If you’re looking for a heartwarming story about a girl who falls deeply in love with a troubled boy who changes her life-a sob story with pretty metaphors and a million ways that’ll tell you how “broken” she is, STOP. Don’t read another word of this.
I’m not that type of girl.
My name is Emerald Anderson and I’m not going to bullshit you: I flunked out of college after my sophomore year, I’ve been fired from every job I’ve ever taken, and I’ve never had a fully functioning relationship in my life.
I wish I could say that I had a cheerleader in my corner, someone who says, “No, Emerald-You’re great and you are good at something!” but I don’t. My grandparents are completely oblivious to my life, and my mother’s dying words to me were “You’re going to end up just like me one day. A beautiful nothing.”
She was right.
As I decide to start my life over and take two jobs that will forever change me-one from the inside, and one from the outside, I keep my mother’s words close to my heart so I can keep the sexy and mysterious Carter Black away.
He’s the first man who’s ever pursued me, the first man who seems bent on finding out why I am the way I am, but he’s wasting his time.
I’m not broken. I don’t need to be fixed. I’m perfectly fine being a beautiful failure…
PEPPER’S REVIEW
God Damnit! MCole! OK, so this wasn’t a “cliffy” (as my lovely ladies like to call it) by general standards. But it was definitely a continuation. And I want more. I want more mother hugging NOW!
So, this was SUCH a good book. And MCole does not wait to like fucking punch you in the balls from page one. But, I was pretty ready for this due to the synopsis. This def was NOT a super touchy feely book. But when it got there, god damn it was sweet and I haven’t been this happy for a character to get her AHA moment - maybe ever.
OK, if you read my reviews, you know I don’t like recapping the story. I don’t want to give you a summary of the book. And this is one book that needs to just be read. Like check out they synopsis, but seriously. The story grabs you by the balls and stays there until… well my (proverbial) balls are still in a vice. I fucking loved how MCole developed Emerald’s (Em) story. Yes, she has some serious shitty stuff happen to her, but the way it’s written, it doesn’t feel like one of those fucking movies (ie. the Hangover) that you are like, OMG, what more can happen. It’s just so seamless that it feels like a natural progression of her life. I was like:
Em is fucking awesome. I loved her. Every. Single. Bit. She rolls with it. Tells everyone to fuck off. And looks out for herself. She is a less than semi functional alcoholic. And she can’t keep a job. Sounds stellar. But swear to God, I just want to high five that bitch for persevering after the insanity she endured as a child.
And then you have Carter. Who falls for Em for every reason I did. Not because she needs to be fixed. Not because she needs someone to hold her and pat her head against their bosom. But because she is so kick ass, snarky, and he can see that she is capable of love. That not only made him amazing, but opened a whole new world for Em. I hope we see more of his story in book 2.
And the chemistry. Lady parts were twitching very early on, people. Hot. Times 1 billion. Loved these two together. He was such a southern gentelman with her and she didn’t get why, but excepted it and was of course a wise ass about it. GAH - I want more. I’ll just say that their story is not complete!
So, although I am frothing at the mouth for book 2, I was SO happy with how things ended in this book. Em figures shit out. And makes amazing/hard/emotional decisions that left me like:
I really really loved this book! I couldn’t put it down. Not only were Em and Carter great leads, the supporting cast was amazing as well. I LOVED Em’s grandparents. They were described as “Bible Belt Christians” and they were extremely religious, but accepted Em for who she was - all the time being there for her and helping her want to be her best. I think they realized that things could have been different with Em’s mom, so they worked so hard to do things differently with Em. I really appreciated this aspect of the book.
Loved this debut novel from Mariah Cole. So good. So unapologetic. So real. Get it today!!
Beautiful Failure Deleted Scene
(A Flashback)
“Em! Em!” Leah walks through the front door with shopping bags dangling from her wrists.
“Yeah?” I hold the phone against my neck. “I’m ordering pizza. You want some? We could watch bad movies and make fun of them together.”
She shakes her head and rolls her eyes. “Riiiight. I’m leaving for New York tonight with Vincent. Look at what he bought for me to wear on the plane!”
She pulls out a white satin dress and holds it against her chest.
There’s no doubt that she’ll look beautiful in it. She looks beautiful in everything…
“When are you coming back?”
“Monday maybe? Tuesday? It’s not like I’ll be in a hurry. It’s New York, kid.” She perfectly imitates a New-Yorker’s accent.
I hear the pizza operator saying “Hello” over and over so I finish ordering the pizza, watching Leah pull out her other designer purchases.
When I set the phone down, she motions for me to come over.
“While I’m gone, feel free to invite your boyfriend over,” she says. “Do you need me to get you some condoms?”
“I told you I dumped him two months ago.”
“So?” She shrugs. “You can still use him for sex. Oh, wait. I forgot. He wasn’t good at it, right?”
“Right.”
She sighs. “I hate when that happens. I always have to fake my way through it when the man has no idea what he’s doing. It’s a damn shame, really.”
“My writing seminar is Monday night. Can you tell Vincent you need to be back by then so you can make it?”
“Of course! I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” She presses her finger against my lips and sighs. “You put on too much gloss today….” She reaches into another shopping bag and hands me a new compact make-up case. “You should use this for your presentation on Monday.”
“Thanks.” I force a smile and listen as she starts to show off more of her purchases, knowing damn well that she won’t be in the audience Monday. She’ll forget like she always does, and I’ll forgive her like I always do. Then we’ll both end up drunk and restless on our balcony…
AUTHOR INFO
Mariah Cole is a Starbucks addict (hazelnut shots please!), New Adult author, and an incessant daydreamer. Known for pushing the envelope, she’s an avid reader of indie books and is always looking to chat with readers and authors alike.
Giveaway
10.00 Amazon Gift Card
10.00 Starbucks Gift Card
3 e-book copies Beautiful Failure
5 signed Beautiful Failure Postcards
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