Pushing the Limits (Paperback)
Short Description for Pushing the Limits What if the last person you should fall in love with is only one who can save you? I won't tell anyone, Echo. I promise. Noah tucked a curl behind my ear. It had been so long since someone touched me like he did. Why did it have to be Noah Hutchins? His dark brown eyes shifted to my covered arms. You didn't do that - did you. It was done to you?
Full description- Publisher: Mira Ink
- Published: 03 August 2012
- Format: Paperback 416 pages
- See: Full bibliographic data
- Categories: Romance
- ISBN 13: 9781848450776 ISBN 10: 184845077X
- Sales rank: 5,127
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Reviews for Pushing the Limits
Get a copy now, you will not be disappointed.
I have to say I enjoyed every minute of this one. It was such an intense ride and I could really get what each character was feeling, such an emotional roller coaster. I came close to blubbing with this one and believe me that hasn't happened since I read Watership Down many years ago.
Echo Emmerson was such a wonderful and flawed character, if I was going to write a book, which I'm not I might add, then Echo would be the one character I would love to grab off the pages. She was so multi faceted she would give a diamond a run for the money. Both the main characters, Echo and Noah, are going through tough times, yet somehow with all that's going on the chemistry between them just ignites.
At times this book is so heart wrenching, it does tug at the heart strings. I'm a real sucker for this type of book. There is a lot of emotion riding high in the book. It did captivate me.
The writing style was very fluid and I thought the words flowed from the page. Sometimes it can get a bit jarred and disjointed when you are reading an emotional piece, not so in this case.
I would recommend this book, it will sweep you off your feet. I simply cannot wait to read the next in the series Dare You To, I already have it waiting to be read.
Overall:
Get a copy now, you will not be disappointed.
My Thoughts on the Cover:
Yes I do like it. It's a simple but effective design and I love how the girl on the cover is highlighted in orange whilst the rest is greyed out.
**Many thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for the review copy** by Jennifer JuckesA Fantastic Debut
It took me forever but I was finally able to convince myself to sit down and read it not to long ago and boy am I ever glad I did. I absolutely loved Pushing the Limits even though it made me so angry I wanted to throw my kindle down.
I've never been one for reading contemporary young adult novels but I have to say that Katie McGarry put for a fantastic example of how to write a realistic novel that has the barest of stereotypes.
I thought the story line was really unique and one that I've never seen before in the genre and as dark as it was I'm glad someone wrote a book like it. I've become fed up with the fluffy young adult romances out there and for once someone has done the smart thing and taken out the unrealistic fluff and wrote a wonderful angsty read.
My favourite part of the book was the characters. Echo was amazing and I absolutely loved her. She was such a strong person but she hid it from so many people even herself for so long that for a long time during the book I wondered if she would ever find herself and I think that was probably the saddest thing about the book. I loved the way she saw the world and could see the goodness in people.
Noah, the bad boy was an enigma at first and I really enjoyed reading his side of the story. It might not have been as physically traumatic as Echo's side of Pushing the Limits but it was every bit as emotional. As much as I hated his arrogance and player attitude I came to understand why he was the way he was and admire his will to survive given his circumstances just as much as I admired Echo's.
The other characters in the book were very well developed. Some I loved others like Echo's Father, stepmother, Beth, the idiots at school who ridiculed Echo and the system of people that were working against Noah in his quest to be reunited with his brother made me so angry I almost through my kindle down in anger and frustration.
The plot work that Katie McGarry did was amazing and not to fast nor to slow and had so many twists and turns that I had no idea how it was going to turn out until I reached the end which I was sad to see. It kept me on my toes and I was very impressed with this debut.
Overall, the book was a fantastic read that had me turned into an emotional wreck switching from being happy to incredibly angry depending on what parts of the book I was reading. I thought the author did a masterful job of writing a book that can make the reader fall in love and be heart broken all in 400 pages. The romance between Echo and Noah was as tumultuous as the rest of the book and it will pull at your heartstrings.
I would recommend this book to any one who loves contemporary young adult romance novels especially those who want something a bit more mature, and darker. There is some language in this that some parents may not approve of but nothing teens don't say or here on a daily basis.
*I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my free and honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed herein are 100% my own. by Kimberly RoySizzling chemistry in brilliant debut
This, my friends, is how you do chemistry. I literally wrote that every single time I made a note while reading the book, because it was just that good.
Pushing the Limits is the story of Echo Emerson and Noah Hutchins, both outsiders in their own way. Echo was once popular but after she disappeared from school and returned with her arms covered in scars, she found herself the subject of gossip and without many true friends. Noah has been bounced around foster care since his parents died in a tragic fire and casually does drugs and looks for one-night stands. They are both broken and they need to find their way out of it. When Echo is encouraged by her guidance counsellor to tutor Noah, well, the sparks just fly.
Noah and Echo's relationship sizzles in so many ways, it's really hard to describe without reading the book yourself (and I cannot recommend it highly enough). Everything about them is so intimate, and watching them both peel back each other's physical and emotional layers got my heart rate racing. Each little touch or teasing word is just as electric as the bigger moments (my personal favourite is when Noah touches Echo's scars). I got so many tingles when reading this book, it was just romance done absolutely perfectly.
