Walk the Edge by Katie McGarry - Release Week Blitz + Giveaway!


Last week I was excited to share my review of Katie McGarry's latest release, Walk the Edge, and today I'm just as excited to share a new excerpt and some gorgeous graphics. And if you hurry (deadline is April 1!) you can still register your order of Walk the Edge and receive some bonus content and a chance to be in the next Thunder Road novel!

One moment...

That’s all it takes to change your life.

What happens when your entire future is on the line because of one reckless moment? This is what Breanna Miller and Thomas “Razor” Turner have to face in Katie McGarry’s WALK THE EDGE. Blackmail, family secrets, future plans on the verge of collapsing, two people who aren’t supposed to be together fall in love, and the power of social media in defining who you are when you’re not even sure who that person is yet…Join the Club and and immerse yourself in the world of the Reign of Terror. Pick up WALK THE EDGE today!

Walk the Edge - cover

One moment of recklessness will change their worlds

Smart. Responsible. That's seventeen-year-old Breanna's role in her large family, and heaven forbid she put a toe out of line. Until one night of shockingly un-Breanna-like behavior puts her into a vicious cyberbully's line of fire—and brings fellow senior Thomas "Razor" Turner into her life.

Razor lives for the Reign of Terror motorcycle club, and good girls like Breanna just don't belong. But when he learns she's being blackmailed over a compromising picture of the two of them—a picture that turns one unexpected and beautiful moment into ugliness—he knows it's time to step outside the rules.

And so they make a pact: he'll help her track down her blackmailer, and in return she'll help him seek answers to the mystery that's haunted him—one that not even his club brothers have been willing to discuss. But the more time they spend together, the more their feelings grow. And suddenly they're both walking the edge of discovering who they really are, what they want, and where they're going from here.

Amazon * iBooks * Barnes & Noble * Kobo * Indiebound

Add to your Goodreads



"There's something about McGarry's writing that's totally enthralling. Her characters are vivid, flawed and riveting, making this is a truly amazing read!~ RT Book Reviews 


"Katie McGarry is a master of her craft! Raw emotionpure grit, I hang on every word. Her characters are real people with real problems and I cheer them every step of the way. Ready for a new addiction? Look no further than Katie McGarry's books." ~ Gena Showalter, Bestselling author of Firstlife 


"I finished WALK THE EDGE by the amazing Katie McGarry. It was SO good that now I feel bereft. I already miss Razor & Bre - I need to know more! She is by far my #1 favorite author. She paints a picture with the words, puts you IN the story... LOVE.~ Lori Foster, New York Times Bestselling Author

Enjoy This Excerpt From
WALK THE EDGE

“This is going to be the best night of our lives,” announces Reagan. Addison sits at the desk in front of me and Reagan’s to the left of Addison.

I check the clock on the wall over our English teacher’s desk. In exactly two minutes, the bell will ring and the first day of my senior year will begin. It’s not only the first day of school, but also the first Friday of the school year.

Three years ago, Addison, Reagan, and I promised we’d do something crazy on the first Friday of our senior year. After notifying High Grove that I declined their scholarship, crazy is exactly what I need. “Are you sure your parents aren’t going to check on us?”

“Trust me, everything will be golden.” Reagan uses the camera on her phone to fix stray pieces of her dirty blond hair. She curled it this morning and much to her displeasure the curls are falling out. “Has Cass started following you yet? I told her you created a Bragger account.”

I sigh and Addison scowls. She’s less than thrilled with my lack of excitement. I currently have twenty-five followers. It’s better than none, but not nearly reaching Addison and Reagan’s totals. Not sure how this whole social media thing is supposed to be fun. It’s like being back in elementary school and waiting to be picked for kickball.

To gain followers you must post something.” Addison has this teacher to pupil reprimand going on, and it’s scary on her. “Don’t make me start posting for you, brat. You’re the one that wanted to join the world. Reagan and I are trying to catch you up on how to participate in the land of the living.”

"Because everyone will love reading how I was up doing dishes until midnight,” I say.

