The Beautiful Disaster and Walking Disaster phenomenon continues in the first heart-pounding new adult romance in The Maddox Brothers series. Fiercely independent Camille "Cami" Camlin gladly moved on from her childhood before it was over. She has held down a job since before she could drive, and moved into her own apartment after her freshman year of college. Now tending bar at The Red Door, Cami doesn’t have time for much else besides work and classes, until a trip to see her boyfriend is cancelled, leaving her with a first weekend off in almost a year. Trenton Maddox was the king of Eastern State University, dating co-eds before he even graduated high school. His friends wanted to be him, and women wanted to tame him, but after a tragic accident turned his world upside down, Trenton leaves campus to come to grips with the crushing guilt. Eighteen months later, Trenton is living at home with his widower father, and works full-time at a local tattoo parlor to help with the bills. Just when he thinks his life is returning to normal, he notices Cami sitting alone at a table at The Red. As the baby sister of four rowdy brothers, Cami believes she’ll have no problem keeping her new friendship with Trenton Maddox strictly platonic. But when a Maddox boy falls in love, he loves forever—even if she is the only reason their already broken family could fall apart. In the first installment of the Maddox Brothers books, readers can experience the rush of reading Beautiful Disaster for the first time, all over again.
AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE | KOBO
MUSINGS OF A BEAUTIFUL DISASTER AND WALKING DISASTER DIE HARD FAN
WARNING: Some spoilers can be found in this review. Major spoilers are in white font, so highlight at your own risk.
Well whaddya know?! Trenton is way nicer than Travis.
Trenton's book is unsurprisingly good. However, let's admit... it's not as good as Travis'. I'm sorry for comparing the two books, but I just can't help it. Beautiful Disaster is such a hit that I had high expectations for this one.
Let's break it down:
CHARACTERS:
I like Trenton's character because he has a strong sense of responsibility. He's like the nicer version of Travis. He's loyal to Cami to a fault. When I say that HE'S THERE, HE REALLY IS ALWAYS THERE. He also helps other people unconditionally. He loves his brothers and father A LOT. He's concerned about everybody and he doesn't take shit from those who harms his loved ones. He's too sweet for a guy with tattoos, he's also too friendly for a guy who's all macho. I would love to say that I like him wholeheartedly, but then there are still loopholes to his character that I can't really appreciate him completely.
On the other hand, Cami is also a likable character. She's loyal to her family and she wants nothing but peace for them all. She's also a good friend. She's kind of straightforward, so I like that about her. However, I get totally irritated whenever she puts Trenton in the friend zone, but she continues to give him mixed signals. -_- I really detest those scenes. Maybe it's also part of the plot (to make readers annoyed about Cami's indecision). Cami makes it up to Trenton near the end of the story, but the conflict is still there which wasn't resolved.. not until the last few pages.
PLOT:
I had a few hints from BD, so I know that they the characters have that "friend zone" problem. In this book, it was explained, but some things are missing. This book is in Cami's POV. It tackles how she is with her family and it tackles her pseudo relationship with a certain T.J. Of course it centers on the fact that Trenton is always there for her and sort of inserted himself into her life. Readers will read some parts of Travis' life here, bits and pieces of scenes in Cami's POV, which is kind of weird because I really didn't feel Cami's presence all throughout BD and WD. LOL. Anyway, it felt as if the story is kind of incomplete. I don't know.. maybe there's a book in Trenton's POV too. His past was never wholly explained and there are scenes wherein it's as if there's a big hole on the page like I'm missing A LOT OF THINGS, so I have a strong feeling that his book will come out soon.
THE WEIRD THING FOR ME
I find it really weird that bits and pieces of Trenton's speech is so much like that of Travis'. Say for example.. THIS LINE: SPOILER ALERT (highlight at your own risk) Trenton laughed, frustrated. “How can you not know? Everyone else in the entire fucking world knows but you!” ... It's kind of the same as what Travis said: “How can you not know? It’s obvious to everyone else but you!” he said, exasperated. END OF SPOILER .. I don't know.. maybe because I know BD and WD like the back on my hand, this line seemed uncannily the same to me. Another example is how they say this: SPOILER ALERT (highlight at your own risk) Trenton looked around the floor at all the fruit, and then he sighed, looking up at me. A tired smile spread across his face. “I fucking love you.” --- and this --- "You act like you hate me one minute, and then you need me the next. I never get anything right, and I don’t deserve you…but I fucking love you, Abby." END OF SPOILER
So there.. all in all, I am giving this a four. I didn't particularly love it, but I don't hate it too. It still entertained me despite its shortcomings. Let's just say that this one is an "oh, okay" read. I would love to say that I'm looking forward to Trenton's book, but I would be lying. What I am looking forward to really, is the book of:
THOMAS JAMES MADDOX
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jamie McGuire was born in Tulsa, OK. She attended the Northern Oklahoma College, the University of Central Oklahoma, and Autry Technology Center where she graduated with a degree in Radiography.
Her most recent novel, Walking Disaster debuted at #1 on the New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestseller lists. She has also written bestselling contemporary romance Beautiful Disaster, and the Providence series.
Jamie now lives in Enid, OK with her three children and husband Jeff, who is a real, live cowboy. They share their 30 acres with six horses, three dogs, and Rooster the cat.
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