What makes it work for me is that Echo and Noah are both not trying to change themselves and each other. They are just encouraging each other to be better versions of themselves. For Echo, it was about understanding what happened to her and finding happiness at home with her family. For Noah, it was about letting his brothers have the life they deserve and instead of fighting so hard for them. They were there for each other and even through all those up and downs I was rooting for them. Their journey down to the very end was really beautiful to read.
The book handles a lot of deep issues, like mental illness, foster care, drugs and sex, so it may not be for everyone. That said, I really loved the way the author handles them in the book, especially the fact that the adult characters weren't just clichés. I think it's refreshing to have a helpful guidance counsellor or a parent emotionally wracked with guilt. It made the book all the more believable.
There is a sequel planned, but it focuses on another character in the story so I will definitely miss Noah and Echo. I am, however, looking forward to more of this amazing chemistry and characters that Katie McGarry writes. This was the best contemporary book I've read this year, and I highly recommend it for anyone that loves to read and fall in love with a relationship.
Thank you to MIRA Ink for providing a review copy. by Daphne (Winged Reviews)Also reviewed at http://paranormalbookfan.blogspot.com
I've been on a bit of a paranormal kick for the last couple of years and have read very few contemporaries, but Pushing the Limits might just bring me back to them. Although, it's a book about a couple of troubled teens, it had some awesome swoonworthy moments and I actually cried, something I haven't done when reading a book for a long time. And not always because of sad reasons, but happy, emotional ones.
Echo and Noah both attend the school counsellor and this is how they come to really get to know each other. Echo used to be one of the popular kids, before the incident, and her friends and family are trying to get her back to that place. While Noah, whose parents died a couple of years ago in a house fire, is a loser stoner who is in the foster care system. Usually, they would be keeping their distance from each other.
Echo can't remember exactly what happened to her and the counsellor is trying to help her remember and deal with it. It was intriguing to fill in the gaps along with her, throughout the book. She is a really likable character and I loved seeing things work out for her. At the start of the book, she is a fairly weak character and gets walked on by everyone. By the end, her character has grown immensely and she is able to stand up for herself and take over her own life.
Noah is awesome, I loved him. He has been between a few different foster homes, and was separated from his two little brothers after the fire. His hope is to get custody of them when he reaches 18, but with the way things are at the moment, that's not going to happen, so he needs to make some changes.
When he starts falling for Echo, it is so sweet. With the tough exterior that he has built around himself, he hardly realises it and part of him doesn't want to accept it. And Echo can't believe that she is having feelings for Noah Hutchins "the stoner!" if she goes out with him, it will be social suicide. Seemingly, so wrong for each other, really, they are perfect together.
This was one of my favourite books this year. I loved the relationship between Noah and Echo and their scenes together were the best. It's fast paced and kept me glued to the pages. I can't recommend it enough. by Suzanne FinneganNot your average teen romance!
(I received a digital copy of this book for free on a read-to-review basis. Thanks to Harlequin Teen and Netgalley.)
Echo and Noah are both 17, and both messed up, just in very different ways.
Echo has scars on her arms, and a big hole in her memory from the night her mother tried to kill her. She's lost her best friend and her boyfriend, and no matter what she does she is never able to please her control-freak father. She's also trying to come to terms with her older brother's death (he was a marine), and her step-mother's pregnancy.
Noah is in foster care after his parent's died in a house fire two years ago. He's not doing as well as he used to at school, and his main priority is turning 18 so that he can petition for custody of his two younger brothers who are also in foster care.
Echo and Noah meet due to the schools therapist/ social worker Mrs Collins, who wants Echo to tutor Noah. It's not a match made in heaven when they first meet, but as they begin to spend time together, they begin to fall for each other. The question is whether they can stay together, when life just seems to be getting in the way. Things don't run smoothly for Noah and Echo, and they're about to go on a rollercoaster journey before they graduate high school.
I liked this book, it's not your average YA romance novel, and there were several storylines all going on and intermingling throughout.
I liked Echo, although her main problem was that she allowed other people to influence her life too much. She always did what she thought was expected of her; hiding her scars, applying to business school, retaking exams etc.
She missed her brother Aires dearly, but felt like no-one else felt the same way. Aires was the one person who she felt really loved her and was on her side, and with him gone, Echo really felt that no-one loved her - her father just tried to control her, her stepmother wanted to get rid of her, and her own mother tried to kill her!
Echo really needs someone to support her, and Noah is there for her when she most needs him.
Noah has ambitions but doesn't seem to have a real idea of how he's going to achieve them. He wants custody of his brothers, but he can't provide them with the same sort of life as they are getting from their foster parents, he wants Echo, but does he really think that her vision of the future includes raising two little boys? His friends are also a little unsavoury at times; especially beth who is constantly high and generally nasty to Echo.
I think my least favourite character was Echo's mum. Even ignoring the fact that she had tried to kill Echo, she was just generally an extremely selfish and unloving person (read the book and you'll know what I mean).
I liked how the storyline had a certain amount of mystery all the way through, and how it wasn't obvious what was coming next. It looks like we will be getting a second instalment soon too focusing on Beth's story!
Overall; not your average teen romance!
7 out of 10. by Sarah Elizabeth
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