Review- Beautiful Redemption by Jamie McGuire

Goodreads Summary:

If A Maddox boy falls in love, he loves forever. But what if he didn't love you, first? 

No-nonsense Liis Lindy is an agent of the FBI. Deciding she is married only to her job, she breaks off her engagement and transfers from Chicago to the field office in San Diego. She loves her desk. She is committed to her laptop. She dreams of promotions and shaking hands with the director after cracking an impossible case. 

Special Agent in Charge Thomas Maddox is arrogant, unforgiving, and ruthless. He is tasked with putting away some of the world’s toughest criminals, and he is one of the best the Bureau has to offer. Though, as many lives as he’s saved, there is one that is beyond his reach. Younger brother Travis is faced with prison time for his involvement in a basement fire that killed dozens of college students, and the media want a conviction. Travis’s only savior is his unusual tie to the mob. In a deal that will spare his brother, Thomas has agreed to recruit Travis into the FBI. 

Liis is stubborn, defiant, and yet somehow softens Thomas’s rough edges, making her the perfect agent to accompany him to the ceremony. Posing as a couple, they must travel to Travis & Abby’s beach vow renewal and give him the news, but when the pretending ends, she finds herself wondering if they were pretending at all. 

In the second installment of the Maddox Brothers books, experience firsthand the mysterious world of the elusive Thomas Maddox, and how good love can be when you’re not the first, but the last.

REVIEW:

I went into Beautiful Redemption without any expectations whatsoever as I was highly disappointed by the first book in the Maddox Brothers series, Beautiful Oblivion. While it is no secret that I love love love the Beautiful series (and by that I mean Travis Maddox), I was hoping that Beautiful Redemption wouldn't be another Abby and Travis retelling from another perspective. I'm not saying that it wasn't. But this story had an actual fixed plot and really strong characters that made it a very good read or maybe it's just that I hadn't read a thorough Jamie McGuire romance or any romance in a long time, so I found this to be cute. 

There are only two negatives that I could come up with when it comes to Beautiful Redemption and unfortunately, those two points end up playing a major role. I did not like the way the story started and neither did I like the way it ended. Major turnoff, I know. And it has me confused about my final rating of the book. But trust me, what happened in between the start and the end was just too good. The story of two FBI agents, I didn't really care or even understand the mystery/ thriller aspect as I'm not the biggest fan of the genre. The characters, however, were well developed and most importantly, they were adults. For me, Beautiful Redemption is more of an adult romance. 

Speaking of the characters, Thomas Maddox was just too cute to be true. We didn't ever really get to know him before or even meet him for that matter. So he was always a mystery, and from the little that we saw of him in Beautiful Oblivion, I wasn't the biggest fan. But in his own book, he was awesome. I love how protective he was of his family. His love interest Liis was perfect for him. A career-oriented woman, I enjoyed how real she was as a person and her kick-ass attitude in a contemporary novel was a fresh and much needed change. But it was irritating when she tried denying her feelings all the damn time. Together, Liis and Thomas made for a cute couple who acted immature sometimes and took way too long to make things work. 

As always, it was great to meet the Maddox family who I didn't even realise I missed so much. Obviously we have Abby and Travis who we all know always sell. But thankfully Beautiful Redemption didn't revolve around them. Their part in the story was an amazing surprise that I enjoyed reading. But this book for me, is Liis and Thomas all the way. Beautiful Redemption was a fantastic read with fabulous characters and even though it had negatives, it was an enjoyable and funny read overall. 

RATING:

(Belated) Release Blitz- Beautiful Redemption by Jamie McGuire

We're celebrating the release of BEAUTIFUL REDEMPTION by Jamie McGuire!

Title: Beautiful Redemption

Author: Jamie McGuire

Release date: January 26, 2014

Goodreads

Amazon | iTunes | Kobo | BN

If A Maddox boy falls in love, he loves forever. But what if he didn't love you, first?

