I have read a few of Estelles books, and I thoroughly enjoyed each of them. This one certainly does not disappoint.

Sadly, I did not finish this book. I couldn't get into the story and the pacing didn't suit my reading style as it just went way too slowly for me. However, I am sure that someone else would find this book entertaining.

I loved the DIMILY series however this didn’t connect with me nearly as much, it was a well written book but I thought some parts seemed a little silly and childish and then end really disappointed me. I finished the book however and did think it was an okay read, just not a five star read for me.

One of my most highly anticipated reads this summer, Dare To Fall turned out to be a cute high-school romance with some dramatic twists. Focusing on the difficulties of grief, amongst other issues, I was easily led through Kenz's emotional marathon and found myself quickly sinking into her world. Highly addictive, with a friendship trio that will make your heart melt and a love interest who couldn't be nicer (although Will still has my heart, sorry!) Dare To Fall is an absorbing YA novel about the importance of doing the right thing. Would recommend!

I finished this book in a matter of hours. I couldn't read Dare To Fall fast enough! It's been a very long time since I've raced through a book so fast!

From the very first chapter you notice the difference in Estelle's writing. You can see clearly how much Estelle has developed as writer since Did I Mention I Love You . I wouldn't say the writing style is more grown up but more that she has perfected her craft!

I was super excited to start Dare To Fall but I was also hesitant because I loved the DIMILY series so much and I couldn't help but wonder what if I didn't like this book as much.My fears were quickly wiped away and I was thrown into the world of MacKenzie & Jaden.

I'm not going to talk too much about the books plot because I honestly think it's best to go in just knowing whats in the blurb however I will talk about the amazing way Estelle portrayed the main characters relationships. We start the book at the beginning of Kenzie's and Jaden's relationship but also at the end and I think that was just the most beautiful thing Estelle did as I found that I loved their story before it really even began.

I'm going to stop there because you just all need to READ THE BOOK! You can buy it at Amazon & Book Depository

Once again I can't wait to see what Estelle writes next!

Dare to Fall is a YA contemporary based on teens dealing with tragedy and loss. Sadly, it doesn't ever really fulfil its destiny or have enough depth to be effective, and while I enjoyed parts of it, overall I found it very underwhelming.

I picked this up because I do love an emotional gut-ripper now and then, and YA contemporarys that sound like they'll achieve this for me feature regularly on the wheel of genres I like to rotate. Unfortunately, this was not the book I was looking for. It had the potential to be based on its premise, but it consistently fell short of delivering what I assume was its intended effect. There were a number of what should have been major clangers in the storyline; some "oh shit" moments where someone says something or finds out something shocking. Each of these were undermined by the fact they were quickly resolved and forgiven within five pages.

Character-wise, I actually spent the first 60-70% of the book not really liking Kenzie. I couldn't help but think she'd been selfish for abandoning Jaden when his parents died, even though I knew her reasons why from fairly early on - I just didn't find those reasons justification enough for ditching him, without explanation, right when he needed her most. However, when I finally heard her voice her reasons fully to Jaden, it did make a sort of sense and I did then retract that opinion slightly.

Overall, this book wasn't for me. I didn't hate it, but it just never really resonated with me the way I know books like these can.

2 stars ★★

A copy of this book was generously provided by the publisher in order to garner an honest and unbiased review.

I received an e-copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!

I really wish that there was an epilogue at the end of this because there were a few things that I still wanted to know about. However it was an incredible read, I read this alongside other books because this is an e-book but I never got bored reading this at all.

When I go to 90% of the book I got real nervous about how things were going to go because ALL the revelations were just going to come out and I was thinking it was all going to go bad!

This book includes grief from Kenzie's family and the Hunter twins, though both dealing with grief and loss they both do it very differently and we can see how they deal with it and just a warning you will probably end up crying.

Estelle's writing is incredible and so was this book, I loved this story and all of the characters, Estelle is an amazing and talented author, I haven't read any of Estelle Maskame's Did I Mention I Love You trilogy but after I reading this I think that I will be picking them up and I can't wait to start reading more from her!

Now I need to buy a copy of this beautiful book so that it can grace my bookshelves!

Dare to Fall is the story of MacKenzie and Jaden: their tragedies, their families and their friends and their relationship.

Kenzie has separated herself from Jaden (her boyfriend) and Danielle (her best friend) after the death of their parents because she doesn't know how to treat them. The story picks up a year after this tragedy, and Kenzie is still avoiding them. It's hard to understand this at first: Kenzie seems selfish and I found myself shouting "it's not about you" at various points. Later, we come to learn that there is more to it than this, that Kenzie is dealing with her own grief, or rather, struggling to acknowledge her own grief.
Grief is a big theme of this book: everyone in the book is grieving differently and the author writes about it all beautifully.

Jaden and Kenzie meet by chance when Kenzie is trying to buy cheap alcohol for her mum, and this sparks an attempt to rebuild their relationship which becomes a huge focus of the book. Along the way, Kenzie learns to deal with her own grief and that of those around her.  Everyone is forced to face up to their actions and it makes for a really interesting story with some jaw dropping moments.

The twist at the end that made me sick to my stomach, but also made me feel silly for not guessing sooner. I just wish we knew how that particular storyline concluded because I needed some closure there.

I would definitely recommend Dare to Fall to others, but be prepared for it to play with your emotions.

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
When I spotted this book I knew straight away I had to read it, I read the DIMILY books in a matter of hours, only taking a break while I waited to get approved for Did I Mention I Miss You. So as soon as I was approved I dropped everything else, leaving a couple of books half read, just to read this book and I was not disappointed.
MacKenzie is dealing with a loss in her family four years after the fact, her crush from the year before, Jaden can't understand why the girl he was seeing dropped him just after the death of his parents. A year on the two meet up and both realise that the feelings they had never really left.
Can I just say wow. This book was just, wow. Right from the first chapter I was all in, I couldn't put it down. The characters are so well written, nothing is ever too far fetched and the story was so fast paced I honestly lost hours at a time without even realising I was nearly finished. Every character was relatable, each dealing with their grief in their own way, but every situation felt so real. This book filled me with so much happiness as I read it, rooting for the relationship between MacKenzie and Jaden, but pages later I was drawn back into the grief, be it with The Rivers family's loss or the Hunter's. With such tough and sensitive subjects like grief, loss, alcoholism, guilt it's easy to be blunt and to the point for the overall progression of a story but Estelle Maskame seemed to take such care when writing about these subjects, never once rushing through a situation with other family members, such as MacKenzie's parents, showing as much care and attention to detail as she did for MacKenzie and Jaden.
5/5 stars