Graffiti Bridge ~ Cath Crowley

Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

6 stars = perfection on paper

Best Books of 2012


I have to admit, I was slightly hesitant to read this book when I managed to grab an ebook ARC at the beginning of the year. But what a truly wonderful surprise this ended up being for me.

Lucy is obsessed with meeting an infamous graffiti artist named Shadow. One night she and her best friend run into two boys who claim to know who Shadow is and will help them look for him. We quickly learn that one of the boys, Ed, went on a disastrous blind date with Lucy which ended in her accidentally on purpose breaking his nose. So, the tension between Ed and Lucy starts off as more than a little frosty.

And there is also the fact that Ed is Shadow.

Okay, maybe the premise does sound a bit silly and convoluted. However, from the first page, this story completely took me over. It is unlike anything I have had the pleasure of reading before. The writing style is unique in that I didn't really feel like I was reading a book, but listening in to a conversation. Which only made me enjoy the experience more.

Lucy and Ed go on an all-night adventure visiting some of the places that are special to Shadow, and in the course of only a few hours the characters bond in a way that was both beautiful and heartbreaking at the same time. Crowley has such a way with words that I found myself wondering where the hell she has been all my life.

Even though it has been several months since I read this book, the story has stayed with me, and is still near the very top of my list of the best books I have read in 2012.