“Tell them you were doing it naked and half the boys in school will follow you.” Reagan tosses me a sly smirk and I laugh. She’s always saying things that push the envelope. “Tell them you’ll post the picture if you reach five hundred followers. Watch your stats climb, girl.”

“That would be interesting.” A new voice joins the conversation.

I see the jeans first. Actually I see a rip in the jeans, and that rip is an inch above the knee, and I’m staring at a very muscular male thigh. I enter this weird zone, because there’s this sinking feeling of where this is heading, and ominous sirens are sounding off.

It’s like being stuck in slow motion as I glance up. My heart stops. Starts. And when it starts again, I find I can’t breathe. Golden hair that’s a little long on top. Light blue eyes drinking me in. All I see is a whole lot of gorgeous…and dangerous.

It’s Thomas freaking Turner. He wears the same leather vest that he had on the other night, and underneath it is a black T-shirt with the name of an old-school metal band. My eyes automatically scan his patches and I wonder which one is the warning that he carries a gun.

His fingers skim my desk as he strides past. There are small cuts on his knuckles, and the skin on his hands look rough—like him. For some reason, I find that attractive. It reminds me of him hunched in front of his bike yesterday as he was repairing his machine. The steady way he moved. The serious set of his face. The way the muscles in his arms flexed as he worked.

“Hello, Breana.” Thomas’s voice is deep, smooth and feels like a caress along my skin.




DON’T MISS THIS AWESOME INCENTIVE OFFER FOR AN EXCLUSIVE ECHO AND NOAH SHORT STORY!

Order WALK THE EDGE, Register your Order by April 1st and receive an exclusive Echo and Noah short story and a chance to be in the next Thunder Road novel! Register at: https://offerpop.com/campaign/796530.

ABOUT KATIE MCGARRY

Katie McGarry was a teenager during the age of grunge and boy bands and remembers those years as the best and worst of her life. She is a lover of music, happy endings, reality television, and is a secret University of Kentucky basketball fan.
Katie is the author of full length YA novels, PUSHING THE LIMITS, DARE YOU TO, CRASH INTO YOU, TAKE ME ON, BREAKING THE RULES, and NOWHERE BUT HERE and the e-novellas, CROSSING THE LINE and RED AT NIGHT. Her debut YA novel, PUSHING THE LIMITS was a 2012 Goodreads Choice Finalist for YA Fiction, a RT Magazine's 2012 Reviewer's Choice Awards Nominee for Young Adult Contemporary Novel, a double Rita Finalist, and a 2013 YALSA Top Ten Teen Pick. DARE YOU TO was also a Goodreads Choice Finalist for YA Fiction and won RT Magazine’s Reviewer’s Choice Best Book Award for Young Adult Contemporary fiction in 2013.

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March #ShelfLove Challenge: Annoying Book Tropes



March topic: What is one book trope that gets on your nerves? 

When I saw the topic for this month's #ShelfLove challenge I didn't even need to think about it. I knew exactly what I would be choosing. Sure there are several tropes that I find annoying. The girl who describes herself as plain (or too skinny, or too curvy, or her hair frizzed that one time, whatever) but *every other character* describes her as beautiful. She's obviously runway-ready and could grace any magazine cover... but, golly gee,she just doesn't know it. Pardon me while I gag. Another would be the girl who every guy is in love with. I mean, every freaking male character in the book is fawning over her and declaring his love. Um, has this every happened to you? Does every guy you know put you on a pedestal and drool when you are near? Yeah, me either. (Side note to authors: this does not make your main character relatable or likable. Quit doing this!)

There are others, of course, but there is one... ONE that stands out above all others. One that I find so annoying that I get all ragey just thinking about it. 


There it is: The Big Misunderstanding. A character, usually the heroine, sees something or hears something, gets the wrong idea, and allows this to drive a wedge between her and the love interest. And this carries on for much of the book all while I become more and more annoyed. Why does this make me so ragey? Because 99.73548% of the time the entire misunderstanding, the thing upon which the entire plot is built, could be solved with one single conversation. Characters talk, problem solved, done. But that can't happen because otherwise all would be resolved by chapter three. Gah! Please, no more. Give me a book with a real conflict - not something that could be fixed if the characters had a two minute chat.

