Nowhere But Here by Katie McGarry 
Series: Thunder Road #1
Genres: Young Adult
Source: eStories
Narrator: Sean Pratt, Marguerite Gavin
Goodreads
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.
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.
So, this is kind of a dual post. 1st, I wanted to introduce you to a new audiobook service and give you my thoughts. Second, I used this service to listen to Nowhere but Here, my TBR pick for January! First, let me give you my thoughts on eStories!
eStories is an audiobook service that offers monthly plans. For $11.99 a month, you can get 1 audiobook credit. If you are familiar with Audible, this is cheaper than their standard plan. There are 3 levels to choose from:
Overall, I found their app to work similar to other audiobook apps out there. Its pretty straightforward and I didn’t have issues finding things I needed (speed adjustment for 1!). Here are some screenshots of the app:
The selection is great-you will find everything you are looking for! I think if you read mostly using iBooks, Kobo, or anything other than Amazon, eStories is the way to go! Since Amazon and Audible are 1 in the same, there are discounts for books you own on Kindle to get the audio upgrade. So, if you are a big audiobook junkie like me, here is what I suggest:
- Any books you own on kindle and can get the whisper sync upgrade for a couple of bucks, do that.
- Use eStories as your subscription service since its cheaper and has all the books you want!
If you want to know more about eStories or have questions, let me know!
Nowhere but Here is a book I grabbed on release day because of the author, Katie McGarry. I loved the Pushing the limits books. I started NBH right away, and after about 2 chapters, put it down and moved on. A few months later I tried again, but didn’t make it far. However, everyone I know seems to LOVE this series. When I put up my poll to have people vote on my January TBR read, this won overwhelmingly. Since the book wasn’t holding my interest, I thought I would give the audio a try!
First, the story. Look, I tried. I did. I didn’t hate it. But I just wasn’t all that sucked into it, you know? I mean, I was mildly curious about what the ‘big family secret’ was, but I wasn’t dying to know. I thought Oz was a bit to stuck in his ways. He called out Emily for not being open to getting to know them all in Snowflake, but he wasn’t willing to accept that there was anything better than his life in Snowflake. It was a bit hypocritical. Frankly, I thought that Emily behaved pretty well considering her mom had sheltered her throughout her entire life and now at 17 she finding out all this stuff! So, I never really connected with either character. I liked some of the secondary characters though. I am curious to know what is up with Chevy and Violet. Curious enough to read their book? I don’t know. Honestly, with so many books I am dying to read, I just don’t know.
Let me be clear: This wasn’t a bad book. I didn’t HATE it. It was fine. It was good. I’m still not sure what I am missing though…what is it about this book that everyone LOVED?
The narrator who voiced Oz was good. He had that Kentucky accent down. The narrator who voiced Emily was a bit annoying. Her voice was a bit grating at times. I had to speed the recording up to 1.5x though because otherwise I felt like they only got out a word a minute.
- POV: dual 1st
- Tears: I did tear up a few times
- Trope: MC Club
- Triggers:none
- Series/Standalone: stand alone
- Cliffhanger: View Spoiler »
- HEA: View Spoiler »
It’s such alet down when you try but just can’t love a book. especially when you’ve enjoyed other books by the author. Maybe the next one will be a better fit for you:)
I’ve read this book, and I understand why it was hard for you to get into. You either love it or you don’t. Looking back, I think Oz was a bit hypocritical too. Great review!
Great review, Samantha! I get where you’re coming from and for me, it wasn’t a matter of loving this book but more, wanting to know what happens next. I was curious about the other characters in this book and wanted to get their story. I’ve been looking forward to reading Chevy and Violet’s book and I don’t even know why, considering I hated Violet in the previous two books. Ha!
I agree with Naomi though, you either love this or you don’t and that’s cool. The parents keeping all of those secrets, causing all of that trouble just seemed so stupid to me. *shrugs* Oh well.