No-nonsense Liis Lindy is an agent of the FBI. Deciding she is married only to her job, she breaks off her engagement and transfers from Chicago to the field office in San Diego. She loves her desk. She is committed to her laptop. She dreams of promotions and shaking hands with the director after cracking an impossible case.

Special Agent in Charge Thomas Maddox is arrogant, unforgiving, and ruthless. He is tasked with putting away some of the world’s toughest criminals, and he is one of the best the Bureau has to offer. Though, as many lives as he’s saved, there is one that is beyond his reach. Younger brother Travis is faced with prison time for his involvement in a basement fire that killed dozens of college students, and the media want a conviction. Travis’s only savior is his unusual tie to the mob. In a deal that will spare his brother, Thomas has agreed to recruit Travis into the FBI.

Liis is stubborn, defiant, and yet somehow softens Thomas’s rough edges, making her the perfect agent to accompany him to the ceremony. Posing as a couple, they must travel to Travis & Abby’s beach vow renewal and give him the news, but when the pretending ends, she finds herself wondering if they were pretending at all.

In the second installment of the Maddox Brothers books, experience firsthand the mysterious world of the elusive Thomas Maddox, and how good love can be when you’re not the first, but the last.

TEASERS:

“Me, too. I’m … Thomas, by the way,” he said softly. He rolled over and relaxed beside me, his head propped by his hand. Instead of getting dressed, he looked as if he were ready for conversation.

I pressed my lips together. “I’m,” Do it. Do it or you’ll just be kicking yourself later. “…emotionally unavailable.”

    ***

“I live in Midtown,” I said, wondering if I would see my neighbor again.

She grinned. “Me, too. A lot of us do. We can drown your sorrows together.”

“I don’t have sorrows. Just memories. They’ll go away on their own.”

***

He narrowed his eyes. “Are you insubordinate, Agent Lindy? Is that why you were sent here, to be under my command?”

“You requested me, remember?”

“I didn’t request you. I requested the best language expert we had.”

“That would be me, sir.”

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.

Jamie paved the way for the New Adult genre with 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. She has also written apocalyptic thriller Red Hill, a novella titled A Beautiful Wedding, and the Providence series, a young adult paranormal romance trilogy.

Jamie lives on a ranch just outside Enid, OK with husband Jeff and their three children. They share their 30 acres with cattle, six horses, three dogs, and Rooster the cat.

Find Jamie at www.jamiemcguire.com or on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!

Website / Facebook / Twitter

Review- Beautiful Redemption by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

Summary-

Is death the end . . . or only the beginning?

Ethan Wate has spent most of his life longing to escape the stiflingly small Southern town of Gatlin. He never thought he would meet the girl of his dreams, Lena Duchannes, who unveiled a secretive, powerful, and cursed side of Gatlin, hidden in plain sight. And he never could have expected that he would be forced to leave behind everyone and everything he cares about. So when Ethan awakes after the chilling events of the Eighteenth Moon, he has only one goal: to find a way to return to Lena and the ones he loves.

Back in Gatlin, Lena is making her own bargains for Ethan's return, vowing to do whatever it takes -- even if that means trusting old enemies or risking the lives of the family and friends Ethan left to protect.

Worlds apart, Ethan and Lena must once again work together to rewrite their fate, in this stunning finale to the Beautiful Creatures series.

Review-

I am a huge fan of the Caster Chronicles series by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. I didn't want the series to end and I kept putting off reading the last book for two years. But recently I finally decided to pick up Beautiful Redemption for a series ending challenge and I'm glad I did. I have bittersweet feelings but I think it was time I said goodbye.

After the huge cliffhanger which we get in Beautiful Chaos, Beautiful Redemption starts right after it. The book is basically divided into three parts. The first and the third go from Ethan's point of view whereas the second goes from Lena's point of view. Ethan was one of my very first book boyfriends and he was just as nice in this book.

