Review : Dare You To by Katie McGarry

Summary (from Goodreads)
Title : Dare You To
Author : Katie McGarry
Publisher : Harlequin Teen
Publication Date : May 28th 2013
Goodreads - The Book Depository

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....

Personal Thoughts

Katie McGarry wowed me with her debut, Pushing the Limits, last year. I was a little bit hesitant to start Dare You To because it was Beth's story and I never really liked her character in the book. Plus, she wasn't going to be with Isaiah, who clearly really loved her. But then, the cover came out! And well, you probably just guessed what happened!

Like I mentioned above, Beth was never really a character that I enjoyed. When I started Dare You To, I decided to temporarily forget my feelings for her. However, that didn't really help me. My annoyance with her character amplified by ten-fold. She was a really frustrating character. I guess I should have expected it, but her constant bitchy attitude nearly ruined this book for me. She was angry and rude all the time, making it very hard to grow fond of her. I thought I should give it some time, to let her grow, but her growth took forever. Now, she had a lot going on in her life and I understood her circumstances, but did she really have to spew venom at every person who tried to help her out? Beth's life was anything but easy. She lived with her drug addict mother who had a violent and abusive boyfriend. Beth's mother was a sorry excuse for a mother. It was horrible that Beth was the one who had to look after her when it should have been the other way round. It was painful to watch Beth try to do everything she could to help her mother out when all her mother did was continue to justify the abusive bastard who hit her daughter. I must say that although I thought it was outrageous that Beth continued to help her mom out, at the same time, I appreciated her bravery and devotion to her. With everything that had occurred in her life, Beth was bitter towards everyone and had huge trust issues, so she failed to see the love that her uncle Scott has for her when he adopts her. Towards the end of the book though, she managed to grow a little, appreciating the fact that she had people who loved and supported her and learning to do the right thing. Still, it was very hard for me to connect with her character.

Ryan, the other main character, seemed to be the jock with the perfect life from the exterior, but that was just the exterior. His home life was really messed up with his parents bossing him around and manipulating his every action. Plus, his brother who had come out had left because his parents wouldn't accept the fact that he was gay. So, Ryan felt abandoned by the person that he loved the most. Initially, Beth was only a dare to Ryan. But over the course of the book, he gets really know her and slowly starts to fall for her. Their relationship was full of ups and downs, downs especially because Beth was reluctant to let anyone get close to her. Fortunately, Ryan wasn't one to give up so easily and continues to push Beth into places she was scared to go to. His adamant nature went well with Beth's fiery one. I thought they complemented each other very well. Initially, when the two of them were together in a scene, all I could see was hostility, but this hostility evolved into sparks slowly. Although both of them were physically attracted to each other from the very beginning, it did take some time for their relationship to grow and I really appreciated the slowness of the romance. Like Pushing the Limits, this book was told in dual POVs and I thought Katie McGarry handled it splendidly once again. She's very good at writing multiple POVs and I hope she continues to do so in her subsequent books. McGarry is also very good at writing realistic books with so many serious and intense themes. I have to admit though that I'm slightly disappointed with her for not having more of Isaiah in this book, but I'm going to forgive her for that because the next book is going to be all about him! My heart broke into pieces for him in this book, so I can't wait to see him find his HEA.

Fans of Pushing the Limits will definitely appreciate Dare You To because it was as good as the former. although it might take some time to get accustomed to Beth's voice. Once again, Katie McGarry has nailed it with her intense contemporary novel and I'm definitely looking forward to reading more from this talented woman.

Rating
Cover : 4/5
Plot : 3/5
Characters : 3/5
Writing : 3/5