Book Review - Dare You To

Dare You To 

Author:  Katie McGarry

Series: Pushing the Limits #2

Genres: Contemporary | Young Adult

Release Date: 28th May 2013
Publishers: Harlequin Teen

No. Pages: 456

Source: Review Copy - Harlequin Teen

Rating:

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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....

The following review may contain spoilers concerning earlier books in the series.
If you have not read the previous installments, please proceed with caution.

First I would like to start of by saying that yes this is the 'second' in the series there isn't an awful lot about the previous characters and where as I would advise you read the 1st one before this, I cant imagine it be that big of a deal if you didn't. Right, now on to the actual review. I should probably say that one of the main reasons I was reading this to start of with was because I'm not only very behind on my reviews but I'm very behind on my netgalley reading list, I'm magpie like in the sense that I get distracted by pretty things e.g books haha, but since being able to read The Geography of You and Me, I sorta made a pledge to myself to this year catch up on all the books I've been given permission to read early and haven't. Also, I was a really big fan of the first book and cant believe it has taken me this long to read this one.

Anyway like the summary suggest, this book is about two very different main characters. We have Ryan, the jock baseball player who has an obsession with dares and Beth, the deeply troubled young girl just trying to last long enough to escape. Ryan seems to have it all, good looks, great friends, lots of money and above all a loving family. What people don't know is that things aren't always what they seem, Ryan's family are falling apart and all of their money is tied up in his baseball, something his dad pushes him hard to succeed in. Ryan on the other hand isn't sure that's exactly what he wants to do anymore, unfortunately try telling that to is dad.

Beth on the other hand has very little other than her mother, and she doesn't even have that most of the time. Her mother is a drug addict, and her dad is a no show, she's pretty much had to look after herself her whole life and the only people that she trust are Noah and Isaiah, they are the only people who know what's going on in her life and still stick around.

After a run in with the police, Beth is sent back to her home town to live with her uncle who wants her to cut of any and all ties, trying to give her a second chance. But after dare gone wrong, Ryan and Beth's path cross for the first time threatening Beth's fresh start.. At the start neither one can stand the other as they are such worlds apart, and what started off a nothing more than a dare and a chance to meet Beth's famous uncle, slowly turns into a friendship, if not more. Too bad Beth has other plan's and Ryan doesn't seem to be the only one fighting for her affection.

This heartfelt book is a good coming of age book, a book that shows you two people are never as different as they may look from affair and all in all a book that teaches you to look beyond the cover because you are only seeing what you want to see, not what's really going on. Basically, I really liked this book, granted I didn't like it as much as the first because my heart belongs to Noah and Echo but I still really liked it as Beth was always one of my favourite characters in it and I was dying to know more about her. Katie McGarry really know's how to write a good story, unrealistic and more suited to a movie at times, but non the less damn good.

I would recommend it to anyone who likes contemporary :)