Ethan is all alone trying to figure out his way back to Lena. I was quite disappointed by his pov in Beautiful Redemption. There was just waaay too much description which made it easy for me to get distracted. Things were moving very slow and like Ethan we had no clue what was going on. Its safe to say that this was the least enjoyable book in the series.

Surprisingly, I flew through Lena's point of view. That is where the real action was going on. It was great to see everyone come together to work to get Ethan back. I loved Link, like always. He and Ridley have this weird bond and I am very curious to see where it goes in Dangerous Creatures. I also liked Liv, John, Macon and Amma.

I think I may have expected a bit too much from this finale so it did not meet my expectations. Sadly, it very much lacked in the romance department though it was all for love. But Beautiful Creatures has one of the most unique worlds so I'm glad I finished off the series. This book is more of a 3.5 but my loyalty to the world makes me give it a 4. Beautiful Redemption was a good read.

Book Quotes- Beautiful Chaos by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

We are eagerly anticipating the release of the fourth and final book in the Caster Chronicles series by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, Beautiful Redemption, which comes out on the 23rd of October, 2012. *excited* :D

To celebrate this, we are having a Caster Chronicles Book Quotes Marathon, where I'll share my favourite quotes from the first three books in the series.

The Caster Chronicles consist of the following books:

 Beautiful Creatures (Caster Chronicles #1), Beautiful Darkness (Caster Chronicles #2), Dream Dark (Caster Chronicles #2.5) and Beautiful Chaos (Caster Chronicles #3).

The book for today is book #3 from the series, Beautiful Chaos.

Goodreads Summary:

Ethan Wate thought he was getting used to the strange, impossible events happening in Gatlin, his small Southern town. But now that Ethan and Lena have returned home, strange and impossible have taken on new meanings. Swarms of locusts, record-breaking heat, and devastating storms ravage Gatlin as Ethan and Lena struggle to understand the impact of Lena's Claiming. Even Lena's family of powerful Supernaturals is affected - and their abilities begin to dangerously misfire. As time passes, one question becomes clear: What - or who - will need to be sacrificed to save Gatlin?

For Ethan, the chaos is a frightening but welcome distraction. He's being haunted in his dreams again, but this time it isn't by Lena - and whatever is haunting him is following him out of his dreams and into his everyday life. Even worse, Ethan is gradually losing pieces of himself - forgetting names, phone numbers, even memories. He doesn't know why, and most days he's too afraid to ask.

Sometimes there isn't just one answer or one choice. Sometimes there's no going back. And this time there won't be a happy ending.

Quotes: 

* While I thought I was learning how to live, I've been learning how to die. 
-Leonardo Da Vinci

* I have been bent and broken, but- I hope- into a better shape.
-Great Expectations, Charles Dickens

* For a few minutes, what e had, we knew. 

* I wondered if wishing was the same thing as praying. If hoping for something badly enough could make it happen. 

* The one thing that doesn't abide by human majority is human conscience. 
-To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee

* I guess some decisions are made before you make them. 

* 'This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning. 

* "Do you believe in love before first sight, L?"
"Do you believe in love after last sight, Ethan?"

* The one word that would come anyway, whether or not we said it. Good-bye. 

* I wasn't much of a poet, but I had the truth, and that was enough. 

I will always love you. 

Ethan 

- ♥ Ethan ♥ 

Sarika

Book Quotes- Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

We are eagerly anticipating the release of the fourth and final book in the Caster Chronicles series by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, Beautiful Redemption, which comes out on the 23rd of October, 2012. *excited* :D

To celebrate this, we are having a Caster Chronicles Book Quotes Marathon, where I'll share my favourite quotes from the first three books in the series. 

The Caster Chronicles consist of the following books:

 Beautiful Creatures (Caster Chronicles #1), Beautiful Darkness (Caster Chronicles #2), Dream Dark (Caster Chronicles #2.5) and Beautiful Chaos (Caster Chronicles #3). 

