Review ~ Walk the Edge (Thunder Road, #2) by Katie McGarry

eARC received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Release Date: March 10th 2016

Publisher: MIRA Ink (Harlequin UK)

Description:
One moment of recklessness will change their worlds.

Smart. Responsible. That's seventeen-year-old Breanna's role in her large family, and heaven forbid she put a toe out of line. Until one night of shockingly un-Breanna-like behavior puts her into a vicious cyber-bully's line of fire—and brings fellow senior Thomas "Razor" Turner into her life. 

Razor lives for the Reign of Terror motorcycle club, and good girls like Breanna just don't belong. But when he learns she's being blackmailed over a compromising picture of the two of them—a picture that turns one unexpected and beautiful moment into ugliness—he knows it's time to step outside the rules. 

And so they make a pact: he'll help her track down her blackmailer, and in return she'll help him seek answers to the mystery that's haunted him—one that not even his club brothers have been willing to discuss. But the more time they spend together, the more their feelings grow. And suddenly they're both walking the edge of discovering who they really are, what they want, and where they're going from here.

My Opinion

I was hesitant to request this. While I enjoyed book 1, I did struggle with a few things and I wondered if these problems would carry over to Walk The Edge. However, I enjoyed Razor's story a lot more and found Walk The Edge hard to put down.

This book did have a slow build for me, but once Breanna and Razor started interacting it became more interesting. I liked how Razor was the rebel of the club. It meant there weren't so many rules or club business sections. Sure, they were always there but Razor was fighting them and so it made for more interesting viewing.

I also liked how he treated Breanna. Deep down he was a good guy who'd had a hard childhood. I thought his growth was believable and that he developed and accepted his past well. Similarly, I could empathise with Breanna's fears of standing out and not wanting to be made fun of. She was a likeable character who slowly found her strength and I'm glad she did.

The only slightly downside is I did feel the ending left a little to be desired for. Although things work out, it's not in the way I hoped and for me it wasn't completely satisfying. It was enough, but there could have been more.


Overall, I'm glad I took a chance on this book and I'm intrigued to see Violet's story.

4

Review ~ Chasing Impossible (Pushing the Limits #5) by Katie McGarry

ebook received via NetGalley in exchange for pre-ordering Thunder Road

Description:

Tough and independent, 17-year-old Abby lets very few people into her inner circle. It’s common knowledge in her Kentucky town that she deals drugs, but not even her closest friends know why. But when a deal goes south and Abby’s suddenly in danger, she finds herself reluctantly forced to lean on daredevil Logan—a boy whose restless spirit matches her own.

Logan has his own reasons for wanting to keep Abby at arms’ length. But he never expected to find in her the one person who might help him face the demons he’s tried so hard to run from.

Together, Abby and Logan will have to make a decision: let their current circumstances weigh them down forever…or fight for the future they both thought was impossible.

My Opinion

I'm so glad I was able to get a copy of this. I adore Katie McGarry's Pushing the Limits series and I'm glad Abby has finally got her own book. She's always been an interesting character and she remained that way in Chasing Impossible.

I'm not going to say much more about this because it is not available to the general public yet. Therefore if you don't get a copy during the pre-order of this author's latest book you won't be able to. I hope the publisher releases this at some point though. Abby deserves to have her story shared and it was a sweet read about two characters overcoming and accepting their flaws.

4

ARC Review ~ Crash into You (Pushing the Limits #3) by Katie McGarry

eARC received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Release Date: 26th November 2013

Publisher: Harlequin Teen (MIRA Ink)

Description:
The girl with straight As, designer clothes and the perfect life-that's who people expect Rachel Young to be. So the private-school junior keeps secrets from her wealthy parents and overbearing brothers...and she's just added two more to the list. One involves racing strangers down dark country roads in her Mustang GT. The other? Seventeen-year-old Isaiah Walker-a guy she has no business even talking to. But when the foster kid with the tattoos and intense gray eyes comes to her rescue, she can't get him out of her mind.

Isaiah has secrets, too. About where he lives, and how he really feels about Rachel. The last thing he needs is to get tangled up with a rich girl who wants to slum it on the south side for kicks-no matter how angelic she might look.

But when their shared love of street racing puts both their lives in jeopardy, they have six weeks to come up with a way out. Six weeks to discover just how far they'll go to save each other.

My Opinion

I was highly anticipating this book since I finished Dare You To so I couldn't wait to read it when it showed up on NetGalley. This book has everything I have come to expect from Katie McGarry and it definitely didn't disappoint.

Crash into You was an excitingly good read. I will admit it took me a few chapters to get into as I was slightly confused as to who Rachel and all her brothers were. Then when the book switched point of view I was trying remember who Isaiah was from Dare You To. It took me until about chapter 4 to get into the book but after that it kept me hooked all the way to the end.

