14 May 2012

Willow Reads (18+ series)- Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

The new Abby Abernathy is a good girl. She doesn't drink or swear, and she has the appropriate percentage of cardigans in her wardrobe. Abby believes she has enough distance between her and the darkness of her past, but when she arrives at college with her best friend America, 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 charming college co-ed. Intrigued by Abby's resistance to his charms, 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' apartment for the same amount of time. Either way, Travis has no idea that he has met his match. 


Title: Beautiful Disaster
Author: Jamie McGuire
Page Count: 363 pages
Book website: http://173.83.94.21/?page_id=26
Published: May 26, 2011
Source: Online forum suggestion from stalker search.

Beautiful Disaster can be summed up to one word: Confusion. While the book is definitely interesting and kept 
my attention, it was really confusing. Abby and Travis' relationship was dramatic and childish.. Any time she did 
anything he didn't like, he would go get drunk and act horribly. Then they'd fight, pretty much the same fight the
entire time, andface that same internal struggle about how they weren't good for each other. And it didn't make 
sense that, half the time Abby and Travis had slept together... they were drunk. Or they were mad at each other. 
It was literally a "WTF?!" kind of thing. 

Personally being 19 and never dating before, I'm wondering if this is how actual relationships are like. I wouldn't 
want to put myself through that just for a guy... But in a way, I guess Abby and Trav are meant for each other, given
the happy ending. xD

Willow Reads- Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin



"Welcome to Elsewhere. It is warm, with a breeze, and the beaches are marvelous. It’s quiet and peaceful. You can’t get sick or any older. Curious to see new paintings by Picasso? Swing by one of Elsewhere’s museums. Need to talk to someone about your problems? Stop by Marilyn Monroe’s psychiatric practice.
     Elsewhere is where fifteen-year-old Liz Hall ends up, after she has died. It is a place so like Earth, yet completely different. Here Liz will age backward from the day of her death until she becomes a baby again and returns to Earth. But Liz wants to turn sixteen, not fourteen again. She wants to get her driver’s license. She wants to graduate from high school and go to college. And now that she’s dead, Liz is being forced to live a life she doesn’t want with a grandmother she has only just met. And it is not going well. How can Liz let go of the only life she has ever known and embrace a new one? Is it possible that a life lived in reverse is no different from a life lived forward?
     This moving, often funny book about grief, death, and loss will stay with the reader long after the last page is turned." (Summary retrieved from Goodreads)

Title: Elsewhere
Author: Gabrielle Zevin
Page Count: 304 pages
Published: August 1st 2005
Source: Friend suggestion

Overall, this is a great, easy read. It's definitely more about the afterlife, and an interesting take on what happens after death. It gives you a new perspective of what one might think in the afterlife, if one even exists. Personally, I don't catch myself thinking about how I'll feel after I die or what it'll be like, so this opened my mind to thinking a little bit. It's a good book, and I'd definitely suggest it to those who like easy reads. While this book isn't the most thought out, there are some wording mistakes, and the romance isn't really all that good, it's an easy read.. One that parents can read with their teenage kids and talk about. It doesn't exactly name a religion or belief system, so it's kind of equal for all. And, in addition, it's not all gloomy and depressing like you'd think. I read it via nook (e-book reader, for those who may not know what that is), so e-book versions do exist. So it's convenient and easy to read.

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