“Nice car.” Like a vulture, Eric slowly circles her.
“Thanks.” She glances at two guys exiting a Corvette. Those college boys belong here even less than she does. All three of them are easy prey.
The angel tucks her hair behind her ear. “Is this where I can drag race?”
I wince internally at her words. Asking for anything on the streets is a cardinal sin. Asking nicely is basically serving your soul to the devil. God didn’t send this angel to save me.
He sent her as a sacrifice….
*
HC TITLE-AUTHOR
649
Playlist for Dare You To Overall theme:
“Dirt Road Anthem” by Jason Aldean
“F**kin’ Perfect” by Pink
Taco Bell dare:
“Summertime” by Kenny Chesney
“U + Ur Hand” by Pink
Beth’s mother in the bar:
“Farmer’s Daughter” by Crystal Bowersox
Beth wakes in Scott’s house:
“Heart Like Mine” by Miranda Lambert
Ryan in town:
“Back Where I Come From” by Kenny
Chesney
HC TITLE-AUTHOR
650
Isaiah offers to run away with Beth:
“Somewhere with You” by Kenny Chesney
Isaiah betrays Beth by taking her away from her mother: “Hurt” by Nine Inch Nails
Ryan takes Beth to a field party:
“My Kinda Party” by Jason Aldean
Ryan dances with Beth:
“Just a Dream” by Nelly
Beth stays the night with Ryan:
“Don’t You Wanna Stay” by Jason Aldean
and Kelly Clarkson
Beth sings her mother to sleep:
“Free Bird” by Lynyrd Skynyrd
Beth tries to scare Ryan away with the truth: “Don’t Let Me Get Me” by Pink
Ryan teaches Beth to float:
“Broken Arrow” by Rod Stewart
HC TITLE-AUTHOR
651
Beth and Ryan are briefly happy:
“Teenage Dream” by Katy Perry
Beth’s final showdown with her mother:
“25 to Life” by Eminem
Songs written for Dare You To by Angela McGarry: “Ribbons and Bows”
“We Weren’t Meant to Be”
Check out the songs at
www.reverbnation.com/AngelaMcGarryMusic HC TITLE-AUTHOR
652
Q & A with Katie McGarry What inspired you to write Dare You To?
In high school, my best friend and I would spend our evenings riding around in her car with the windows rolled down and music turned up. At some point, we would always find ourselves at a late-night fast-food restaurant.
Some of the most interesting things in my life happened between bites of greasy food.
Those memories pushed me to write the
opening scene of Dare You To and, from there, Beth and Ryan became full-fledged characters who demanded their story be told.
Your first book, Pushing the Limits, takes place in an urban/suburban setting. What HC TITLE-AUTHOR
653
made you decide to set a majority of Dare
You To in a rural environment?
I grew up in a fringe neighborhood south of a large city. While we had a city zip code and all the conveniences of a larger population area, we would run into farmland if we traveled a few miles south. Because of that, I grew up with a mixture of friends. I knew people who owned lowrider cars with hydraulics along with guys whose tires on their four-wheel-drive trucks were almost as tall as me.
Beth was definitely a city girl and I liked the idea of shaking up her world by placing her somewhere different. Ryan was then born!
What type of research did you do while writing Dare You To?
Ever since I’ve known my husband, I’ve
spent a good majority of my Friday nights during the summer up at the ballfield watching him play. It’s amazing to see how a group of guys work, and sometimes don’t work, together on the field.
I knew immediately that Ryan would play baseball and while I learned quite a bit from HC TITLE-AUTHOR
654
my husband, I wanted to understand
baseball in the context of a teenager chasing a pro career and/or an athletic scholarship. I visited an indoor baseball training facility and was able to talk to trainers there. I also spoke with teens and parents of teens in similar circumstances as Ryan.
Everyone was extremely helpful and their answers and experiences helped shape the situations that Ryan faced.
Why did you choose not to have Isaiah and Beth end up together?
What if I told you that when I wrote Pushing the Limits, where they appear as secondary characters, I did see them together? I’m sure no one would be shocked by that answer.
When I began to examine Beth and Isaiah closely, I realized that in order for them to find peace they needed to be challenged by someone else. Beth and Isaiah are very similar and Isaiah completely enables Beth’s behavior.
The two of them had a lot to work through, and as I began plotting, I realized they couldn’t grow as individuals as long as they were together.
HC TITLE-AUTHOR
655
I love Beth and Isaiah as if they are real live people and I truly want them to be happy.
Unfortunately, I just didn’t think they could find true happiness as a romantic couple. Ryan, on the other hand, is Beth’s perfect match.