ARC Review: Dare You To by Katie McGarry

*Received from NetGalley*

Dare You To
(Book #2 in the Pushing the Limits series)
Amazon | Goodreads | BN
Author: Katie McGarry
Publisher: Harlequin Teen (May 28, 2013)
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary Romance, 470 pages
ISBN-10: 03732106391
ISBN-13: 978-0373210633
ASIN: B00BED2UE6
My Copy: ARC eBook

SUMMARY:

If anyone knew the truth about Beth Risk's home life, they'd send her mother to jail and seventeen-year-old Beth who knows where. So she protects her mom at all costs. Until the day her uncle swoops in and forces Beth to choose between her mom's freedom and her own happiness. That's how Beth finds herself living with an aunt who doesn't want her and going to a school that doesn't understand her. At all. Except for the one guy who shouldn't get her, but does....

Ryan Stone is the town golden boy, a popular baseball star jock-with secrets he can't tell anyone. Not even the friends he shares everything with, including the constant dares to do crazy things. The craziest? Asking out the Skater girl who couldn't be less interested in him.

But what begins as a dare becomes an intense attraction neither Ryan nor Beth expected. Suddenly, the boy with the flawless image risks his dreams-and his life-for the girl he loves, and the girl who won't let anyone get too close is daring herself to want it all....

MY REVIEW:

Daring games taken to a whole new level. ROMANCE level that is. *swooning* Why...oh, why. Can I just kick Beth to the curb and take Ryan for myself?

I absolutely LOVED this book. The way Ryan doesn't give up on Beth and tries his damndest to make her feel loved and open her up, not just to him, but to herself as well is so damned cute! *sigh* where's my Ryan Stone? Baseball player? HELLO?!? HAWT! I will admit one of the things I wasn't hot about, was the fact that it took Beth forever to finally understand, but, hey, character building right? I guess I just wanted a fast HEA. But, then again, I'm a very impatient person.

The little cutsie things that Ryan would do for Beth just had my heart MELTING!

(yes, I would totally over dramatize myself swooning like this)

ME! ME, ME, ME! Yeah, I totally replaced Beth in those, it's-so-fluffy-I-could-DIE moments, while reading this book. KMcGarry definitely knows how to put a big ol' cheesy grin on your face. You know, those grins where you get an unexpected text/call from your boo thang/honey bee/role playing master and you just can't help but smile. Yepp, those. And not just those either. KMcGarry also has you wiping tears from your eyes with the heartbreaking moments in this book as well. WOW. Talk about an emotional roller-coaster. Not in the wow-fuck-me-this-book-was-horrendous, but in the omfg-that-roller-coaster-was-the-BOMB-I'm-getting-on-it-again. Or in this case, totally reading it again ;)

I kinda liked the fact that although Beth had her major issues, so did Ryan. With his ever perfect parents wanting him to do what they want him to do, and him going against the grain and pushing them to their limits had me enjoying the book that much more. I felt sorry for both characters, yeah, Beth has it bad, with her drug addict mom who is stuck with an abusive boyfriend, but in Ryan's world, his problems are big too. What he wants to do with his life and who he wants in his life is his decision not his parents.

From Pushing the Limits to Dare You To, KMcGarry definitely knows what she's doing. Delivering a book that will keep you up well past dawn, hooked on the boiling romance that is building between Beth and Ryan. Katie McGarry gives you another full blown teen drama, filled with indecision, hurt, acceptance and love. If you're into new adult novels, then definitely pick up Dare You To and if you haven't read this series before, go ahead and pick up the first book in the series: Pushing the Limits. 

Click HERE for my review of PUSHING THE LIMITS (Book #1 in the Pushing the Limits series)

MY RATING:

Random Ramblings: Currently Reading #3

Random Ramblings: Currently Reading is a weekly meme hosted by Neyra @ Darkest Addictions Book Reviews every Monday. It's where you talk about the book(s) you are currently reading for the week and whether or not you're enjoying it, how you heard of it, and who recommended it to you.

I'm currently reading One Breath Away by Heather Gudenkauf

One Breath Away: I am about 45% through this book and I absolutely love it. To be completely honest, I loved this book right from the start! The very first chapter. *sigh* Unfortunately, I'm not able to finish this book all in one sitting. Don't get me wrong, it's a great book & I highly recommend it, but it's so sad. I can't help but get goosebumps or start tearing up every other chapter. Which then causes me to sit the book down and pick up another so that I'm not in total meltdown mode just crying my eyes out. Seriously.. this is me every other chapter ....

