REVIEW: Pushing the Limits (Pushing the Limits #1)

Pushing the Limits (Pushing the Limits #1), by Katie McGarry
Published July 31, 2012
Publisher:  Harlequin Teen
Format:  Kindle e-book - own
Genre:  New Adult Contemporary Romance

Rating:  4.5 STARS

(From Goodreads) 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.

Talk about an emotional roller coaster. Whoo-doggie. 

I had such a hard time reading this book at times. Oh - it was good. Really good. But, you know, funny thing about trying to read through tears - it doesn't work so well. LOL.

What Echo went through is so sad. What I love the most about this book is that Katie McGarry had me discover what happened to her just a little bit at a time. We learned along with Echo. And, that little bit at a time was so enticing. I think Pushing the Limits would've been a great book anyway, but the mystery just made it oh so much better.

Noah's situation is equally as tragic - perhaps even moreso because unlike with Echo, you knew about all the awful things that had happened to him, and you could see the best solution staring him in the face, and he was completely blind to it. It was frustration to the enth degree. 

Does it amaze and impress anyone else that there are some people out there that can elicit such strong responses from people with mere words on paper? I wish I had that ability. It's amazing how the characters and their stories have come to life. I love my paranormal books - weres and vamps and witches are my bread and butter. But, these contemporary romances are so real, and usually so tragic. It's a different experience entirely when I read them.

This was a really fantastic book. I love books that suck you in and make you care about the characters. Pushing the Limits was one of those books. McGarry was masterful at building suspense and creating emotion. The world was well constructed and the supporting characters well developed. So much so that the next book in the series, Dare You To, follows Noah's friend Beth. I can't wait to see what McGarry makes me feel next.