Crash Into You by Katie McGarry

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Crash into You by Katie McGarry
My rating: 5 of 5 stars



Expected publication: November 26th 2013 by Harlequin Teen


Summary: 

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.



EEEP!!! I have been waiting for this! Isaiah, Isaiah... what you do to my heart. All the books in this series have been great, but I have been pining for the story of the quiet, brooding, loyal, dark and mysterious Isaiah. And it did NOT disappoint!


When I saw this was available on NetGalley I secretly did a little happy dance. I have been watching and waiting for it's release. McGarry does such a beautiful job with her characters, keeping true to each one and bringing them to life. I really had a hard time putting this one down... I lost some sleep because I couldn't stand not knowing what happened. It was soooo worth it!


Cars! Not just any cars, but Mustangs!! A girl who knows more about cars than most males and doesn't mind getting greasy... oh and street racing! Plus a hot buff guy with tattoos, piercings and secrets? What is not to like about this? Lots of action, bad guys and did I mention a hot guy? The romance and love story is one of the best I've read in a long time. McGarry has a beautiful way of bringing out the tenderness and passion yet keeping it pretty clean and comfortable. Her characters all seem to be intense, no matter what their personalities were, which I adore.


I would not recommend this book to teens under the age of 16 because of the language, gang activity, and some sexual situations.




Here is an excerpt.. ENJOY!




From Rachel’s Point of View:

Isaiah tugs on my hand, guiding me closer to him. Our arms touch and I shiver as if I was zapped by lightning.

“We’re not out of the woods yet,” he says. “Cop cars are everywhere.”

I turn my head to the street and stop when Isaiah squeezes my hand. “Don’t look. We’ve got to blend in.”

“I don’t understand,” I say in a hushed voice. “We’re not in our cars. How would they know?”

Isaiah keeps his eyes straight ahead. “I only said I wouldn’t rat. I didn’t say anything about anyone else.”

My mouth dries out—West’s friends. Did they escape or are they telling the cops my phone number and address? Can this get any worse?

Isaiah lets go of my hand and in a blur, pushes my back against a cold brick wall. His body becomes a hot, thick blanket over mine. The fine hair on my neck stands on end and my eyes close at the sensation of his warm breath on the skin behind my ear.

I’m absolutely terrified, but at the same time my body tingles with a weird anticipation.

“There’s two cops walking the street,” he whispers.

Peeking beyond his bicep, I see the two blue uniforms stalking in our direction. “What do we do?” I barely breathe out.

His hands go to my waist—my waist! And they feel so right. I like this closeness. Maybe I like it too much. A guy has never been this close to me. Never. And I can’t believe it’s happening, even if it is to keep from being arrested.

My heart beats frantically in my chest. Isaiah is hot and scary and hot. Why on earth would a guy like him want to be anywhere near a girl like me?

It’s the adrenaline rush. That’s what it is. I like how he feels because I’m still experiencing the adrenaline rush from Isaiah’s NASCAR driving skills. His arm shifts, and I love how that movement causes his muscles to flex.

Stop it, Rachel. It’s not real. Focus.

“Kiss me,” he whispers. “If you kiss me we’ll blend in.”

My mouth drops open as if to make a sound, but nothing comes out. How do I say the words…I don’t know how to kiss.










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Review: Dare You To by Katie McGarry

Dare You To by Katie McGarry
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Published May 28, 2013
Summary: 

 Ryan lowers his lips to my ear. "Dance with me, Beth."

"No." I whisper the reply. I hate him and I hate myself for wanting him to touch me again....

"I dare you..."

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...

     "Living is like being chained at the bottom of a shallow pond with my eyes open and no air. I can see distorted images of happiness and light, even hear muffled laughter, but everything is out of my reach as I lay in suffocating agony. If death is the opposite of living then I hope death is like floating." 

I usually don't like books that are more "mature" than the Young Adult genre. I know, coming from someone with teens of her own, it seems pretty crazy. I really prefer clean books without f-words, a lot of sexual situations, drugs, alcohol... etc. But this series has captured my heart. Honestly, Dare You to is better than Pushing the Limits, in my opinion.

Beth seemed to be dealing with a lot of demons in Pushing the Limits and I was right. I have always thought the people who come across as hard core, intimidating, and rough are the ones with the least amount of self-esteem and confidence. They try to appear unmoved by everyone around them, when in reality they are affected by their environment and what people think. Beth was all those things.

Ryan was putting up defenses the opposite way. He was appearing to be the perfect son, pitcher, student and social status when in reality it was all falling apart around him, especially his home and family. In real life there are so many parents so concerned at what everyone will think of their family and name, they will do anything to cover up all the secrets and real problems at home. Ryan was a good example of this. He struggled to stand up to his peers, and parents just to be himself.

I have to give it to Katie McGarry, she can take the most messed up people and make them work. Crazy kids, drug addicts, gang members, high society, family break-ups etc. and not only get them together, but make it beautiful. So much so, I almost read it all in one sitting!

I can't wait to read the next installment and learn more about Issac. He broke my heart in Dare You to, but I honestly didn't think he and Beth were good for each other. Their common thread was doing drugs to forget about life and their problems, they needed someone who would bring them out of that.

Like I said before, this book is a more Mature YA, or even a New Adult. Language, sexual situations, abuse, drug and alcohol use were throughout the book.

Thanks to Harlequin for allowing me to read an advance e-ARC via Netgalley.

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Review: Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Summary:  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 was expecting the typical story of bad boy meets good girl and they make their way in the world, but BOY was I wrong! They are far from the typical teens, working out how to live with what life has handed them.

Echo (I never adjusted to her name) was part of the in-crowd until one night, two years ago, things changed but now has no memory of what happened. She is determined to remember and figure out how she can get those memories back and then return to normal. Noah, who was orphaned and wronged by the foster program, has trust-issues. He is determined to get his brothers back no matter what it takes. Being thrown together, both Echo and Noah work together to try and get back "normal".

I really LOVED this book. It was heartbreaking at times, where I actually felt tears, but it always gave hope. I was pulled in by the mystery of what happened to Echo that night, keeping deep rooted into the plot. Characters both first and second, were so realistic and true to life, full of teen characteristics. I am also a huge fan of Point of View changes, so this just made it all the better!!  

The only thing that distracted me from completely falling in love with this story was the constant F-word, and the vulgar language. Sexual situations were to the point where I felt this would be more Adult content than Young Adult.

Quotes I loved!

No way.I stalked over to Echo, feeling like a tiger after its prey. She backed up against the wall, but I kept up my approach. I pressed against her, feeling each sensual curve. I wanted to touch every inch of her body. Her sweet smell intoxicated me. Her eyes kept their laughter, but her smile faded as she bit her lower lip. Damn, did she have any idea what she was doing? For a girl hell-bent on keeping me away, she sure did everything to turn me on.
"You were saying?" I lowered my head and inhaled the warm cinnamon scent at the nape of her neck, allowing my nose to skim along her inviting skin. (Kindle location 1371 of 3958)


I must have killed a lot of cows in a past life for Karma to hate me this much. Maybe I'd died two years ago and unknowingly entered hell. Doomed to spend the rest of eternity living with my father and stepmother and retaking the ACT over and over again. (Kindle location 1087 or 3958)

Thanks to NetGalley for the chance to review this book.





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