                       
Too, too, too, TOO much... Which is why I have been reading this book for over a week now. I'll finish it eventually. Just at a really slow pace.

Okay, I know this isn't part of this post... but I just had to share it with you! Any Pushing the Limits fans out there? Come on.. I know you are!! Soooo.. I was on Twitter (yeah.. big whoop, I'm always on Twitter) and guess who was tweeting away?? Have you guessed? Do you give up? Okay.. okay.. here's who was tweeting away!!

Tell me you're fangirling? cause I know I am ^_^ I will unravel him.... very slowly ;)

haha.. I just had to throw this tweet up there too.. xD

ARC Review: Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry

*Received Through NetGalley*

Pushing the Limits

Amazon | GoodReads | B&N

Author: Katie McGarry

Publisher: Harlequin Teen

Publish Date: July 31, 2012

Genre: YA, Contemporary Romance, 416 pages
ISBN-10: 0373210493
ISBN-13: 978-0373210497

*This book is part of my NetGalley/Edelweiss KO Challenge for Aug.*
                        

SUMMARY:

 No one knows what happened the night Echo Emerson went from popular girl with jock boyfriend to gossiped-about outsider with "freaky" scars on her arms. Even Echo can't remember the whole truth of that horrible night. All she knows is that she wants everything to go back to normal.

But when Noah Hutchins, the smoking-hot, girl-using loner in the black leather jacket, explodes into her life with his tough attitude and surprising understanding, Echo's world shifts in ways she could never have imagined. They should have nothing in common. And with the secrets they both keep, being together is pretty much impossible.
Yet the crazy attraction between them refuses to go away. And Echo has to ask herself just how far they can push the limits and what she'll risk for the one guy who might teach her how to love again.

MY REVIEW:

Having been through a traumatic event in her life, Echo finds herself wanting to know what happened that night she ended up in the hospital, fighting for her life. What she wants? To be normal again. And she isn't finding normal going back to her douche ex boyfriend, nope, not that dumb jock. But bad-boy Noah Hutchins, leather jacket wearing, weed smoking, butterfly pterodactyls making boy whom Echo finds total and utter peace with. But Echo isn't the only one with problems, no siree. Noah Hutchins used to be that all star kid with popularity running through his veins, up until losing both his parents in a fire and placed into foster care. Noah finds himself jumping from foster home to foster home, losing himself with each passing day. The only thing making him try? His brothers... and Echo.

I absolutely loved this book. It kept me turning the page in anticipation. Gahh. If Noah Hutchins was real... and a bit older, I would be all over that and STAT! Noah Hutchins is a bad boy with a heart of gold. Slacker ways but the most beautiful brown eyes that show the most caring you'll ever need! *sigh* I'm telling you.. sigh now, and prepare to do a lot more sighing when you read this book! Noah Hutchins will pull at your heartstrings ladies! We're first introduced to Echo in the beginning of the book, talking with her counselor/therapist/psycho driver and afterwards runs into Noah, whom exudes badass with ease. I found Echo to be really weak. I understand she's been through some shit and has lost nearly everything in her life, but my gaaawd! Grow a back bone! She practically let herself be talked into certain situations where a simple "no" would have sufficed. But, no. Because she's the victim and will forever play the victim, she'll lay down and play dead when you tell her to. Her friends? What friends? Don't even wanna walk down that alley. I loved this book, but the characters drove me nuts! Which then made me love the book even more. But seriously? The adults in this book needed some major smacking around a time or two. 

What I liked about this book was that it was really easy to read. Aside from the heart-wrenching moments and the sighing (YES, MORE SIGHING!!), Ms. McGarry really knew how to draw you in AND keep you in. Yeah, I disliked the adults with a passion. Yeah, I wanted to throw a fit and smack some sense into some of the characters. BUT, I wouldn't change a thing about this book. The character speak to you, the words practically pop out and paint a vivid image for you, making you want to reach in and do a lot of cooing and cuddling to ease the pain going on. What I didn't like... well, this should be obvious. THE ADULTS. Seriously, not adults at all. I'm not even going to go into more detail with that one. 

I would definitely recommend this book. It's heart-wrenching and totally throws some perspective in your eyes. If you don't mind a few of your heartstrings being plucked at, or keeping a box of tissues by you, then by all means, go out and get this book! You wont regret it.

MY RATING: