Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire

"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." (Description from Goodreads.com)

Beautiful Disaster is the second book for our New Adult (NA) book club to read. I picked this one as a follow-up because it's considered a 'classic' in terms of the NA genre. I was a little late to read this book (March 2013) and with the first read through I can't say that I loved it with a passion like other people. Maybe it was Travis and the mystery behind his funny ways. Honestly, I couldn't put my finger on why I liked the story "OK" but not "loved" it. 

When I heard Walking Disaster was coming out, I thought why not try it from a different POV. I'm so glad that I did. Clearly, I needed to understand Travis better for me to be fully behind the couple. Just reading Beautiful Disaster was like watching red flags go up. I knew he loved her and she him but the violence and drama, it was almost too much. After reading Walking Disaster and then rereading Beautiful Disaster, I finally got why it has such a cult following. Hey, I'm willing to admit when I make a mistake about a book and sometimes all I need is a reread or to be in a different mood while reading.

There were some definite swoon worthy moments from Travis and Abby concerning each other. More importantly, I liked the slow build of their relationship from friendship to more. The drama though was 100% college with the he said, she said business. Once misunderstand could erupt into full on disaster. Like Shepley said, when you're OK the world is beautiful and butterflies but when you're not, it's like you take the whole world down with you (not an exact quote). 

The support characters were also wonderful in the story, from America and Abby's friendship to Shepley and Travis's relationship. The Maddox brother's and even Adam all added color and dept to the story. What I like more about this writer and series is that you get more with Walking Disaster and A Beautiful Wedding. So the lingering questions you might have after the epilogue were answered and you're given closure on so many things with the possibility for more...which we'll have when Trent's story comes out. Yea! As a reformed reader of Beautiful Disaster, I would recommend giving it a try. Maybe even start with Walking Disaster first if you're a little worried you might not like it. So drama yes but within reason. Violence, yes but again, within reason. Sexy times, yes but just a little bit. Like I said before, I chose this book as our next book to read since it is considered a classic in the NA genre and rightfully so.