A Goodreads 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.
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.
My Thoughts:
The first thing I noticed about Pushing the Limits was that there were 58! chapters. Not to worry,
with the point of view change that came with each chapter this was an easy read
and I found myself finishing the book in a day. Getting inside both our lead
characters’ heads was important and enjoyable. Echo and Noah are two very
different people and it was lovely to see both perspectives as their
relationship developed.
Echo Emerson has been through hell and back but has no
recollection of the day that completely changed her life. We meet Echo as she
begins the last half of her senior year in high school by attending an
appointment with the school’s new clinical social worker, Mrs. Collins. As she struggles to reclaim her “normal” by
reconnecting with friends, she begins a journey that leads her to places she
hadn’t intended – one of those places being in the sights of Noah Hutchins.
Speaking of our hero, Noah has had a rough life as well.
He’s an orphan who has been labeled a troublemaker by the foster care system.
It seems at first that his life goal is to live up to the labels assigned to
him by people who barely know anything about him and trust me when I say those
labels won’t help him aspire to be or do much. But underneath that initial
layer is a complex young man who wants his family back. Noah is also assigned
to work with Mrs. Collins and her relationship with both students was integral
to the growth of both characters that we get to witness throughout the story.
Noah and Echo are paired up for tutoring by Mrs. Collins and their relationship
begins.
One of the things I think Katie McGarry does very well in
this book is develop a realistic high school environment. The characters, both
main and secondary, were well-developed and multi-dimensional. There are layers
to the story and the world that McGarry built. Echo has Lila, her BFF; her
father; and her babysitter turned step-mother Ashley, in addition to her
sometime friends who haven’t quite figured out how to treat Echo since the
unknown event two years prior. Noah has Beth and Isaiah. Both have Mrs. Collins
who quickly became my favorite secondary character. She seemed genuinely
interested in helping her students and, unlike so many in their lives, didn’t
give up at the first sign of push back.
As Echo and Noah get to know each other, there were moments
I swooned, moments I cringed, and moments I was blown away by their perceptiveness.
“Her eyes met mine
again. “So what does this mean for us?”
I lowered my forehead to hers. “It means you’re mine.”
Yes, really, every single time I read that line I squee a
little bit.
“Liar," she spat.
"Because the only way anyone will ever be okay with me is if they love me.
Really love me enought to not care that I'm damaged. You don't love people. You
have sex with them. So how could you want to be with me?”
I loved that Echo really did stand up for herself to Noah
even though she wasn’t able to do that with everyone in her life.
“Normal. She wanted
normal and so did I.”
I thought a major theme from the book was finding normal and
accepting that it may not be what you thought when you set out on your search.
The last thing I’ll say is Echo and Noah made me laugh quite
a bit with their thoughts. While there is some serious stuff going on
throughout the book, it was fun being inside their heads for a bit. I mean, how
awesome is it that Echo can compare a case of the butterflies she once had to
the now insane dinosaurs residing in her belly when she sees Noah?
“Luke used to give me
butterflies. Noah spawned mutant pterodactyls.”
I highly recommend Pushing
the Limits. It is, in my opinion, a perfect YA contemporary. I’m not big on
giving 5 stars but in this case, I can’t help it. (I think what pushed me over
is that Noah calls Echo baby, which
normally isn’t my favorite thing but in here was super cute.)
Warning… Book contains language and adult situations.
Note from Deborah: I've read this book also and agree with everything above. I'll be posting a review for the sequel, Dare You To, in the next few days.
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