryerson
The Story: It’s a new school year and things are a bit different than last year. Last year Bren was with Drake until he left. He left her, his crew and everything in Roussou. He turned his back on them and went away to college leaving his younger brother Alex in charge. The principle of the school has tightened up regulations in school to keep the crews in line and Bren is at a loose ends feeling like things are changing.
To top that off, there is a new guy in school who may or may not know something about her that she has never told her crew. Race Ryerson is Alex & Drake’s cousin and Drake spent the summer with his family before Race moved to Roussou. Race seems very focused on Bren and her crew.
This book was so good. It was different, with the whole “Crew” idea. It is hard to pin down exactly what a Crew is, but what I got is that they are a mix between a gang and a clique. They say they aren’t gang’s that they are just like a small family where the members have each other’s backs. However, they are the toughest kids in the school, they are quick to start fights when threatened and they have no problem exacting retribution when necessary.
This is told completely from Bren’s point of view and she is a tough one, though at times she thinks and acts like she is much tougher than she actually is. Sometimes it does seem like a bunch of kids playing gang members. Though they don’t deal drugs or run guns or any of those types of things. Crew basically just hang out together and protect their own against perceived or real threats.
Aside from that, the storylines are great. Bren has issues with her brother, who is kind of the King of Crew. He started the whole crew system and his crew is still together though they are now adults. Yet he is trying to be a good guardian to her and she resents him for it.
There is also the story of the rival crew who is led by Alex there is some tension between the two Crews. Bren is just trying to get through, day by day and she really has no expectations on what she will do after graduation. She is having problems at school and is labeled a bad kid, as are all crew, though it is known that Cross could go places. I liked this because usually the heroine is the good girl who falls for the bad boy, and this is a bit of a reverse, even though technically Cross is a bad boy.
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