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A review by eliesa
Dare You To by Katie McGarry
5.0
It’s been two years since I read Dare You To, so bear with me if this review isn’t top notch
Let’s go!
Dare you to is the second book in the pushing the limits series. The thing is, Katie, the author, writes about different characters in each book of this series. First book was about Noah and Echo, and now it’s about Noah’s best friend Beth and also Ryan, a guy who hasn’t been in the previous book. Book #3 is about Noahs and Beths best friend Isaiah plus a unknown girl. You see my point?
This is something I did not know when I finished pushing the limits, I was expecting the second book to also be about Echo and Noah. Characters I really grew to love in the first book. So when a friend told me where Katie was going with this series, I was like:
Whaat..?
And since I was nowhere in hell ready to give up on Noah and Echo I was all:
It didn’t make it easier when I heard that it was going to be about Beth.. BETH! The whiny, emo wannabe in pushing the limits who kept on being this annoying bitch to both Noah and Echo. I begged the book gods to make Katie write another book about Noah and Echo (which she later on did.. but that’s another review) but with no luck. You could say I was about 110% done with this series when something happened…
The cover was released, which made 15 year old me all:
This made me frustrated. The synopsis? Good. The cover? Even better. So why was I frustrated? Beth.. God, I remember how strongly I disliked Beth but I came to the conclusion that I needed to read it to get to know her. Give her a chance and learn her story. So I did. As soon as the book came out I walked into that bookstore with only one mission in mind. Get. The. Book.
I started reading DYT the same day I bought it. And you know what? I didn’t stop until I finished it. Which meant, I read until 6 am, slept for two hours and got up looking like this:
Let’s just say “I woke up like this” got a new meaning and it’s not the flattering one Beyonce is talking about..
That wasn’t even the worst part! The worst part was trying to shut my brother up who wanted to tell my mother what I’d been up to all night… Snitch…
So during breakfast I was all:
Hehe.. shut up or you will die brother *fake smile*
Anyway..
God, it was so worth it! The book was just.. WOW! Beth? Beth wasn’t even an issue! Well yeah she was in the beginning but then as the book went on I saw a side of Beth that I did not know existed. She’s BADASS!! The tough girl that no one messes with. Wish I was like that.. But on the inside Beth is.. well on the inside Beth has a war going on. She has had a hard life trying to protect her mom. A messed up drug addict who has never been there for Beth. She’s done nothing but make her life a living hell. Living with her boyfriend who absolutely LOVED to hit her and would more than gladly hit Beth too if the chance was given. Beth was full of fear, loyalty and low self-respect resulting in a girl with an attitude I’d like to slap. But still, I’d like to applaud Beth for being so strong
But what happens, you might ask. Well, when an altercation ends in Beth taking the fall for her mother with the law, Beth ends up in her Uncle Scott’s custody. Beth hasn’t seen Scott in years since he left Beth and she does not welcome his return. She has nothing but resentment and anger at him for abandoning her to the hell her life has become. But as usual, things do not go as we want so Beth moves in with Uncle Scott who’s rich and lives a life Beth hasn’t even dreamt of. Obviously, she hates it there. She’s still forced to go to school though which is where she meets Ryan for the second time.
Ahh.. Ryan..
I should be honest – I wasn’t sure about Ryan to begin with. I’m into bad boys. You know, like Daemon Black from the lux series or Noah from Pushing the limits (I LOVE THEM SO MUCH) but I think that in a world full of bad boys, a good guy was more than needed. Still, there is a lot more to him than what’s on the outside. Even though his life seems perfect, on the inside everything is falling apart. His father is constantly pressuring him. Nothing matters except baseball. Nothing. Ryan is a great pitcher, the best. But that is not the only thing he excels at. He is also a fantastic writer. Good enough to final in the state competition. But if it interferes with baseball, his father won’t let him do it. Not only that Ryans free will is taken away by his own father, his family is a wreck too. His parents only talk when there are other people around and he has a brother that no one talks about since the day he said something that could (according to Ryans father) ruin the family’s reputation.
Not the healthiest family..
As you can already guess, Beth and Ryan fall for each other. It happens slowly yet fast. It’s hard for them to be together, yet so easy. They are each others opposites. Simply a perfect match.
Do I love how Beth and Ryan bring the best out of each other?
Yeah...
But why did I give it a 5 och of 5? Even though it doesn’t seem that way, Dare You To is dark. It tackles subjects that are sadly common between some teenagers. Heck, at some points Beth is suicidal. Getting so high just to numb everything. This shows that this book isn’t just a boy meets girl and everything is about the two of them kind of book. No, this is so much more than that. You can read about real and raw emotions people every age is feeling. It puts you in a position that makes you uncomfortable but still opens up your eyes to what some people are going through. Everything is not sunshine and rainbows in this world. It’s time everyone becomes aware of that. That is why I love this book so much. It makes you aware of that.
