Rachel Rambles About Pushing the Limits

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry
From Goodreads:

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.

What I thought this book was: an awesome romance with lots of sexytimes.

What this book actually was: an awesome romance with lots of sexytimes between two main characters who were going through a really tough time that was also really emotional and intense and had so many different layers and that made me cry a little bit a lot at certain parts but also made me laugh at several parts.

Basically, I thought this book was going to be good, and it turned out to be AMAZING. I was seriously blown away by the pure amazingness of this book.

Pushing the Limits alternates between the perspectives of Noah and Echo, two teenagers at the same school who both have a lot of issues at home. The thing that connects them is the new therapist/guidance counselor/social worker lady at their school, who meets with each of them. Since both Noah and Echo want a peek at their school files, they decide to work together to find out some of the secrets people have been keeping from them.

I freaking love Noah and Echo. They both have so many layers to their personalities, and as the book progresses, the reader gets to know them even better. I've become emotionally invested in both of them, which is an excellent sign. They're both strong and smart and sarcastic, and I find them fascinating to read about.

The relationship between Noah and Echo is brilliant. It's just the kind of thing I've been waiting to read. There's no insta-love or love-conquers-all crap that is so common in YA (not that I don't read and love those kinds of books :P). They just like each other and want to hang out and kiss and other stuff and they eventually develop a relationship that turns into love and it is normal and realistic and sexy and romantic and PERFECT.

I was surprised at the heavy topics this book deals with. Both protagonists come from families and home situations that are far from ideal. They have a lot of skeletons in their closets that they hide from everyone at school. Reading this book was a really emotional experience for me, and it even made me cry at some parts.

Pushing the Limits seriously impressed me. It's extremely character-driven, and Noah and Echo are fantastic narrators. There are happy moments and intense moments and sad moments and funny moments and scary moments, making this book a roller coaster of emotions. I thoroughly enjoyed every single page. If you're a fan of contemporary books, you'll love this. If you're not a fan of contemporary books, I'm pretty sure you'll love this anyway.

-Rachel