The book for today is book #2 from the series, Beautiful Darkness.

Goodreads Summary:

Ethan Wate used to think of Gatlin, the small Southern town he had always called home, as a place where nothing ever changed. Then he met mysterious newcomer Lena Duchannes, who revealed a secret world that had been hidden in plain sight all along. A Gatlin that harbored ancient secrets beneath its moss-covered oaks and cracked sidewalks. A Gatlin where a curse has marked Lena's family of powerful Supernaturals for generations. A Gatlin where impossible, magical, life-altering events happen.

Sometimes life-ending.

Together they can face anything Gatlin throws at them, but after suffering a tragic loss, Lena starts to pull away, keeping secrets that test their relationship. And now that Ethan's eyes have been opened to the darker side of Gatlin, there's no going back. Haunted by strange visions only he can see, Ethan is pulled deeper into his town's tangled history and finds himself caught up in the dangerous network of underground passageways endlessly crisscrossing the South, where nothing is as it seems.

Quotes:

* My house was quiet, which isn't what you want a house to be if you're trying to run away from your thoughts. 

* Cuts that run that deep leave scars, no matter what you try to do to heal them.

* There's something about sitting alone in the dark that reminds you how big the world really is, and how far apart we all are. The stars look like they're so close, you could reach out and touch them. But you can't. Sometimes things look a lot closer than they appear. 

* I told myself it was because I was too angry, but that was one of those lies you tell when you're trying to convince yourself that you're doing the right thing. The truth was, I didn't know what to say. I didn't want to ask the questions, and I was scared to hear the answers.

- ♥ Ethan ♥ 

 Sarika

Book Quotes- Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

We are eagerly anticipating the release of the fourth and final book in the Caster Chronicles series by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl, Beautiful Redemption, which comes out on the 23rd of October, 2012. *excited* :D

To celebrate this, we are having a Caster Chronicles Book Quotes Marathon, where I'll share my favourite quotes from the first three books in the series.

The Caster Chronicles consist of the following books:

 Beautiful Creatures (Caster Chronicles #1), Beautiful Darkness (Caster Chronicles #2), Dream Dark (Caster Chronicles #2.5) and Beautiful Chaos (Caster Chronicles #3).

The book for today is book #1 from the series, Beautiful Creatures. 

 

Goodreads Summary:

There were no surprises in Gatlin County.
We were pretty much the epicenter of the middle of nowhere.
At least, that's what I thought.
Turns out, I couldn't have been more wrong.
There was a curse.
There was a girl.
And in the end, there was a grave.

Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she's struggling to conceal her power and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.

Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town's oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them.

In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.

Quotes: 

* Darkness cannot drive out darkness; 
only light can do that.
Hate cannot drive out hate; 
only love can do that.
- Martin Luther King Jr. 

* I didn't want to risk what we had, whatever it was. So why did I think of her every second? Why was I so much happier the minute I saw her? I felt like maybe I knew the answer, but could I be sure? I didn't know and I didn't have any way to find out... 

* That didn't stop me from thinking about her or seeing her practically everywhere I tried not to look. 

* I was alone, and the only thing worse than being alone was having everyone see how lonely I was. 

* What is the opposite of two?
A lonely me, a lonely you. 

* It's crazy what you see when you aren't really looking. 

* Everyday was like a day out of someone else's life. Nothing had ever happened to me, and now everything was happening to me- and by everything, I really meant Lena. An hour was both faster and slower. I felt like I had sucked the air out of a giant balloon, like my brain wasn't getting enough oxygen. Clouds were more interesting, the lunchroom less disgusting, music sounded better, the same old jokes were funnier, and Jackson went from being a clump of grayish-green buildings to map of times and places where I might run into her. I found myself smiling for no reason, keeping my earphones in and replaying our conversations in my head just so I could listen to them again. 
I had seen this kind of thing before. 
I had just never felt it. 

- ♥ Ethan ♥ 

Sarika