Pushing the Limits
“Luke used to give me butterflies. Noah spawned mutant pterodactyls.”
And now I introduce you to Pushing The Limits: one of my favorite books of 2012. This book completely took me off guard. I hadn’t expected to love it so much to be bluntly honest about it. Maybe it’s because of all the glowing reviews (I was worried I wouldn’t find it as great as others had)…maybe it’s because it’s a Contemporary Romance without the monsters or strange new world or any major mystery to solve for the characters.
I have had quite a growing love for Contemporary through the last year, but they’re still not always so easy to fall head over heels in love with. Pushing The Limits broke the barrier and nudged its way right into my favorites list with some of the other rare Contemporary gems that I’ve come to be entranced by. Romance can be tricky in this style. It can either come off as really cheesy, not enough of it, or not fitting in my opinion. I’m a bit of a hard-ass when it comes to judging on romance and how the characters interact in these situations, but I was sold here. Echo and Noah are a beautiful couple. They’re not perfect. There wasn’t insta-love or any “cheese factor”. He was protective and friendly, charming and sweet. She was intelligent, witty, and determined. I also adored Beth and Isaiah--Noah’s friends--who had their own stand-out personalities of their own as well.
What I really liked about this book was that while it is categorized as “YA”, this feels so much more than that. It’s unusual and different than most YA and Contemporaries I’ve read. Ms. McGarry colored outside the lines and crafted an amazing story full of unique characters. It was an emotional rollercoaster of ups and downs, twists and turns, and even included some loops and corkscrews.
I was laughing one minute and crying the next. You don’t just read this book, you experience it. You won’t regret reading.