 Is there one book trope that annoys you beyond all others? 
Does it ruin a book for you?




The Sunday Post #10


The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Caffeinated Book Reviewer.
It's a chance to share news - a post to recap the past week on your blog, 
showcase books and things we have received, and share news about what is
coming up on your blog in the week ahead. You can find the info here:



This past week has been fun since I've been taking part in a (re-read) readalong of the Addicted series by Krista and Becca Ritchie. It's my favorite contemporary series ever and I'm loving going back to the beginning and reliving it all over again. As someone who *never* re-reads, this was quite a commitment for me. I feel like I deserve an extra gold star or something. :) The readalong is being hosted by my wonderful friend Sarah at Words With Sarah and Gen at Latte Night Reviews. The readalong runs through April 22 and leads up to the release of Some Kind of Perfect, the final book in the series (*sob!*). I'm not ready for it to be over! But in the meantime I'm revisiting old friends and loving every minute of it - while continuing to be in shock that I'm managing to keep up with the reading schedule. LOL


New commenting system
Since switching over my comment system a week ago I have to say I'm loving it! No more emails from Google+ with a snippet of a new comment only to go to the blog and find that it's missing, hidden or deleted. Good riddance Google! *sings "na na na na, hey, hey, goodbye" loudly*

Tuesday, March 22: Top Ten Tuesday: Can You Feel the Love - Where I talked about the books that I adore but for some reason I rarely mention them. Love all the discussion this generated in the comments about the hidden gems we love!

Thursday, March 24: Throwback Thursday Review: Wicked by Jennifer L. Armentrout - Seems like a lot of people forgot about this one! All I can say is: pick it up, you won't be sorry. Tink totally steals the show. And it's JLA. What more do you need?

Saturday, March 26: Blog Tour + Review: Walk the Edge by Katie McGarry - 1. I adore Katie McGarry. 2. This series is fabulous. 3. I want more.



  

Finished: Addicted To You (Addicted #1) by Krista and Becca Ritchie
Finished: Ricochet (Addicted #1.5) by Krista and Becca Ritchie
Current: Addicted For Now (Addicted #2) by Krista and Becca Ritchie


PHYSICAL COPIES:
     

Based on everything I've been seeing about this one I knew I had to have it. I'm a sucker for any story that's going to batter and bruise my fragile little heart. Bring on the tears...

KINDLE:

  

The Air He Breathes - Brittainy Cherry: Even though I own a physical copy, I couldn't pass it up when it went on salt for 99 cents.
Eversea and Forever, Jack - Natasha Boyd: I keep seeing this around so I finally bought them.
Bound By Honor - Cora Reilly: My friend Kei at The Lovely Pages gave this one a glowing review so I nabbed it immediately.
Neverland - Shari Arnold: A friend of mine passed my name on to the author who in turn sent me her book for review. My friend positively raved about this retelling so I'm excited for it.




How was your week? Any new books? Any news to share? 
Fill me in on what your week was like... I'd love to hear!

Walk the Edge by Katie McGarry Review + Excerpt + Giveaway


As a huge fan of Katie McGarry and her work, I am thrilled to be a part of her blog tour for WALK THE EDGE, the second book in the Thunder Road series. So read about Walk the Edge, see my review, enjoy an excerpt, and enter the giveaway. And most importantly, pick up a copy on March 29 (or pre-order it now!) and experience Razor and Breanna's story for yourself.

One moment...

That’s all it takes to change your life.

What happens when your entire future is on the line because of one reckless moment? This is what Breanna Miller and Thomas “Razor” Turner have to face in Katie McGarry’s WALK THE EDGE. Blackmail, family secrets, future plans on the verge of collapsing, two people who aren’t supposed to be together fall in love, and the power of social media in defining who you are when you’re not even sure who that person is yet…Join the Club and and immerse yourself in the world of the Reign of Terror. Pick up WALK THE EDGE today!

