About The Author 
Credence Book is authored by Penelope Douglas who is a New York Times bestselling author of romance and young adult fiction.
She has published several other novels, including the Fall Away series, the Devil’s Night series, the Birthday Girl, and the Hideaway series.
Douglas is known for writing steamy romances with complex characters and intricate plots. Her books often deal with dark and taboo themes, such as bullying, revenge, and forbidden love.
She loves taboo and loves to read and write it. According to her music is her biggest inspiration.
Credence Summary
Credence is a story of Tiernan de Haas, a high school senior who moves in with her estranged step-cousins, Kaleb and Noah, after the death of her mother. Tiernan finds herself drawn to both cousins. As she becomes more involved with them, she uncovers dark family secrets that threaten to tear them apart.
The novel opens with Tiernan leaving her home in California to move in with her step-cousins in a small town in Colorado. Kaleb and Noah’s father was once married to Tiernan’s mother, but after her mother’s death, the cousins invite her to come live with them. Tiernan is hesitant at first, but she has nowhere else to go and hopes to get to know her cousins better.
Kaleb and Noah are both popular at school, but they have a reputation for being wild and dangerous. Kaleb is the bad boy with a chip on his shoulder, while Noah is the more sensitive and artistic one. Tiernan is immediately attracted to both cousins, but she tries to keep her feelings in check, knowing that their relationship is complicated.
As Tiernan spends more time with Kaleb and Noah, she discovers that their family is plagued by secrets and lies. Kaleb and Noah are both struggling to break free from their father’s influence, but they are also tied to him in ways they cannot escape.
Tiernan becomes a confidant to both cousins, as they share their fears and dreams with her. Tiernan is torn between her loyalty to both cousins and her own desires, as she realizes that she has fallen in love with both Kaleb and Noah.
Tiernan must confront her own feelings and desires, as she learns to navigate the complex relationships between Kaleb and Noah.
The plot is full of twists and turns, as Tiernan uncovers the truth about her family and the de Haas family.
Credence is a gripping and emotional novel that explores the complexities of family and relationships.
Credence Quotes
“Because life is only happy when it’s shared.”
“Avoiding the bad means you risk avoiding the good, too, and I’d rather be hurt than never not feel this.”
“Pain always reminds us that we’re alive. And the fear along with it that we want to stay that way.”
“My mother said the first boy—or man—is a crush.
You think you love them, but what you really love is how they make you feel. It’s not love. It’s lust. Lust for attention. Lust for danger. Lust to feel special. (…) The second is to learn about yourself. Your first crush has been crushed. You’re sad, but most of all, you’re angry. Angry enough to not let it happen again. (…) Love. When the lessons of your weakness with number one and your selfishness with number two sink in, and you find a medium. When you know who you are and you’re ready to welcome everything he is, and you’re not afraid anymore.”
“We all acclimate. We learn, we resolve, we come around—it’s not that anything really gets easier or harder. We just get better at rolling with it.”
“Lust, learn, and love,” she says, placing the condiments and touching her finger to the ketchup. “My mother said the first boy—or man—is a crush. You think you love them, but what you really love is how they make you feel. It’s not love. It’s lust. Lust for attention. Lust for danger. Lust to feel special.” She looks between us. “You’re needy with number one. Needy for someone to love you.”
“I might wish this change could’ve happened differently, but some of us don’t learn from the heat. We need the fire.”
“Unfortunately, the world moves on, and then it just becomes punishing yourself.”
“Cowards always live to regret, because it’s only too late that they realize the journey is filled with people who are afraid. They didn’t have to walk alone.”
“They didn’t leave me a note. Even now, there was nothing they wanted to say to me.”
“Making a mistake takes seconds. Living with them takes a lifetime.”
“People may live different realities, but the truth is always the same.”
Credence Review
A thrilling and emotionally charged novel. Tiernan is a strong and resilient protagonist who is easy to relate to, and Kaleb and Noah are both intriguing and multi-layered characters.
The novel is paced beautifully with enough twists and turns to keep you engaged without feeling overwhelmed. The writing is also superb.
