Review - Pushing the Limits

by Katie McGarry

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.


I'm fairly picky about which contemporary books I read. I'm more of a fantasy type of gal rather than contemporary, but I ended up really liking this book! I was in a reading slump after only reading one book last month. At the beginning of this month I picked up this book and it pulled me out of it.

Echo and Noah both have tough situations to deal with and they both have to struggle with events that have changed their lives forever. The pacing of this book worked really well for me. McGarry uncovers enough through the course of the book to keep you on the edge and interested so the plot doesn't drag at all. I was quickly pulled in by Noah and Echo who are both awesome characters on their own but even better together. Their romance is fiery and forbidden (which is one of the best kinds) and it develops throughout the book while both characters come to terms with the hardships in their young lives.

One of my favorite things about this book the the writing and the duel perspective that McGarry used. During this book Kate McGarry switches between Echo and Noah's point of view which works really well for this book. I think it would be really each to misunderstand one of the main characters in this novel without that extra insight into their thoughts and actions. Normally switching point of view in contemporary novels can be annoying to me, but I think it worked really really well in this book.

This book is fun to read! It is defiantly something I would like to read on the beach or at the pool. Alas I read it in my bedroom during the beginning of May when it was still chilly, but I think it would be a great summer read. The contemporary romance was easy to get into and both story lines are intriguing. Echo and Noah pull you in. Echo can't remember everything, but she is also afraid to remember. She just wants to get back to how life was before the incident with her mom. Noah is trying to get his brothers back and trying to cope with living in the foster care system. Neither one of them can go back to the lives they had before, but they are both trying to get back some normalcy. Both of them are keeping secrets and I could not stop reading until I found out what they were hiding.

This story is one of my favorites that I've read so far this year and I've already added this awesome contemporary to my favorites list. I recommend this for sure!

Rating: 5/5