Release Date - May 26, 2015
Publisher Website - HarlequinTeen
Publisher Social Media - Twitter
Pages - 496 pages
My Rating - 3.5/5
**received for an honest review from publisher**
Here is the Goodreads synopsis
An unforgettable new series from acclaimed author Katie McGarry about taking risks, opening your heart and ending up in a place you never imagined possible.A sheltered girl. A bad boy. Add some sparks and it's a classic girl meets boy story. Katie McGarry has a tried and true recipe and her newest series proves that when something is working, you don't fix it. Opposites attract, hearts race, and Katie McGarry showcases why she is such a fan favourite among contemporary lovers.
Seventeen-year-old Emily likes her life the way it is: doting parents, good friends, good school in a safe neighborhood. Sure, she's curious about her biological father—the one who chose life in a motorcycle club, the Reign of Terror, over being a parent—but that doesn't mean she wants to be a part of his world. But when a reluctant visit turns to an extended summer vacation among relatives she never knew she had, one thing becomes clear: nothing is what it seems. Not the club, not her secret-keeping father and not Oz, a guy with suck-me-in blue eyes who can help her understand them both.
Oz wants one thing: to join the Reign of Terror. They're the good guys. They protect people. They're…family. And while Emily—the gorgeous and sheltered daughter of the club's most respected member—is in town, he's gonna prove it to her. So when her father asks him to keep her safe from a rival club with a score to settle, Oz knows it's his shot at his dream. What he doesn't count on is that Emily just might turn that dream upside down.
No one wants them to be together. But sometimes the right person is the one you least expect, and the road you fear the most is the one that leads you home.
Swoon worthy romance is a given in any novel written by Katie McGarry and this one is no exception. The relationship that grows between Oz and Emily feels organic and unhurried. It's definitely not a love at first sight scenario as both Oz and Emily have to overcome their initial reactions to each other before anything other than sexual attraction is sparked. Similar to a real relationship, this is not a perfect romance that is without issues, but it is one that both people feel is worth fighting for. There is a strong element of lust, and plenty of making out, but there is something natural about their interactions. They had entirely different upbringings even though they were both raised surrounded by love. Love and family are the heart of this story and it's woven into every interaction and every word of this story.
The secondary characters are the shining stars of this novel. Similar to Katie McGarry's other series, there will be companion novels told from other points of view. Creating and endearing these characters to readers seems to come naturally to Katie. They sometimes overtake the spotlight from the main characters themselves and that is what happened here. Razor, Violet, Chevy, in particular, all come with complicated back stories itching to be told. The brief teases shown of them in Nowhere But Here will more than ignite a hunger for their stories.
A rules and rigidity of motorcycle gangs are foreign to me. They are also foreign to Emily. She's not part of this world, and everything about it is strange, and alarming to her. I had a harder time connecting to the why behind such devotion as it's just not part of my world. Katie McGarry manages to believably link it to the idea of a family, and that bridges the gap enough that you can becomes submersed into this world. The expansion of the world itself, and the Reign of Terror group will be something I look forward to in further companion novels as I felt this was the largest missing piece of the story. The vital connection the world the characters inhabit just wasn't there for me the way I had hoped.
The motor cycle gang is also on the tamer side, at least when it comes to the Reign of Terror. The danger that is part of this world is quickly evident however, leading to a few intense scenes. The danger is pulse pounding and the very real possibility of this series having deaths is never far from the reader's mind.
Fans of her previous novels will undoubtedly devour this new series, as there is plenty for them to love within these pages. A novel that builds it's foundation on family, love, and the secrets we keep in the name of both, it's a solid start to a new series.
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