Dare You To
(Pushing the Limits, #2)
By: Katie McGarry
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Release Date: May 28, 2013
Genre: YA
Rating:
Goodreads | Amazon | B&N
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.
We
finally get into Beth's head and it makes for one awesome story. You
knew her home life was messed up in Pushing the Limits but it goes to a
whole new level in Dare You To.
After being arrested, Beth finds
herself uprooted and under the guardianship of her uncle Scott. Which is
where she runs into the smug jock who tried hitting on her the other
night. Not only does he go to her school, but her uncle has asked him to
show her around town and help her get adjusted. The only problem is,
Beth and Ryan couldn't be more opposite if they even tried.
I
liked that going into the story I thought the whole thing would revolve
around the dare. At first it starts out with getting the skater girl at
the taco shop to give him his number and then when she becomes the new
girl in town, it turns to getting her to go out on a date with him. So
imagine my surprise when the dare is out of the way halfway through the
story. What else could this story possibly have left? Oh but there's
more. Once the Dare is done, we move onto more larger issues like Beth's
mother and her stance with her old life versus her new life. And that for
me, was the best part of the story. I loved that it had more than one
storyline in it.
Another thing that I enjoyed was Beth. She is a
spitfire. She harbors so much hostility and yet is incredibly
vulnerable at the same time. So her interaction with the other
characters was funny to watch. For instance when she shows up in town
and her uncle Scott introduces her to Ryan, for what he thinks is the
first time. At first the two of them play along like they didn't just
meet the other night and then...
Beth: "He hit on me."
Uncle Scott: "You just met him."
Beth: "Not now. Friday night. He hit on me and he stared at my ass while he did it."
Uncle Scott: "Is this true?"
Ryan: "Yes. No. I mean yes. I asked for her phone number, but she didn't give it to me. But I was respectful, I swear."
Beth:
"You stared at my ass. A lot." I turn and lean over a little so I can
give a demonstration. "Remember, there was a rip right here." I slide my
finger along the back of my leg. "You bought me tacos afterward. And a
drink. So I'm assuming you must have enjoyed the view."
I
think the whole character dynamic was what really worked for me in this
story versus the first novel. Beth is brutally honest, Ryan lives in a
cookie cutter world, uncle Scott managed to get out of the trailer park
and into the MLB and with taking in Beth, brings her back to her old
neighborhood and friends/enemies. Beth was by far the most interesting
character in the first novel and this story definitely did not disappoint.
"I'm
hiding in the bushes and if the police step back, they'd be on top of
me. Beth's just standing there," Rico chokes out between laughs. "Her
arm stiff at the shoulder and her forearm dangling back and forth like a
pendulum. The cop asked if she needed medical help. He thought she was
having a seizure."
Everyone including me, bursts into laughter.
Rico composes himself to spit out the rest. "And she breaks her
self-imposed silence and says, 'I'm a mime, you moron. Why do you think
I've been doing all these retarded moves?'"
Previous reviews from Pushing the Limits
Pushing the Limits
Skin in the Game
By: Jackie Barbosa
Publisher: Brazen
Release Date: May 27, 2013
Genre: Romance
Rating:
Goodreads | Amazon | B&N
Angela Peterson was
always the quiet, shy kid growing up in Harper Falls, crushing on the
high school quarterback and honing her football strategy skills. Now
grown up and coaching the high school team, she’s shocked when that same
sexy quarterback returns to Harper Falls asks her back to his hotel
room. And then tries to steal her job.
Injured NFL quarterback
Cade Reynolds is in Harper Falls to take over as interim head coach, and
he never thought the tall, blond bombshell he propositioned would offer
up any resistance. Not to a repeat of the amazingly wild night they
shared and certainly not to his coaching position.
But the
Harper Falls High Eagles are Angie’s team, and even the hometown hero
won’t take that away from her, no matter how hot he is. As the two
engage in a battle of wits and wills, this is one game neither is
prepared to lose.
Many years ago a freshman laid into the high school's star
quarterback about poor plays that would ultimately cost them their
championship if he didn't change the way they were playing. Now, years
later, that quarterback is none other than NFL quarterback, Cade
Reynolds. He still remembers that freshman firecracker who lit a fire
under his butt in high school. He has no idea however, that that girl is
now the hot chick he's ogling in the coffee shop or the woman who he will be working side by side with.
