Review: Take Me On (Pushing the Limits #4) by Katie McGarry

Acclaimed author Katie McGarry returns with the knockout new story of two high school seniors who are about to learn what winning really means.

Champion kickboxer Haley swore she'd never set foot in the ring again after one tragic night. But then the guy she can't stop thinking about accepts a mixed martial arts fight in her honor. Suddenly, Haley has to train West Young. All attitude, West is everything Haley promised herself she'd stay away from. Yet he won't last five seconds in the ring without her help.

West is keeping a big secret from Haley. About who he really is. But helping her-fighting for her-is a shot at redemption. Especially since it's his fault his family is falling apart. He can't change the past, but maybe he can change Haley's future.

Hayley and West have agreed to keep their relationship strictly in the ring. But as an unexpected bond forms between them and attraction mocks their best intentions, they'll face their darkest fears and discover love is worth fighting for.

I'll try to write a decent review, it's just that there are so many feelings inside of me after finishing this and I'm not sure how to put it all down in words. With each book Katie McGarry just gets better and better. Isaiah is still my favourite, but West definitely gave him a run for his money.

Take Me On starts right about where Crash Into You ended, so it is best to read that book first before you start reading this one. Now West didn't make the greatest impression and honestly I thought he was a complete idiot for doing what he did. Getting to see things from his perspective, certainly opened my eyes more. The guilt he feels for what happened to his sister is nearly consuming him, adding the once again disapproval of his father and blame from him, I can get why the guy is so hotwired. After getting kicked out of school, things only get worse.

It does really seem that whatever he touches, turns toxic. When he meets Haley, by what he thought was helping her escape from two crooks, he only gets her into more trouble. West thinks he is doing a noble thing by accepting a fight to defend her honour, while Haley just thinks the whole thing is ridiculous. She doesn't understand why anyone would do such a foolish thing. It is up to West to prove she is worth fighting for.

Since Haley is a former champion kickboxer, though she gave up fighting after a really bad breakup and some wrong choices she made. Now she is forced to help West not get killed inside the ring. She can not fight in his place, there is no way she is doing that. Though she can not just leave West's survival to fate. Let's make it very clear that Haley is in no way liking this entire situation and West. She actually sees him as the bringer of trouble. Spending all that time together training though, they get to know each other better and Haley might realize there is definitely more than meets the eye.

Like I said this book brings up so many emotions and feelings, it's definitely a roller coaster. There were moments I wanted to scream at the characters, the decisions they make are not always the best and usually lands them into more trouble. I just get swallowed into the story, not coming up for air until I finished that last page. Afterwards I felt good, not happy, as in I needed a moment to recover. Some people have a way with words that leaves others without words.

4.5

Pushing The Limits - Reading order and purchase links

    

Pushing The Limits: Amazon - Kindle

Crossing The Line: Kindle

Dare You To: My review - Amazon - Kindle

  

Crash Into You: My review - Amazon - Kindle

Take Me On: Amazon - Kindle

The Author

KATIE MCGARRY was a teenager during the age of grunge and boy bands and remembers those years as the best and worst of her life. She is a lover of music, happy endings, and reality television, and is a secret University of Kentucky basketball fan.

Connect with Katie McGarry:

Website - Facebook - Twitter - Goodreads

Review, Excerpt & Giveaway: Storm Warning (Broken Heartland #1) by E. Lee & C. Quinn

C. Quinn and E. Lee's amazing new novel in their Broken Heartland Series, STORM WARNING, is out today and we are excited to join in the release day launch for it. STORM WARNING is a thrilling Young Adult Contemporary you are not going to want to miss! Check out what we have for you today and then enter to win in the release day launch giveaway! There's also a fantastic excerpt for you. But be aware! The Storm Is Coming...

Synopsis

Sometimes you don’t see the storm coming until it’s too late...

Severe Storm Warning Tip #1:

Be alert to changing weather conditions. Look for approaching storms.

Severe Storm Warning Tip #2:

If you see approaching storms or any of the danger signs, be prepared to take shelter immediately.

Severe Storm Warning Tip #3:

They may strike quickly, with little or no warning.

Situated just outside of Oklahoma City, Calumet County is divided into two drastically different communities: Hope’s Grove and Summit Bluffs. One is the small backward town where dirt roads lead the way to field parties and railroad tracks. And the other, a sprawling suburb where paved drives lead to the landscaped lawns of the wealthy and privileged.

For five teenagers smack in the middle of Tornado Alley, summer is heating up fast. The winds of change are blurring the invisible line that divides the rich and the rural.

One has a secret.

One has a crush.

One has been lying.

One will get caught.

And one might not make it out alive.

They’re from two different worlds…but one summer is about to change everything.

Review:

With this one I really can't say much about the story, because that would just ruin all the surprises. I know the synopsis doesn't give that much away, but I was glad I didn't have more to go on and that my interest in the story wasn't influenced by possible spoilers.

What I can say is that it is told from five(!) different POV, which was a first for me and I really liked it. It always improves your understanding of a character and keeps it more interesting. Also after I've finished it, I still don't know who is who from the synopsis. One has a secret, one has a crush etc., while reading those all seems to blur together.

