Torie's Reviews > Beautiful Disaster

WARNING: THIS BOOK IS LIKE CRACK

Because you feel like such shit for reading it, but you can't stop yourself from reading it anyway. There were more typos than I could count, the dialogue is just so cheesy it's cringe-worthy, the boy is such a Gary-Sue, BUT...oh my Lord I could NOT stop myself. I was so grossed out by myself for liking it, my boyfriend was grossed out by me liking it, but I couldn't pull myself away!

The Issues
The boy is a character OBVIOUSLY conjured by a woman and a HUGE Gary Sue! He's a bad-boy that's superb at fighting, but he's still a genius that doesn't have to work towards school. How convenient! No one can beat him at a fight and no girl can pass him without shamelessly throwing herself at him. The only flaw he really seems to have is his inability to control his anger and his violent tendencies (which apparently make him all the more appealing), but other than that, he's pretty peachy keen. He has a sob story, which isn't really all that sad, but McGuire was trying to fault him somewhere--anywhere--and his lack of a mother seemed good enough. He says all the right things, that are so incredibly cheesy, and it makes me wince every time I read them.

The girl is a special little snowflake. I didn't really hate her, and I didn't quite love her, but since I was saddled with her, I chose to quietly accept her as a narrator. Her decisions were so stupid sometimes and so ridiculous, that it was unbelievable. Like, I wanted to hit her and say, "Really? Why are you such a wuss? Why are you so weak? Why do you keep running?" Her sob story wasn't really that sad either, but I guess EVERYONE has to have a sad backstory in this tale. Ugggh. I did not sympathize with her at all. It was such an absurd sob story that I like really could care less.

The cliches run so rampant throughout the book! The only girl who refuses the sexy bad boy is the one he wants the most. Why? I don't know! Nothing really stands out about her other than she wears short dresses and gets drunk a lot. I guess that's hot for boys. I'll take note! If a boy hits on you, try to repel him by being bitchy, ugly, and distant and he will LOVE YOU even if he denies everyone else!

The foil to the boy was horribly developed. He did not prove a strong antagonist because all Abby would describe him as is "rich, cute and charming," so we don't really learn much about him other than that. Like, what are we going to do with the fact that he's going to go to Harvard?? It's too obvious that he's supposed to be the polar opposite of Travis' "wrong side of the tracks" lifestyle (and supposedly the right choice for Abby), and therefore makes it too obvious who she's going to choose.

Why I loved it anyway

The narrator was annoying, but she wasn't THAT bad. Sometimes I enjoyed her quips, and I sure as hell enjoyed the smutty scenes (Mcguire, you sure can write some good smut!), but what I really loved were the supporting characters. Loved America! Though, to be completely honest, I've never heard of a blonde girl named America before. I love when girls actually have supportive girl friends rather than destructive ones. It's a refreshing change and I loved it. Shep was really minor and off to the side, so I can't really talk about him since he just pops in when it's convenient. I like the whole fighting idea and some of the plot turns were really fun to read. Travis may have been a Gary Sue, but aside from all the CHEESINESS he oozed, you get to like some of the stuff he says and does. But seriously, SO MUCH CHEESE. THE DIALOGUE MADE ME WANT TO CLAW MY EYES OUT. UGH.

Still, I enjoyed it and I absolutely hate myself for it.