I will admit
that I am not a fan of football. I don't understand it first of all, and
second, it bores me to tears. So I'm glad to say that there is little
football time in this story, which may deter others, but for me, it was a
good thing.
I found the characters to be likable. Even though
Cade is an NFL player, he doesn't really have the "I'm hot sh*t"
attitude. He's pretty down to earth and when his coach needs help with
the high school football team while recovering from medical problems,
Cade is right there to help out.
Angela was definitely an
interesting character. She immediately recognizes Cade but when she
realizes that her has no idea who she is, she isn't forthcoming to clue
him in. Instead she plays along with him as if they've never met before.
I thought it was funny that she was very uncomfortable with calling her
father to let her know that she was going to be spending the weekend
with Cade and that he would have to fend for himself. Yeah, she's in her
late twenties but heck, even I'd be uncomfortable having that
conversation with my father... and I've been married for 8 years. It's
just weird. HaHa
"'Love you, too. Bye, Dad.' Angie pressed the end button on her
cell, completing the most uncomfortable conversation she'd ever had. It
was silly, of course. She was twenty-nine, not eighteen. But still...
there was something about telling her father she was spending the
weekend with Cade Reynolds-and knowing her dad knew exactly what they
were doing together-that made her want to crawl into a hole and die."
This is the first book by Jackie that I've read but I
hope that she turns this into a series. I think it would be interesting
to follow Warren Harris who is one of Cade's best friends, who's also a
NFL quarterback who's recovering from an injury.
"None
of that 'Oh, I'm not hungry; I'll just have a salad' crap so many woman
pulled, as if he'd think they were less attractive somehow if they ate
like real human beings. Nothing could be further from the truth. After
all, what was the point in taking a woman out for dinner if she didn't
like food?"
Summer's Desire
By: Olivia Lynde
Publisher: Self-published
Published: March 20, 2013
Genre: New Adult/ Romance
Goodreads | Amazon | Smashwords
A girl who has lost her voice, and a boy who carries a world of anger bottled up inside.
A
girl haunted by soul-crushing guilt and regret, and a boy who knows he
can't afford the weakness of feeling—not if he is to survive.
Summer
and Seth meet by chance and become unlikely friends. In each other,
they find a safe haven... and respite from the darkness haunting them
both.
Until they are betrayed.
Can they ever regain their
friendship? And if they do, can they trust each other enough to take the
biggest risk of all: falling in love?
This excerpt happens immediately after the main characters first meet each other. At the time, Seth is seven years old, and Summer is five years old.
For the next few hours, Seth remained out of sight, covertly watching the new addition to the household. Not because he was curious about her, but in order to ah... gather necessary intel. Yes, of course. Since she was an unknown quantity—maybe even a potential threat (all 3'3'' of her)—and it was in his nature to be cautious.
Surprisingly, Grandma and the social worker led the girl to the second floor and stashed her small suitcase in the unoccupied room beside Seth's. The previous foster kids had all used the bedroom next to Grandma's own, on the first floor, while the upstairs had remained her grandson's exclusive territory. Yet now he seemed to have acquired a tiny trespasser on his personal turf.
Said tiny trespasser didn't talk at all during this time, but Seth had no doubts that she was listening very carefully indeed. Her eyes were alert and shone with intelligence, taking everything in. She seemed wary, like a startled fawn, holding her stuffed toy (which on closer look had turned out to be a scruffy teddy bear) in a desperate clasp. Seth felt an uncharacteristic urge to gather her in his arms and tell her that everything would be okay.
As if he could make those kinds of promises! Seth snorted. He had a shitty enough life on his own. He didn't need to take on someone else's problems as well. No matter how vulnerable that someone else looked. He clenched his fists in frustration.
Finally, the social worker left, and Seth forced his legs back to the front of the house. There was no reason for him to go to the girl's room, now that she was alone, and study her from up close; no reason for him wanting to confirm if her hair was really as blond as it seemed from a few feet away, and if her eyes were dark blue or brown or maybe even black. No reason at all.
Olivia Lynde has been in love with books for as long as she can remember. She is a computer scientist by profession and, in between developing computer software and reading too many novels, she is now pursuing her dream of writing her own stories.
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Broken Gates
(P.J. Stone Gates Trilogy, #1)
By: D.T. Dyllin
Publisher: Dragonfairy
Release Date: May 24, 2013
Genre: New Adult/Paranormal Romance
Rating:
Goodreads | Amazon
P.J. Stone is a Seer who saw too little, too late.
