Graffiti Moon

Book Review FEB. 28
Graffiti Moon
by: Cath Crowley
★★ 2 Stars

Blurb: Senior year is over, and Lucy has the perfect way to celebrate: tonight, she's going to find Shadow, the mysterious graffiti artist whose work appears all over the city. He's out there somewhere—spraying color, spraying birds and blue sky on the night—and Lucy knows a guy who paints like Shadow is someone she could fall for. Really fall for. Instead, Lucy's stuck at a party with Ed, the guy she's managed to avoid since the most awkward date of her life. But when Ed tells her he knows where to find Shadow, they're suddenly on an all-night search around the city. And what Lucy can't see is the one thing that's right before her eyes.




So I felt severely let down with this book. If I'm being honest I'm almost embarrassed to say I had requested it at the library and now I feel bad they wasted the money. There are so many other books I could have read instead!!!

What I Liked and Didn't
The setting was in Australia so their vocabulary is a little different than ours. Instead of saying twelfth grade they refer to it as year twelve. They say 'arse' instead of 'ass' and we all now 'arse' is a funny word every time you read it or hear it. We get brief glimpses of their home as they roam around but none of it sounds too appealing. Considering they were in Australia I was expecting some sun, at least, but everything I got from the descriptions are warped, faded and grungy. The only bright side is the art on the walls that Shadow creates. 
I loved some of the descriptions. They painted their own sort of story on the walls. Also it was extremely interesting to read about and visualize the glass blowing process. I always loved watching them do that on TV when I was younger so it was nice to get in depth instruction from Lucy. So kudos to the author for learning this craft or studying it a whole heck of a lot. 
I enjoyed the descriptions of all the art but it felt like Art Class all over again. Many of the painters mentioned are memorable but so much time is spent talking about paintings I don't remember and can't visualize that I got more frustrated than anything. It felt like a homework assignment and I didn't feel like studying any of it again. 

Characters
The characters are real life. Lucy has a dysfunctional family and Ed is a high-school drop out who lives with his single mother.However, they just didn't suck me in. I didn't feel for the characters or even care about them at all. There was no connection and certainly no character development. They were just not very likeable.
Lucy's friend Jazz showed more promise in the small amount she appears. She's a psychic out celebrating with the group after their twelfth year graduation. She's excited about their night because she's been cooped up for the year focusing only on school and ready to mingle. Her and Leo (Shadow's sidekick Poet) hook up, though she should have seen that coming!! But throughout the whole book they are the most memorable.

Plot
Actually very interesting but it just did not come across that way to me. I kept counting down pages till each chapter was done and picking up different books because I could not get into this one. Honestly, who is the book really about. More than half the time the two characters are reminiscing and day-dreaming about their senior mentors and bosses. Even when they're together, they may talk for a bit and then more reflection on the past. 
I was just not invested in anything these characters were doing. Going to the casino = who cares, the skate park = blah, the school = showed promise and the party = letdown.

Would recommend to art fans and appreciators, others beware the risk of boredom.