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shrereads 's review for:
Dare You To
by Katie McGarry
*A copy was received for review purposes. Many thanks to NetGalley*
OK. I think I've developed an intense love for anything written by Katie McGarry. She has the ability to put so much raw emotion behind her writing that I can't help but want to outright fall into the crazy, heart-wrenching, and bittersweet worlds she creates and not come back out. I've read her first novel, Pushing the Limits, and was astounded, and now she's done it again with her spin-off novel. The thing I love most about McGarry's novels is that they bring in the dangerous reality of many other teens out in the world and don't sugarcoat it. Her characters have the little problems and the big problems and readers can definitely relate to them, especially young adult readers. And that's another thing, the fact that she does so well in capturing her targeted audience shows talent. Putting aside the characters, we have the romance. It's so hard to make a complicated romance and create one with enough emotion that even the readers have tears in their eyes and a rapid beat in their hearts. The love that McGarry creates is so heart-warming and real that you hope to find one like it for yourself in your life. I absolutely adore this woman's novels and hope that she keeps em' coming.
We read about the character Beth in Pushing the Limits, and are briefly introduced to the troubles in her family/home life. In this book, our main focus is on Beth and her struggle to fix her family as well as create a new life for herself with which she will finally be happy. Beth's a very hard-headed and tempered girl with more problems than she should have to deal with at her age. She is constantly taking care of her mother, instead of the other way around, and even has to deal with harsh abuse from her mother's boyfriend. She dreams of being able to escape with her mother from the tortured life she currently lives. When a life-changing incident occurs, she is taken away from her mother and placed in the custody of her Uncle Scott, a retired famous baseball player. She is given the choice of starting over and trying to behave in the new town or risk having her mother put in jail. At her new school, she meets old friends and new and even finds true love in the town's golden boy Ryan Stone. Eventually, their love together saves them both from the heart-breaking and terrible lives they have to live, and helps them become stronger, gain hope, and finally find joy in life.
I loved both the main characters and secondary characters that Katie McGarry has created. Beth's story was one that really broke my heart because of how she dealt with so much at such a young age. We think we have problems in our lives, yet we fail to realize that somewhere out in the world, there are people who have it much worse, like Beth. I truly admired the courage and determination she had when she kept on looking out for her mother through the thick and thin even though she didn't have to. And even when she moves to a new town to live with her posh uncle and go to some posh school, she doesn't lose her true self or forget about the life she left behind.
The reason why I likes Ryan's character so much is because he had problems that I could relate with on a personal level. He is constantly pressured by his parents to do well in school, well in sports, and have the best reputation he can in his town. A bad choice from him means a stain on his family's name, and his family can't have that. Ever since Ryan's brother Mark had left the family, his dad pushes him non-stop when it comes to baseball. Ryan loves baseball, but he also has other interests such as writing, and he wants to be able to make the best decisions for himself. The constant stress and pressure that is put on him by his parents and society is relatable.
The romance that is shared between Ryan and Beth is one that cannot fully be expressed with words. In each other, they found the strength and love needed to not give up their hopes and dreams and to fight for what they need. Although very complicated and sometimes heart-breaking, they pushed through the worse of it all, and came out victorious. To put it in simple terms, they make me swoon with delight.
All in all, Dare You To was an extremely addicting novel and I found wanting to know more about the lives of Beth and Ryan beyond this book. Everything was written to perfection; the characters, the emotions, the romance, the troubles, the plot...this book had it all. The only thing I can do now is die in anticipation of her next novel Crash Into You, which will be Isaiah's story. Can't wait!
OK. I think I've developed an intense love for anything written by Katie McGarry. She has the ability to put so much raw emotion behind her writing that I can't help but want to outright fall into the crazy, heart-wrenching, and bittersweet worlds she creates and not come back out. I've read her first novel, Pushing the Limits, and was astounded, and now she's done it again with her spin-off novel. The thing I love most about McGarry's novels is that they bring in the dangerous reality of many other teens out in the world and don't sugarcoat it. Her characters have the little problems and the big problems and readers can definitely relate to them, especially young adult readers. And that's another thing, the fact that she does so well in capturing her targeted audience shows talent. Putting aside the characters, we have the romance. It's so hard to make a complicated romance and create one with enough emotion that even the readers have tears in their eyes and a rapid beat in their hearts. The love that McGarry creates is so heart-warming and real that you hope to find one like it for yourself in your life. I absolutely adore this woman's novels and hope that she keeps em' coming.
We read about the character Beth in Pushing the Limits, and are briefly introduced to the troubles in her family/home life. In this book, our main focus is on Beth and her struggle to fix her family as well as create a new life for herself with which she will finally be happy. Beth's a very hard-headed and tempered girl with more problems than she should have to deal with at her age. She is constantly taking care of her mother, instead of the other way around, and even has to deal with harsh abuse from her mother's boyfriend. She dreams of being able to escape with her mother from the tortured life she currently lives. When a life-changing incident occurs, she is taken away from her mother and placed in the custody of her Uncle Scott, a retired famous baseball player. She is given the choice of starting over and trying to behave in the new town or risk having her mother put in jail. At her new school, she meets old friends and new and even finds true love in the town's golden boy Ryan Stone. Eventually, their love together saves them both from the heart-breaking and terrible lives they have to live, and helps them become stronger, gain hope, and finally find joy in life.
I loved both the main characters and secondary characters that Katie McGarry has created. Beth's story was one that really broke my heart because of how she dealt with so much at such a young age. We think we have problems in our lives, yet we fail to realize that somewhere out in the world, there are people who have it much worse, like Beth. I truly admired the courage and determination she had when she kept on looking out for her mother through the thick and thin even though she didn't have to. And even when she moves to a new town to live with her posh uncle and go to some posh school, she doesn't lose her true self or forget about the life she left behind.
The reason why I likes Ryan's character so much is because he had problems that I could relate with on a personal level. He is constantly pressured by his parents to do well in school, well in sports, and have the best reputation he can in his town. A bad choice from him means a stain on his family's name, and his family can't have that. Ever since Ryan's brother Mark had left the family, his dad pushes him non-stop when it comes to baseball. Ryan loves baseball, but he also has other interests such as writing, and he wants to be able to make the best decisions for himself. The constant stress and pressure that is put on him by his parents and society is relatable.
The romance that is shared between Ryan and Beth is one that cannot fully be expressed with words. In each other, they found the strength and love needed to not give up their hopes and dreams and to fight for what they need. Although very complicated and sometimes heart-breaking, they pushed through the worse of it all, and came out victorious. To put it in simple terms, they make me swoon with delight.
All in all, Dare You To was an extremely addicting novel and I found wanting to know more about the lives of Beth and Ryan beyond this book. Everything was written to perfection; the characters, the emotions, the romance, the troubles, the plot...this book had it all. The only thing I can do now is die in anticipation of her next novel Crash Into You, which will be Isaiah's story. Can't wait!