It's a summer of changes for our five characters and they all will have become different persons by the time the storm has subsided. I really like that analogy with the storm as in first the Summer starts of with a big bang for them and then everything slowly grows, without them realising, until it all explodes. Then what comes after the storm and Summer, prepare yourself for a major cliffhanger that will leave you craving for more. 

This might be the first time I have no idea what is going to happen. I keep expecting pages to appear after the last chapter, because in no way is this story done. Everything is up in the air and you have no way of knowing where things are going to land or if they are even going to be touching the ground again. 

E. Lee and C.M. Quinn have done an excellent thing of taking something that has been done before (boy and girl from different sides of the track, put them together, result is lots of love and drama) and turning it into something fresh and exciting. The fact that you have five main characters, then some crazy turns in who ends up with who, heartbreaks, lies, love and unexpected changes, that all will make sure you get a story you won't forget. 

Excerpt:

Hope’s Grove was small. Everyone knew about her parents, and she was already dreading facing them since the news of her dad’s affair had hit. But facing them without her brother and her best friend would be her worst nightmare. 

After the girls had said their goodbyes and she’d watched her friend’s taillights fade down the drive, Ella Jane scuffed her boots along the winding dirt road that led her home.

She was about halfway there, watching the sun sink low in the evening sky, when the unmistakable rumble of a pickup truck came barreling down the road behind her. She stepped aside to let it pass without looking back. But it didn’t pass. It slowed practically to a stop right next her.

She turned, wondering what the heck the driver’s deal was. There was more than enough room for him to go around. But the smiling face beneath the backwards trucker hat sent the words on the tip of her tongue swirling away with the dust the truck had riled up.

She bit her lip and grinned. Warm brown eyes gleamed in her direction. “Hey there, Ellie May. Need a ride?”

She rolled her eyes. Why Brantley Cooper couldn’t call her by her actual name was beyond her. But as long as he was talking to her, she really didn’t care much what he called her. He can call me ‘flower’ if he wants to.

He was a year older than her and a year younger than her older brother, Kyle. Smack in the middle of their ages and grades in school and usually smack in the middle of their arguments. Coop kept the peace. Balanced them out perfectly. 

The three of them had met at the same time as kids but Coop and Kyle had become like brothers instantly. She’d always tagged along wherever they went. Kyle had whined about it when they were younger but Coop always made her feel welcome. He held doors open for her so she didn’t get left behind, made sure to invite her despite her brother’s protests, and lately he’d even stopped by and hung out even when Kyle wasn’t home. And this year, she’d be a junior and Coop would be a senior. With her big brother away at college, she couldn’t help but fantasize about what might happen if she and Coop spent time together alone. 

“Hey, Coop. Lynlee just left so I was just…” She glanced toward home. Kyle wasn’t back from football camp yet, and her mom was baking herself to death, trying to keep her mind off of everything.

“Yeah, I heard the Wicked Witch was moving west. You up for some fishing? I have to drop my bike off at the house but we could swing by the lake after.”

She should get home. She knew she should. Should order a pizza and convince her mom to take it easy for a night. Except…it was Coop. And in all her sixteen years, he was the one boy she’d never been able to say no to.

“Yeah. Yeah I’m up for it.”

About C. Quinn and E. Lee:

Whether you believe in destiny, divine intervention, or just plain ol' dumb luck, several things happened in 2013 that caused E. Lee and C. Quinn's paths to cross. It may have been that the stars aligned perfectly, or the fact anytime Luke Bryan was mentioned on a social media site both of them were tagged, or maybe it was just that their small town roots and country girl attitudes were magnetically drawn together—calling out to one another, “Y'all should write a book!” Despite geography keeping them apart—Lee in Illinois and Quinn in Alabama—they did. Thanks to three-hour phone calls, ridiculous amounts of online chats, and umpteen Google Docs—Storm Warning is the first book in their edgy new Young Adult series, Broken Heartland.

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

I was so excited it go to read this. It has been on my TBR pile since Dare You To came out and the wait was definitely worth it.

From acclaimed author Katie McGarry comes an explosive new tale of a good girl with a reckless streak, a street-smart guy with nothing to lose, and a romance forged in the fast lane.

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.

Review:

To say I loved it, is putting it mildly. I absolutely freaking adore it, it is total awesomeness, smashingly amazing and I need way more adjectives to describe how it good it just was! I mean I really liked the previous books, but this is one is just more.

After Beth broke Isaiah's heart, he's ready to focus on new things like graduating and getting a job that pays well. Like Noah promised, they are currently living together, while Echo is staying at the dorms at college. Since Isaiah is no longer living with his foster parents, he has to come up with money to pay the rent and lately business has been slow at the garage. Feeling the desperation Isaiah is going to do the one thing he has promised he would never do, street race. Which means having to make a deal with Eric.

