Wednesday, December 10, 2014

New Adult Challenge # 1 ♥ Beautiful Disaster VS Maybe Not

Wednesday, December 10, 2014


I thought of hosting a new meme I have been waiting to do for a while. I have noticed a new genre that has been around for 2-3 years now: New Adult.
It also happens to be one of my favorite genres, but I actually dislike more books than I actually like them in this genre. It's a complicated relationship. I have a handful of gems that I love, but almost every other book I read is just .. well a disaster. I thought of doing a challenge to find more gems and share it with you all, along with sharing the overrated disasters in the New Adult genre. I will be blunt as possible, but not too negative. I don't use profanity. If the books are similar, I'll state it, but most of the time they won't be that alike.  Hope you enjoy x


Beautiful Disaster (Book #1) by Jamie McGuire: 
VERDICT: DISASTER

  • Well, the title basically states it all.  This is one of the first NA books I have read, and possibly one of the worst.  This book is rated one of the most highly books out there, and it just blows my mind away .. It makes me wonder, did I read the same book as everyone else? Let's talk about the cover. I don't understand it. Why is there a butterfly in the jar? It's not a Shoclkyn Syndrome novel. The protagonist Abby Abernathy seems caged by Travis throughout the novel, but the author justifies it saying it's normal. 
  • The male lead Travis calls Abby "pigeon." Do you find that cute and attractive? I rather be called penguin, at least they're cute. He even gets that name tattooed on him, which makes me think he's delusional. 
  • Travis is clearly a bad boy, this had one of the most unoriginal concepts about bad boys and good girls. I honestly love that concept, but this book ruins it. I don't like it when the bad boy Travis is possessive, reckless, and violent. No, that's not hot. That's not normal. In my opinion, the most bad you can be is being a junkie. Abusing others and thinking you're the best is not being bad. That's being a terrible person. At least junkies can have a good heart, even if they're actions might not be suitable. Travis makes a bet with Abby which she loses, so she's stuck being his roommate now. Woo hoo! .. NO.
  • The concept sounded cute, but the book is a fail. I don't like how it promotes violence in men and females going along with it. I mostly see super dominating men and submissive woman in NA novels. There's nothing wrong if your partner is more dominant, and you're more on the submissive side. but it has it's limits. Being more controlling, and a stalker is strange. It's not normal to terrorize every guy that looks at Abby.  It's not normal to break your phone and trash your room because you're slightly upset. Some women find that attractive when their partner gets jealous, but there's a difference between jealousy and just controlling! Abby, oh Abby you are one strange girl for picking this guy.  I'm not being a feminist here or looking for equality, I'm talking about the mistreatment of women in this novel in it's subtle, hidden ways.
  • I don't like how Abby settles for less than she deserves. This novel promotes and romanticize things that are discouraged in relationships, and it could possibly lead to actual abuse later in the future.  I would probably call the police on Travis. I wouldn't even give this novel a one butterfly, but I'll do it anyway just to end on a happy note.


Maybe Not by Colleen Hoover: 
VERDICT: GEM

  • Colleen Hoover is one of my favorite NA authors, and I love all of her books.  Maybe Not is short, and sweet novella between the characters Warren and Bridget. It has a similar concept to Beautiful Disaster with the roommates, but this isn't a good girl, bad boy romance.
  • I loved this book. I loved the story, the concept, and even the characters. What more can you ask for? I laughed a lot in this book, and it actually has a brilliant story even though it's a short novella. It was more graphic than I would have liked, two graphic scenes would be my limit but still a sweet read!  I liked that Warren and Bridget are both confident and know what they want. I'm kind of annoyed of reading about innocent heroines who have no clue about themselves or others. There's nothing wrong with being comfortable in your own skin.
  • Warren was my favorite character in this novel. He's intense, comical, and actually honest. He is not controlling or possessive. He's actually caring about his friends and he loves kids. *swoons*  Bridget was more less likable with her tough, mean girl act but it worked for the story. Warren and Bridget have no strings attached relationship at first - Maybe Not delivers it well; it's one of my favorite NA novels and a five stars from my side. Colleen Hoover is a talented author, and it shows through her work. Her novels are addicting, if you like NA, you must check out her work.
Shukran for reading this! Leave your blog links in the comments & I'll be sure to check them out & follow :) Stay in tuned pretty creatures..

“Above all, be the heroine of your life, not the victim.” —Nora Ephron 
femmmefatalee@gmail.com

14 comments:

  1. I don't love a love of NA either. I have heard the same about Colleen Hoover. I do have her on my must try list. Brilly review!

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    1. Most of the NA novels are awful, but there are some gems in there <3 Thank you :)

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  2. Hm, I am not sure how I feel about NA yet because I am not a fan of descriptive sexual scenes and that seems to feature more often than not in NA. I do intend to read a Colleen Hoover book though, because I have heard so many amazing things about them! I will stay away from the other though :3

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    1. Most NA books are disastrous, the most explicit scenes I can handle is two, if more than that than it becomes an erotic novel.

      Colleen Hoover is a great NA author! She probably has less graphic scenes in her novel with the exception of Maybe Not. Maybe Someday was mostly clean, it falls into YA more but it's classified as NA.

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  3. NA is one of my favorite genres, but it can be hard to find ones that feel original and unique. I must say, though, Colleen Hoover is one of my absolute favorite NA writers. So far, every book that I have read by her (every one by her that is out) I have enjoyed and/or loved! She really can capture emotions so well!

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    1. I agree, I love the idea of the genre as a whole but it's time finding really good books in it since the stories are mostly generic. Colleen Hoover is amazing <3 Her personal story is inspiring too, how she went from having nothing to almost everything. Her personality reminds me a bit of J.K Rowling. Both so humble :)

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  4. Great post! I have been meaning to check out Mabye Someday as it is perfect for me :) One of the main character's last names is Lawsom and music is a big part of this novel.... What more could I possibly want?!

    I have nominated your lovely blog for the Sisterhood of the Wirld Blogger Award and you can check out the post here: http://abookparadise.blogspot.co.uk/2014/12/sisterhood-of-world-bloggers-award.html

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    1. Aw, thank you for the nomination. How kind of you :) & Maybe Someday was a great book, it's one of my favorites!

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  5. Beautiful Disaster seems to be one that you either love or hate
    Missie @ A Flurry of Ponderings
    Enter my blog birthday giveaway!

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  6. Oh, Benish, what a GREAT idea for a book meme!! Very original concept!

    I've heard a lot about the New Adult genre, but have not read any books from it yet. However, when I have sampled some NA books on Amazon, I've noticed that they contain quite a bit of profanity, and I don't like that at all. This is why I prefer to read YA. But I don't see the point of calling these books "New Adult". I thought they would be somewhere between YA and regular adult books, but they're obviously not!

    Anyway.....I completely agree with you -- "Beautiful Disaster" does NOT sound appealing at all. I, too, dislike reading about violence directed at women, and women tolerating it. (Of course, I HATE the "Fifty Shades of Grey" series, which I REFUSE to read.)

    So I would go with "Maybe Not", as well. Thanks for your GREAT thoughts!! : )

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    1. P.S. Obviously, I don't like very explicit sex scenes, either. : )

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    2. Thank you so much Maria ♥

      I agree, the NA novel for the most part is quite overrated. I don't mind the profanity, as long as it has a great story. I hate Fifty Shades of Grey as well, although, I do give it props for making BDSM so popular.

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