Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

Summary: The new Abby Abernathy is a good girl. She doesn’t drink or swear, and she has the appropriate number of cardigans in her wardrobe. Abby believes she has enough distance from the darkness of her past, but when she arrives at college with her best friend, her path to a new beginning is quickly challenged by Eastern University’s Walking One-Night Stand.

Travis Maddox, lean, cut, and covered in tattoos, is exactly what Abby wants—and needs—to avoid. He spends his nights winning money in a floating fight ring, and his days as the ultimate college campus charmer. Intrigued by Abby’s resistance to his appeal, Travis tricks her into his daily life with a simple bet. If he loses, he must remain abstinent for a month. If Abby loses, she must live in Travis’s apartment for the same amount of time. Either way, Travis has no idea that he has met his match.

 _______________________________________________

Review:

Plot: I liked the sound of the plot on paper but it was poorly executed by Jamie McGuire. I felt I was on a ride at a amusement park and it kept going around and around in circles before reaching a terrible ending. The relationship fits the name perfectly but there was really nothing beautiful about it, one would get drunk and angry anytime they had a fight and the other would always complain about how bad he was for her but kept going back. I didn't really think Abby's past storyline paid off too well. I was expecting something different but what we got made me ask 'That's it? Why is she so pissed at Travis then?'. I honestly did not see how her past made Travis bad for her, he was bad for her in different ways. The way the book ends was laughable at best and I could have thought of several different ways to make the ending a little more enjoyable for the reader that stuck with this book until the very end.

Characters: Abby and Travis are two of the most frustrating characters I have seen in a book. Abby did nothing but use people early on in the novel and Travis, who clearly felt something for Abby, never had the courage to stand up and tell her how he felt. I hated how anytime something happened Travis got drunk and punched things and then said he was sorry the next day. Abby always said he was bad for her but she kept going back. The two friends in the book really added nothing extra, they were just there to stop fights and cause extra drama.

Overall: Doesn't really add anything new to the YA genre and Jamie's writing is OK at best. I don't regret reading the book but it is one of the worst books I've read this year (and the ending is the worst ending I have read in years)! I would say to only read this book if you want a story about a violent relationship that ends just the way you thought it would, but thought it would be handled differently. 2/5 Stars