Walk the Edge - cover

One moment of recklessness will change their worlds

Smart. Responsible. That's seventeen-year-old Breanna's role in her large family, and heaven forbid she put a toe out of line. Until one night of shockingly un-Breanna-like behavior puts her into a vicious cyberbully's line of fire—and brings fellow senior Thomas "Razor" Turner into her life.

Razor lives for the Reign of Terror motorcycle club, and good girls like Breanna just don't belong. But when he learns she's being blackmailed over a compromising picture of the two of them—a picture that turns one unexpected and beautiful moment into ugliness—he knows it's time to step outside the rules.

And so they make a pact: he'll help her track down her blackmailer, and in return she'll help him seek answers to the mystery that's haunted him—one that not even his club brothers have been willing to discuss. But the more time they spend together, the more their feelings grow. And suddenly they're both walking the edge of discovering who they really are, what they want, and where they're going from here.

Amazon * iBooks * Barnes & Noble * Kobo * Indiebound

Add to your Goodreads

MY REVIEW
My introduction to the Thunder Road series in Nowhere But Here left me wanting more and that's what I got in Walk the Edge. Razor was a secondary character in the first book and even then it was apparent he was troubled. Getting his back story went a long way in understanding Razor's pain over his mother's apparent suicide and his thinly veiled distrust of the Reign of Terror - the men that are supposed to be his family. When a detective shows up asking questions about the circumstances of his mother's death, Razor reaches a breaking point and is unstoppable in his need for the truth.

In a family of nine children, Breanna is fifth in line and completely lost in the shuffle. She feels invisible to her family (except when they're taking advantage of her), invisible at school, and is left feeling that no one knows who she really is. A random encounter with Razor and the threat of a compromising, although innocent, photo being posted online has Breanna placing her trust in the most unlikely of places - a member of the Reign of Terror, the motorcycle club she's always been warned about.

I really loved the evolution of Razor and Breanna's story. Breanna started off fearful of Razor, believing every rumor she'd ever heard. But Razor proved himself over and over again, showing a protectiveness, a sense of honor, and a willingness to do the right thing that made my heart swell. They connected slowly and found in each other something they were both lacking - someone who saw them for who they really were. All of a sudden they had someone who was on their side, who looked beyond the rumors and the reputations, and they could let their walls down and be themselves. But it came at a price, because fitting into each other's worlds was seemingly impossible. 

The members of the Terror and the inner workings (and secrets) of the club are explored further in Walk the Edge and I continue to be fascinated with them. Their brotherhood is stronger than most families and trust among the members is absolute. It's this trust that Razor struggles with and it's heartbreaking to watch as he fights for answers and demands the truth while feeling betrayed by his own family.

Family is a big issue for Breanna as well, and hers had me seeing red! Her parents had nine children and then seemed to leave them to fend for themselves or depended on the older children to basically parent the younger ones. Their hands-off approach and blind eye to Breanna's needs infuriated me. And when they finally decided to wake up and act like parents, it felt misplaced and like it was too little, too late. I was hopeful that I would eventually warm to them, but that never came. I was resentful on Breanna's behalf. 

In Walk the Edge, Katie McGarry has continued her tradition of phenomenal storytelling. Realistic characters, families (whether biological or chosen) and stories that always capture my heart. Katie McGarry is my go-to for contemporary YA fiction and Walk the Edge is a perfect example of why.
Enjoy This Excerpt From
WALK THE EDGE

I know that the capital of Bolivia is Sucre. I know that the average distance from the earth to the moon is 238,900 miles. I also know that blue whales can go six months without eating. Random, bizarre stuff. That’s what my head is full of. Nothing that will boost my math scores on the ACT or secure me a date to prom. Nothing that will save me and my best friend from this being our last day on the planet.

While my brain is obviously wired differently, there are certain common sense rules all girls in town comprehend. It’s not knowledge that has to be taught, like when I was six and my oldest brother spent weeks teaching me to tie my shoes or how at four my older sister spared a few minutes from her overly important life to show me how to spell my name.

In fact, sitting here on the top step to the entrance of Snowflake High watching this potential disaster unfold, I search my memory for the first person who warned me to steer clear of the Reign of Terror Motorcycle Club.

