I am back with another book review, today it is Walk the Edge by Katie McGarry.
The story follows seventeen-year-old Breanna, the middle of nine siblings and intellectually above her peers. One night, she decides to engage in some very atypical behaviour, going out and drinking. She ends up in a sticky situation only to be saved by Thomas Turner, better known as Razor of the Reign of Terror, a biker club that is the center of gossip in the town. When a harmless interaction is captured on someone's phone to look much more sinister, Breanna is blackmailed into writing papers for the rest of the year. Razor tries to help Bre get out of the situation that he had a part in putting her in, but the more time the two spend together, the closer they become.
Despite the length of this book, I thought it was very well paced. I know that was an issue I had with book one, there were some slower, almost-boring moments, but McGarry seems to have worked out those issues in this one. Because this is book two, a lot of the logistics of the community and club life were already hashed out, so there was little time wasted on reiterating this information.
I really liked both Breanna and Razor. Bre struggled to come out of her shell when really she was full of energy inside. We find out later why she was so withdrawn, but in the moment you can tell she wants to be more than who she shows the world she is. Razor was another great character. He struggles with his own demons, but not in the typical dark, brooding love interest way. If he cared about someone, he really cared about them - there was no halfway. Both these characters came from very different family lives, but they were able to connect.
I think what I liked the most about this book was that McGarry was very aware of consequences. I find that a lot of times when a character is told not to do something or given rules, the parents aren't around enough to enforce anything. But in this book, especially with Bre's family, there were punishments for when she did something they told her not to, and she couldn't get out of it. There was no loophole. I really respected McGarry for sticking to her guns with that.
The chemistry between Razor and Bre was pretty palpable. McGarry sure knows how to write a great romantic scene, even if it is just something as small as kissing. But you could tell that the characters really cared and trusted each other, it wasn't just a convenience or physical attraction like you find in many other romance novels.
I would say that this book could be read as a standalone, but there are some cameos of Oz and Emily from the first book so there might be a few minor spoilers if you haven't read book one. I think I would recommend reading them in order, also because there is a lot of background on the club and the rivalries that exist in the first book.
Overall, this was a good book to an already great series! I look forward to book three!
The story follows seventeen-year-old Breanna, the middle of nine siblings and intellectually above her peers. One night, she decides to engage in some very atypical behaviour, going out and drinking. She ends up in a sticky situation only to be saved by Thomas Turner, better known as Razor of the Reign of Terror, a biker club that is the center of gossip in the town. When a harmless interaction is captured on someone's phone to look much more sinister, Breanna is blackmailed into writing papers for the rest of the year. Razor tries to help Bre get out of the situation that he had a part in putting her in, but the more time the two spend together, the closer they become.
Despite the length of this book, I thought it was very well paced. I know that was an issue I had with book one, there were some slower, almost-boring moments, but McGarry seems to have worked out those issues in this one. Because this is book two, a lot of the logistics of the community and club life were already hashed out, so there was little time wasted on reiterating this information.
I really liked both Breanna and Razor. Bre struggled to come out of her shell when really she was full of energy inside. We find out later why she was so withdrawn, but in the moment you can tell she wants to be more than who she shows the world she is. Razor was another great character. He struggles with his own demons, but not in the typical dark, brooding love interest way. If he cared about someone, he really cared about them - there was no halfway. Both these characters came from very different family lives, but they were able to connect.
I think what I liked the most about this book was that McGarry was very aware of consequences. I find that a lot of times when a character is told not to do something or given rules, the parents aren't around enough to enforce anything. But in this book, especially with Bre's family, there were punishments for when she did something they told her not to, and she couldn't get out of it. There was no loophole. I really respected McGarry for sticking to her guns with that.
The chemistry between Razor and Bre was pretty palpable. McGarry sure knows how to write a great romantic scene, even if it is just something as small as kissing. But you could tell that the characters really cared and trusted each other, it wasn't just a convenience or physical attraction like you find in many other romance novels.
I would say that this book could be read as a standalone, but there are some cameos of Oz and Emily from the first book so there might be a few minor spoilers if you haven't read book one. I think I would recommend reading them in order, also because there is a lot of background on the club and the rivalries that exist in the first book.
Overall, this was a good book to an already great series! I look forward to book three!