"Beautiful Disaster" by Jamie McGuire

NOTE: I received this eARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I LOVED "Beautiful Disaster" from cover to cover. It was a total emotional roller coaster that left me in a state of stupor for hours. I was a complete wreck, not knowing whether to cry or laugh in hysterics.

I only have one suggestion to make though.... "Beautiful Disaster" is in no way a YOUNG ADULT book. It's very much an ADULT book, even though the main character is a 19-year old girl. There were lots of expletives, there were several sex scenes... you get the idea. So no, I wouldn't recommend this book to a teenager.

But, nonetheless, it was amazing. It was one of the books that I truly enjoyed reading this year, and I'm even going to place it in a to re-read folder.

The story itself was pretty unique, though the bad boy-good girl concept still remains. Who doesn't love a bad boy though? And most importantly - who doesn't love a bad boy who learns his lesson? I sure do.

It's a fast paced story with a really strong character presence. I honestly felt like I was in there, right in Abby's head, living the whole episode with her. And believe me, it was an amazing experience that rocked my world! I couldn't put the book down, even dreaming about it. And no, not because I was in love or obsessed with Travis. It was because the story truly moved me.

So, what is the story about? It's about a girl who falls for the wrong guy, who falls for the right girl. I.e. they fall for each other, but their take on the situation is pretty different. Here's why: Abby has had a difficult past, where her father used her as a lucky charm in his gambling, until one day... snap! It was all over. And since then he hated her and abused her verbally. Her mom was a drunk, of whom nobody really wanted to talk about.

Abby's only way out of home was escape to college. Where, of course, she met Travis. And Travis was bad news. I mean REALLY REALLY bad news. The toe-curling, mind-boggling kind of bad news that throws you on your back and takes your breath away. Not only that, but Travis has his own demons to fight, and most of the time, he just gives in to them. That is, until Abby.

They are each other's weakness. They are each other's strength. Each can live without the other, but that isn't what I'd call life.

All the struggles they went through, the jealousy, the fighting, the total disaster that resulted in their broken hearts... all of that was the grand prelude to something so cheesy and beautiful, I can't even describe it. The developmental stages of their relationship brought me up and then pulled me back down until I was such an emotional wreck, I couldn't recognize myself.

And of course, it wasn't completely about Abby and Travis all the time. There were other characters that make appearance. Like Abby's best friend, America, who would kill anyone that threatens Abby's happiness and peace of mind. And Travis's cousin, Shepley, who endured all the mood swings with great patience. Travis's brothers and father, who really made me love them.

Which means that all the ingredients for an incredible story are there: nice plot, realistic characters and great story pacing.

So, what can I say in conclusion? If you enjoyed Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry, you'd definitely enjoy Beautiful Disaster.


My rating is