Crash and Burn

Written by Michael Hassan

Narrated by Graham Halstead

Major streaming series coming soon to Hulu

Starring in the Hulu adaptation of this cult bestseller: Alex Fitzalan, Alex Wolff, Sebastian Chacon, and Camila Perez.

On April 21, 2008, Steven ""Crash"" Crashinsky saved more than a thousand people when he stopped his classmate David Burnett from taking their high school hostage armed with assault weapons and high-powered explosives.

You likely already know what came after for Crash: the nationwide notoriety, the college recruitment, and, of course, the book deal. What you might not know is what came before: a story of two teens whose lives have been inextricably linked since grade school, who were destined, some say, to meet that day in the teachers' lounge of Meadows High.

And what you definitely don't know are the words that Burn whispered to Crash right as the siege was ending, a secret that Crash has never revealed.

Until now.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Jun 5, 2018
• ISBN: 9780062871879

Michael Hassan

Michael Hassan lives in the Northeast. Crash and Burn is his first novel.

Reviews for Crash and Burn

[henrimoreaux · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A most enjoyable and moving young adult novel.Deals with mental health (ADD, ADHD, Depression, Bipolar, suicide, 9/11 aftermath) within school students and a series of events resulting in a Colombine like siege at a high school.Pulls off the stream of consciousness/interior monologue style of narration well and it particularly suits the story being told & the manner in which the two timelines are run (being the past & present).I would recommend it to mature high schoolers & adults. It should be noted in addition to the mental health aspects there is a lot of sex & drugs which some parents may feel unsuitable for a child's reading.

[russianlovemachine · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Steven "Crash" Crashinsky isn't very good at school. But he IS good at getting all the girls, smoking weed, partying like nobody's business, and having everything (and everyone) he's ever wanted just fall into his lap.And on April 21st of his senior year of high school, Crash stops a potential school shooting and bombing at his school by talking down the assailant. The assailant is none other that David "Burn" Burnett, another student whose life has been strangely linked with Crash's since elementary school.Crash and Burn are not friends, but they have crossed each other's paths in so many weird, coincidental, and sometimes scary ways. This novel acts as the first unedited draft of Crash's tall-all after he stopped the shooting and gained celebrity, explaining in writing all the many times Crash's life ran into Burn's. Michael Hassan has done an incredible job of weaving these two lives together and really accurately going in depth into the minds of teenage boys, especially Crash with ADHD and Burn who is bipolar.CRASH AND BURN is really a very slow read, but it kept me interested from page one all the way up to the heart-pounding climax.

[brainannex · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I don't even know where to start with this one. Overall, the story is good and it's hard to know if the issues I have with the book are my personal tastes or if the book itself is less than it could be.
Pros:
realistic male protagonist, imperfect but not unredeemable
good tone for pov
Cons:
too long
too scattered


I think the target audience for this type of book may not buy into a 500 page book from a relatively unknown author. The best parts of the book are in the last third of the story and, while the back story serves to show why what happens has such an emotional punch, I found myself tired of the character rather than wanting to know more.

[darkfaerietales_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales.Quick & Dirty: This is a great book that tears away at you on the inside when you read as real life continues as if nothing has changed. I honestly need a happy book to make up for this one.Opening Sentence: I’m not gonna lie to you.The Review: Crash and Burn centers around the life of two boys who have known each other since elementary school. First meeting during recess in the third grade, Steven “Crash” Crashinsky and David “Burn” Burnett build an unimaginable relationship that is impossible to describe.The life that these two boys hold together however is in no way normal. Burn is somewhat of a psychopath and Crash is a paranoid kid with ADHD. Burn is definitely the more crazy of the two, and by their senior year of high school he holds the entire school hostage. It is almost impossible for the school to be saved. Crash, with their long history, is the only one able to really get into Burn’s mind and prevent utter destruction. The mystery lies of what Burn told Crash in those last moments before Burn was turned into the police.The majority of the book though is describing the life of these two boys from the day they meet, to the day of the hostage crisis, to what is going on in their lives as Burn writes the story. The life of these two boys is definitely filled with parties and girls. Because of this, the book does contain a large amount of profanity and what may be deemed as inappropriate behavior. Many cuss and curse words are used and illegal activities are a common occurrence for these wild teens.These inappropriate actions however are what really make the characters who they are and even that much more engaging. Burn is definitely a disturbed teenager and smoking marijuana is nothing compared to his other actions.Honestly the author does a great job of making the book seem as if it were written by a teenage boy. The book is supposedly written and narrated by Crash himself. When reading the book it truly seems as if it is in the mind of a teenage boy who has ADHD, who smokes marijuana, who has newfound fame because of one day, and who has lived a difficult life. For a very long time I believed that the book was based on a true story. It wasn’t until I reached the end that I looked it up and realized that it wasn’t based on a true story. The only reason I ended up looking up whether the book was a true story was that I didn’t want it to be a true story. The ending is so frustrating, so cruel, that I would never want someone to go through so much.The title of the book is also something that truly amazes me. At first glance I saw the matches and though that an object had crashed and burned. In the first couple of pages I realized that the title represented the characters Crash and Burn. Later, as a friend pointed out, the matches look like the twin towers. One of the matches represents the first tower that was hit by the plane, and the other match represent the second tower that is momentarily unscathed but later also damaged. One has already been lighted while the other one waits. What makes the reference even more relevant is that the twin towers are mentioned several times in the book. In reality Burn was also always like that. He was like a match and any little flame could set him off. Once the flame was lit the outcome was destructive.Notable Scene: And then I look at him for the first time since we started playing and I knew, I totally knew that he is holding three aces and two other cards, and I am sure, totally and completely confident, bet on it positive, that those other two cards, whatever they are, are also a pair.Which would give him a full house.“Steven Crashinsky.”I reluctantly raised my hand. I already knew that Lindsey had Connelly as a teacher. She called him the toughest teacher she ever had, one of the few teachers that she had hated. Enough, in fact, to actually feel some level of sympathy for me in getting him.“Brother of Lindsey Crashinsky,” he said matter-of-factly. “You can relax, Mr. Crashinsky. I see that you are 504. No one is expecting you to be the student that Lindsey was. Lighting doesn’t often strike twice, and I really don’t expect of a spark from you. That is, unless you and Mr, Burnett decide to once again display your pyrotechnical abilities.”FTC Advisory: Balzer + Bray/Harper Collins provided me with a copy of Crash and Burn. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.

[deweyever · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Teens will appreciate real and flawed character. Parents may be offended by the heavy drug use of the hero. Older teens wanting an edgier read.