After my initial confusion about Rachel was cleared up, the book moved at a fast pace and I loved the plot. The author had clearly done her research with the car aspect of the novel and I thought it was original how the girl took was the one to like speed and racing. In fact, I liked the whole theme of the cars, drag racing and mechanics - it was a nice change from the typical rich-girl-attitude. One thing I loved was the element of danger the cars brought to the book but also how they were used as a coping and escape mechanism for the characters, for me it was believable.

As well as this I enjoyed the romance part of the book. I think I enjoyed the concept of Dare You Too more (daring each other to do things) but Rachel and Isaiah were still great to read about and watch develop. I think Isaiah character was created brilliantly with just the right amount of protectiveness and love for Rachel. He didn't come across as overpowering which was great as it meant I could actually like him - there's nothing worse than an overprotective, possessive guy to ruin a story. The moments between the two were sweet and had ome funny moments. Some of it may have not been too realistic but I don't care, I was engaged by the romance and wanted things to end happily.

The only negative I have about this book is Rachel's character sometimes. I loved it when she was with Isaiah as she became this strong, confident female lead, however when she was on her own or with her brothers for me her emotions seemed to drag on a bit and she became whiny and self-deprecating. I could understand why due to her family situation and I liked how she grew out of it slowly but I would rather her have been strong throughout the entire book.

Overall I really enjoyed Crash into You. It was fast-paced, exciting and thrilling read that I couldn't put down. I love Kaite McGarry's writing and although I'm not sure what she's going to do for West's story in the next book I will be looking forward to it. I would highly recommend this series!

Review ~ Dare You To (Pushing the Limits #2) - Katie McGarry

eARC received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Release Date: 7th June 2013

Publisher: Harlequin (Mira Ink)

Description: 

Ryan lowers his lips to my ear. "Dance with me, Beth."

"No." I whisper the reply. I hate him and I hate myself for wanting him to touch me again....

"I dare you..."
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 Opinion

So I'm not usually a fan of books like this. I mean ones that are full of real life problems and situations such as drugs, domestic violence, alcohol dependency etc. Normally I find them irritating and too depressing however Dare You To was written beautifully, tackling these issues in a sensitive manner and kept me hooked all the way through. The only reason I was forced to put it down was I needed to sleep and even then I found myself reading an extra few chapters in bed. 

Written from alternate POV the book allows you to see into both Beth and Ryan's lives which I loved as it gave an overall perspective rather than just one. As well as this in my opinion it lightened the situation as rather than dealing with all of Beth's problems continuously, Ryan's POV - although he had his own issues - split the writing up as they were mild compared to Beth's. The switch in POV was crafted brilliantly and the book flowed seamlessly. When the characters were together I loved hearing both sides of their thoughts on issues and their romance. 

With a strong message of love and hope the romance created built nicely and as it developed we saw Beth's stubborn, strong and fiery personality slowly crumble around Ryan as she begins to trust him. Although this fluctuates and she is back to the 'old' Beth in a flash the brief glimpse of the 'real' Beth were interesting to read about and really helped me connect with the her. Although her fiery temper at some points was quite funny e.g when Ryan tries to get her number or she is deliberately trying to aggrivate someone there is a darker side that cause her to build walls and live by her belief "If I don't feel, I don't get hurt." and it's not until Ryan helps her does she start to believe in herself.

Ryan was the sweet, perfect jock and although his life seemed perfect on the outside it was far from it when you delve deeper into his family life. With his gay brother Mark being ousted from his family by his dad, Ryan's family is falling apart and although all this is happening to him I love how he was always there for Beth, even when she wasn't for him. Unlike books I have read previously, Ryan wasn't an ass. Yes he is popular and well liked but I liked the way he wasn't surrounded by girls and people wanting to be like him. He had his few close friends, which had believable relationships, and besides that not many others existed in his school. I liked that he was loyal to his group and one they could depend on but also that he didn't take advantage of girls. It was a nice change.

I think the aspect of this book I liked most were the dares. It was an original idea and I loved how the guys would try to out-do each other and later stretching out to the girls. It made everything a challenge and with Ryan's 'I never lose' attitude it gave the book a bit of lightheartedness among the angst in their world. Although the ending was pretty predictable - the title kind of gives it away as well - I still found myself smiling when Beth says the words.

Over all this is a gripping book that deals with sensitive issues well. The characters are believable, relatable and rather than whine about their situations they are strong and determined which was great as you respect them. I love the romance and how it develops and I would strongly recommend this book to any romance/contemporary lovers. I guarantee you will not be able to put it down!