Dare You To by Katie McGarry

• Print Length: 470 pages
• Publisher: Harlequin Teen; Reprint edition (October 1, 2017)
• Publication Date: October 16, 2017

Book description:

"I dare you…" 

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 Beth finds herself starting over at a school where no one understands her. 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. Suddenly, the boy with the flawless image is risking everything for the girl he loves, and the girl who won't let anyone get too close is daring herself to want it all….

My thoughts: 

I had been feeling bad that I hadn't gotten around to reading this, McGarry's debut novel, or any of her other ones. Since Dare You To was first published in March, 2013, McGarry's published about NINE more books. Busy, busy author! 

But she has a similar formula for many of them, so I suppose it doesn't matter that I'm not reviewing her latest book (which has the same formula) but her first.  

So what is her formula? Frequently, she writes about a golden boy or girl who falls for forbidden fruit--a girl or boy from the wrong side of the tracks and whose parents and sometimes friends object to the match. 

Had I not been required to read Dare you To to fulfill an obligation to NetGalley, I would not have read past the first few pages. 

She is a good writer, and popular with teens. I do not object to McGarry's formula, but I do find her gritty writing style not my cup of tea. Prostitution ... drug dealing ... alcoholism ... physical abuse ... criminal behavior ... this book has it all. 

I am happy that McGarry redeemed Beth Risk, a parentified child, from her atrocious home life in the end, and that her mother and her mother's boyfriend were safely locked away in prison for years to come. 

It did seem a stretch that someone with Beth's background would make as many strides as she did in three short months' time, once she started living with her uncle and met (and fell in love with) golden boy Ryan Stone. 

In reality, I suspect Beth Risk would remain deeply damaged for many years instead. 

But it's a novel, and if you like gritty stories, you will probably love Dare You To and the rest of the books in the series.