-Review- Pushing The Limits by Katie McGarry

Pushing The Limits by Katie McGarry
Release Date: 31 July 2012

Publisher: HarlequinTEEN

Age Group: Young Adult

Format: eGalley

Pages: 384

Purchase: Book Depository | Amazon

"I won't tell anyone, Echo. I promise." Noah tucked a curl behind my ear. It had been so long since someone touched me like he did. Why did it have to be Noah Hutchins? His dark brown eyes shifted to my covered arms. "You didn't do that-did you? It was done to you?" No one ever asked that question. They stared. They whispered. They laughed. But they never asked. So wrong for each other...and yet so right. 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.

 Pushing The Limits was an intense read that did not fail to let me down, it exceeded my expectations and interestingly enough surpassed them. At first I did not think that it would be as gripping as it was, but I was shocked to find that I couldn’t stop reading.

The story followed two broken teenagers and told each of their stories from separate points of view. Noah and Echo’s stories are intertwined and made this book so much fun to read, it was great seeing two people with problems become one and they could be themselves and didn’t have to present a perfect version of themselves to the other. McGarry’s writing made it clear that the character’s thought differently, her clever use of voice was well executed. I did sometimes find that Noah’s story got to be a bit boring, but kept reading.

Noah and Echo both went through a lot throughout the book, character development was definitely evident. It is not an easy thing to do—show how characters change, and McGarry did a great job at doing so in a paced and reasonable manner.

Echo and Noah were two characters that jumped off of the pages, they were damaged and were extremely relatable in some way. Each of the situations and stories were touching and heartbreaking.

I myself found that I could not pinpoint a villain in the story due to conflicting emotions, I think that readers can take away their own heroes and villains at the end of the book, I am still undecided. The outcome I had expected did not turn out to happen which was saddening and a surprise at the same time.

This book was great and I cannot wait for everyone else to read it so that I can discuss it with some of my fellow readers. Pushing The Limits is definitely a book you should add to your To Read piles!