Release Date: 2012
Pages: 392
Goodreads Rating: 4.12/5 Stars
My Rating: 4.5/5 Stars
My Content Rating: Mature YA (Sex is discussed, but not shown; Some language)
Summary from Goodreads: So wrong for each other …and yet so right.
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.
I'd heard so many good things about this series that I decided I just had to pick it up. And I'm SO glad I did! I loved it!
The book follows Echo, who was seriously injured in a mysterious incident involving her mom many months ago. She has blocked the memories of that night from her mind and desperately wants to recover them, feeling like she can't get on with her life until she can remember everything and feel whole. When Echo's therapist gives her a job tutoring brooding bad boy Noah Hutchins, at first she hates the idea. But they soon realize that they have more in common than they thought - and that they might be able to help each other get information - information that they each think they need to solve their problems. When they team up, the bond between them grows - and they realize they might have to go to extreme lengths to help each other, but the price doesn't seem too high.
What I LOVED:
- Echo. Loved the character of Echo! She had a great mixture of strength and vulnerability that drew me into her story. And while she was definitely self-conscious about her scars and what people at school were saying about her, she also had enough strength of character not to let them completely tear her down. Echo wanted to get to the bottom of what really happened to her the night that her life was turned upside down and she was willing to do just about anything to do that.
- Noah. Noah was the kind of bad boy character that I love - not really bad at all, just really misunderstood. His life had been full of a lot of misery - all of it out of his control - and he was driven not by anything negative, but by a fierce sense of loyalty. Noah's greatest desire was to protect the people he loved - he just didn't always know the best way to do that. His story was often heart-wrenching, and I was SO happy with the way that things turned out for him in the end and the decisions that he ended up making. I ended the book with nothing but respect for Noah Hutchins (along with a little bit of adoration!).
- Past unraveling. Throughout the book, we learn the secrets of both Echo's and Noah's pasts. I loved the way that the truth unfolded. And while I wasn't completely surprised by the final reveal of what really happened to Echo the night she was hurt (we had gotten plenty of clues about it), there were still plenty of revelations that kept me completely engrossed in the story!
- Family relationships. This book really focused on the many family relationships and how they were affected by the events in both Echo's and Noah's lives. These relationships were complicated - incredibly so. The book also explored what truly makes someone family - it's not just a matter of genetics. There were no easy answers in this book for either Echo or Noah as far as their families were concerned, and I loved that! This book was real and it handled the reality of Echo's and Noah's broken relationships incredibly well!
The negatives:
- Noah's voice (at the beginning). Okay, let me start off by saying, that I didn't dislike Noah's POV, but at the beginning of the book, I was a bit worried. He seemed kind of typical bad boy and I was nervous about his instant attraction to to Echo (please, no insta-love!). He liked to think about her rocking body and her angelic voice - it made me groan a bit. Luckily, Noah's character was well-developed as the book went on, and I was able to get over the rocky start.
I loved this book and I can't wait to read the next one!! I give it an enthusiastic 4.5/5 stars.
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