Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Pages: 462
From Goodreads: "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..."
"Pushing the Limits" was one of the most emotional books I can ever recall reading, the entire time while reading the book I had a stomachache because of THE FEELS. Therefore, when I learned that this book was to be about Beth, arguably one of the most broken and mysterious characters I have ever encountered before, I had expected it to be just as emotional, if not more so, than "Pushing the Limits". However, I must admit that I found it anything but.
Overall, the large majority of this story felt fairly flat to me (even despite being able to personally relate more to Beth than to Echo)- the romance especially. Though Beth and Ryan did know one another for a fair while before getting together, I still felt that there was insta-love going on. Furthermore, while this book is about Beth and Ryan's story I couldn't help but find that it was too much focused on them- I wish that the secondary characters had played larger roles in the story as I found each and everyone of them to be intriguing (even Gwen).
That being said, I did very much appreciate that this book had something which I very rarely encounter in other books of this nature- character growth. And from BOTH characters. Gone is the old broken, pessimistic Beth, hello to the, at times, bubbly and hopeful Beth. Whereas, gone is the old Ryan who allowed everyone else to dictate his life, hello to the Ryan who truly takes the reins, in the process learning more about himself than he could have ever imagined (and who picks up a skill or two along the way).
All in all, despite my complaints I did enjoy the book overall and I think that diehards of this series will more than likely be pleased with this installment. Furthermore, despite my complaints, I will continue on with this series, if only to see how Isiah's story wraps up.
Rating: 3/5
I received this book from the author to read and honestly review. I was not compensated in any way.
Oh no, sorry to hear this one was a bit disappointing, although it does sound like there were some redeeming aspects to it. Pushing the Limits was a great read, and I was super pumped for the novella and this book, but I've lost a bit of my excitement in the wait.
ReplyDeleteI was also confused as to why it is Ryan in the story and not ... what was his name, Isaac? that Beth was with in PtL.
I loved this book, though not nearly as much as the first book. I had wondered if it was because I had read all the books back-to-back. I gave it a five as I don't do half stars but it was more a 4.5 for me, compared to that first.
ReplyDeleteI did think there was a lot more angst in this one which I loved and I really liked Beth, but the big reveal at the end was not as surprising as I expected it to be. And it felt like it too closely followed the formula of the first book. But I think I wouldn't have had that issue had I had some breathing room between the two.
Everyone kept saying this book was SO much better than that first one. But I still loved that one best. And I totally agree that the character growth is what was really appealing in this story.
And I am hoping that one of the secondary characters gets a novella like Lila did. I read the sneak peek at Isaiah's story and it looks pretty awesome.
Great review Avery and thanks for sharing your thoughts.
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