So ladies and gentlemen
YOU HAVE BEEN DARED to read Dare You to by Katie McGarry
Let’s go!
Dare you to is the second book in the pushing the limits series. The thing is, Katie, the author, writes about different characters in each book of this series. First book was about Noah and Echo, and now it’s about Noah’s best friend Beth and also Ryan, a guy who hasn’t been in the previous book. Book #3 is about Noahs and Beths best friend Isaiah plus a unknown girl. You see my point?
This is something I did not know when I finished pushing the limits, I was expecting the second book to also be about Echo and Noah. Characters I really grew to love in the first book. So when a friend told me where Katie was going with this series, I was like:
Whaat..?
And since I was nowhere in hell ready to give up on Noah and Echo I was all:
It didn’t make it easier when I heard that it was going to be about Beth.. BETH! The whiny, emo wannabe in pushing the limits who kept on being this annoying bitch to both Noah and Echo. I begged the book gods to make Katie write another book about Noah and Echo (which she later on did.. but that’s another review) but with no luck. You could say I was about 110% done with this series when something happened…
The cover was released, which made 15 year old me all:
This made me frustrated. The synopsis? Good. The cover? Even better. So why was I frustrated? Beth.. God, I remember how strongly I disliked Beth but I came to the conclusion that I needed to read it to get to know her. Give her a chance and learn her story. So I did. As soon as the book came out I walked into that bookstore with only one mission in mind. Get. The. Book.
I started reading DYT the same day I bought it. And you know what? I didn’t stop until I finished it. Which meant, I read until 6 am, slept for two hours and got up looking like this:
Let’s just say “I woke up like this” got a new meaning and it’s not the flattering one Beyonce is talking about..
That wasn’t even the worst part! The worst part was trying to shut my brother up who wanted to tell my mother what I’d been up to all night… Snitch…
So during breakfast I was all:
Hehe.. shut up or you will die brother *fake smile*
Anyway..
God, it was so worth it! The book was just.. WOW! Beth? Beth wasn’t even an issue! Well yeah she was in the beginning but then as the book went on I saw a side of Beth that I did not know existed. She’s BADASS!! The tough girl that no one messes with. Wish I was like that.. But on the inside Beth is.. well on the inside Beth has a war going on. She has had a hard life trying to protect her mom. A messed up drug addict who has never been there for Beth. She’s done nothing but make her life a living hell. Living with her boyfriend who absolutely LOVED to hit her and would more than gladly hit Beth too if the chance was given. Beth was full of fear, loyalty and low self-respect resulting in a girl with an attitude I’d like to slap. But still, I’d like to applaud Beth for being so strong
But what happens, you might ask. Well, when an altercation ends in Beth taking the fall for her mother with the law, Beth ends up in her Uncle Scott’s custody. Beth hasn’t seen Scott in years since he left Beth and she does not welcome his return. She has nothing but resentment and anger at him for abandoning her to the hell her life has become. But as usual, things do not go as we want so Beth moves in with Uncle Scott who’s rich and lives a life Beth hasn’t even dreamt of. Obviously, she hates it there. She’s still forced to go to school though which is where she meets Ryan for the second time.
Ahh.. Ryan..
I should be honest – I wasn’t sure about Ryan to begin with. I’m into bad boys. You know, like Daemon Black from the lux series or Noah from Pushing the limits (I LOVE THEM SO MUCH) but I think that in a world full of bad boys, a good guy was more than needed. Still, there is a lot more to him than what’s on the outside. Even though his life seems perfect, on the inside everything is falling apart. His father is constantly pressuring him. Nothing matters except baseball. Nothing. Ryan is a great pitcher, the best. But that is not the only thing he excels at. He is also a fantastic writer. Good enough to final in the state competition. But if it interferes with baseball, his father won’t let him do it. Not only that Ryans free will is taken away by his own father, his family is a wreck too. His parents only talk when there are other people around and he has a brother that no one talks about since the day he said something that could (according to Ryans father) ruin the family’s reputation.
Not the healthiest family..
As you can already guess, Beth and Ryan fall for each other. It happens slowly yet fast. It’s hard for them to be together, yet so easy. They are each others opposites. Simply a perfect match.
Do I love how Beth and Ryan bring the best out of each other?
Yeah...
But why did I give it a 5 och of 5? Even though it doesn’t seem that way, Dare You To is dark. It tackles subjects that are sadly common between some teenagers. Heck, at some points Beth is suicidal. Getting so high just to numb everything. This shows that this book isn’t just a boy meets girl and everything is about the two of them kind of book. No, this is so much more than that. You can read about real and raw emotions people every age is feeling. It puts you in a position that makes you uncomfortable but still opens up your eyes to what some people are going through. Everything is not sunshine and rainbows in this world. It’s time everyone becomes aware of that. That is why I love this book so much. It makes you aware of that.
So ladies and gentlemen
YOU HAVE BEEN DARED to read Dare You to by Katie McGarry