***4 Stars***
This was nothing like I expected, but I really, really liked it.
This isn’t to say that the description is not accurate, because it is, it’s just that there is so much more and the more kinda hit me in stages and had me going sideways a bit, but that only served to keep me turning the pages to find out what would happen next with Elliott, Catherine and all the mysterious stuff with her mom and the B & B.
Sooooo, Imma put this out there now: This is gonna be a vague super non-spoilery review. It has to be because of all that goes on in the book. Just wanted to give you a heads up now.
Cathering and Elliott. I really liked both of them. What I saw were two kids who had really good hearts, despite all they’d dealt with in their short years on this Earth, or it could be because of it that they were as good as they, hard to say. But they were good people, in that strange in-between where they were more mature that their years, and were still going through all the crazy teen stuff. Their romance is sweet and has just the right amount of teenage YA/NA angst to remind you that they are still “kids”, but the connection between them is strong and I liked where things went with them.
Now for the mystery of the B & B and all that goes on there. I have to say that it took me a bit to clue in to all that was going on, but once I did it ended up being a lot more fun for me. I know, it sounds odd, but the way things were...presented were pretty cool, even if it was a little eerie and I kept waiting to see when and how everything would finally be exposed.
This is my first Jamie McGuire read and I really enjoyed it. The writing was engaging and I enjoyed the dual 1st person POV. The pacing was good, though at times it did drag a bit, but not to the point where I got bored or wanted to skip ahead. The secondary cast of characters were definitely interesting and we have a 50/50 split of the ones that I liked vs. ones I didn’t. My only gripe, really, is that I wish we’d gotten a little more of a wrap up in the end. The big issues are closed out, but there were a few things I’d have really liked a little follow up. But, other than that, this was a quick read that kept me on my toes.
~ Copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley & voluntarily reviewed ~
The first time Elliott Youngblood spots Catherine Calhoun, he’s just a boy with a camera, and he’s never seen a sadder and more beautiful sight. Both Elliott and Catherine feel like outcasts, yet they find an easy friendship with each other. But when Catherine needs him most, Elliott is forced to leave town.
Elliott finally returns, but he and Catherine are now different people. He’s a star high school athlete, and she spends all her free time working at her mother’s mysterious bed-and-breakfast. Catherine hasn’t forgiven Elliott for abandoning her, but he’s determined to win back her friendship…and her heart.
Just when Catherine is ready to fully trust Elliott, he becomes the prime suspect in a local tragedy. Despite the town’s growing suspicions, Catherine clings to her love for Elliott. But a devastating secret that Catherine has buried could destroy whatever chance of happiness they have left.
Release Date: May 29th, 2018
Award-winning author Jamie McGuire was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She attended Northern Oklahoma College, the University of Central Oklahoma, and Autry Technology Center where she graduated with a degree in Radiography.
Jamie paved the way for the New Adult genre with the international bestseller Beautiful Disaster. Her follow-up novel, Walking Disaster, debuted at #1 on the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists. Beautiful Oblivion, book one of the Maddox Brothers series, also topped the New York Times bestseller list. In 2015 and 2016, the following three Maddox Brothers books, Beautiful Redemption, Beautiful Sacrifice, and Beautiful Burn also topped the New York Times, as well as Beautiful series novellas, A Beautiful Wedding and Something Beautiful. The fifth Maddox Brothers Series novel, A Beautiful Funeral, debuted at #4 on the New York Times, also making appearances on the USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists.
Novels also written by Jamie McGuire include: apocalyptic thriller, Red Hill; the Providence series, a young adult paranormal romance trilogy; Apolonia, a dark sci-fi romance; and several novellas, including Red Hill companion novella Among Monsters, Happenstance: A Novella Series, and Providence trilogy novella Sins of the Innocent.
Jamie is the first indie author in history to strike a print deal with retail giant Wal-Mart. Her self-published novel, Beautiful Redemption hit Wal-Mart shelves in September, 2015. Her awards include 2014 UtopYA Best Dystopian Book of the Year for Red Hill, and iBooks’ 2016 Romance Novel of the Year for Beautiful Burn.
Jamie lives in Steamboat Springs, Colorado with her husband, Jeff, and their three children.
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