In
the past, her biggest worries were boys and school—but war has a way of
changing things. Now, the alien Riders are trying to overrun the world.
As the last of their kind, P.J. and her friends must find a way to save
humanity before there’s nothing left to save.
After choosing a
mate, P.J. hoped she'd have time to enjoy her love life. But with
everything changing so quickly and major secrets revealed, who knows
what the future will bring?
Wow! Is all I can say about
the ending of this book. I love when an author who can throw a perfect curve
ball that puts the book in a whole new ball game, and D.T. has done just
that right at the end.
Okay, so let me back this train up a bit. In Hidden Gates, PJ finds out
that not only are aliens inhabiting humans but she's also a freaking
dragon shifter. She also finds out that her boyfriend/long time
friend/guardian (to her seer abilities) is also half dragon. So now they
are mated and one would think living happily ever after but right out
the gate there are problems. Apparently, Bryn's not strong enough to
help PJ with her fire dragon abilities and is questioning whether being
her mate was such a good idea. Meanwhile, the Walkers (aliens) have
taken over the planet and PJ and the dragon community are the only ones
practically left to send them back to where they came from.
I
really enjoyed this story. I couldn't seem to put the book down and
would think to myself "just one more chapter", which would turn out to
be five chapters. I love the way that D.T. writes. She doesn't have a
lot a inner dialogue running. In fact there's always something going on
in the story that demands the readers attention. One minute something's
taking place and then #BAM# something else is going wrong. My only
problem is P.J. she seems so wishy washy with her hormones and I feel a
little bad for both Khol and Bryn. I really wish she'd be able to fully
commit to just one guy. She definitely has more personal growth ahead of
her.
Even though I'm really sad with the way this book ends, I'm looking forward to the next (and last) book in the trilogy.
"Of course never in a million years did I ever think I'd end up having a 'who's your daddy?' moment."
Previous reviews from P.J. Stone Gates Trilogy
Hidden Gates
Onyx
(Lux, #2)
By: Jennifer L. Armentrout
Publisher: Entangled Teen
Published: Aug. 14, 2012
Genre: YA
Rating:
Goodreads | Amazon | B&N
Being connected to Daemon Black sucks…
Thanks
to his alien mojo, Daemon’s determined to prove what he feels for me is
more than a product of our bizarro connection. So I’ve sworn him off,
even though he’s running more hot than cold these days. But we’ve got
bigger problems.
Something worse than the Arum has come to town…
The
Department of Defense are here. If they ever find out what Daemon can
do and that we're linked, I’m a goner. So is he. And there's this new
boy in school who’s got a secret of his own. He knows what’s happened to
me and he can help, but to do so, I have to lie to Daemon and stay away
from him. Like that's possible. Against all common sense, I'm falling
for Daemon. Hard.
But then everything changes…
I’ve seen
someone who shouldn’t be alive. And I have to tell Daemon, even though I
know he’s never going to stop searching until he gets the truth. What
happened to his brother? Who betrayed him? And what does the DOD want
from them—from me?
No one is who they seem. And not everyone will survive the lies…
I liked the mystery in this
book. You have these new characters coming in and you don't really know
who's good or bad. Also, at the beginning Katy gets really sick and what
appears to be the flu actually turns out to be some by product of
Daemon healing her. This is all taking place while the Arum are out there
attacking and the DOD's noose seems to be getting tighter around the
Luxen. Yup, there is a lot going on in this book.
The hot and cold romance was still there for Katy and
Daemon. However, this time it was Katy who was pushing Daemon away. She
can't seem to get over the way Daemon treated her in the beginning and
she's not 100% sure that his feelings toward her aren't from this alien
mojo she has going on from the healing Daemon did on her. However, you
can clearly see that the poor guy is trying and I actually felt bad that
Katy was throwing everything back in his face. Not to mention that when
the new kid, Blake comes in the picture, Katy seems to trust him more
than Daemon.
Regardless of my feelings for Katy's idiocy, I
found the story entertaining. I was curious what would happen next and
if my suspicions were correct. I will say one thing... J. Armentrout
definitely knows how to create a unique story. I really dig the whole
alien thing. Move over vampires, there's a new brooding hottie in town!
"Humping my leg like a dog in heat every time I'm around you doesn't prove you like me, Daemon." -Katy
Previous reviews from the Lux series
Shadows
Obsidian
