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Review

4.5 ‘Noah and Echo Forever’ stars

Pushing the Limits absolutely rocked my world when I read it, and it remains one of my all-time favourite books. I was nervous when Katie McGarry revealed her intentions to publish a sequel, because Noah and Echo have both been through so much, I didn’t want them to have to endure any more drama or heartache. But I have mad, obsessional love for these characters, and absolute faith in Katie McGarry that she would give them their well-deserved happy ending, so there was no way I wasn’t going to read it.

Echo and Noah met in high school where they formed an unlikely friendship which developed into an against-the-odds type of relationship. Both of them were struggling with trauma in their past, which greatly affected their lives and who they were, but they accepted each other without question and overcame so much to find happiness together. When we left them in Pushing the Limits, they were heading off to travel around America during their summer vacation before starting College, giving Echo the opportunity to visit art galleries in the hopes of selling her paintings, and allowing the two of them to have some much deserved time together.

This book picks up in the final weeks of their blissful summer together (prior to the timing of the other books in the series), and as the prospect of going home gets closer and closer, cracks start to appear in their happiness. Echo isn’t having a lot of luck selling her paintings, and she still has unresolved issues from her past that are plaguing her. Noah’s past actually comes looking for him, and his bad boy history brings problems and makes them both question everything.

Echo’s my solid, my base, my foundation. She has no idea that the single fear that keeps me up at night is knowing one day she’ll discover she doesn’t need me like I need her.

Love has never been the problem for Noah and Echo, their connection is deep, and they love each other fiercely. It’s all of the other stuff that gets in the way, and that is so beautifully portrayed in this book, as even with all that they are going through individually, they want nothing more than to see each other be happy. I had no doubt they were going to be alright, but watching them go through the difficult times was heartbreaking! I hated seeing them in so much pain!!!

“What if we’ll always be broken? What if we can never be fixed? What if this is it, for the rest of our lives? Regardless of whether we’re together or not? What if our past will always haunt us and makes us miserable? What if we’ll never shed our baggage and weights, and we’ll never be set free?”

When things get tough, they are both forced to confront their issues and examine what it is they really want and what they have to do to get it. Echo needs to finally acknowledge and then lay all of her demons to rest and find her way forward, while Noah needs to overcome all that he has been through and all that he has done and become the man he wants to be. And in this book we get to see them deal with all of that, while they fight hard to hold on to each other.

I need us to be indestructible. I can’t return to cold and alone. Things are complicated. No doubt. But we’ll battle through this. We have to. Giving up is not an option.
“Me and you,” I whisper.

But it’s not all sad and dramatic! Noah and Echo have an amazing relationship, and we get to see lots of sweet and happy time between them. They are so accepting of each other, so open and trusting, and so absolutely wrapped up in each other. They have fun, they play, and things even get a little bit steamy! Reading their story honestly gave me shivers. These two belong together and I couldn’t get enough, and I lapped up every moment of it.

“I love you.” So much that sometimes it hurts.
Noah tilts his head down, and his nose skims against mine. “You’re my whole world, Echo.

Once again, Katie McGarry has given us a beautifully written, highly emotional story. From the moment I started reading I felt like I was right back in the middle of Noah and Echo’s world, and with the dual POV she gets us right to the heart of her characters. The story is slow moving with not a lot of action, but the tension builds nicely throughout the book as everything snowballs to the big breaking point before we get our happy (slightly sappy) ending.

I was happy to see the return of some other much-loved characters – including the fabulous Mrs Collins, as well as Isaiah and Beth, and Isaiah made me fall even more in love with him! He is beautifully protective of his loved ones, but not afraid to call them out when needed, and the way he had both Echo and Noah’s back throughout this book is sensational!

I wouldn’t say that this book is a must-read, as Pushing the Limits can most definitely be read as a stand alone. The ending that Noah and Echo got in the first book was entirely satisfying, and I would have been happy to leave it at that, but this is a gorgeous read for those that want to see more of Noah and Echo together (and honestly, who wouldn’t?!) as they continue healing from their pasts, and figuring out their future – together.

“You’re what I think about every second of the day! … You’re why I find a reason to take a breath when I open my eyes in the morning. I wanted nothing for my life and then I found you. You showed me I could be more, and I want more.”

I loved it – 4.5 stars.