#Review: BEAUTIFUL DISASTER by Jamie McGuire

Hey guys! I have a special review for you today - I am a mentor to a high school student and she offered to write a review of a book for me, so you are getting a teenager's thoughts on...

BEAUTIFUL DISASTER

Author: Jamie McGuire
Series: Beautiful #1
Publisher: Atria Books
Publication Date: May 26, 2011
Rating: 5/5 stars

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 needs—and wants—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.

Purchase:

Amazon | Chapters | TBD

Warning: Spoilers ahead!

Let’s start with the novel’s cover. The simple but mesmerizing cover image, displays a beautiful blue butterfly trapped inside a plain mason jar. Right off the bat, my head spins with symbolic conspiracy theories that connects well with the story. Traditionally, the butterfly symbolizes transformation. Transforming from this small always hungry caterpillar who then takes about a month’s worth of sleep, only to pop out a pair of big beautiful wings and fly off to their new chapter in life. Many of us relate to the butterfly’s journey of transformation, (especially with the whole always hungry and gets a month’s worth of sleep) but this butterfly here is trapped. The way I see is that the butterfly is trapped or stuck in the past; it has trapped itself in this protected but lidless jar because its scared to let go and fly off. This is such a relatable experience for all of us at one point in our lives. Being your slightly above average high school teen, who is living off the smell of caffeine I can totally relate to the butterfly protagonist is in this novel by purposely locking myself in this jar secured from the harsh reality of life.

Looks can be very deceiving; we all got parts to play in the grand scheme of things and Abigail “Abby” Abernathy is no exception. To the untrained eye she is your perfect goodie-goodie, with her pretty cardigans and stay clear of danger attitude. However, she’s got a wild past. I’m talking Vegas, baby! At the ripe of age of 13 Abby was said to wipe her famous gambling father, Mick, from all his luck in poker. She’s won against the best of the best, and her name Lucky 13 is common at the poker table. Things weren’t exactly the best in the Abernathy house resulting in Abby and America Mason to runaway and find a new life with a new identity. Road Trip! The new Abby wants nothing more than the perfect Ken doll boyfriend who compliments her new self of being a math genius in pearl earrings and cardigans. But we all know that fate most likely has different plans for our girl. Abby meets Travis “Mad Dog” Maddox at an illegal underground boxing match. Travis is the perfect example of everything Abby doesn’t want: man-whore, covered in tattoos, violent, and just utter bad news.  As the two take Eastern University by storm, with all the rumours, partying, dramas and love triangles, their pasts soon start to unravel. 

Travis in all his charismatic and magnetic glory, uses the “jar” as a barrier to protect himself from getting hurt. His fear of commitment results in losing the first woman he ever loved, his mom Diane. Aww what a mommy’s boy. Don’t think his mom would be too proud, knowing he’s a walking one-night stand. While Travis is stopping people from keeping in, Abby is pushing people out. Crazy how similar that sounds, but I swear its different when you let explain. Pushing others out is having people already coming in; you’re not alone only lonely. Making sure no one gets in means you’re alone and lonely. Abby and Travis, two different broken hearts trying to find beauty in their love for one another, is just a recipe for disaster.

Overall, I fell in love in with this book! It gave me Wattpad vibes with the cliché love story of good girl and bad boy, but it left me hungry and wanting more. It was exciting, thrilling, heartbreaking, relatable, and down right sexy. 5-Star rating! 

Abbey