Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire (Beautiful #1)

Genres: New Adult, Contemporary, Romance 
Smut-O-Meter: 5 out of 10
My Rating: 2 out of 5

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INTENSE. DANGEROUS. ADDICTIVE.

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.

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This book was extremely exhausting. Right off the bat, Travis is absolutely not my type. I dont like bad boys. I'd take Luke over Han every day of the week. On top of that, I hate smokers (not personally, but the idea, obviously), tattoos, violence, and vulgarity. I am still fond of the occasional bad boy if they are a good character, or have qualities that make them worth it. Travis simply is not. In the beginning he was an absolute pig. I dont think I would ever forget the night Abby was forced to listen to the three on the couch if I were her. That would have forever affected my view of him. He was absolutely revolting. But once he started to fall for her he started to get a little scary and really really pathetic. His insecurity was extremely unattractive and just so very pathetic. Whenever he thought he was going to lose her, you totally flew off the handle, and even literally begged her on his knees not to leave. I really dont see how anyone could be attracted to someone like that. I am completely baffled. How can someone with such a tough exterior be so weak and clueless?

I can agree with the 'Disaster' part of the title. They were a disaster. But if they really loved each other so much, they should have both worked harder. I dont believe 'all you need is love.' It takes a lot of work. They each got mad when they shouldnt have, for something the other did that they shouldnt have. Neither of them seemed to put enough thought into their actions or their emotions, had horrible communication skills and don't know the meaning of compromise. Like WTF?! Abby's decision at Thanksgiving?! Retarded! Just communicate! I know characters are allowed to make mistakes. It makes them more human and relatable. And going through hard times in a relationship is realistic. But when the mistakes and stupidity is constant, I just cannot bring myself to care about the characters anymore.

The ending was sort of satisfying. After all the on again-off again, it was probably the only reassuring ending we could get, without being worried about them continuing the trend. They seemed to be pretty determined and I hope that they have learned their lesson and can make it work. But I hated how Travis was still insecure. He was still not entirely convinced that Abby would stay with him, and that is scary. What would he be willing to do to keep her when nothing is enough to convince him he doesnt have to hold on for dear life?

What gave it the 2 stars for me, is how much they cared for each other. Before they were together, or during their off periods, even when they were in the middle of a fight, they were always there for each other. When Abby went to his fight when he asked her to. When Travis dragged her out of the Valentine's Day party to stop her from embarrassing herself. That was the sweetest part. Even when they were both half out of their minds with love, anger, and frustration, if they were needed they would drop everything, because the basis of their relationship was friendship. I know from experience the effect that has. Me and my husband were best friends for a year and a half before dating.