There was no pamphlet handed out during health class. No sex conversation like the one my mom had with me in Kindergarten because I referred to a certain male body part by the same name as a round toy. Stupid brothers teaching me their stupid slang.

But when it pertains to the threat that is the Reign of Terror MC, it’s not learned, it’s known. Like how an infant understands how to suck in a breath at the moment of birth or how a newborn foal wobbles to his legs. It’s instinctual. It’s ingrained. It’s fact.

“Do you think his motorcycle will work this time?” Addison asks.

“Hope so,” I breathe out, too terrified to speak at a normal level in fear of drawing the scrutiny of the men wearing black leather vests who circle the broke-down bike. Reign of Terror arches over the top of the black vest, in the middle is a half skull with fire blazing out of the eye sockets and drops of fire rain around it. It’s ominous and I shiver.

Addison and I sit huddled close. Legs touching. Shoulders bumped into the other. We’d probably hold hands if we didn’t have our welcome back to school information folders gripped tightly to our chests. Because we can’t spawn eyes in the back of our head, we lean against the large pillar of the overhang so no one can sneak up on us from behind.

It’s edging toward nine in the evening but the August sun hasn’t completely set. Darkness, though, has claimed most of the sky. Temperatures during the afternoon hit over a hundred and I swear the concrete stairs and pillar absorbed every ounce of today’s sunshine and is not transferring the heat onto my body.

Sweat rolls down my back and I shift to peel my thighs off the step. Why I thought it was a fantastic idea to wear the jean skirt, I have no idea.

I take that back. I do have a clue for my clothing choice. Tonight is the first time my entire grade was together in one room since the end of last year. My goal for the year may seem simple to some, but to me, it sometimes feels impossible. I’d like to be seen, to be known as something more than freakishly smart Breanna Miller at least once before I leave this town. I’d like to somehow find the courage to be on the outside who I am on the inside.

An annoying sixth sense informs me that I’m about to make a huge impression—on the evening news: two friends on the verge of starting their senior year vanish without a trace. Because that’s how motorcycle clubs would handle this—they’ll kidnap us and then hide our bodies after they’re finished with whatever ritual act they’ll use to perform.

My knee begins to bounce. Mom and Dad left after my failed attempt to convince them to let me attend High Grove Academy and they promised to return in time for pickup.

The senior welcome session ended at eight and the parking lot cleared out by eight twenty. The straggling parents arrived by eight thirty and that left Addison and me alone with blond-haired biker boy and his dilapidated machine.

He called his buddies around the same time I tried the various members of my family for the fiftieth time. His gang showed in a chrome procession in less than ten minutes. I’m still waiting to hear from anyone I’m related to. 



Pre-Order WALK THE EDGE, Register your Pre-Order and receive an exclusive Echo and Noah short story and a chance to be in the next Thunder Road novel!  Register at https://offerpop.com/campaign/796530.  

Grab your copy of WALK THE EDGE Here:

Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/1T8DthL
IndieBound: http://bit.ly/21DUdma
ABOUT KATIE MCGARRY

Katie McGarry was a teenager during the age of grunge and boy bands and remembers those years as the best and worst of her life. She is a lover of music, happy endings, reality television, and is a secret University of Kentucky basketball fan.
Katie is the author of full length YA novels, PUSHING THE LIMITS, DARE YOU TO, CRASH INTO YOU, TAKE ME ON, BREAKING THE RULES, and NOWHERE BUT HERE and the e-novellas, CROSSING THE LINE and RED AT NIGHT. Her debut YA novel, PUSHING THE LIMITS was a 2012 Goodreads Choice Finalist for YA Fiction, a RT Magazine's 2012 Reviewer's Choice Awards Nominee for Young Adult Contemporary Novel, a double Rita Finalist, and a 2013 YALSA Top Ten Teen Pick. DARE YOU TO was also a Goodreads Choice Finalist for YA Fiction and won RT Magazine’s Reviewer’s Choice Best Book Award for Young Adult Contemporary fiction in 2013.

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