Now what he didn't expect was running into this straight-laced princess from the other side of town. Rachel is so out of place and everyone knows it. Strangely Isaiah feels protective over her, but with everyone watching there is nothing he can do. Then something happens (can't spoil it) and somehow they end up saving each other.

There is one thing about Isaiah and that is he owes nobody nothing. So when this princess or as he calls her, angel, does the unthinkable and helps him, she becomes a debt he has to repay. Forced together through circumstances, they will need to rely even more on each other if they want to make it out alive.

When they first meet they are just drawn together. They are pretty much opposites on every level. Rachel is so naive and sheltered. She has these awful panic attacks, which stem of the fear of getting too much attention. This can either be from a crowd or one person. The terror she sometimes goes through is not rational and is frightening just reading about it.

So the perfect princess isn't as perfect as she seems. She might even be more screwed up in the head than Isaiah. I mean the guy's got issues, but this girl might trump them all. I really like that contradiction. Also because she was so sheltered, she gets excited really fast. Like holding a guy's hand and she's pretty much freaking out and grinning like crazy. I get why that innocence is so attractive for Isaiah.

Isaiah, you have got to love the guy. When it comes to it, there is really no bad bone in his body. Don't get me wrong, the guy will protect what is his and when he makes a promise he will do whatever is necessary. Still in this story you get to see another side of him that wasn't really obvious in the previous books, as it took me by surprise. He really is a man of his word.

Ever since Isaiah and Rachel have been thrown together, there is this connection. Isaiah is afraid of it, because he believes Rachel is so pure and good. Still everyone knows that denying attraction is just putting out the inevitable. There wasn't that much steamy scenes like in the other books, but that just made the moments in Crash Into You so much more intimate and sweeter.

It's not easy whatever is going on between them. This time Isaiah is not really the one that needs help, but Rachel does. They both have a bit of a stubborn streak going on and once in a while that clashes big. Mostly the part where Isaiah is used to taking care of everything and now that includes Rachel as well. While Rachel is getting to that point of wanting to break out of this bubble around her.

Great balance between the drama, action, tender moments and real life. That is one of the things I love the most, how realistic everything is. From the characters to the settings to the story line, everything is well thought out and written. Isaiah and Rachel really took me by surprise in this book. They are honestly my favourite couple in the series so far. I will definitely be recommending this book and re-reading it a couple of times. Did I say how much I liked Isaiah already?

I have highlighted half this book, so I thought to share a couple of quotes with you.

Rachel

"I hate this illness. I hate it in the way that it makes my blood run cold and my muscles heavy with rage."

"I know that when I'm with you I like who I am, and that's never happened to me before."

"Isaiah is hot and scary and hot."

"What would I do if he kissed me? Go into shock? Have multiple seizures? Jump up and down?"

Isaiah

"My goal in life is to be free of everyone."

"God does exist and he sent me an angel in a white Mustang to prove it."

"My eyes dart around her face hoping to see some sort of sign that what I said mattered. That I matter."

"I'm protecting her because that's what you do when you love someone. It's what I always wanted someone to do for me."

Connect with Katie McGarry:

Website - Facebook - Twitter - Goodreads

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Review: Dare You To (Pushing the Limits #2) by Katie McGarry

*I received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review*

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....

Review:
We've met Beth in Pushing The Limits and even though the story wasn't about her, she really knows how to get noticed. In the beginning not much has changed about her situation. She's still living at her aunt's and hanging out with Noah and Isaiah.

The story starts off with her mother getting Beth into trouble. Once again I can't help but loath her mom. Some of the things that woman has done to her child are unbelievable. Beth's life is geting screwed up because of her mom and Beth never dares to give up on her. This all makes me just so sad, mad and frustrated.

With the latest alteration Beth has to go live with her uncle, whom only recently returned. Leaving her friends behind and starting a new school, Beth is not happy and it's something everyone will know and feel.

Ryan's situation is almost the opposite of Beth's. He's the high school's golden boy, gets good grades, great baseball player and until recently part of a happy family. When he first met Beth it was on dare, which you know will come bite him in the ass later. Now she's at his school and he can't get her out of his mind. Beth is different, refreshing and slowly he falls for her.

Beth isn't so easily convinced. Boys like him don't fall for girls like her and no matter how much he proves his feelings are real, she will not believe him. Time after time she keeps pushing him away. Beth keeps holding on to her anger and the feeling of betrayal. If she lets nobody get close, then they can't hurt her.

Living with her uncle has given her a chance to get her life back in order, a chance to start over, but Beth refuses to even try. This part really was the most frustrating, her endless stubbornness.

I really liked Ryan, the guy has some original romantic moves to win Beth over. Now he may be the golden boy, but his life is far from perfect. His dad is always pushing him, his brother is no longer welcome in their house and he's being pressured from all sides; friends, teachers and even Beth.

Somehow these two shouldn't work together, but they do. Dare You To was very well written. There were a lot of parts I wanted to scream at Beth, I was so caught up in the story. It's a beautiful story of personal growth, letting go of things that hold you back and daring to open up and give love a chance.

Connect with Katie McGarry:

Website - Facebook - Twitter - Goodreads

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