Only a Breath Apart by Katie McGarry: Review & $50 Giveaway

Oh, how I love Katie McGarry. In anyone else’s hands, I think this book would have been overdramatic and overwrought—a teenage boy with a tragic past who has always loved the girl next door, who’s dealing with abuse in her family. There’s a lot of angst here. But McGarry draws me in to her characters and makes me relate to them in such intimate ways. She makes sure that the pain in these two lives feels real, and doesn’t just feel like drama.

Anyway, on to my more specific review…

What Fed My Addiction:

• Abuse depicted realistically. The relationship between Scarlett and her father is complicated. While Scarlett hates her father’s actions and she fears him, she also has good memories of him, and those sometimes cloud her thinking. Plus, everyone else in her family seems to forgive him, so she wonders why she can’t seem to do the same—and if she should do the same. The issue of blame comes up a lot. If Scarlett provokes her father, is his response her fault? Her father has something tragic in his past that explains his controlling behavior, so does he get a free pass? Can people change? And if they do, does that mean all is forgiven? These questions all felt very real to me, along with the excuses that are made for Scarlett’s father. I think that there are unfortunately quite a few teens out there that will be able to relate to Scarlett’s story in one way or another.
• The mystical aspect. This book had a mystical, almost paranormal aspect to it that surprised me. Jesse’s aunt Glory is a psychic, and that plays into the storyline in some pretty major ways. Even though this book is definitely a contemporary romance, fans of paranormal books will love how the mystical aspects are woven into the story. And skeptics will be satisfied too, because there is a healthy dose of skepticism expressed throughout the book. Is Glory’s gift real or is she just really intuitive? You’ll have to decide for yourself.
• Christianity depicted in a positive light (without making the book feel “religious”). We rarely see religion depicted in YA books at all these days unless the book is published by a Christian imprint, and often when we do see it, it’s to show how judgmental and bigoted Christians can be. That’s why I always breathe a little sigh of happiness when I see a book where religion is handled positively without being a focus of the story. Neither of the MCs in the book is religious, but Scarlett does go to church with her parents sometimes. Now, this could emphasize the hypocritical nature of Christians who pretend to be perfect while they’re monsters in their private lives (certainly that’s a point to be made), but that never feels like the focus. Scarlett ends up seeing a pastor for counseling, and he talks to her about the nature of forgiveness (what it is and what it isn’t). He even uses a Bible story (gasp!) to illustrate his point. And he is the one who encourages Scarlett to talk about what’s happening in her family and actually do something about it. The book shows Christian principles in a positive light, something I always appreciate.
• Jesse and Scarlett. This is a romance, so I suppose I should mention that I loved Jesse and Scarlett together. The book starts out with Scarlett pretty much hating Jesse because of the way he ended their friendship years ago, but she still remembers their friendship growing up, so she can never hate him fully (this parallels her relationship with her dad in some ways, but we see the other side of the coin here). Jesse has a horrible reputation, and he’s broken in a lot of ways. So, he could certainly be seen as the stereotypical “bad boy with a heart of gold.” But, like I said, McGarry never lets you see her characters as stereotypes because we understand them too well. We see their flaws, but we also see the why in them. So, I was rooting for these two with my whole heart, and I wanted them to find happiness with each other.

What Left Me Hungry for More:

• Not much. Okay, so the wrap-up at the end of the book felt a teensy bit long to me, and there were moments when you could argue that the messages are heavy-handed. But I can’t remember the last time I was so wrapped up in a contemporary story, so none of that truly bothered me.

Contemporary romance with a bit of grit and a whole lot of heart–Only a Breath Apart gives hope to those in crisis and shows that you can take hold of your own destiny, even when life feels out of control.

***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley and Inkslinger PR in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***

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